Our Teachers
The following is an alphabetical (after our Guest Teachers) list of instructors who presented classes at Costume College 2010.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | J | K | L | M | N | P | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y
Shawna Trpcic, Special Guest Teacher for 2010
A Southern California native, Shawna entered into the world of costume and fashion design as an art student in high school, and Otis in Los Angeles. As well as the fashion figure, Shawna studied the fine arts of watercolor, acrylics, pottery and ceramics. She began working in the film industry, designing for students at the American Film Institute. She worked in costume design for Megaville, Toys and Red Shoe Diaries. She is a well-known Hollywood Costume Designer, best known for her work on Joss Whedon's Firefly, Angel, Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and Dollhouse. Her greatest joy is her family and teaching those in need.
Shelly Foote, Special Guest Teacher for 2010
Shelly Foote retired from The National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D. C. in 2004 as the Assistant Chair of the Division of Social History. While there she worked on numerous exhibitions and related publications. Her interest in reform clothing resulted in two articles, the first "Bloomers" appeared in Dress: The Journal of the Costume Society of America in 1980. Since retirement she has kept active in the costume field. She is currently researching a book on Howard Greer, an early Hollywood costume designer, and is President-Elect of the Western Region of the Costume Society of America.
Lynne Ashby
Lynne has been a member of the NCWA since 1993, and is a founding member of the Trades and Professions Guild. She and her family got started in re-enacting after they attended a Civil War re-enactment and her older son announced that HE was going to do this. Lynne and her husband figured that they had better go along, and she has been re-enacting since then.. It didn’t take her long to figure out that it would be much easier to make her own clothes for events, and she has been sewing ever since…
Lana Bailey
Lana is a lover of history, with a passion for detailed research of historical clothing. She received a degree in Fashion Design from FIDM and has 15+ years experience as a historical reenactor. Involvement in the Costumer’s Guild West resulted in the honor of being Dean of Costume College 2007. A commitment to historical accuracy resulted in her inclusion in a group reproduction of Winterhalter’s portrait of “Empress Eugenie and her Maids of Honor, 1855” for CostumeCon 2008, competing at the Master Level; they were awarded Best in Show. Lana is looking forward to launching Lana/Lily a design company offering wedding and historical, fashions and millinery.
Cynthia Barnes
With extensive historical dance experience, Cynthia Barnes has a theatrical & social dance resume spanning decades. Her costuming specialty is historic social dance wear for both men and women. For 20 years, she has been dancing, costuming, choreographing and performing with a number of SF Bay Area groups, including Danse Libre, showcasing 19th & early 20th century historic social dances, Stanford Vintage Dance Ensemble, the Butterfly Bloomers Can-can troupe at San Juan Bautista, PEERS, BAERS, Playford Ball and Dickens Faire. Lately, she's spending lots of time with Renaissance dance forms and is translating a 15th c Burgundian dance manual.
Arabella Benson
After a short career in special effects (helping to build a thirty-foot buffalo being the highlight), Arabella now chooses costuming as a hobby. With both historical and science fiction costumes under her belt, she has decided to pass on the weirder tips and tricks she's picked up along the way. Arabella is a returning Costume College instructor. You can follow her at twitter.com/vylettefairwell
Bridget Bradley-Scaife
Bridget started costuming at the age of twelve when she got involved in Renaissance Faires. Since then, she has expanded her love of costuming to all time periods, including fantasy. She loves researching and collecting images of historical clothing and also finding the supplies to recreate them. Bridget is an active member in the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild and is currently on the board as the Web Administrator.
Joyce Brendlinger
Joyce took my first sewing class in 8th grade summer school. A very, very long time ago. She’s been making clothes and costumes ever since. Her focus for the summer of 2009 is 14th c. clothing for women and men, but her first choice for costumes will always be Renaissance Florence. She’s made duct tape forms and paper tape forms - She much prefers the paper tape ones!
Simone A. Bryan
Simone became hooked on costumes when she saw "Cinderella." However, after a strange burning incident in Home Ec., she became "sewphobic." She joined the SCA and became a Stage Interpreter for the Renaissance Faires without ever getting close to one of those scary machines. After marriage, she picked up a second-hand machine, and with lots of encouragement conquered the fear (if not the machine). Simone began to bring to life the creations in her mind, and 18 years later Simone is making costumes, and garb for her family. She is founder of the West Kingdom Costume Guild, and considers herself a true fabriholic and certified "Garb" hound.
Amy Calcote
Amy grew up watching her mother make costumes, clothes, and dolls. Her mother taught her how to both hand sew and sew by machine. In middle school, Amy took basic and advanced fashion design classes. By college, she was costuming plays, when she wasn't busy in her engineering or art classes. In North Carolina, Amy got involved in Middle Eastern bellydancing and costuming. Now, she works in the film and video game industry and spends her free time, when she's not at work or business school, sewing costumes from the late Victorian era through the mid 20th century.
Francis Classe
Francis has been costuming for almost eleven years, and making shoes for almost six. He has been intensely studying raised heels (chopines, zoccoli, stacked heels) for the past three years, and is the author of “Chopine, Zoccolo, and Other Raised Heel Construction. Although his specific area of interest is the latter half of the 16th century, he is interested in all manner of costuming, both historical and fantasy. Originally working on Medieval and early Renaissance turnshoe construction, he shifted his focus to welted shoes, and then to platforms and raised heels and boots.
Lisa Coffey
Lisa has had an interest in history and costuming ever since she can remember. She began Civil War Re-enacting at the age of 16 when she found a hobby that combined her passion for fabric and history – and allowed her to have an excuse to own a lot of hats! Fourteen years later, she is the Civilian Director for the Southern Nevada Living History Association and a history major at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Olivia Competente
Olivia Competente /Jewels By Olivia, a jeweler, is a native of San Francisco. With a love of all things jewelry she is versed in metal smithing and her first love which are beads. Olivia now teaches all things jewelry with her mother Dina Competente at the Sharon Art Studio in San Francisco. She loves all things sparkly and colorful. Costume college has been her teaching home away from home for 4 years.
Colleen Crosby
As the current Dean of Costume College as well as a director-at-large of the CGW, Colleen has been keeping busy plenty busy. She also continues to make and wear costumes to historical, science fiction, and fantasy events, as she has been for many years. As a producer and costumer for Lux Theater, she is often called upon to come up with quick science fiction costumes. As a result, she has an awfully odd costume closet
Shawn Crosby
A freelance artist, Shawn Crosby has most recently worked as an Art Director for the Griffith Observatory. He has been a prop builder for Star Trek, toy designer for Mattel and Playmates, model maker for the Disney parks, and a computer game designer. He is a founding member of the Enigma Players and Lux Theater. Despite these accomplishments, he will probably forever be best known as the owner of the "H-Wing" Star Wars art car. Beginning with a Jan. 1st Rose Parade appearance, Shawn spent 141 days of 2007 in costume, mostly portraying Star Wars characters for charity.
Rory Cunningham
Rory is a professional costumer in film, television, and stage. He worked in the industry for almost 20 years and has taught costume construction at UCLA for three years.
Loren Dearborn
Loren Dearborn has been making costumes for about 14 years. She is a member of the Costume Society of America and the Victorian Society and a frequent attendee of Costume Con and Costume College. Her main areas of interest are 18th and 19th century costumes and movie recreations. She has a particular passion for hats and shoes.
Lynn Downward
Lynn has been sewing since she was quite young and sewing costumes since before she joined the Northern Renaissance Faire and Dickens Fair in 1977. She and her husband raised her two daughters at Ren faires from 1986 until leaving the life when RPFN left Blackpoint in 1998. She still builds their costumes, including a bowl of strawberries and a bathroom sink. She focuses on 16C England and 19C and 20C Europe and America. She has learned millinery, jewelry and power tool skills for costuming and can fake a lot, even within the 5 foot rule.
Mercurio "Bunny" Ekaterin
Bunny has been a costume enthusiast since her first (and most disastrous) role as the sheep in a school play. With a bachelors degree in architecture and many years of thrifting as a starving student, Bunny has become most interested in recombining and transforming thriftstore finds into costuming pieces. Although equal-opportunity to all styles and periods, her current passion lingers in the late 18th century.
Joycelyn Falsken
Acting in the Northern Calif. Renaissance Faire in the early-1980s was the start of historic costuming passion for Joycelyn. Taking classes to learn to make better costumes for her family quickly became serious study. It has taken her through 5 colleges, a custom historic reproduction sewing business, and collections manager of the Historic Costume & Textiles Collection at The Ohio State University, where she received her PhD focused on dress history. She currently holds a faculty position teaching design and construction at Kansas State University. The questions she always asks is “How did they make it?” and “Why did they make it that way?”
Elizabeth Martin Gerds
A past president of the CGW, Liz has been costuming for most of her life, and has been creating and wearing costumes at Renaissance Faires and Science Fiction/Fantasy Conventions, as well as working professionally for the Civic Light Opera South Bay Cities, UCLA and independent theatre productions. Along with her husband Eric, Liz has been involved with Costume College from the beginning and Currently focused on corsetry, Liz is working at Farthingales LA, and will happily discuss the different types of supplies currently available.
Eric Gerds
Eric Gerds has been a part time teacher at Santa Monica College for the past 18 years. When he is not teaching he has worked in both the Aero Space industry and the entertainment industry. Some of the companies that Eric has worked for over the years include, United States Air Force, Boeing satellite systems, CBS, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Frank Gehry Partners to name a few.
Barbara Gerleman
Barbara has been a member of the National Civil War Association since 1984 and is a founding member of the Trades and Professions Guild. She is also a charter member of the Friends of Civil War Alcatraz organization and focuses on bringing the island alive during its period as a federal fortress. She started in reenacting after attending the 1983 Dickens Faire. Barbara learned to make period clothing the hard way – through trial and error and under the tutelage of two very sharing sisters. She has since gone from being just a student to being both a student and instructor.
Steven Gillan
For the past 27 years, Steven has headed Clan MacColin of Glenderry, the oldest operating 16th Century Highland and Irish reenactment organization in the United States. Through extensive and ongoing research, he has striven to establish and enhance a plausible, historic appearance-standard for Clan MacColin. This information has been used variously by many subsequent Highland and Irish reenactment groups from the Middle Ages to the English Civil War.
Tracylynn Gomez
Licenced hair dresser by trade, Historical costumer by choice! Tracylynn has designed for film, television and print . Owner of Making your dream come true! she began in the theater as a small child and grew to fall in love with artistic costume and clothing.. She started her own wedding and special-occasions business. Her business is more than just bridal and costume design! Covering everything from wedding and event planning right down to special-occasion hair design and makeup. She is a member of SASS Lady Fleur #73656.
Tracey Gorin
Tracey started her beading and crafting as a young girl, but didn’t begin costuming until 2003. As a beginning seamstress, she found sewing a wonderful challenge, which allowed her to expand her creative repertoire and gave her so much inspiration. Tracey loves learning from others, and finding new ways of doing things and combining talents into new projects.
Judy Grivich
Judy has been costuming since her grandmother first brainwashed her into a love of sewing. Her interests range all over the board, including historical, fantasy, science fiction, media recreation, millinery, and anime costuming. However, Judy's true love is creating armor and working with resins and plastics. Her philosophy is that which does not kill you, makes you safety conscious.
Maegen Hensley
Maegen graduated from Cal State Long Beach with majors in Fashion Design and Fashion Merchandising. Though she currently works in the fashion industry, her love is historical and fantasy costuming, and she incorporates it into her designing whenever possible. Maegen attends over a dozen events each year ranging in time periods such as Regency, Dickens, Gatsby 20’s and Civil War. Her favorite pastimes are doing research for a new fabulous dress and making costumes for her rambunctious daughter and baby boy! She has been a volunteer at Costume College for the past 10 years.
Mela Hoyt-Heydon
Mela is a union costume designer for the entertainment industry and is the head of the design department at Fullerton College. She is also part of the Smithsonian’s “American Research Expedition,” a member of the Costume Society of America and currently working on a book about men’s period tailoring. Additionally, Mela is one of Costume College’s most veteran teachers as well as a Dean Emeritus.
Kaelyn Johnson
Kaelyn Johnson works for the National Park Service in Yellowstone National Park. An avid renaissance reenactor of many years, she found herself in WY. The Bill Cody Museum in Cody WY became the site of research for her graduate degree. In the process of this research she was able to view the actual costuming of this amazing show.
Malaki Keller
Evidenced by a 15-year career creating magical things in the fields of Film, Television, Comics, and Toys, Malaki strives for a unique look in all he creates. Whether detailing comic pages, crafting props and costumes, or designing and building toys, each of his creations develops its own sense of personality. Past credits include Alien Resurrection and Starship Troopers on film, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Yo Gabba Gabba! on TV, and Airwalk and Heineken advertising campaigns. Working in foam, clay, resin, plastic, wood and any material necessary to accomplish the project, he has on occasion even worked with chocolate.
Valarie LaBore
Valarie started researching historically correct costumes in 2002 after dressing up to go to afternoon tea. She thought she was in a strange world of her own, until another costumer contacted her online about Costume College. She was intimidated, since she didn't think she was that good, but found she wasn't the only one. She discovered other people just as crazy as she was. She was also introduced to the various costume guilds, and joined the San Diego Costume Guild. She just finished a 3-year term as President and moved into other areas of costume genres. She loves to play dress up!
Bridget Landry
Bridget started out in SF costuming at age 13, took a detour through historical realms (mostly Victorian and Regency), and is most noted for combining the two, as in the Strauss Waltz Assault Team and Computer Pirates. She has won workmanship and presentation awards at the local, region, national, and international levels. Together with her partner in crime, Kate Morganstern, she has been a panelist on many costuming panels at WorldCons, CostumeCons and Costume Colleges, as well as at the regional and local level.
Regina Lawson
As a teenager, Regina costumed high school theatre productions and rock bands, such as Motley Crue and Quiet Riot in L.A.'s rock scene. Starting in 1985 at the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in Southern California, she has costumed Highland and Irish, English, Italian, and German re-enactors, as well as 16thC and 17thC Polish and Turkish, and Victorian clothing. Regina is currently the Historical Clothing Coordinator for Clan MacColin of Glenderry, the premier 16th C Irish and Highland Re-enactment organization.
Kathy Lear
Kathy has been sewing since age 7 (for her Barbie and larger dolls) and costuming since age 12 – in many time periods and ethnicities. Thanks to her grandmother, she was introduced her to a treadle sewing machine and an almost unlimited range of needle arts. Kathy now teaches dance, Medieval through the Turn of the 20th Century, and makes the clothes to go with the dances. Her theory of how to make anything wearable look good is to make clothing for people, not costumes for mannequins. She is a long-time teacher at Costume College.
Karey Leichel
Karey Leichel has costuming all her life and has been in teaching about costuming for at least 15 years. She has collecting fans and making fans for about 15 years. She has also made masks for about the same time. Hats and hat construction has been a passion since she was a little girl dressing her Barbie at four or five years old.
Sandra M.Manning
Sandra started costuming back when she was about 13 or so and been doing it since then. She's been belly dancing for the past 9 years and making her own dance clothing. She's also been gardening forever and she spends the year in the wilds of Alaska teaching mathematics.
Lynn McMasters
Lynn has tried making almost everything one can do with a sewing machine, from everyday clothes to period costumes for porcelain dolls, educational puppets and costumes for such places as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Point Reyes National Sea Shore and Santa Barbara Botanical Gardens. In the past 10 years she has concentrated on period hats and has started a line of period hat patterns. Examples of her work can be seen on her website http://lynnmcmasters.com. Lynn has taught at Costume College, the GBACG Costume Academy, and workshops at SCA Arts and Sciences. She teaches corset making, millinery and Elizabethan embellishment-related classes as well.
Shannon McSmith
Shannon was taught early to embroider and sew while watching television and during family holidays. Although she was not able to properly sew a garment until high school, she spent a lot of time copying and designing costumes and clothes. In recent years she has not only improved her textile skills, but has worked to become a true maven of fashion rules and acceptable appearances in the many time periods in which she indulges her creative skills. Shannon has helped to teach embroidery courses at Costume College over the last few years, and is active in historical, recreational and educational groups.
Rebecca Metzger
Rebecca has been sewing for as long as she can remember and has always been fascinated with women in history and the clothes they wore – particularly the women of the 1860’s to the 1950’s. However, it wasn’t till the late 1990’s that she began using her sewing talents to create the historical fashions that have always intrigued her. Rebecca is also a WWII living historian with the 45th Field Hospital.
Natalie Meyer
Natalie is the site costumer for both Heritage Square Museum and the Workman Temple Homestead. She has been sewing since she was six. Natalie has taught at Costume College too many times to count and was Dean of Costume College 2001.
Elizabeth Miller
Liz worked for a few decades as a publication editor, graphic designer, and photographer, before becoming a public relations consultant. She is an avid hand sewer, knitter, etc., etc., and has created custom clothing (historical or wearable art) for family, friends and clients. She started designing jewelry for pleasure 30 years ago, and (with a B.A. in History) takes a particular interest in historically inspired designs. She has been addicted to Viking Knit (a woven wire technique) and chain maille for the past few years and enjoys sharing these skills with old and new friends.
Jess Miller
Jess has been costuming for over 30 years, starting with the Northern Renaissance Pleasure Faire and proceeding all over the costume landscape. She has a B.A. in Art with an emphasis on textiles, and has done further coursework in Anthropology, which only makes her that much more confused. Jess is a Dean Emeritus of Costume College, and runs masquerades for such conventions as LosCon, the Los Angeles area Science Fiction convention.
Thomas Moore
Thomas is a reenactor and historical costumer who lives in Northern California and is returning to teach again this year.
Kate Morgenstern
Starting at age 3, Kate has tried most techniques for fabric manipulation. She makes science fiction, fantasy and historical costumes—sometimes all in the same outfit. Co-founder of the Association for Costumers, Related Oddities, Ninjas and Yak Merchants, she does her best to live up to their motto, "Doing Our Part To Make Your Life A Little More Surreal."
Jean Mosteller
Jean has been costuming for community theater for over 15 years. She has won numerous Inland Theater League Awards for Excellence in Costuming. She was an Inland Theater League Judge for 5 years and on the Board of Directors of Yucaipa Little Theatre for 2 years and Heartland Players for 5 years. Some of her favorite shows that she received awards for were: “Meet Me in St Louis“, “Jane Eyre“, “Pride and Prejudice“, “Arsenic and Old Lace”, “A Christmas Carol” and “The Importance of Being Earnest“. She currently makes a living selling Victorian costume items on her website WWW.OldMillMercantile.com.
Barbara Muran
Barbara Muran has had a lifelong passion for sewing, taking and teaching sewing classes at very opportunity, some for fun, some required for her Home Economics degree. In 1999 Barbara joined Sutter’s Fort in and launched headlong in to the world of historic clothing. Using half scale garments and body forms, Barbara speaks at schools, historic parks, and other groups. Barbara began teaching Laughing Moon corset workshops in 2004, and as proprietor of 'Of Corset,' Barbara teaches corset and historic clothing workshops. In addition to making custom corsets, her line of corsets is available through Sacramento City Dry Goods.
Gail Nichols
Gail has worked in costuming for many years, from making costumes for her children to working in a costume shop, including sales, designing, making costumes for inventory and custom jobs. For the past 14 years, Gail has worked for the Santa Cruz Shakespeare Festival in conjunction with UCSC, in the costume shop. She worked in as master-stitcher and first hand for summer and holiday productions. She continues to accumulate a variety of skills and experiences in costuming and stitching. Gail has taught at creative retreats, assisted other teachers and mentored native artisans in Peru, helping them in product design and development.
Sarah Northrip
Sarah Northrip has attended and volunteered at Costume College since she was in high school and is excited to be teaching this year. She grew up in the historic West Adams area of Los Angeles and was a part of costuming communities from an early age. Her love of playing dress up has never ceased and she particularly enjoys Renaissance, as well as the blend of historic and science-fiction elements in Steampunk. Making jewelry and accessories are her specialty. She discovered needle-felting while teaching elementary school and was immediately hooked! She is pleased to share her passion with other costumers.
Shelley Peters
Shelley has loved sewing and costuming all her life. She started in second grade, and costumed her siblings for home productions. Her children and their friends were always dressed in creative Halloween costumes. She moved on to Renaissance, wedding gowns, and Dickens Christmas Carolers. She found Civil War Reenacting and has immersed herself in researching history, period clothing and garment construction. She is active with the American Civil War Society, Inc., as the Civilian Corps Director for three years. She has taught at Costume College for the seven years. She teaches period sewing and corset workshops and has a custom sewing business, specializing in corsets and ball gowns.
JoAnn Peterson
JoAnn has her certificate in Fashion Design and Production and has been making patterns for 13 years. She is the designer and owner of Laughing Moon Mercantile sewing patterns. JoAnn and her partner, Dale Blair, have recently begun a new enterprise, Sacramento City Dry Goods. They are purveyors of goods catering to the 19th Century Reenactor.
Corinne Pleger
Corinne’s first sewing project was a Granny dress made at age 12. Her first costume was a Medieval outfit for an early Ren Faire. Corinne presently lives in a 1908 house, is envolved with various re-enactment groups and attends historic themed dances and events. She discovered the first Costume College by accident, has been decreasing her closet space ever since, and joined the “faculty” of Costume College in 2000. To support Corinne’s costuming habit, she is a Certified Public Accountant with her own firm and has given tax advice to costumers about their activities. She was Dean of Costume College in 2005.
Cindy Price
Born and raised in Southern California, Cindy was raised by her grandmother, who taught her to sew while she was in elementary school. Her grandmother shopped at thrift stores, selecting clothing made out of the most beautiful fabrics, whether the garment fit or not. She would take remake them into wonderful outfits for her granddaughter. Cindy still loves scrounging through a thrift store! Cindy is a Civil War reenactor, and loves scrapbooking, altered art, crocheting, jewelry making, and many other crafts! Cindy became aware of Steampunk during Costume College 2008. She loved the look right away, and was particularly interested in the jewelry. A first-time teacher, her class this year is on how to create your own Steampunk jewelry.
Elizabeth Reed
Elizabeth ruined her first iron at the age of about 7, ironing a pair of doll pants made from a toy sewing machine that used glue instead of thread. Remember those? Her costuming experience includes English Renaissance, Medieval, Victorian, Fantasy, and Steampunk. Handwork is really her specialty. She loves ribbons, beads, feathers, lush trims and just about anything remotely related to those
Jody Regan
Jody learned to sew on her grandmother’s treadle machine at age of 8. In the small-town Iowa high school she attended, Jody was cast as a member of the chorus in H.M.S. Pinafore, as the king’s wife in The King and I and as Liesl in The Sound of Music. Cast members had to provide their own costumes, and while making hers, Jody fell in love with costuming. Since then, her interest in costumes has included various historical periods, fantasy and Steampunk. Jody served as Dean of Costume College in 2006 and is currently vice-president of the San Diego Costume Guild.
Jennifer Rosbrugh
Always feeling like she was born in the wrong century, Jennifer has been sewing for over 25 years mostly making her own clothes and home furnishings. For the past ten years she has found a passion in historical clothing (1780s-1920s), studying the design and construction process. She is a Civil War reenactor and a founding member of the Historical Citizens Association (HCA). Jennifer is co-owner of CloakAndCorset.com, an internet resource for 19th Century historical clothing construction offering a free monthly eNewsletter. She has taught at Costume College since 2004.
Donna Scarfe
From her experience with Renaissance fairs, Donna found there were few who could create quality headwear, and decided to fill the void. She liked working with hats because: they only required one yard of material; and they were small, easily portable, and could be sewn in the car! Her company “Fyne Hats by Felicity” creates a wide range of custom hats and her Renaissance headwear has turned up on fair participants from nationwide. She has also done some period theatrical work and once outfitted a whole madrigal choir with Dickens’ Bonnets. Donna admits she is partial to wide brimmed hats with lots of feathers.
Kimiko Small
Kimiko has been involved in sewing costumes since a child, researching since a teen, involved with Tudor ren-faires since 1987, and recently joined the SCA. She was an advisor in costume research for Margo Anderson's Historical Costume Patterns for their new Henrician pattern line. She continues her quest for more 16th c. costume information, from French hoods, to early Tudor clothing construction, and enjoys creating historical clothing almost as much as researching about them. More info about her at www.kimiko1.com.
Kristin Stonham
Born into a line of sewers, Kristin is sure her grandmothers never thought of all the things she’d do with what they taught her! Over a decade after watching a costume competition and declaring to a friend “We can do that too,” she’s still going strong, dabbling in every type of fabric craft she can get her hands on.
Lindsay Tallman
Lindsay's costuming takes her all over the map and all over the history books. She plays with the Guild of St. Luke at the Northern California Renaissance Faire, visits the Great Dickens Christmas Fair, and attends anime and science fiction conventions up and down the state. Her version of Giselle's wedding dress from Enchanted (nicknamed the Cupcake of Doom) was seen in the Costume Exhibit in 2008. This is her first year teaching at Costume College, though she's been attending for several years. Feel free to stop her in the halls to say hello!
Rebecca Thelin
Rebecca has always loved dressing up and re-creating historical eras inspired by reading classic books such as "Little House on the Prairie," "Little Women," and "Anne of Green Gables." It was in college, however, that the "sewing bug" and enthusiasm for reenacting really took root. Rebecca is a founding member and President of the Historical Citizens Association and runs an "Inn" for Oak Street at Civil War events. She can also be found at English Country Dance events and the annual Jane Austen Evening. Rebecca first attended Costume College in 2003 and has been a teacher since 2006.
Feather Tippetts
With a French Milliner as her maternal grandmother it’s hardly surprising that costume design and creation are a passion for Feather. The owner and principal designer of Grand Gestures Historical Costume, she creates garments as historically accurate as possible. Her clients include Impersonators, Re-enactors, and Interpretive Speakers at Historical Sites. Frequently called upon as a speaker and consultant on historical clothing for museums, educational institutions, and private clubs, she also leads workshops on design and construction for students focusing on historical costume. Feather lives on a ranch with horses, mules, ostriches, camels, cattle and a beagle in Morgan Hill, California. She is a member of GBACG.
Laura Ulak
Laura Ulak has been making costumes for 20+ years. After wearing the same thing every day in the Army, she decided that playing dress-up was more fun. She specialized in Highland Dancewear, then switched to Historical and Sci-Fi costuming and has a love of Twisted Historicals. She has dressed Santa Clauses, festive brides and Renaissance Princesses and in 2009 recreated the costumes from the Six Wives of Henry VIII as displayed at Madame Tussaud’s in London. She is deeply thankful to have a supportive family and Posse that enables her to do what she loves. She can be found at www.theaccidentalseamstress.com.
Katie Vardijan
Katie was the Workshop Coordinator for the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild from 2006-2008, travels around the US as an Independent Education Consultant for Elna, Inc., and teaches sewing classes in the San Francisco Bay Area. Katie chronicles her crafty adventures on her blog: http://allthingsvintagerouge.blogspot.com.
Fran Wasielewski
Fran has been studying and teaching various re-enactment skills, from acting and dancing, to clothing, cooking, and lifestyles for more than 20 years. She has a Master's Degree in American Studies (Outdoor Museum Studies & Folklore). Trained as an anthropologist, archaeologist, and folklorist, Fran enjoys bringing the past to life. She formerly worked for the Santa Barbara Historical Society.
Janea Whitarce
Janea is Mistress Milliner and Mantua-maker in the Department of Historic Trades at Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Her research in her trades, their products and technologies led to preserving them by way of the Apprenticeship Program in 1995. In 2005, she was recognized as Mistress of her trades. She continues to research and study clothing as well as the lives and work of her 1700's ccounterparts. She regularly shares her knowledge through workshops and lectures. She has appeared on the Mr. Rogers Show, Love of Quilting, and Colonial Williamsburg productions for television. Her reproductions of accessories and clothing have been included in museum exhibits from nationwide, as well as being exhibited daily at Colonial Williamsburg.
Dave Wilson
Dave has an omnivorous interest in history that has expanded into costuming because of Costume College, first as a student for three years then as an instructor for five more years he has thoroughly enjoyed learning and sharing with other people a growing involvement with all things sewing. Dave is a renaissance re-enactor, makes chain maille, plate armor and cuir bouille and does coats of arms for his friends. Renewing friendships and making new ones at costume college is one of the high points of the year. He hopes to add to his knowledge and friends for many more years to come...
"Wolfcat" (Jonnalyhn Hall)
Wolfcat has been sewing in one form or another since the early 70’s when her mother began her with basic embroidery, quilting and straight seams. She’s since progressed to medieval recreations, science fiction costumes and full-bore fantasy competition pieces, and delights in learning or sharing new concepts. Besides anime wings of unusual materials, her latest fascination is Victorian inspired clothing for making her wedding dress.
Kathryn Wolters
Kathryn is an "incorrigible" costume/jewelry/needlework junkie for 35 plus years. She started at a tender age of 8, making historical costumes for her Barbie doll, and has gone on to costume adult sized 'Barbies', 'Kens', 'Skippers', as well as anyone else who'd stand still in front of her long enough. She has worked/played/taught with several different costuming and re-creation groups over the years, including Renaissance Faire, S.C.A., Friends of the English Regency, Past Times with Good Company, and has been a repeat teacher at Costume College. The words "lifetime addictions" come to mind.
Carol Wood
A professional costumer and dressmaker, Carol Wood has been researching, recreating, and wearing historical garments for decades. Her work has been honored with awards, shown in galleries, worn to period events, and escorted down the wedding aisle. She has over 20 years teaching experience, writes for local costume newsletters, and is an assistant draper at the San Francisco Opera. She is a native of the East Bay, but lived much of her life in Europe where she studied historical garments first-hand and began collecting many historical garments.
Vanessa Wood
Vanessa is a native of Chicago and a perpetual student at the University of Arizona. She is a returning teacher at Costume College and suffers from OCVPCD: Obsessive/Compulsive Vintage Pattern Collecting Disorder.
Diane Yoshitomi
Diane has felt at home with needle & thread in hand since age 9, when her grandmother taught her to embroider. By her 20s she made all her own clothes and, after entering fashion design school, designed many of them as well. She began costuming while a docent at a Victorian house museum, but credits Costume College and its many avenues of acquaintance with the skills needed to create true "period dress." She has receive awards at Costume Cons and other events for her Victorian gowns. She is also a self-styled CJJ (Certified Jewelry Junkie), with a substantial collection of Victorian, Edwardian, and later vintage jewelry.