CGW Lectures & Workshops: Current
Upcoming Events
- Glove Making with Mela Hoyt-Heydon via Zoom - Sunday, March 22, 2026 - Click Here for more info!
- How to Wear a Lace-Front Wig with Dean Banowetz (April) - More information coming soon!
- Victorian Corsetry Retreat - More information coming soon!
Past Events
Cool Tricks: A Live Online Lecture
with Kenneth D. King
Saturday, Feb 14th 11 AM - 1 PM PT
Join us as Kenneth shows us all the tricks and tips we need for more beautiful garments. Some of the techniques included will be:
* Balanced Darts that lay flat and smooth
* Waistband, Collar, & Cuff Finishing
* Installing Piping easily and beautifully
* Sewing Inside Corners
*and more!
Diane Yoshitomi's Sewing Estate Sale!
Saturday, February 7th
12 - 4 PM PT
Many of you may know me, Diane Yoshitomi, a longtime member of CGW and a teacher at Costume College. I am writing to you as I face a dilemma: my husband and I will soon be moving from our large house to a small 3-room unit in a senior living facility — and I simply cannot take my entire costume collection and various stashes with me! You can help me solve that dilemma by participating in a one-day-only sale at my by-then vacant house, a sale which will benefit not only you and me but also CGW, as I will contribute a generous portion of total sales revenue to our Scholarship Fund.
Regency Era Hairpieces
Saturday, January 17
10 AM - 1 PM PT
Discover easy, foolproof Regency Era hair techniques that will save time and money. Learn how to work with human and synthetic hair extensions, set curls, align pieces, and sew them into sturdy, reusable side curls for all your Regency events. Dean will talk about easy ways of invisibly attaching them to your head, and the best ideas for arranging your own hair around them.
1950s Juliet Cap with Netting
with Stacia Smith-Alexander
a Zoom workshop
Saturday, December 13
10 AM - 12 PM PT
Students will work from a purchased buckram base and construct a simple, 1950s, "Juliet"-style hat. Techniques will include: wiring, applying bias tape to the edge, forming the hat, and sewing fabric. Students will also add hat netting, decorations, and a lining.
Dressed in Diamonds: American Princesses & Gilded Age Fashion
with Kevin Jones of ASU-FIDM
a Zoom Lecture
Wednesday, December 3rd
7 - 9 PM PDT
The time period between the end of the Civil War in 1865 and the beginning of World War I in 1914 is known as “The Gilded Age,” a term popularized by prolific writer and social commentator Mark Twain. Twain’s visionary insight revealed that America’s desire for all things modern and industrial was at odds with its undemocratic nostalgia for class hierarchy and aristocratic bearing.
Social distinctions between the ‘Old World’ and the ‘New’ were lessened by those few who were able to harness this fierce industrial era in which an uneducated nobody could become a respected somebody through sheer hard work, luck, and a “public-be-damned” attitude. The veneer that separated Yankee worker from European gentleman was thin, but the Industrial Revolution’s greatest asset—money—helped to gild American society and re-gild European society. And, for the most part, this highly reflective gloss was applied with layers of elaborate dresses and overlapping jewels worn by the ‘Dollar Princess’ daughters of these ‘Robber Barons’, five of whom are discussed in this lecture: Jennie Jerome, Consuelo Yznaga, Consuelo Vanderbilt, Helena Zimmerman, and May Goelet.
Regency Bandeau Headdress
with Mela Hoyt-Heydon
an in-person workshop
at Sewing Machine Warehouse
16214 Nordhoff St, North Hills, CA 91343
Saturday, August 30th
1 - 4 PM PT
Create a beautiful, packable headpiece for your next Jane Austen ball! Mela will guide you in designing a bandeau headpiece suitable for all hairstyles. Choose from a single, wide band accented with pearls or jewels, a narrower, double-band adorned with ostrich plumes, or a triple-strand “Grecian” style. Learn how to curl feathers along with several ways to fasten them to your headpiece. Samples will be available for you to try on before choosing.
Passementerie: A Live Online Class
with Kenneth D. King
Saturday, April 5th
12 - 3 PM PST
Join us as Kenneth teaches how to make passementerie embellishments with cords and other decorative elements. Learn how to manipulate the trims to create a sample of the work, all hands-on!
|
