This is the underdress, which is completely embellished with bugle beads.
These are the bugle beads – the long beads. Then we have sequins, and then we have small beads.
So I'm going to lay my hands underneath and inspect it really closely, and see is there any
bugle beads or sequins or beads which are loose and they need re-stitching – securing
before the dress is handled any further, and certainly before it goes on display.
This is the back of the dress so she would have sat on this side and moved so –
subject to potentially more damage.
I can see here we have a row of tiny glass beads which has
been pulled. So you see fortunately the loop is not broken,
so I don't think it has a lot of beads, but it's been pulled. So I'm going to try to
put them back into position, tuck the original thread and then anchor it down.
So I'm going to use two tweezers to help me pick up this full thread. I have to be very careful
because I don't want it to snap and obviously it's been pulled and put under a lot of tension,
and I'm going to attempt to push my beads down, but I see it's twisted.
So let's see if I manage to ease them down gently.
And then the excess of the pulled thread, I'm going to then accommodate it on
the center and in the middle, and then anchor it down. If I release the twist
and then bring my dress beads down – okay – now they are coming down nicely.
Okay.
Okay a bit more if I can.
I really need to be mindful of my thread – the thread is being pulled, it's been stretched,
it's being stressed. So I don't want to be too demanding with the original thread. I need to be
careful. I don't want to break it. Okay so I think that's quite good.
I am going to be using some very fine pins they're called insect pins. You find them in
butterfly collections – they use them to hold the specimens against the board usually.
Here we are. I don't need all 100 of them so I'm just going to pick up a few to use later.
First I put this under slight tension
and then also anchor my first stitching. It will be somewhere there, so that is my position now.
So the curve is more and more pronounced.
A bit more
I'm going to enter here and I'm going to travel underneath,
and the curve in the needle allows the needle to – yeah okay –there's my needle coming.
Under this bugle bead I am going to anchor my thread, and this is a tricky stage because my
thread can get caught. So once my needle is out, I'm going to pick up my thread,
and as I pull the needle I'm going to make sure it's not getting caught anywhere.
And that sits nicely there.
It's amazing what you see. You see so much more when you're really close
and you appreciate the craftsmanship of something so beautifully embellished.