The Master Course in Tailoring of the DREAM project has been completed

Ten days, ten girls, five garments and five designs, an endless number of fittings, ideas, sketches and outlines. Time really seems to have flown since January 17th  when a group of girls from France, Spain, Finland, Italy and Rumania arrived at the Old Fashion sartorial workshop. The two teachers of the course - Irma Schwegler, master tailor specializing in natural fabrics, and Daniele Davitti,  a young designer graduated from the Polimoda, but with solid international experience behind him - speak proudly of it. Looking back on that January 17th (only ten days ago) it seems almost impossible for the girls to have produced so much, made so much progress, created  such  strong bonds of friendship crowned with touching episodes of mutual collaboration (it happened quite often that some of them skipped their breaks to help a mate in difficulty, behind with her work).
The same can be said also for all the teachers: Irma, Daniele and Marie Astier, the latter an expert in vegetable dyes who, besides collaborating with Irma in the tailoring class, revealed to the girls the secrets of vegetable dyeing holding two lessons at the Atelier degli Artigianelli. It was thanks to their enthusiasm and their strong passion for work that the group was guided through toil and difficulty, moments of discouragement as well as of enthusiasm. All this is attested by the diary of the girls participating in the course:

17 January. Inauguration of the Master at the Old Fashion sartorial workshop. Professor Maracchi talked about the activities of  OmA, its commitment in vocational training and about the importance of strengthening a collaboration network  on an international scale also aimed at transnational training projects. The teachers introduced themselves: Irma Schwegler, teaching tailoring and in charge of the project, Marie Astier, her assistant in the tailoring classes and teacher of vegetable dyeing,  and Daniele Davitti, who will give the designer’s lessons. The girls are divided into two groups: five will attend tailoring classes and five, design ones. The couples who will work together are formed so that tailor and designer are from different countries thus contributing to the micro group not only with their professionalism, but also with their own national and cultural typicalities.
In the afternoon the girls moved to the OmA seat in Via Bufalini to attend a lecture on the history of Casentino fabric given by the historian of costume  Costanza Menchi.
18 January. A very busy day for the designers and dressmakers. The designers started putting forward the first ideas, the dressmakers started getting used to the Casentino fabric, trying various kinds of seams, also to become familiar with the sewing machine. A long day full of studying, exchange of ideas and inspiration to develop the first concept for the mini-collection whose centerpiece will be the skirt as stated in the study project. Designers and dressmakers started talking together, each couple choosing an idea for the skirt to be created. If there is enough time, we will add also a stole or a top!
19 January. The designers finished the final design at last. The exchange of opinion with the dressmakers started, to find pros and cons and especially to understand together to what extent the design can be carried out in practice. The problems and difficulties encountered will have to be overcome in order to use  the paper pattern. In the afternoon everybody went to the Atelier degli Artigianelli where, after an introductory lecture given by Laura Bacci from the Istituto Ibimet on the cultivation and processing of natural fibers, Marie Astier introduced  the girls to the secrets of vegetable dyeing.
20 January. For the designers it was a busy day of work on the collection, while the dressmakers laboured on the paper pattern. Irma, Daniele and Marie helped the girls who had not had any direct experience yet and would not be able otherwise to make a basic skirt alone.
21 January. Fitting on a dressmaker’s dummy! The morning was spent in the sartorial workshop: the dressmakers worked on the skirts and the designers continued with the collection. In the afternoon, back to the  Artigianelli where Marie Astier gave the second part of her lecture on the natural dyeing of fabrics. Some samples of fabric were dyed using different plants, among which were goldenrod, madder and logwood.
22 January. Costanza Menchi took the girls to the Pitti Bimbo trade fair, at the Fortezza da Basso. The girls had a precise task: to stop and interview the staff at all the stands dedicated to natural fibers. Success was guaranteed as a whole pavilion of the fair was dedicated to those stands. In the afternoon the girls were a little tired and a different visit was planned to allow them to relax and have fun. A craftsman at work. A pleasant visit to the shop Il Papiro where the master Francesco Giannini made the renowned Florentine paper before the girls’ eyes. But the real fun began when master Giannini invited some of the girls to create a sheet of paper.
23 January.  Sunday, but not a day off for our course. The girls, now refreshed after the visits on Saturday, shut themselves in the sartorial workshop for the last great effort. Sewing and Design, they worked non-stop to finish the task. The first ideas for a top came to the designers. Irma, Daniele and Marie insisted that the girls drape  the dummy, as they were convinced that touching the fabric would help them find more creative solutions. And in fact that was what happened.
24 January. Monday, time is running short. By tomorrow afternoon the articles of clothing will have to be taken to OmA in preparation for the ceremony of the awarding of certificates on Wednesday. The girls never stopped for a minute. They insisted that they be allowed to start working earlier, they left late, in the evening they even took their work to the hotel. Aniela Hanciuc, Rumanian, has been working untiringly weaving a typical pattern of her country to apply to the skirt she is making together with her French work partner.
25 January. Last touches before the afternoon lecture with Costanza Menchi who provided a long historical survey of Italian fashion to enable the girls to understand also the origin of a style and its evolution.
26 January. It is the day of the awarding of certificates. The ceremony will be held at midday but the girls have been here since ten o’ clock: they want to dress their dummies personally and display the designs and paper patterns in the right chronological order. After opening remarks by Professor  Maracchi, president of OmA Toscana, and after  the teachers Irma Schwegler and Daniele Davitti tell about the progress of the course,  Aniela (Rumania) and Katja (Finland) tell about their DREAM Project experience, describing the article of clothing they carried out and how they went about finishing the work.

Special thanks to  Irma, Daniele, Marie and Costanza who have untiringly followed the girls, supporting and helping them and hearty  good luck wishes to Sara, Ester, Luisa, Anziza, Emeline, Aniela, Anamaria, Veronica, Maria and Katja for a very successful future.

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