Small Scaled
by Elizabeth Cake
Feature on Elizabeth Cake’s mini clothes, a project which focuses on the ideals proclaimed by fashion, in this case through the written and visual language of sewing books.
Bodies thought of in small scale, by Elizabeth Cake
Feature on Elizabeth Cake’s mini clothes, a project which focuses on the ideals proclaimed by fashion, in this case through the written and visual language of sewing books.
a blueprint then to be rolled out on large scale.
These mini clothes can be seen as a metaphor for fashion’s small print: all the implicit rules and norms one is expected to live by and adhere to. Engaging in fashion somehow seems to equate to being held accountable by means of a social contract. A contract that might not seem as strict yet of which the repercussions for deviation are ever so ruthless.
With text taken from 70s sewing books, this project highlights some of the language around size and fit that is both dated as well as sexist, the idea being to address just how ridiculous of a practice it was and still is to this day. By printing some of the most bizarre and judgmental quotes - readily available to the reader at risk of internalising said language - onto clothing of an even more absurd small scale, the language of a system that believes itself to be a big deal is in turn questioned. For once second-guessed. Where it would usually just be accepted as true.
Grotesque in all its utterances, fashion as an industry is but made up of smallness and triviality. The arbitrariness and inconsistency of it all contested by the friction created by printing 70s norms onto scaled down 60s patterns. This very act denounces the transient nature of the social contract throughout time. A one-way commitment it seems, of which the contracted party is expected to follow it to the letter whilst the contractor is exempted from any sense of indecisiveness.
As opposed to the ambiguous ways of fashion’s language, the text on the garments was typed directly onto the mini calico pattern pieces, using an old typewriter. The garments then to be assembled, text and pattern seemingly coming together as one. For the slightly larger items, the cursive font was blown up and screen-printed onto the garment patterns.
featured work by @Elizabeth Cake
curated by @Wonne Scrayen
curated by @Wonne Scrayen
BIO
A Circular Story run by Elizabeth Cake is a one-woman recycled clothing brand based in Ramsgate, Kent [UK]. Using vintage equipment in her home studio, Elizabeth designs, drafts patterns and hand stitches practical, thoughtful, wearable garments from preloved materials. Quilting, visible mending, hidden details, patchwork and hand stitching are signature motifs and pockets are of utmost importance. Every A Circular Story piece is a future heirloom, handmade with love to be treasured forever.
TIMELINE
70s child
female-taught sewer, knitter and crochetier
80s
needlework classes
early 90s
hours on end spent hand stitching
remaining hours spent in charity shops
mid-late 90s
working her way up in the London magazine scene
spare time spent treasure hunting [the very beginning of her circular story]
evening classes in fashion styling and fashion design at LCF
early 2000s
first patchwork quilt, all hand pieced from worn-out clothes and offcuts
evening course in pattern cutting
late 2000s
first year Textiles BA at Goldsmiths University of London
followed by magazine freelancing
2010s
teaching pattern cutting, from galleries and private homes to museums such as the V&A
established her blog Glad You Could Make It, formatted as a vintage craft book collection
2013
seaside move which came with the addition of a sewing room
gained knowledge about textile waste, fast fashion and the reality of charity donations
2020s
after years of making, A Circular Story was born
online curated shop selling one-of-a-kind clothes handmade from reclaimed materials
JAN.2024
... curated feature
... curated feature