Colouring pages (free to download)

So school is out, maybe for a long time, and I can imagine how difficult and stressful it is going to be at times to keep the little ones amused. I’m joining in with the lovely community spirit that is sweeping the nation (aside from the hoarding of toilet rolls!), of providing help to one another however we can — however small that gesture might be.

I’ve created these colouring pages based on my Welsh girl and boy designs, which are available to download for free here (see links below).

There are eight designs in all, including these two posters which remind you to wash your hands, in both Welsh and English. Why not colour them in, laminate them, and display them around the house?

All of the colouring pages are A4 size and can be downloaded as individual PDF files below. Feel free to print as many as you like, give them to your friends, or share a link to this page.

Stay safe everyone! #inittogether

Making a Welsh clog-dancing costume

A selection of antique dolls dressed in traditional Welsh costume (Left: Pembroke Museum. Centre: Amgueddfa Cymru/National Museum Wales. Right: Victoria and Albert Museum, Museum of Childhood)

Last September my teenage daughter (G) began to have Welsh clog-dancing lessons. She is enjoying it immensely and wants to represent her school by competing at the next eisteddfod. An ‘eisteddfod’ is a Welsh cultural festival where people can compete against one another through literature, music and performance. The tradition dates back to at least the 12th century. You can learn more here.

Proclamation of the 2018 National Eisteddfod in Cardiff (Daily Post).

In order to compete in an eisteddfod, G needs to have something suitable to wear. Most clog dancers wear clothes based on traditional Welsh dress, but since costumes like this are not readily available to buy for children over the age of about 10, the task to make something from scratch fell to me.

Me, aged about five. Schoolchildren in Wales wear traditional Welsh costume on St David’s Day, 1st March.

G wearing the same costume many years later.

The traditional costume for women that most people are familiar with is actually based on the every-day workwear which was worn in Wales during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It consists of a long, gathered flannel skirt called a petticoat, a long (or short) skirted jacket with a fitted bodice called a ‘betgwn’ (bedgown), a full-length apron, a shawl or scarf, and the iconic, tall, black hat.

There were regional variations in style, and the flannel cloth which these garments were made from were often characteristically woven with stripes or small checks.

Nineteenth-century women wearing traditional Welsh dress (Narberth Museum).

The betgwn — a fitted bodice with full skirt (From ‘Welsh Costume’ by Ken Etheridge).

Original examples of the betgwn and petticoat (Left and centre: Ceredigion Museum. Right: Amgueddfa Cymru/National Museum Wales).

G and I watched lots of eisteddfod videos on YouTube to see how these traditional garments have been adapted for use by clog dancers today. The tall hat is not usually worn, and the apron appears to be optional, but apart from that, variations of the petticoat, betgwn and shawl are commonly worn.

We decided that for G’s costume we would omit an apron, although we may add one at a later date. We noted that the skirt needed to be very full as it is held out at the sides as an integral part of the dance. Traditionally the skirt is gathered to create the fullness, but in the videos we watched, we noticed that some dancers wore a style based on a circle-skirt. This allows for plenty of width but without the bulk at the waist. It also creates a very pleasing flat front when held out at the sides.

For the betgwn, G really liked the idea of a three-quarter length style, cut away at the sides and curving down to the back.

An historical example of a shorter betgwn with the curved, cutaway sides which G was keen on (Ceredigion Museum).

We decided against a shawl in favour of a ‘tucked-in scarf’ idea that we’d seen in some historical examples during our research. It seemed neater than a cumbersome shawl and seemed to be an opportunity to include a pretty print.

A tucked-in neck scarf as shown in this watercolour illustration from ‘Welsh Costume and Customs: The National Library of Wales Picture Book No 1’.

I searched really hard but couldn’t find any commercial sewing patterns for traditional Welsh dress. This must be a gap in the market when you consider the number of people competing in the eisteddfods each year. If you’re a sewing pattern designer, consider this to add to your portfolio — you’ll make a fortune!

So I had to get creative, and source other patterns which could be adapted to suit the ideas we had. I settled on a historical pattern from McCall’s for the betgwn (M7916), and a pattern from New Look (6580) for the skirt.

The two commercial sewing patterns I bought on which to base the costume.

G chose the main fabric (fine wool suiting) from a selection of samples I ordered from Fabworks. Our budget wouldn’t run to authentic cloth from a Welsh woollen mill for this experimental project, but maybe next time now that I know what I’m doing and won’t be as nervous. She settled on a beautiful red wool with a sateen finish for the skirt as it had a lovely weight and draped beautifully. She then chose a contrasting charcoal grey wool (with a tiny black check) for the betgwn. For the neck scarf she chose a crisp cotton print from my fabric stash called ‘Social Climber’, in red and pink, by Anna Maria Horner.

G’s fabric choices.

I made the skirt first, which sewed up incredibly quickly. There were only three pattern pieces (including the waistband). As hoped, the pattern provided plenty of width for the skirt and is perfect for twirling and swishing — essential characteristics for a clog-dancing skirt!

The betgwn proved to be more of a head-scratcher. The McCall’s pattern provided vaguely the correct overall shape, but it was too full, too structured, and too formal for what we needed. The pattern relied on separate inset pleats around the skirt to give extra fullness — which we didn’t need.

The McCall’s commercial pattern I hacked for the betgwn.

Using the original pattern pieces as a template, I re-drew it for a practice toile and left out the separate pleat pieces. I smoothed out the waist to allow for this omission, and then cut away the front openings into a dramatic curve from front waist to back hem.

One of the pattern pieces I redrew, with a smoothed out waist and cutaway sides.

The first toile was (incredibly) almost perfect with just a few alterations needed to the waist area. I made a second toile to be sure, then took a deep breath and cut into the wool cloth.

First toile of the betgwn.

The jacket sewed together fairly easily, and is fully lined. The front fastens with hook and bar closures. By leaving out the pleats, the betgwn drapes beautifully at the back, echoing the soft folds of the skirt.

Back view of the finished betgwn and skirt.

I measured across G’s shoulders from the front to the back of the bodice, to create a pattern for the gathered ‘neck scarf’. I attached the scarf to the betgwn with pop-fasteners so that it will be easy to swap out for a different one if G gets tired of it.

The neck scarf is attached to the betgwn bodice with pop fasteners.

I am so pleased with the way this pattern hack has worked out. I’ll consider making another skirt and neck scarf, in different colours, for a completely new look in the future.

The completed costume.

The video below shows G practicing her clog dancing in her new costume.

Please leave a comment below, especially if you’ve ever tried to make a historical costume. I’d love to hear about your experience.

Mary Quant at the V&A

Mary getting her signature crop trimmed.

A trip to London is such a treat and I’d been wanting to see this exhibition at the V&A for ages, so when the opportunity came up last weekend I jumped at it. For me, ‘Mary Quant’ conjures up images of swinging sixties London, mini skirts, PVC macs and crazy tights. I wasn’t disappointed.

Classic Mary Quant mini-dresses in her signature vibrant colours.

Who doesn’t love a bright yellow PVC rain poncho?

What I didn’t realise was that although Mary wasn’t brought up in Wales, she was born to Welsh parents, and her clothes were manufactured in Pontypridd. In fact, there were lots of little influences and nods to her Welsh heritage throughout the exhibition.

I loved this dress. The main fabric pattern reminds me of Welsh tapestry blankets. The colour palette and style also look like something you might find by Orla Kiely.

This evening dress is made from traditional Welsh flannel — a modern twist on the Welsh costume?

During the exhibition planning stages, a social media campaign named #WeWantQuant had been launched in order to find original pieces which could be donated or borrowed. Lots of the dresses on display were attributed to their owners, along with anecdotes, photographs and historical context. It was very interesting to read them. One dress, I was delighted to learn, is still being worn on special occasions by the original owners’ daughters — forty years later.

The flocked rayon and nylon mini-culottes dress, still being worn 40 years later.

I particularly loved the use of video throughout the show. There was plenty of original footage of Mary in her design studio, the groundbreaking fashion shows and her London shop ‘Bazaar’, as well as interviews with fashion pundits and ex-employees etc. It really brought that extraordinary period in time to life.

‘Cry, baby. But only if you’re wearing Mary Quant new tearproof mascara’.

I was very keen to see the graphics on display — posters, advertisements and packaging. The make-up packaging in particular looks so modern even by today’s standards — truly ground-breaking. I loved the black and white hand-drawn style of the posters that were used to show how to achieve the Mary Quant ‘look’. The main message seemed to be: use lots, then add some more!

Detail from a graphic poster used by demonstrators to sell Mary Quant cosmetics.

Spot the mascara refills! Mary was saving the planet decades ago.

When I was a child my dad worked for Colgate (yes, the toothpaste company) and at one time they must have been doing some sort of collaboration or promotion with Mary Quant make-up. I remember my dad bringing home two eye-shadow palettes for me to play with. I loved them! Even years later when I was a teenager, those precious eye shadows were an important part of my make-up bag. I wish I still had them.

More is more.

‘Mary Quant’ is on at the Victoria and Albert museum, London, until Sunday 16 February. Tickets (£12, or free if you are a member) are still available if you want to catch it before it goes. Have you been already? Comment below to tell me what you thought of it.

New year, new website!

Croeso! Welcome!

Whether you are a longtime friend from Instagram or the Spoonflower community, or are someone who has stumbled upon this page by accident — hi — I am so happy to see you here!

In the proud tradition of plumbers with leaky bathrooms, and hairdressers with dodgy highlights, I have always been the designer without a website. There are just never enough hours in the day for self care. It’s quite shocking really, when I consider just how long I’ve been freelancing. A website has always been on my ‘to do’ list, but like all good ‘to do’ lists, it never got done…until now. So hello new decade, hello new website! Have a little browse, and take a peep at some of my work. Hopefully you will find something interesting and you will learn something new about me.

Things have been ticking along quite nicely in the Ceri Gwen world, but I’m hoping that 2020 will bring new opportunities to move my business in some exciting directions. Graphic design has always been my first love and main source of income, but increasing interest in my surface pattern designs, and my first tentative steps towards developing my own product range has prompted me to get my act together — to pull together all of the strands of my work, and to give me the opportunity to showcase, properly, what I have to offer.

Since opening my Etsy shop, where I sell my handmade gifts, I have been approached many times by retail outlets looking to sell my products. However, until now this just hasn’t been possible. I am unable to produce my handmade goods in sufficient quantities for a wholesale market. I will be working on a solution to this in the coming months, starting with a range of greeting cards and prints. I will also be researching different manufacturing companies who can help me to produce other Ceri Gwen goodies as wholesale options. So if you are a shop who would be interested in selling my products, make sure that you subscribe to receive news updates.

Another exciting aspect of having a website is this — a blog! I’ve always liked the idea of writing one, but Instagram makes you lazy. As Lola might say, Instagram is very ‘straightaway’. You don’t have to put much effort in. Snap a pic, write a few (very few) words, and you can have an immediate interaction with your followers. I love it. But I think I’m going to enjoy the opportunity to be a little bit more wordy too.

So please say hello in the comments below — I’d love to know who’s managed to find me — and please subscribe for updates. I promise not to flood your inbox! Here’s to a year filled with even more colour and fun. (And goodness knows we need it these days). Happy new year!