Couture Embellishment Techniques

Project Overview

For this course, we were tasked with creating a complete three-garment look, consisting of a corset, a classic Chanel-style jacket, and a bottom of our choice. The project drew inspiration from a visit to the LSU Textile and Costume Museum, where we explored historic garments and construction techniques. The focus of the project centered on the corset and the Chanel jacket.

My designs explore Black womanhood and the concept of intersectionality through textile, form, and construction. I designed a custom textile print for the corset, which was digitally printed in the LSU Digital Textile Printing Lab. The corset features a strong boned structure, with panels specifically draped and arranged to showcase the print and its color combinations. It is built with four layers: fashion fabric, denim for structure, luxury interfacing, and a pinstriped polyester lining. The edges are finished with bias binding, and the underbust is accented with Afrocentric beaded fringe for embellishment and cultural reference.

The Chanel jacket maintains the silhouette and elegance of the traditional style, including a hand-stitched chain weight at the hem. However, I introduced modern elements such as functional sleeve pockets and a center front sequin fringe closure. The jacket was constructed using couture techniques: the fashion fabric was hand-basted to silk organza, then quilted to the lining. Hem, cuff, center front, and neckline edges were all hand-finished with pick stitching. No machine backstitching was used—threads were hand-knotted throughout, particularly at the bust darts. A unique feature of this jacket is the softly undulating pleats at the upper back yoke, adding subtle texture and volume.