Yesterday, I was lucky to volunteer at the Gallery of Costume in Manchester, which is currently closed for the public.

They are running a conservation project to protect and store the clothing in their correction in a better way to preserve them for longer. The Gallery of Costume comes under the Manchester Art Gallery.

I did not know what to expect when I got there. I was greeted with warmth and shown around. I found it quite overwhelming to be surrounded by so many clothes.

On the day we made some muslin covers for the hangers, a bit of cutting a bit of sewing and some snooping around looking at clothes. I made friends with a Bernina sewing machine. It was my first time using this brand and I am happy to report that we did not fall out.

In between sewing and cutting I had the chance to walk around and have a look at the clothes in their collection.

The capes were impressive. Some had some delicate details added on using a range of techniques from beading to reverse appliqué. Some were fully hand sewn or machine stitches or both.

I spotted a rail with vintage dresses including some wedding dresses with some lovely details on.

They also have designer pieces in their collection. This time I found myself the presence of a Chanel suit from the 80’s that I would wear not with no problem. I loved looking at how it was made and what fabrics were used. It looks impressive. You can tell it was made with care and a lot of patience as the lining and blouse fabric would have been a pain to work with (lame slides like mad and is very delicate)

Another garment in their collection that I found quite interesting was a denim jacket that was customised by a gentleman for his girlfriend in the ’80s which is very quirky. Basically, someone had a lot of fun playing around with this jacket in a bit to personalise it.

The day was filled with fun, and I loved that the lovely keepers of the collection allowed me to have a snoop around and take a few pictures to share with you. I’ve already decided that I’ll be doing this again just to get another chance snoop around to see what other treasures I can discover.