Amber Thornton

First-Class Honours Costume Graduate from Arts University Bournemouth

As a costume student I developed skills in; historical pattern cutting, pattern drafting, tailoring, industrial machine sewing skills and hand sewing. I have a passion for hand embroidery, a keen interest in men's tailoring and would love to work on projects that combine the two.

Education

2022 - 2025

Arts University Bournemouth

Ba (Hons) Costume

First-Class Honours

2020 - 2022

Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College

A-Level Fashion & Textiles

A-Level English Language

A-Level Business Studies

Extended Project Qualification

Experience

2025

Dresser for 'This Happy Breed', AUB Productions

As a dresser for AUB's production of This Happy Breed (directed by Sean Aita) I worked alongside costume supervisors, make-up & hair artists and actors to dress for the tech week and four performances. I adored the sense of community that we created and feel that I was organised and proactive as a dresser. This role involved:

Dressing actors in 1920s and 1930s costumes, with different costumes for each of the nine scenes,
Laundry duties which largely included starching and ironing men’s shirts, as well as mending and resetting a pair of sleeve heads in a ladies dress,

2024 - 2025

Work placement at Curve Theatre, Leicester

During this two week placement, I worked on two Made at Curve Productions: My Fair Lady (Directed by Nikolai Foster) and Kinky Boots (Directed by Nikolai Foster). Predominantly, I embellished costumes for the 'angels' in Kinky Boots, but I also completed a variety of jobs such as:

Sourcing costumes from the costume store and pattern drafting sleeves to be worn by Johannes Radebe in rehearsals,
Altering a tailored suit jacket,
Sewing with challenging materials like sequined trims and feather boas,
Mending costumes for My Fair Lady whilst it was in production (hand-sewing seams and applying buttons),
Shadowing a dresser throughout a performance of My Fair Lady,
Sewing in labels,
I also took initiative once a costume was complete to organise the work room and maintain a tidy environment,

Ongoing

Casual Technician at Arts University Bournemouth

In my second year of university I took on a position as a casual technician on my Ba Costume (Hons) course. Whilst on each shift I act as the member of staff and fulfil a variety of duties including:

Basic maintenance of industrial irons and overlockers,
Assisting students with queries,
Organising fabric supplies and the costume archive,
Assembling mannequins,
Shutting down machinery at the end of each shift,

2024

Dresser for 'Emilia!', AUB Productions

As a dresser for AUB's production of Emilia! (directed by Mumba Dodwell) I worked alongside costume supervisors, make-up & hair artists and actors to dress for the tech week and four performances. I adored the sense of community that we created and feel that I was organised and proactive as a dresser. This role involved:

Dressing actors prior to the performances, which largely included lacing up corsets with historical accuracy, as well as dressing backstage in multiple quick changes that required organisation and planning with the hair and makeup artists,
Anticipating where costumes needed to be for pre-sets and setting up chairs for quick changes,
Laundry and mending responsibilities such as, maintaining Tudor ruffs and cuffs, applying fastenings and mending hems,

Ongoing

The Room Interiors, Leicestershire

The Room Interiors is an independent interior design business, owned by Elizabeth Archer, that works with high end fabric designers and manufacturers. I largely specialised in fabric cutting and cushion making for photoshoots and had a variety of responsibilities such as:

Handling a range of fabric types and considering pattern placement when cutting out cushions,
Working towards a deadline in an organised manner,
Maintaining accuracy throughout the cutting process and utilising mathematical skills,
Sewing labels onto some client cushions using both machine and hand sewing with customer satisfaction in mind,
One-off projects included:

Sewing a full set of cushions for a private customer,

Sewing a pair of tea towels for a private customer,

Creating keyrings and bunting for a luxury client event.

2023

Angel Exit Theatre, Dorset

In addition to working with Angel Exit Theatre on a pair of men's breeches for community play 'Salt', I also volunteered my assistance for two community workshops that allowed members of the play to make elements of the show's costumes. As part of these workshops I had the following responsibilities:

Setting up domestic sewing machines to be used by the community members,
Assisting community members in using the sewing machines and fixing associated issues,
Liaising with a range of ages and sewing abilities,
Working independently to create a petticoat that was used in the play.

2017 - 2020

Duet Academy of Dance

Alongside dancing and performing with Duet Academy of Dance I also worked as an Assistant Dance Teacher and had a variety of responsibilities, including:

Leading classes ranging from ages 4 to 15 in Ballet, Tap, Modern Jazz and Acro,
Teaching in large groups as well as one-on-one,
Liaising with teachers and parents in a polite and friendly manner,
Managing sound technology in dance exams,

Skills

Specialist skills:

Cartridge pleats,
Handmade Tudor ruffs and cuffs,
Covered Deaths Head buttons,
Embroidery:
- Free-hand machine embroidery,
- Ribbon work,
- Brazilian embroidery,

Industry standard skills:

Industrial and domestic sewing machine,
Industrial and domestic overlocker,
Industrial buttonhole machine,
Industrial eyelet machine,
Cutting and filing steel bones,
Flat pattern drafting,
Drafting on the stand,
Tailoring skills,
Dressmaking skills,
Hand sewn finishes (slip stitch, herringbone stitch etc.),
Experience using a digital embroidery machine,