In this week's blog, Ambassador Francine McMahon speaks to Finn Wicks about his career path. Finn talks us through his journey from his early enthusiasm for dress and textiles, into building his personal historic dress collection, to now also selling and hand-making items.
Channelling a deep interest and love for historical dress into multiple avenues, that both differ and interlink, is something Finn Wicks has achieved seamlessly. Having transitioned from collecting historical dress for his personal collection, Finn is now established in selling items to other collectors and enthusiasts through his Etsy shop. Through this, Finn has demonstrated the years of knowledge he has honed from sourcing items, as well as applying this into his related work in costume making. With a natural eye for beauty and craftsmanship, Finn’s Instagram is a joyful gallery of pieces from his own collection, pieces for sale, those he has made, and images that inspire him. In fact, my discovery of his work came through social media. Finn had made a dress for a prominent artist and art director on Instagram, a display of his ability to give his strong expertise in dress history a modern appeal. Speaking to Finn recently about his work gave some inspirational insights into the process of developing and balancing each aspect of his practice, as well as building excitement for what the future holds for the multi-disciplinary dress historian.
Could you start by giving us an overview of the different areas of your work, and how you got into them?
I have been fascinated with historical dress for as far back as I can remember. Long before I could sew costumes or acquire original garments, I would spend hours sketching fashions of the past. As a teenager I began collecting antique and vintage fashion magazines which not only provided a great resource of knowledge but I also found to be incredibly inspiring. Although I studied contemporary fashion and textiles through college and university, I immediately began to apply these skills to my passion for historical dress. Since graduating during the pandemic I found myself working a 9-5 job in retail, experiencing an overwhelming lack of direction. I would spend my days off utterly immersed in my love of historical dress, sewing costumes, reading books, and scouring eBay for antique clothing. After a year of feeling somewhat lost I decided to peruse my passion by launching my own business, dealing in antique clothing and textiles. After years of collecting personally I felt confident about sourcing and valuing items. For me there is such a great excitement in being able to display an antique garment much in the way a museum would and to bring it back to life on a mannequin. It’s really surprised me just how many items I have come across in the last year, you never know what’s going to turn up and where and that is really thrilling to me. I have had customers, both collectors and fellow dealers from all around the world, and it’s so inspiring to be introduced to so many who share my love of antique textiles. Being exposed to so many original garments has given me the opportunity to observe historical construction techniques first hand. This has greatly informed my own costume creations, which I produce for individual commissions.
What is your favourite period and/or style of dress? Does this differ between dress you make yourself and that you collect?
Aesthetically I have always been most interested in 18th century dress, there is a naivety in the shape and construction of garments from this time, but they are by no means simple. I am always blown away by the complexity of the woven silks and the skilful application of embroidery and trims. It’s easy to overlook the staggering amount of hours it would have taken just to sit and sew each and every stitch by hand, that’s really what makes a garment from this century feel like a unique piece of art. Any surviving textile from the 18th century is extremely rare and hard to find, this only makes the feeling of finding one all the more special. It is perhaps for this reason my personal collection consists mainly of my earliest finds, they are so much harder to part with. I also really enjoy sewing costumes from this era as the construction methods used differ so greatly from how we would go about creating a garment today, not to mention they are just such great fun to wear.
How much and in which ways do the items you collect influence the items you make?
I learn something from every single garment that passes through my hands, not only do I keep detailed photos of all the items I sell but have even taken patterns from pieces I hope to recreate. I often rely on my own collection to shine a light on the many questions I face when sewing. it’s an invaluable resource to be able to see for example what kind of fastenings would be used on a 1910s evening gown, or how the back of a Robe à l’Anglaise is pleated. Of course you can search online or in a book but as a visual learner nothing quite beats having the original thing right in front of me.
Do you have a piece you have made that you are particularly proud of, or was memorable to make?
I guess everything that I make is memorable as I sew a lot by hand, so that’s a lot of days and nights invested into each thing. Surprisingly out of all the costumes I have made it is probably a simple looking pair of linen stays that I am most proud of. Stays are the essential foundation garment to any 18th century dress so it’s really crucial to get that part right otherwise it can affect the entire look of a costume. I’m really happy with the most recent pair I have made as they are the product of knowledge learnt from much trial and error on previous attempts. There are so many time consuming stages involved in making a pair of stays from the daunting number of boning channels to sew, the tedious process of binding around the tabs and the tiny hand sewn eyelets for the back lacing. They are a real labour of love and it was incredibly satisfying to finally see them worn after so much hard work - not to mention a relief they give a good shape when worn.
Are there any ‘ones that got away’ - any items that you have sold that you have been particularly sad to part with?
I can’t begin to count the things I’ve missed out on I guess that’s something you have to get used to with auctions you can never predict what’s going to happen. Especially if it’s an early piece I do try not to get emotionally invested in it before I know the outcome as it’s so competitive. There are several pieces that I have sold that I regret selling or that upon reflection I feel I’ve undersold, especially when I first started. For example one beautiful regency cotton dress which had been block printed with ditsy floral motifs comes into my mind often. It really looked like something right out of a Jane Austen novel, not only did I not realise it’s rarity or value at the time but upon reflection it was the perfect example of early 19th century dress. It would be nice to have that in my collection now. However since starting my own business I am learning from every decision I make and that can only lead to better choices in the future. It’s not all about profit for me, I’ve sold some items at cost but the knowledge I have gained from holding them is invaluable.
What is your process for sourcing items for your collection and to sell; do you have an idea of what you want to collect before searching for it? And are there any objects/types of objects that you are looking to acquire for your collection at the moment?
You never ever know what you are going to find, when it comes to Antiques, what turns up on the market is very random so you can’t really plan for that. I can only try to search as regularly as possible and I search a wide range of places whether it be auctions online or in person, fairs and flea markets, or if I’m lucky I’ll hear of something though word of mouth. Of course if I’m particularly interested in a certain era I may focus my search efforts a little more into that time. But from a business point of view I try not to be to specific. So anything antique that I feel will display well is always of interest. But yes, for my own personal collection I have a long list in my head of items I would love to find. I wouldn’t mind finding a sprigged Muslin dress from around 1800, I am holding out hope for that!
Do you have any upcoming projects, goals or visions for the development of your work?
For the time being I am really focused on continuing to grow my business. I’ve acquired some incredible pieces in the last few months so I hope that continues. I often think to the future and I do believe certain items are going to become increasingly harder to find, so I intend to enjoy every aspect of this journey for as long as it lasts. I also hope to further refine my sewing skills and to create even more complex and intricate costumes. It's always been a dream of mine to design costumes for film or theatre, so maybe that will become a reality some day.
To see which items of historic dress are currently availble to buy from Finn, check out his Etsy shop, or stay up to date with his latest creations and inspirations by following his Instagram: @finnwicks_costume.
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