As design enthusiasts across America anticipated the unveiling of collections from Project Runway’s finalists during New York Fashion Week, Shipley senior Hannah Wrangham was poised for the debut of her own design collection. Though her pieces didn’t make it to New York’s runways, they took center stage at Shipley with the Upper School performance of The Pirates of Penzance.

In order to finish the costumes for the musical by early March, Hannah started researching Victorian fashion plates in December, had sketches drawn by the new year, and began sewing in mid-January: skirts with three-yards of fabric at the hem, blouses with pleated fronts and gathered backs, ballooning dress sleeves filled with crinoline. “I spent six or seven hours a night and all day Saturday and Sunday working on the costumes,” she said.

Though the Victorian era dresses and blouses required yards more fabric than today’s fashions, “I was lucky that the musical takes place in the 1800s,” said Hannah. “Before then, dresses were much tighter on top." And much more difficult to sew. Hannah’s choice of loose-fitting shirts that tuck into the waist are a product of the Victorian era’s dress reform movement, when women became more active. Hannah’s attention to detail embodies more than historical accuracy, though. Her careful use of colors and the way she differentiates between Mabel and the three other female leads demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of design.

Hannah started sewing her own clothes from patterns in eighth grade. “I was picky and dissatisfied with what was available,” she said. So she began mixing and matching elements from different patterns to create unique pieces of clothing. Hannah’s interest in art—particularly drawing—translated well into her penchant for fashion design. In addition to designing and sewing clothes for herself, Hannah completed fashion design courses at Moore College of Art and Design and University of the Arts.

“Right now,” said Hannah, “fashion is what I think I want to do.” Particulary costume design. With her Shipley debut behind her, she’ll pursue a degree in fashion design at MICA, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, or Washington University in St. Louis.