Flashback to Yesteryear: The Hogan's Heroes Pickpocket returns

 

Photos by jStemmerphotography.com

 

 This is Cassidy, wearing one of my past favorites, the Pickpocket Dress originally seen over a year ago, which made my 2010 portfolio.  I was wardrobing a photo shoot and decided to bring a number of older dresses for the models to try on.  I think this one still looks fabulous.

"The Double Agent" - Vintage Futuristic Military

On the classic military shows that featured a mainly male cast, there seemed to be the regular occurrence of a beautiful female with an accent that secretly was on the side of the "good guys." Because, after all, if you are pretty, you have to be one of the goodies, right?

First of all, I love the pants, but the rest, I'm not thrilled with. I went through three different tops before deciding to use a simple blouse that I made for a previous outfit to make the pants stand on their own.

These pants and their chicken leg effect would have been absolutely disgusting to see a few years ago, but the "small on the bottom, big on the top" is in, and for some reason, as long as you pair this type of pant with boots, it is visually appealing today and I love the unusual look.

And as a fun extra, anyone who can tell me what other gun-wielder this outfit (the all brown version) is greatly inspired by gets huge bonus points!

Hogan's Heroes: Ruteno Kinchu, Communication's Expert

Okay, so it was actually "Sergeant (Kinch) Kinchloe" but I couldn't resist changing it because "Ruteno Kinchu" sounds cooler than "Sajenta Kinchu."

Sgt. Kinch was argualbly a less "adorable" character on Hogan's Heroes, being more of a subdued personality rather than childlike and cartoony like the others. He often tended to blend into the background (so much that his character was replaced in later seasons without explanation).

So this outfit is obviously not "All American." I just received this awesome wig and it screamed Harajuku Girl, much to Raine's delight. Can you tell she is SO much happier dressed like this than she was when she was portraying Mary Ann?

Meet Ruteno Kinchu. She is an undercover communications expert that poses as a DJ at a popular nightclub in Japantown. While most people think she is spinning hot tracks, she is actually monitoring conversations through her headphones and sending messages via her costumized turntables. Very sneaky, indeed.

I'll start with what I LOVE about this outfit. I love the shorts. It was the first thing that I constucted for this ensemble and I think it's unusual and gorgeous. The cross-between hotpants and a pleated miniskirt was inspired by Japanese Samurai armor, with it's geometrical side panels hanging against the hips. I've never seen this combination done this way before in a skirt and I think it's very sexy.

The hot green undershirt was made from remnants of bedsheets that I hemmed for a client last year and is meant to have an Air Force look. In a way, I think that the outfit looks completely fine with just the blouse and skirt.

The jacket is meant to look a little ridiculous, such as many Harajuku girls do. I really wanted to use my strange "flourescent green snails against polka dots" fabric that I don't even remember buying. I like that it looks unusual, but also wish that I didn't put the time into adding so many of the details into the garment that I did. With the loud print on the fabric, you simply can't tell that there are two pleated pockets with diagonal flaps on top, circular epaulettes on each shoulder, and a mini "belt" on each sleeve held on by little belt loops, all trimmed with rusty stars as buttons. The jacket took an entire day to make!

Yay for brightness!

Hogan's Heroes - Crpl. Lisette Lebeau, French Security Animal Trainer

First of all, ISN'T THAT BERET ADORABLE?!

This outfit is inspired by Corporal Louis Lebeau, who, along with being in charge of cooking, also trained the German Shepherd guard dogs to not attack him or his allies.

Lebeau was very short, and like many very short people was often viewed as childlike, so with this outfit, I wanted to play up a schoolgirl/juvenile orphan look.



















It's funny that I started with the concept of the jacket being the main focus of this ensemble, and ended up liking the interior much better. I think the jacket is cute and a nice shape, but if I were to make one like this again, I would definitely choose a different fabric such as a nice tweed. The material I used wrinkles extremely easily and would benefit from a deeper texture.




















































So, when originally I was thinking of making a simple skirt and blouse under the jacket, maybe a vest, but then I decided why not make something more interesting? So I designed this cute little jumper, a style which I have made before, with a little extra details such as a button up front and offset seams. Hanging on the side is a little matching satchel to carry nice puppy treats! Speaking of puppies...








Okay, I have to say this picture was the hardest one to take ever! The dogs are NOT allowed in my sewing room, so they were utterly confused as to why all of a sudden I was pulling them in rather than pushing them out like I normally do. Also I wasn't using a flash because I didn't want laser eyes. So with the longer exposure time, I got blurry, furry blobs from squirmy goggies!



























Huge lesson learned this round was how to use the plaid for me and not fight against it, like I did with my previous outfit. With a plaid pattern, box pleats are a snap, because you don't have to measure or meticulously mark where the folds go. It's already marked for you on the fabric! This material was also great for adding dimension with highlights and shadows in intentionally placed areas of the dress.

Hogan's Heroes - TSgt Andrea Carter, American Explosives Specialist

Next up is the lovely Trina as an American explosives specialist, inspired by the character of Technical Sergeant Andrew Carter. I think the outfit turned out super cute!


Again, I took some signature pieces from the original character's outfit and reworked them.
I lined the vest and collar in some cheap fake fur that I have been itching to use to echo Carter's fur-lined bomber jacket.
Sgt Carter's hat and gloves were also always present. I didn't make the gloves, but I did actually made that adorable newsboy cap!

(The actor who played Carter, Larry Hovis, was married, unlike his character, so they always put him in gloves to hide his wedding ring.)

Making this outfit, especially the multi-piece vest, really reminded me that working with plaid is a PAIN! Everything has to be lined up perfectly or it looks like hell. The end result is worth it when it turns out well, though.

I'm categorizing this combo under the "60's" genre, although "20's" and "40's" would also be really appropriate.

Hogan's Heroes - Corporal Petra Newkirk, British Pickpocket

The thing that I love about "Hogan's Heroes" is that each of the principal characters had their own specialty and their own look. After a HH marathon on TV Land this weekend, I was greatly inspired to create a few dresses inspired by the different characters, especially by the useful "roles" they played in their undercover duties.

The first outfit is a "pickpocket" dress inspired by Corporal Peter Newkirk. As you can see by the link, it's not even close to a direct copy of the original. That's where the term, "inspired by" comes in handy!

I designed this dress to retain a practicality for a pickpocket. It's baggy around the side pockets, so as to store items without letting them be seen too much, and the large folded down false lapel on top is also a pocket, designed for the thief to be able to drop items into it while disguising her hand movement as if she is simply touching her shoulder.








And it is probably unnecessary to point out the ultra-short miniskirt as an additional tool for discraction tactics.










Of course, let it not be said that I don't take inspiration in constuction from the TV show. It's there if you look for it. Our operative is utilizing Newkirk's turtleneck, and the cuffs at the end of her sleeves are meant to reflect the corporal stripes on his uniform sleeves.

I also like the look of the way the Germans used the already-existing buttons from their double-breasted coats to hold their lapels open, so I nodded at that as well.