Week 4: Korean Week
This week we see the contestant embracing and celebrating the vibrant fashion and textile heritage alongside the rich culture and history of Korea!
With renowned fashion designer Eudon Choi as a guest judge, the contestants are primed and ready for another exciting sewing week.
First up, in the Pattern Challenge, the sewers tackle the jeogori, a traditional Korean jacket that has found a place in modern womenswear and K-pop fashion. Then, things get creative in the Transformation Challenge, as tae kwon do uniforms and colourful belts are repurposed into bold, imaginative contemporary fashion looks.
To round off the week, the Made to Measure Challenge sees the sewists creating elegant evening wear inspired by the cheollik, a historical garment once worn by military officials, now reinterpreted as a symbol of contemporary Korean style.
The Pattern Challenge
The Jeogori
Traditional and historic garments like these have been passed down through the generations and reinterpreted for styles of garments to suit all occasions from everyday wear to occasion wear. The contestants come up with some beautiful co-ordinating fabric choices of lightweight linen and cotton to produce their Jeogori's.
What seems like a simple pattern throws up some complications for the contestants to deal with, we recommend reading your pattern thoroughly before you begin and pressing your make at every available opportunity as you sew your way through!
Above: Kit's challenge winning Jeogori
Lightweight stable woven fabrics
Feeling inspired by the Jeogori? Have a go at creating your own Jeogori-style garment, perhaps using the Riva Jacket by Sew Different for a modern take, we have plenty fabric inspiration to get you going, try using Bauhaus (Brights) for a seriously bold garment or perhaps a mellow relaxing supple linen for a more casual lightweight jacket.
Transformation Challenge
Taekwondo Dobok Contemporary Take
Finding his way at the top of the pack once again Kit was blushing in surprise at winning yet another transformation challenge demonstrating excellent structure and colour placement in his transformation garment.
If you want to re-create any of these superb outfits, we have plenty of sturdy cotton and linen fabrics suitable for getting creative with your own Korean style garments.
Our Tips:
🧵 Taekwondo uniforms are often made from stiff polycotton or canvas-like weaves, so you’ll want to treat anything similar with care. Use a fresh needle (90/14 or denim) and sturdy thread if you’re upcycling heavier fabrics.
Let's get trimming!
Feeling inspired?
✂️ For projects inspired by this challenge, try combining structured weaves like twill, denim, or brushed cotton with colourful trims for belts or sashes. We stock colour-pop deadstock zips and woven trims and braids that would work brilliantly.
We absolutely loved watching this challenge and immediately jumped to our haberdashery stash to begin playing with braids and trims to replace the Taekwondo belts
♻️ Thinking sustainably? Take inspiration from this challenge to reimagine old uniforms, aprons, or workwear into one-of-a-kind pieces. Check out our remnant rolls & Mystery Boxes for a creative starting point.
The Cheollik
Inspired by Korean Military wear, the Cheollik is constructed with a wrap top and pleated lower half for ease of movement. The Cheolik is now a symbol of modern Korean fashion and has been adapted and tailored many times over inspiring the Bee's to create their own unique versions.
Once again we were blown away by Caz's all but shocking fabric choice, which we found ourselves saying "Wow, I'd wear that!" her combination of neon yellow lace alongside bright cotton camo fabric with modern fastenings was amazing!
We also loved Orla's wrap top and pleated shorts combo with beautiful flower applique depicting the Korean national flower, in sunshine yellow cotton we can see this look appearing again.
Fabworks Technical Tips & Suggestions:
💃 If you're dreaming of dramatic pleats or full skirts, you’ll need fabrics with both drape and memory. Our Pima Lawns, Crosshatch Linens, or Cotton Poplins would flow beautifully while keeping pleats in place.
🧵 Pleating tip: Always stabilise the waist before adding pleats, it helps them fall evenly and stay crisp. Use a lightweight fusible interfacing and staystitch to prevent stretching.
🌙 For cheollik-inspired styles, look for dress patterns with pleated skirts or waist gathers. Adding a wrap or tie-front bodice can mimic the classic lines of traditional Korean garments with a wearable twist. We love the Riva Jacket from Sew Different, experiment with adding ties to create your own wrap garment or shorten the pattern and add pleats to the bottom if you are feeling adventurous!
Check out Claudia's cropped Riva Jacket using our Cotton Mystery Box fabric from August's Fabric of the Month!
Images courtesy of BBC1 The Great British Sewing Bee