Heritage Park is looking for a full-time Costume Designer which is a full-time, permanent position.

Heritage Park’s Costume Department is responsible for the production, procurement, and repair of hard-wearing period costumes and uniforms for approximately 600 staff each year. Reporting to the Director, Interpretation, the Costume Designer coordinates all aspects of garment construction, pattern drafting, cutting, assembly, and fitting, delegating work to other Costuming staff and volunteers as necessary. He/she is also a leader in promoting the correct wearing of period costume in accordance with Heritage Park policy and guidelines.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Responsible for the design, production, maintenance, distribution, and retrieval of costumes.
• Recruits, trains, and supervises Costuming employees and volunteers by coordinating projects and assigning workloads.
• Coordinates with all park departments to ensure timely outfitting of all staff and volunteers including historical costumes, work wear, security uniforms, and food service uniforms.
• Initiates research and designs historically accurate costumes to reflect Heritage Park’s time frame of 1860s – 1940s.
• Coordinates and is familiar with all aspects of garment construction, pattern drafting, cutting, fitting, and assembly.
• Oversees the maintenance of costumes including laundering, repairs, alterations, and dry cleaning.
• Conducts costume fittings, issues costumes, and orients staff to Costume Policy and Guidelines.
• Develops costumes for children’s summer camps and other specialty programs such as the Ghoul’s Night Out Halloween event.
• Sources and purchases fabrics, ready-made garments, other textile items (flags) as well as Costuming equipment and supplies.
• Continually reviewing suppliers to ensure effective use of Park resources.
• Organizes conservation of textiles in conjunction with Curatoratorial team.
• Produces an inventory report annually and co-ordinates a physical inventory every third year. 

Education & Experience:

• Diploma or degree in Costume Design from a recognized program, combined with a minimum 5 years’ experience designing and building costumes within a similar work environment (e.g. museum, theatre or film)
• Minimum 2 years Supervisory experience

Skills:

• Excellent sewing knowledge is required. Specialized training / experience with tailoring, altering and original pattern creation is considered an asset
• Well-developed supervisory skills including the ability to communicate instructions, delegate work, evaluate staff performance and inspire and motivate a team
• Strong interpersonal communication skills for dealing with the public, employees, and volunteers
• Confidence using File Maker Pro and Microsoft Office Suite to maintain inventory and produce reports

Candidates meeting the above criteria who wish to apply for this exciting opportunity should email their cover letter and resume, in confidence, to: hr@heritagepark.ca