Month: January 2013

Spotty bolero and apron…

Spotty bolero

Here’s what I’ve been up to this week – making a spotty bolero from Simplicity 1819. I was intending to make a stripy one, to match the red and black outfit I wore to the Wild Boy’s Ball at Kensington Palace a couple of years ago. Unfortunately the fabric shop was out of stripes and, being too impatient to wait for an order to arrive, I decided to go with spots instead. As you do. This had a knock-on effect as the matching black trim (also unavailable) would have been invisible on the spotty fabric, so I had to go with red. I think it stands out rather nicely! It’s the first time I’ve done this sort of decoration, and although it was a bit fiddly in places, I’m pleased with the way it looks.

(I have to confess that I also love the way it looks with this yellow skirt. The temptation to wear these together is now almost irresistible.)

Spotty bolero and apron

And here’s what it’s supposed to look like, complete with matching spotty apron. That’s only pinned into place because I still haven’t decided whether it’s actually going to be an apron or a bustle. I think an apron though, as I rather fancy tying it with a ridiculously oversized bow at the back. As you do. The apron is also made from Simplicity 1819, a rather loose interpretation of the overskirt.

I think during the day I’ll probably wear this with a plain black shirt, and I have just enough spotty fabric left over to make a matching tie or bow tie. Then for the evening I’ll switch to the dress shown above, and swap the bolero for the black taffeta coat. If I’m feeling fancy, I might put the feather collar back on.

Then, of course, all I’ll need to make is a MASSIVE HAT. I have Lynn McMasters‘ top hat/riding hat pattern, some spare black taffeta, and a magpie skull on order. Watch this space…

Simplicity 2184: Vintage dress pattern holy grail!

Well, it’s taken me almost five years to find it, but here it is – my vintage dress pattern holy grail, in the form of Simplicity 2184.

Raglan sleeves. Short and long sleeve options. FRENCH CUFFS. Convertible collar. In a size that I don’t have to re-draft too much. HALLELUIA! All I need to do is add pockets in the side seams (and 3″ to the waist) and it will be PERFECT! It even still includes the embroidery transfers for the monogram. *swoons*

It’s probably just as well that I need to wait for it to arrive all the way from Canada (I bought it on Etsy, from HoneymoonBus), hopefully that will ensure that I’ve calmed down a little bit by the time it arrives. I’ve already mentally sewn it in about 153 different fabric combinations, and thrown out every other item of clothing in my wardrobe. I need to slow down.

I posted the link on Facebook, and several people were somewhat boggled by the term “Slenderette”. Thankfully a friend discovered that Gertie (whose blog I am now reading obsessively) had contacted Simplicity to find out what on earth. Apparently the term was used for patterns that were specifically designed to make you look more slender. Not that this is going to work for me, as I’m going to have to let out the waist by at least three inches to make the dress fit – or invest in some fairly serious underwear.

Yes, underwear is still an ongoing issue. This stupid annoying fibromyalgia thing that I’ve got going on means that wearing a bra is absolutely excruciating, so I haven’t done it for the best part of a year. (And the Fashion Police didn’t arrest me or anything! It’s been a revelation!) Those “secret support” vests – sorry – camisoles with a soft bra hidden inside are a bit better, but they still have a constricting band of elastic around the body, so they’re not ideal. I did make a lovely soft teddy from bamboo fabric, but there were some issues with the fit (which is why I haven’t blogged about it yet), and Paul said it looked “like Victorian underwear – in a bad way”. Clearly some improvement needed there!

I keep looking at Kiss Me Deadly, whose vintage-inspired underwear would be perfect underneath this type of dress. But sadly their pretty things are outside the realms of my budget at the moment (anybody want to buy me a Vargas dress? Go on, you know you want to!), and I’m not 100% certain that my body will tolerate being squished by powernet all day.

So perhaps while I’m waiting for this pattern to arrive and fill me with wonder and glee, I should concentrate on doing some experiments with underwear. I’ve only made a couple of bras since I went on LCF’s Structured Lingerie course, and that was two years ago. Now I really want to do their Lingerie Workshop, but again, budget, and the courses take place in the school holidays, which is when I tend to be doing extra hours at work. Hey ho.

In the meantime, I’ve been reading blogs such as Ohhh Lulu, and reading my 1970s and 1980s lingerie-sewing books, in the hope that these might encourage me to get over my terrible fear of wasting fabric, and actually cut something out. I think now’s the time!

2012 round-up

I’ve been thinking about this post for a week, and I kept putting it off because I felt as though it wasn’t really worth making. Each year I like to look back at everything that I’ve made, but this last year I don’t seem to have made anything very much!

Of course there were the theatre costumes for Neverwhere, which I still haven’t shown in their entirety. They took up most of January. May was dominated by several Steampunk outfits, including a ball gown. From August to December I was working five days a week instead of three, and from October onwards I was also volunteering, so I suppose I didn’t really have as much time as usual to make things. I also haven’t been trying to run a business this year, so I’ve been doing more things just for the sake of trying them out, which means I’ve got a lot of unfinished bits and pieces lying around that didn’t really fit into this collage.

I just can’t help looking at this picture and feeling a bit miserable, as though I’ve done nothing with the past twelve months. I love to make things, and it does make me sad when I don’t have time to do it. I think this year, I need to find a better balance.

Bloom

Winx Club Bloom Doll

This is a Winx Club Bloom doll. I have no idea what that means (it says Nickelodeon on the box, so maybe she’s a cartoon?), but she was reduced to £6 in my local toy shop, so I brought her home with me.

I’ve been reading forums on customising dolls like Liv, Moxie and Monster High, but I thought it would be better to practice on a cheap doll before I effectively ruined something that a little girl might like to play with. I chose this one because I liked the shape of her face (I thought it might customise nicely into something pixie-ish), and because her proportions aren’t as ridiculously exaggerated as some other fashion-type dolls. She also has a little x-shaped hole in her back specifically for the addition of wings, so she might turn into a really nice fairy of some description.

Sadly she’s not very poseable, as she’s only jointed at the shoulders, hips and neck. This probably makes her useless for my original idea of customising her and taking photos, but it also hopefully means I won’t be too precious about having a few goes at repainting her face or replacing her hair.

Of course, what I really want is something like this beautiful Luts Super Senior Delf, but in the absence of a spare $546, I think Bloom will have to do!

Tumblr: December Archive

Here’s my Tumblr archive for December…

You can see the archive in more detail, here.