Hey, Guess What

Monday I finished the last round of sewing-my-ass-off for other people in preparation for the event this weekend, which will be the last one of the season for me, and one of the biggest Ansteorran events of the year, and...

 ...which starts, um...tomorrow...

...I did something completely insane.  Can you guess what it is?

I'll give you a hint: 

I got home from work at 6:00, and ate dinner. 

At 6:30 I started cutting. 

At 1:00AM this morning I had a finished gown.   

All except for the buttons, that is.  Those are a bit of an issue.  I don't have any I can use, and my favorite online button store shut down without warning a couple of months ago.  I can't get buttons for less than full price anymore, and those suckers are expensive, especially when you need anywhere from 14-40 of them per gown!  Payday's tomorrow.  Either I find some that are affordable, I harvest buttons from another dress, or I make cloth buttons and hope they hold.  

Meantime, aside from the possibility that I'll have to buy buttons I can't afford, the rest of the dress was entirely free.  The fabric, a midnight-blue, hi-pile, velvety, brushed denim twill, came from a friend's de-stash party last month.  The gold brocade trim was given to me by another friend who made waaaaay too much for a dress she made for herself.  The red linen and gold jeans thread you can see in some of the pics were from my own stash.  

I have to say, this dress was an exciting adventure in getting to know my new sewing machine better.  There are four different embroidery stitches in this dress, two different seam-edge treatments, and I got to bust out the buttonholer for the first time.  I've never used one; every machine I've ever had has had a buttonhole stitch on it, but not an actual attachment. This one has the giant gizmo that you put the button into.  I have to say, it works fabulously.  It didn't work on this dress, though, because of the trim on the front opening edge, which was in the way - I ended up making the buttonholes freehand, with a tiny, tight zig-zag stitch.  But the test buttonholes blew me away.  In general, this machine routinely blows my mind with how easy it's making my sewing life.  Thank you, new sewing machine! 

And as for the finished dress?  You'll have to see it next week when I bring you pics from the event.  :) 

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It's the Little Things

Well, I never found my costume sketchbook.  Finally grabbed a new one the last time I was at Ikea:

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Blue Velvet

wait...

You know how long I've been lusting over a blue velvet gown, yes?  Well, GUESS WHAT!  Last time I was at Ikea, I happened across a pair of their SANELA curtains, in the as-is fabric bin...for twenty bucks.  Yes, that would be two blue cotton velvet curtain panels, 55x118" each, in perfect shape (aside from being a tad dusty from having been on display).

Can you say...

"Mariana" by John Everett Millais, 1850.

I thought you could!

And, actually, in the week since I got the curtains, I've been fleshing out the half-assed design I've had floating around ever since I got the idea:

...and I've changed like eight things since I posted this.

Blue velvet, olive-green silk lining with a gold printed design (sleeves, neckline), a gold (a) band around the bottom *or* (b) underskirt (or faux-underskirt), with bright silver buttons - I'm thinking with pearls or glass crystals, but I haven't decided yet.

At this particular moment, I'm thinking my sheer silk veil (which has yet to be hemmed, actually), and cauls...or not.  I'd have to make a set of cauls, and while it'd be easy and probably pretty fast, I really have enough on my plate right now.

Buttons...?

I like all three.  Hm. 

*squee*


But when, and....?  Hmm.


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Halfway There!

...did that go to a Bon Jovi place for anyone else? Just me?  Okay.

Well, the aubergine linen gown is finished!

yes, it's the same picture. I forgot to get a new one.

This is actually the undergown to the outfit I'm putting together for Candlemas - which I've hinted at, but never fully discussed, mostly because I've been angry with this outfit, confused by it, disappointed with it, and I've gone back to the drawing board *3* times in the past two months.  And I still haven't decided entirely which design to go with:

L-R:  short sleeve, wide open front;  bell sleeve, front laced;  bell sleeve with semi-detached shoulder and side laced

At this particular moment, I'm leaning heavily towards the first one.  More of the undergown's sleeves show, open-front lacing looks awesome on me, and it will need a little contrast panel under the lacing on the outer layer (so as to cut down on the visually-confusing effect of two layers of lacing, while still allowing the lacing on the aubergine gown underneath to show at the top)...and I love those. :)  

In any case, the overgown is a forest green linen.  I think it'll look smashing with the aubergine underneath.  I suppose I'd better at least start cutting it out, since Candlemas is in *checks calendar* like 42 days.  o_o

Fabric-store.com's softened emerald

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The Green Experiment

I write this post late afternoon at work, on the last uber-busy Monday in a set of three.  I'm stuck waiting for things to print so that I can continue...and I find myself in need of a brain break.  SO.

In preparation for the fabulosity I have planned for Candlemas, outfit-wise, I whomped up a little sumpn-sumpn yesterday afternoon, in a mad frenzy of boredom and extra fabric.  There was a pattern alteration I'd been avoiding for two weeks, just sure it would take me at least that long to get it right.  I started yesterday on a whim...and finished the pattern in about fifteen minutes!  Yay!

All I did was take my stock côtehardie pattern and adapt the shoulder seams and shaping to a new line.  One more like the seams and neckline on this:

I love the eyelet arrangement, too! 

And here's how I did it:

(click for bigger)

The next step was to try the pattern with something wearable, to make sure it would function, so I grabbed a green sheet I had laying around that I bought a while back to use for linings or cheap, casual garb, and banged out a plain, casual dress.

front fit + shoulder seam

It's alright, serviceable even; though I think I'll play with the exact shape of the neckline some more.

So that's something else out of the way, as far as Candlemas planning goes:  the pattern is figured out, and I have nearly all the fabric I'll need.  I'm still not entirely sure where to go with the over-sleeves, since the fabric I ordered turned out to be the wrong color, but I'm working on that one.

We shall see.


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Random & Sundry

*covet*

Sheer natural linen batiste at my local JoAnn's...for only $24.99/yard.  Sigh.

A pair of half-sleeves I whipped up last week to wear with a dress I ended up not getting time to change into.  Blue/teal/gold with a teal lining. Good sleeve practice. And practically free, since the brocade came from a shower curtain. Heh.

Wow.  I can't decide what blows me over the most about this painting: the gorgeous dress, the beautiful green sleeves underneath it (surprise!) or that blue and gold tablecloth.  I covet that tablecloth.

Isabella of Castile, artist unknown

I love sketching clothing ideas and working out pattern logistics on paper.  My BFF gave me this nifty little grid-lined notebook that I carry with me everywhere for when I feel like drawing.

I have this navy silk...hm...

I really should get some underwear and cold-weather layers together before I start any new dresses.  Hoods, cloaks, buskins, shoes, braies...and I need a long-sleeved chemise, too.  Drat.












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