I'm still here!

Short version - I made a bunch of stuff and it's all too big.

I've been sewing away merrily and got everything done that was on the list. And every single thing (except one) is too big. The only one that's not too big was fitted at the very end so actually it's slightly small at the bust.

I know. Pics or it didn't happen. I'll see what I can do this weekend about getting some for you.

My photographer has gone walkabout

Not really. It's more of just finding the time to play fashion show.

The purple dress is done except that it turns out I've lost weight since making it and the belt needs a new eyelet. But I used up all the matching thread so I'll find something in the thread box that's close. I should have that done by mid-week.

I did go on a cutting binge about a week ago. A-line slip, A-line petticoat with ruffle, A-line skirt (seeing a trend here?) and a classic button down blouse. I'm using the skirt pattern from the shirt dress since it works.

The buttons are on the A-line denim skirt so that one can be called done!

The slip and petticoat are both holding at about 90 - 95% done. They both have elastic as the waistband stiffening with an extension to hold the fastener. Makes them adjustable. But I need to finish the ends, make the button holes and sew on the buttons. The petticoat also needs ribbon in the beading. That's on sale at Hobby Lobby so 2 spools of 1/8" black ribbon will be coming home with me.

With these projects done I NEED to switch back to painting miniatures even though there's 2 complete pieces cut out and waiting for me. Just .. waiting. But I must be good and finish these other projects.

Still on the planning deck are a denim vest to match the skirt, another slip with pretty bias bands and matching fabric ruffle, and making my own bras and underwear. That last one is going to be interesting.

Yeah well, it was a good idea

I took the plunge and tried on some of the costumes after work today.

The chemise fit but then again those could easily double as a tent. They're roomy and comfy.

I use an underbodice when I have a bodice that buttons. That way there's no strain on the buttons that looks unprofessional. I had an idea that things weren't going to work when I laced that on. It had far more of a gap than I remembered.

I tried on the yellow underskirt and while it didn't button that waist button has been moved many times. Moving it again wouldn't be a problem.

Then I actually started thinking and realized that the 'make it or break it' items were the bodices. There's no room for error in those things. So I tried them on.

No go. I've just gained too much weight to use the costumes.

I'll let my friend know the score and see what comes of it. I believe another group of his friends are going that weekend and maybe he can go with them. As much as I enjoy his company our tastes in music differ greatly so perhaps we wouldn't be the best match once we got there.

I'll repack the costumes and put them back in the storage cubby when I go looking for the other lost items.

And now for something completely different

And old.

I'm on the right. The one in the costume. That's a peasant costume that I had made at least one year earlier (judging on the colors that are still bright).

Here's another view of the costume with a different bodice and in a completely different setting. Um, a more adult-oriented venue. A bar! What were you thinking?? You can see some of the hem embroidery on this one.

These are from 1999. Yes, 10 years ago. Ten long, long, long years ago.

Why am I posting them when they have nothing to do with my shirtdresses and have long since been completed?

A friend of mine may want to go to the faire dressed up this year. I've not gone dressed since I stopped working there so I decided that it might be fun to do that. Hot, uncomfortable fun.

Anyhoo.

One big question is whether these bad boys will still fit. Today I finally dug around in the storage cubbies and found the bins with my peasant costumes. I have a set (no pictures of me wearing them at the time, darn it) in blue and burgundy as well in a different design.

Later, when I'm feeling brave, I'm going to be trying them all on to see if anything still fits decently. The green and orange is the most iffy since those skirts are built on fixed waistbands. The blue and burgundy have elastic which may be more promising.

I'll post some pics if anything fits.

Custom belts are futzy

And to anyone who does any kind of craft, the word 'futzy' means time consuming, detailed, and all around pain in the well-padded posterior.

This isn't to say that I'm not making progress. (Yes, this is the new purple dress. The sewing machine was threaded for it.)



The blogger sugardale noted an article in Threads magazine regarding covering belt buckles. I was able to get that issue from the library and copy the information (purely for my own use, etc.) so I had it on hand when this time came around.

Um, yeah. The instructions are great. The execution is annoying. But on the second try I got it done and looking sweet.

Discourse follows. You've been warned.

The first time I was rushed and of course that's never going to make for a good result. The second time around I took my time and trimmed the fabric better. It probably didn't help that I was covering a buckle with curves. Or maybe it did. But when it was covered it did look darn sweet.

Note - if you do get that issue of Threads one thing I recommend is hand-sewing the first part. I tried it on the machine and while I like to think I'm pretty good at sewing I wasn't able to match the curve in any way. Hand sewing - perfect. Use a backstitch for strength.

I'm using regular elastic as my belt material. I wanted something soft that wouldn't show through the belt cover. That eliminated the BanRoll elastics since they have vertical ribs to make them, well, not roll. I went with regular elastic for the comfort factor and the note that it won't kink like the crisper materials will.

First time I threaded the elastic through the belt casing I didn't pay as much attention as I should and when the entire thing relaxed I was about 6 inches short on filler. ~sigh~ Pull that back out and try again. This time I left the elastic attached to the reel until I was done with covering and ironing.

I tried for a shaped end and that didn't go very well. I've got a mostly squared off end. Practice will help with that. Or all my belts have square ends.

The eyelets are all in place and the ones on the end of the belt still need to be tied off and clipped. The buckle end is complete, including the loop and the finish stitching.

I'm undecided about belt loops/thread loops on the dress itself. I can't do the basic loops on the side seams due to the invisible zipper so they would have to be offset. I think I'm going to wear the dress with the belt and see how it moves.

Finally, I did toss my pink dress in the washer. And it's 100% cotton all right. These will need to be ironed to look good after washing. But I knew that.

No pictures until it gets the belt

I wore the dress again on Saturday and I was so comfy. But it really does need the belt to complete it so I won't take pictures until that's done.

I started on the next one and found that when I made the altered back piece I cut it on the wrong fold line and ended up with extra fabric in the center back. I'm debating between just running a seam to take it out or doing a reverse box pleat. But since the pleat is completely sewn down that's a rather silly option. So it looks like a seam goes up the back where I never planned for there to be a seam. Needless to say I'm cutting the pattern piece so that can't happen again.

I also skipped ahead and did most of the assembly on the denim A line skirt. It was easy. And I finally drafted a real pocket pattern piece for that particular skirt line. I like in seam pockets. They're handy. So that one is together and waiting on waistband and buttons. And hemming but that's kind of a given.

Finally I'm in discussions with my bestest friend regarding petticoat styles. I won't go into them here since we're just starting the discussion but the options I've come up with so far are:

Gored
A-line
Yoke with gathered straight panel (dirndl)

All of them will have a fancy flounce at the bottom and at this time I'm thinking that the flounce will be tiered to the skirt and not applied. As in, there won't be another layer of skirt under the flounce. The entire purpose of the flounce is to be frilly and fancy. There isn't much in the way of structural requirements.

If anyone else has ideas please feel free to post them. I'll do a separate post in the near future regarding the petticoats and some (really bad) sketches of the styles so those less familiar with the terms can understand what they look like.

I'm wearing my dress right now

It still lacks a belt and it's short enough that I have to remember to bend from the knees and not from the waist unless I want to give a show.

But I like it. It's comfy and a lot more fun than wearing jeans.

I did finally get some belts to use for buckles today and within the week I hope to have a belt made.

And lastly I've started cutting out the next dress. I ran into issues because of some pattern changes and I ran out of fabric before I ran out of pattern pieces. In this case I altered the back into a single piece (pattern has a yoke and back) and I lengthened the skirt. These 2 things were enough to run longer than the expected yardage. I was lucky in that the store still had some on the clearance rack. So I'm good to go.