A quick no sew Cape

Last night my internet was down for a few hours and I really didn't have anything do. Dinner was on the stove, I had cleaned what I needed to clean. So I decided to make something. I had bought a lot of flannel and fleece this winter, so I had lot left over. I made everyone Christmas presents last year( scarves, covers for stuff, pillows, etc), well I had a couple of yards of this plaid fleece fabric and I figure why not use it. It's still cold and I can still wear whatever I make out and about. I decided to make a cape. I love a good cape, I don't know what it is but I feel a little bit more elegant when I wear a cape.

I folded it (as we use to say in school) Hamburger style.

I used a hat ( my favorite beret) as a guide to cutting the opening and neck. Placing the half of the hat on the fold.

I started cutting from the bottom. only cutting the top layer. making sure I cut around the hat, making a curve for the neck. I cut on both side of the hat, not straight down the middle then splitting at the hat. I cut out a nice little panel

 After cutting the opening I then trimmed off some of the length. I'm pretty short and I can't deal with a super long cape. I think I chopped off about  9 maybe 10 inches.

I used the cut off scraps as a belt around the waist.

I decide to add on my mink to see how it would look with a bit of fur. I some left over faux fur that I have to use. I think I'm going to make a  removable fur collar. nothing permanent cause I like it with and without fur.

I wearing my new cape today to run a quick errand. I really love it.

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18th Century Stays are Done!

The other day after a few days of sitting in my room getting thread all over my bed I finally finished my stays.
Two months of planning and work and I am finally done with them. I pretty proud of how well they turned out.

I need someone to help me lace up a bit tighter then this.

I chose not to do the typical tabs of that century cause when I made a muslin the tabs kept flipping up. I think It was my wide hips pushing them out and up. I decide to kept them in larger pieces and for the most part they stayed down, only when I bend over do the turn up. 

I could wear them all day if it wasn't so cold today, hence my long red socks. It's freezing here and all I want is to put my pjs on, have a cup of tea, and get back in bed.

Next month I'm working on my skirt supports. I haven't decide which one to do so I have a few days to think about. Plus I have my birthday to think about on the 14th so I mind will be there.

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18th Century Stays: Boning, Eyelets, and Binding

NOW that I have figured out my  layer problem and got all the boning channels sewn. I have already sewn the third inside layer together and set it aside for later. I can get to boning my stays. This will be my second time boning anything in my life. My first try at boning was back in school when we had to make bustiers. I never had to really do boning to support actual breast so let see how this goes.

After doing a little research on boning online, in some books and after reading other costumers' blogs I decide to go with mix of industrial  heavy duty strength zip ties and a a few white spring steel bones. I decided to do this because for one I'm on a tight budget and the zip ties are pretty cheap and I wanted to try using steel bones but not in the whole thing. Most of the spring steel bones are placed in the back and a few on the side. Like I said in an earlier post I kind of threw the instructions out the window from this point on (because I'm crazy) and winged it. My boning is based on what I saw from stays from that century more then what the instructions said. Also like I mentioned in an earlier post I didn't use all the channels I made but that's fine.

Cutting boning and getting ready to bone my stays.

After boning my stays I pinned the third inside layer to the two front layers, basted stitched them together. Making sure all my boning stayed in the channels. Pretty much everything from this point on was going to be hand sewing. So I prepared myself for the next couple of days to work on stuff while catching up on tv shows.

 The next step was to bind the edges of the stays all the way around but I couldn't do that because I didn't have anything to bind  with so I went on and started on my eyelets. Twenty-two hand sewn eyelets, I curse and swear everytime I start doing eyelets but when I am finished I really like the look of them.

very bad pictures taken in my bedroom with very bad lighting

A few days later my binding came in the mail and I could get started on that. Now I had to do a bit of work to get to the point of even getting started on binding my stays. The instructions had said to make your own bias tape to bind the stays. Okay I had got some fabric to make my bias tape and well that was a fail. So I tried using store bought bias tape that I already had at home before going to go buy colors to match, yet another fail. After trying those two options I had no idea what I was going to do.

The next day I was ordering ribbon for another project and I came across some lilac satin ribbon and I decided I would try that out as my binding. I ordered my ribbon, I got 7/8 inch wide ribbon for my binding. I felt 1 inch was just too wide.

Ribbon order from The Ribbon Retreat

The lilac ribbon for my stays, the champagne  ribbon for my pearl necklace and the slate ribbon I got just cause liked the color.

Now I can start binding the stays. I found using the ribbon was easier then using the bias tape so I soldiered on. 

Pinned ribbon binding to stays.

As I posted this blog I am still hand sewing the ribbon. Working an hour or so every day. You can only do so much before your eyes start to see double, your back aches, and your hands are ready to fall off.

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18th Century Stays: lets start sewing

Yesterday I started sewing on my stays. Again.
here's the story
 Besides the other projects I was working on, I had some issues with the stays.
I started sewing on the stays a day after doing all the cutting. I was following the instructions for the pattern and finding them easy to follow but that wasn't working out for me. I found the look and fit to be off. I was on the second layer and I gave up. I looked at my "stays" and decided to rip them apart and start over. I needed to throw out the instructions from this point on. I also decided to re-cut the second layer.
I had to figure out a way for me to do this without wanting to jump off my roof.  So I decided I was going to sew the outer layer and the cotton canvas interfacing together piece by piece instead of sewing  the pieces together then put the layers together. That was the problem I was having the first go around.
I found doing it my way was easier and faster. Also felt like I had more control over the fabric.

I drew the bone casing lines on the interfacing. Now the instructions really didn't say much about boning and since i was doing my on thing I just had to go with the flow. I just added boning were I felt it would work for me. Not sure if I will use all the casing yet but when I get there I will figure that out.

Now that I had the outer layer and the interfacing sewn together I could put the pieces together.

After sewing the pieces together I tried it own before moving on and thank the sewing gods it felt better then the first go.

Here are the stays without boning or laced up.

There have been many times I wanted to stop and just buy stays from another costumer but then I would have not had the great joy of learning. 

I still have a lot to do and it's driving me crazy. I want them to be done already.

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Atomic swing skirt

When I'm not working on my costume projects or any fun sewing I'm doing what I like to call my everyday sewing. That includes making clothes that I wear everyday, fixing hems or anything else for family members and sewing for costumers.

So since I started on my stays I have had a few things thrown at me to work on. Two of my uncles brought over their pants for me to fix the hems. I actually have to take up two pairs for one uncle. My Grandmother want me to shorten her leather coat. and I got orders for skirts in. With all that I have to put costume sewing on hold to get all that out the way. Maybe working at the end of the day for an hour or so.

One of my favorite things I made was this fun Atomic Swing skirt. I just love this print I have used it for an apron for my sister before and I wanted to get more. When I got more of this fabric I knew it would make a great skirt or dress.

I was right

Now when I started on this skirt I was in perfect health, then  my sister came home with the flu and I had to take care of her. After  taking care of her for a few days I went back to work on this skirt but I could feel my body fighting me. I was getting sick and I just didn't want to do anything. But I pushed my self to work a little bit everyday till I finished this baby. I wanted to also work on my stays in between but that wasn't going to happen. I didn't even want to look at them, they will have to wait a few days.

So Uncle A's pants done, skirt done, and now I have to do Uncle M's pants.

SKIRT IS AVAILABLE ON MY ETSY

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Early Birthday Present

Really earlier since my birthday isn't till next month but anyway it's here.
A few weeks ago I finally decided to go on and get myself a dress-form.
Well she is here and I'm so happy to have her. I love getting new sewing stuff and this is the biggest purchase I have made in a long time.

I haven't adjusted her yet, she is still at the smallest size so I haven't used her for anything but I did slipped my chemise over her. I didn't want her sitting out in the living room naked.

Now all she needs is a name.

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18th century Chemise

The first thing I made for the 18th century was the chemise.
It makes sense to start with the first thing you would put on right?

I used the chemise pattern that came in the Simplicity pattern I used for my stays.
The chemise I cut out ( using the measurements on the pattern) was quiet big so decided to re-cut it a few sizes down and it still seems big, but I think it's the right look. I have to cut my ribbon a bit they are just too long. That's an easy fix.
It took me four hours with cutting and re-cutting  to put the chemise together. Really easy pattern to follow. I want to make another one.

I'm not going to take pictures of it on until I finished the stays and pockets hoops cause it's very sheer You can see everything. I can't wait to see it with everything on cause now it looks like a old school nightgown.

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18th century stays

This is as far as I got yesterday

just got all the layers cut out 

But here is a little bit of my 18th Century Stays journey

Last year when I decided to do the 18th century project I knew I needed to have the proper garments.
That is when I started looking for patterns, tutorials, and tips on making stays. I  found a lot of helpful information.

I knew I needed to find a pattern. I know a lot of people  recommended Janet Arnold's book but you have to scale those patterns. Add since my school was a complete waste of time and money and never really taught us anything I have to learn how to scale patterns on my own. So for now working with Janet Arnold's book will have to wait. There are a lot of book with great patterns out there but again scale would be an issue.

So I started looking for paper patterns.  I found a few patterns that seems good based off of some reviews I read. I narrowed it down to two a pattern from JP Ryan and one that's from Simplicity that is now out of print on eBay.  After reading reviews and taking my knowledge of making stays into account I decided to go with the Simplicity pattern.

Simplicity 3635

I chose to go with this pattern since it was my first go at making stays. I needed clear and easy instructions and I knew that Simplicity was good at that.

 The fabric
 Picking out the fabric was harder then it should have been. I just didn't know what type of fabric to go with. I usually can spot a fabric I want and get it. Looking at a few fabric websites and visiting the fabric store not finding anything. Luckily I was working on another project that had leftover fabric.  I really loved the fabric I was using so i decided to use the rest of that fabric.

Pastoral Toile lilac and ivory upholstery fabric

The other two layers are just a grey linen and a canvas interfacing.

Pinned and ready to cut

After cutting out all three layers  I wanted to get started on sewing and the boning  but I wasn't up for it.

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New shoes to start off the new year

Last night I ordered my shoes for the 18th century project. I know I only got one thing made, the chemise. I'm no where near working on the dress but getting the shoes now made sense.

The little beauties that I just had to have

"Kensington" 18th Century Leather Shoes From American Duchess

and I chose this pair of shoe buckles to wear with the shoes.

"Dauphine" 18th Century Rhinestone Shoe Buckles

I have been  lusting after these shoes ever since I came across the American Duchess blog when I was just reading other people's costuming blogs for the little courage I needed to get started on my on costuming journey. Her blog is one of the best and I really enjoy it. When I saw she had a shoe store I flipped out, I love shoes. Not only shoes but historically accurate shoes. 

When I was doing research, I saw women who got their shoes made for them( I don't know any cobblers) and I saw women who made their own( I would try to make anything but I draw the line at shoes). Buying shoes was my only and best option.

Why buy them now? Well when I decided I was going to make an 18th century costume I knew I wanted to have the whole look head to toe. I went back to the website to see prices to workout my budget and I saw that she American Duchess offers layaway for three months. I love a layaway program, it's easier on my my pocketbook and I can't bring myself to spend 100 plus at one time on a pair of shoes. So I'm ordering them now cause by the time I have made my final payment I would have at least started on the dress if not finished by then. So they would have shipped and be mine just in time.

I can't wait till they get here until then I have to wait.

P.S. there's an 14% off  your order when you use the discount code TntY14  

code is case sensitive

Code Expires on 1/31/2014 

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