The pillow that turned into a purse.

I was knitting away on what was meant to be that pillow and I will say it--I got bored as hell. I couldn't imagine doing a million more rows of this same stitch to make this thing. The problem I think was the color, it was just gray. Very boring. So I decided to take what I had, make a long strip for the side/strap and turn it into a purse! It is still sitting here in pieces I have to say, but I hope to get it put together tomorrow. It is not very big and not perfect, but my daughter should be very happy with it. After I got sick of the gray and knitted the strap piece I found this gorgeous blue and started a scarf for her too! I need to bind it off, add the fringe, and this fleece image I want to use as an applique which will conveniently cover one of the places I messed up.

With the help of son and cat...

Since the Assassin's Creed costume was my son's idea I figured he needed to help at least cut it out. They always come up with these fantastically involed costumes like I can just pull them out of a bag or something, so I thought he needs to see just how much work this truly is. You can tell he is impressed.We also had the help of our newest cat, Ezio, whether we wanted it or not. He took the fabric, stole the trim, and tore the pattern whenever he could manage it. The last picture where he is stretched out on the floor he is actually asleep! He was playing with the footpedal and just conked out lol.

 

 

It's tiring being so bad!!!

 

 

Curtain-Along Fabric.

Presently Amazon has the cream colored curtains for $19.99 a pair so I am FINALLY going to get my fabric this Wednesday! I really like the ivory ones better, I think the contrast is more striking, but no one seems to have any except a fully-lined set for $100.00 which is way over budget. But as pale as I am the cream is probably a much better option for me anyway. Now I have to decide which dress I want to make before I place my order....decisions.

Fabric choices for Assassins Creed III costume.

The first place we deviated from the original was in the color. My son Stephen wanted something that seemed more natural, that would blend into the environment like a real assassin would, not a bright uniform. I had this moss colored wool-look fabric I had bought from Walmart laying in a box. It is not as brown looking as this pic, will try to get a better one

This is lining material for the coat that we found at Goodwill. It is a herringbone in a brownish-gray. I would have prefered more of a brown color but we were on a tight budget and this fit the bill.

This was another Goodwill find, and is the fabric for his waistcoat. It has a "popcorn" feel too it, with raised circles. It is a light cream colored tapestry.

Assassins Creed III Costume

My son wanted a costume based on the one from his new game for Halloween. We were working on it when way-layed by a serious, and unexpected problem, but we did get enough of it done that he could wear it to the school dance.

Catching up...

I think the laws of probability say that if I start doing something I really want to do, ie. sewing, blogging, that disaster should strike. It did, it is hopefully done, and now its time once again to catch up. I have alot of pics and stuff to post which I hope to get all done over the next few days, and start my new year off on the right foot :)

Bad hands...

I had to put all of my projects on hold when I woke up one morning with TERRIBLE pain in my hand and arm. I have arthritis in my hands and have had--its inherant, but this was something all together different. It is not carpoltunnel syndrome, but something that mimics it that has to do with the nerves though the name now escapes me, anyway it equals major pain. It was bad for several days and slowly getting better. I decided to take this time to finish organizing my sewing items and hope to be done tonight and back to work.

Elizabethan Corset

Here is the pattern and material I am using for my corset. I do not usually go with commercial patterns as too much adjusting is involved, but I thought this one was quite well done. Just a bit of tweaking and I will be happy with it I think. The fabric, as I mentioned earlier, is competely non-period but I couldn't resist.

Curtain-along dress ideas

I have been looking through all of the lovely images and have narrowed my choices down to a few...

This one is by far my favorite, and in the cream fabric as well.  I would make a few changes to the top of it though, as I like it because it reminds me of a design I fell in love with in The Patriot. It has 3 straps across the stomacher I believe as well as one that is more detailed. I need to hunt up a photo of it. I really would LOVE to do this one, but it is alot of fabric so I will have to see if I can work this into my budget.

Love the bottom of this one.

This is another strong contender. I have always loved these and it would not take nearly the fabric as the first one. Also, I like how it hangs over the bum, as having a sizeable one, this might really be flattering.

Knitting and Organizing.

Trying to get my mess of a garage/sewing/storage area sorted out. It is hard to get going on things when it is an hour excavation to find the simplist of supplies. So working on that, HOPE to be done by tomorrow night but that could be rather optomistic.

Knitting is moving along slowly. I see where I have made some mistakes, but since this is just a pillow and practice I decided not to rip it all out. I will just keep going and deal with these spots when I am finished.

My attempt at knitting.

I have knitted one thing, a small scarf, about 5 years ago. It turned out as good as can be expected for a first attempt and that was the last time I touched a knitting needle. I have been wanting to try again and found a really cool book with what looked to be easy to follow instructions. Sooooo, I went to JoAnn's today and bought the correct yarn, watched some Youtube videos, and started tonight. So far not too horridly bad. I am making a pillow for my daughter. It seemed to be the easiest of the projects in the book, however only time will tell.

Elizabethan Corset--Cross-post from Livejournal

Quite a while ago I had relocated my lost corset pieces and had planned to put them together but when I finally went to do so I found they were WAAAAYYYY to short! I had used a commercial pattern and didn't mess with the sizing/fitting before cutting (I know, dumb) as I am very short so I never dreamed that the waistline would be off by almost 4 inches! Irritated, this one was tossed in the to-sew-or-figure-out-what-to-do-with-it-someday box and I went in search of other fabric but found nothing I liked as much as what I had planned on using originally. I was going to just resign myself to the standard cream corset when I found this really interesting fabric at Jo Ann's. It is an upholstery weight duck cloth with this really cool print that sort of reminds me of a stained-glass window, in these sort of fleshy pink and brown tones. I know it is not accurate but I wanted something kind of fun and that I could use to wear as an outergarment whenever I felt like it. I am prepared for the fact I will get some grief from people over the pink color but I am in love with it anyway :)

Indian Crewel--Cross-post from Livejournal

My mother was doing her usual auctioning for material goodies and came across this FABULOUS PIECE! It is a wonderful Indian  Crewel worked cotton and is so much more lovely up close than in the picture. I absolutely love it and decided I am going to make myself something from it :) Problem is I cannot decide what. It is a little over a yard but issue is that they cut a big chunk out of it. With the shape and the width I could do one of these without too much problem :

#1: Forepart to a skirt and stomacher piece for an Elizabethan gown. I am only 5' tall so I can squeeze out the part for the skirt and then there would be just enough for the center bodice.

#2:  Partlet a' la Shakespeare In Love. I really loved the heavily embroidered partlet she wears with her riding costume as she goes to church to pray for Will when she thinks he died. It shows it quite well when they are sitting together down by the river after she learns it was not him who was killed. This would leave me fabric for something else too but i don't know what. My only worry is that the pattern on it is just too large. I could possibly squeeze this out of scraps using the smaller prints after I made something else as well depends on what is left over.

#3: Elizabethan Jacket from Janet Arnold's patterns of fashion. I have looked at this over the years but always thought it was sort of frumpy. It is the one described as "being tied with silk ribbons", but having been watching the Tudors alot lately (I am in one of those moods) I notice this is the jacket, pink silk ribbons and all, we see fleetingly in the opening sequence. It is a brief shot with the wearer untying it to take it off (yeah, its showtime) and it actually is rather sexy. Perhaps this is just because she is taking it off lol but I rather like it :) I THINK I could squeeze this out as I can arrange the pieces around the large hole in the middle and I am very intriqued by this.

Let me know what you think :)

Tags: indian crewel fabic

The White Queen

My daughter has actually picked what she wants to be for Halloween early this year! Usually this is something that happens last minute, so this actually gives me time to get it started. I am not going to try and make it perfectly accurate as far as all the embellishments go, just close enough you know who she is supposed to be. As cute as she will be in the dress I think the part she is looking forward to most is getting to spray her hair white. Grandma is already working on beading some lace appliques that were taken off of an old wedding dress and will ship them to us in the mail.

Sewing List

So I MUST get off my fanny and actually start on my historical costume wardrobe. I have NOTHING--not even a stocking--anymore and have to get started. I have several events I have missed because I never have the proper garments to wear so I have to decline. Since these events cover a wide range of eras it really is a task I have before me, but am relishing it :)

It has been a very long time since I have sewn anything, for fun or otherwise, and I am very glad to be getting down to it. I love the surfing for ideas and inspiration, finding the right fabrics. All of that stuff. This is a very long list, and pieces will not get done all at once of course (and I am certain I will ad more to them) but I wanted an idea to get started and begin my supply search.

SCA Appropriate Attire - Elizabethan.
    Corset (I actually have this cut out from April!!)
    Chemise (yep this too)
    Petticoat
    Stockings
    Shoes
    Hat
    Gloves
    Dress/Bodice/skirt
    Cape??

Something for the Hobbit--no idea what yet.

Georgian - This will probably be my Curtain-along project.
     Corset
     Chemise
     Panniers
     Petticoat
     Dress/Jacket/skirt
     Hat
     Cape/Coat??

Regency
     Corset or boned petticoat
     Chemise
     Dress
     Spencer
     Bonnet
     Purse
     Shoes
    
Victorian Civil War Era -Not my favorite but there is an event I should think about going to. I will have to see on this one.

Victorian Bustle Era - I have alot of events for this one, including some Steampunk happenings and some readings for my book which require a very daring ensemble. This is by far the most extensive list.
     Corset
     Chemise
     Corset Cover
     Drawers
     Stockings
     Breeches
     Blouse
     Leather Corset
     Boots
     Ballgown
     Daydress
     Walking Costume
     Hats
     Gloves

Wow thats one heck of a list! And this is just me. My husband will need some things for events as well as some of the children and then of course there is Halloween. Yikes!!

"Great balls of fire...they are my portiers now!"

I have been wanting to make myself something FOREVER, which of course just doesn't seem to happen, so I was really intrigued when I saw this. Just the kick in the pants I need to get started!!! Will be sifting through all the lovely images of inspiration that the webmistress was kind enough to post :)

Moving from Livejournal.

I have a blog I keep meaning/wanting to do something with on Livejournal. Though alot of my lack of blogging comes down to my forgetting about it, I am hoping to turn over a new leaf. Using this to help me keep up on my projects and everyone elses. With blogger being so much easier to use I will be moving everything (though this is sadly not much) over to here.