2013 Halloween Costume Shouldabeen: Medieval Dress

This summer, I started furiously working on a medieval dress for this year's Halloween. This picture is from early October. I was just too far from the mark to push through and have it look the way I wanted (the trim around the neck is just pinned on in this pic). Maybe next year!

The dress is from Simplicity 2573, view B (on the right).

I decided to eliminate the binding on the bodice. There's a lining anyway, might as well just sew the front to the lining. Seems more period-appropriate to me, although I'm not going completely purist here. However, my first incarnation of the bodice didn't include any extra width/height for a seam allowance. Newbie sewer mistake there. After some pretty thorough research, I settled on using a compass (yes, that thing you last used for drawing circles in fifth grade) to add seam allowances. The pattern calls for the bodice to be interfaced with muslin. I used some rather stiff green cotton I had laying around

Then I cut out the pieces with my rotary cutter. Love that. I have got to get a bigger cutting mat/surface.

In the picture at the top, the lining has been inserted. I borrowed from a technique the Slapdash Sewist discusses to attach lining via machine on a sleeveless bodice. Mine had one less opening, so I sewed the bodice to the dress at the waistline by hand. Hand sewing always intimidates me, but this was surprisingly easy and satisfying! It's certainly not perfect, but it's not going to be seen and I'm very satisfied with it. I realized after I stitched down the waistline that I should have underlined the bodice. The instructions didn't call for it, and I am unused to thinking beyond the instructions.

I struggled a little with all of the cloth in the bottom corners. I had 3 layers in the bodice and one layer from the skirt, all trying to get to a hard corner while still leaving me room to hand-stitch the lining closed. I ended up with a bit of a bump. The lining sticks out a little here and in a few other spots. This was my first ever lining, though, so I'm chalking it up to a learning experience.

The fabrics are just devine! The outer fabric is a wool/rayon blend that drapes beautifully! The lining is china silk. I've been using a walking foot when sewing seams as both fabrics are a little on the slippery side. So far, I think it's working really well.

I'll have more about those grommet holes in a future post. Still to go: finishing those grommets, hemming the skirt, attaching this beautiful trim, oh yeah, and creating the entire under dress. See why it didn't get done by Halloween?

Plum Cloak: Shoulder Challenge

A while back, I managed to steal a few moments with my husband to try on and photo document the latest on the Plum Cloak. Zany expression aside, here is where it stands today.

I am concerned about what appears to be some extra space beyond the curve of my shoulder. It's as if the pattern was drafted to allow for linebacker shoulders. Or just mega shoulder pads?

I know to some extent the neckline will be pulled up by the addition of the hood and closure. But I don't think it will accommodate all of the excess that appears to be there. I didn't make a muslin for this cloak. Mostly because I got impatient for not having sewing time, but also because it's such a non-form-fitting garment that I thought (hoped) I could get away with it. I have to decide if I am just going to live with it, or if I want to try to sew out some of the excess. It seems like I could just bring in the seam line to pull out some of that excess. The trick would be how to ensure that both sides stay even. I would also need to make the same/similar changes to the lining.

The seam allowances have been clipped (notched?) and pinked. I'm really enjoying working with this wool!

A Tale of Two Pillowcases

My youngest, who will be two in August (two!) is a serious cuddler. He loves to throw himself full-force into a pillow and pretend to snore. My oldest (turned three in August) has been using a pillow that my grandmother made for me when I was a little girl. The pillowcases that are still laying around for it are very girly and frilly. We've been using a standard size pillowcase for it with the extra length just folded up. I decided that for Christmas this year, I would make my boys pillowcases and find a nice pillow for the youngest.

I picked up some flannel cotton at my favorite local fabric store (now Colorado Fabrics), and got to work. I used 1/2 yard for each pillowcase. First, I folded down the selvedge ends to create a 2" cuff. Then, I folded the cuffs to match and closed the cut sides with French seams. Quick and oh-so satisfying.

The first went pretty well, but I only squared the fabric on one side and ended up with a little bit of an uneven seam on the other side.

For the next, I squared both cut ends of the fabric right away and ended up with not enough fabric to cover the pillow. After a second trip to the fabric store, I proceeded the same way I did with the, first, thinking that with the pattern I had chosen any minor differences would be hardly noticeable. The pillowcase is not nearly as lopsided as it looks in this picture.

I am incredibly pleased with the results and my boys are super happy with their new pillow and pillowcase. It's so satisfying to work on small projects that I can complete in a relatively short period of time.

Plum Cloak: Progress to Date

In 2008, after moving half way across the country to Colorado with nothing but my husband and two cats, I was feeling empowered and had a bit of free time on my hands. I had always wanted to learn how to sew but had let myself be a victim of circumstance. In the summer of 2008, I suddenly decided it was time to teach myself to sew. I had two projects in mind: a quilt and a cloak. The quilt has been pieced, although I still haven't quilted it, and now, 5 years later, I'm finally getting some traction on the cloak.

A couple of years ago, I hit up a sale at my local fabulous fabric store, Denver Fabrics, and purchased a gorgeous plum-colored wool coating. I had to buy 7 1/2 yards! I was incredibly intimidated by how to handle that much fabric. I found The Great Coat Sewalong blog, which strongly recommended having wool fabric professionally steamed to pre-treat it. I sat on that wool for over a year, immobilized by my own feelings of inadequacy and uncertainty. Then one day I just decided to lay it out and start cutting.

On again off again cutting, and months and months later I finally had all of the wool pieces cut out! The pattern recommended stay stitching around the neck and the non-shoulder curved seams. I used fusible stay tape instead. I managed to sew all of the seams of the outer layer, including the hood. The hood has two darts on each side. I had never sewn darts before, but I was really pleased with how they came out. I used a tutorial from Sew4Home that was very helpful.

All through the sewing process, I was following Ann from GorgeousFabrics' Pressinatrix recommendations. However, when I got to the shoulder seams and the darts, I realized that I couldn't appropriately press these extremely curved seams on my flat ironing board. I had always thought that tools like pressing hams were for extreme sewists, but I now find myself in need of one! I'm not sure if that's a measure of how far I have come with sewing or a re-education of my naive preconceptions. Regardless, I can't move forward on the cloak shell until my newly-ordered ham arrives.

With pressing still incomplete, the shoulder seams stand out pretty far from my shoulders. Not sure if that's just the shape of the pattern or if it has anything to do with those seams not being pressed completely flat. At this point, I want to try ironing them with the ham and see if pressing them well settles them down a bit. If that doesn't do the trick, I intend to take in the seams a bit. We'll see if I can get my husband to help me with the pinning/marking.

For lining, I have a rayon/silk blend that I got from Mood. I'm a bit intimidated by the slipperiness of the fabric. Cutting precisely is definitely the area where I feel I make the most significant mistakes. I don't have a cutting mat large enough for the length of this cloak, so a rotary cutter is out. Lately I stumbled on Gertie's recommendation (from Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing) of sandwiching slippery fabrics between two layers of tissue paper. A massive, last-me-the-rest-of-my-life roll of tissue paper is on its way!

While I wait for various sewing tools, I have a chance to catch up on my blog (or is that to pretend that I have a blog) and I'm also looking into hemming ideas. I really like the suggestion from Did You Make That? of using lace to bridge between the heavy wool fabric to the blind/catch stitch of the hem.

Forest Lovey: Completed!

This is going back quite a ways, but I thought I should post about the fact that I did manage to finish up the forest lovey. I really enjoyed slip stitching the silk binding to the back. I completely messed up the mitering of the corners, but my little one doesn't care.

I've actually managed to carve out some time for sewing lately. I'm working on a cloak. More to come on that soon.