In Me Made March news...

I'm wearing a brown / black / gold plaid skirt today. I paired it with black flats, pink tights, a black tank top and a pink cardigan.

I made the skirt several years ago. If I remember correctly, I took a Vogue 50s-esque dress pattern and used only the skirt pieces from the dress and made my own waistband pattern. It's one of my favorite skirts and I wear it a lot during the colder months. Soon it'll be too warm for a brown and black plaid skirt to be appropriate.

I think I'm going to clean my sewing area this evening after work. It's gotten rather out of hand and that is putting it mildly. Since my projects (aka the Joker) are coming along so nicely, I feel like I have the time to spare to clean up my sewing area. Plus, a clean sewing area means I'll be able to work more efficiently.

A bientot!

Miss Leah J. Wilde

The Joker 8 (Marcon prep)

I made a little progress on the Joker vest this evening.

• I treated the buttonholes with Fray Check and let them dry before cutting them open.
• I pinned the lining and outer fabric at the armholes and started stitching them together, using contrast orange thread of course.
• I stitched around the pocket openings with the orange thread, partly as decoration, partly to hold the pocket together properly.
• And my beau and I discussed and shopped for buttons and have tentatively decided to make our own - flat metal buttons (which I think I have) used as a base for fake jewels to be glued on to for the jacket.
  

Current to do list for the Joker:

• Vest - finish sewing armholes
• Vest - sew buttons on
• Vest - maybe the back tab
  
• Jacket - sew on inside patch pockets
• Jacket - buttonholes (I need to find some fabric to use for the welts on the bound buttonholes, I'm thinking green or orange or purple satin, or I could use the coat lining or the vest lining...decisions, decisions, I'll have to talk to the beau)
  
• Jacket - make buttons and sew them on
• Trousers - waistband hooks and eyes
• Trousers - hem

A bientot!

Miss Leah J Wilde

PS - In Me Made March news, I'm currently wearing my clockwork pajama pants.

In Me Made March news...

I'm wearing my City Bluescape skirt today. I discovered that I had a blue cardigan that matches relatively well, so I paired the skirt with it over a black tshirt. I'm also wearing white tights and black flats.

I actually rather feel like Alice in Wonderland with the blue and white skirt worn with white tights and black flats...

In other news, I have another commission! A friend needs a corset by MARCon and since Kevin postponed his ROTJ Han Solo vest, I decided to take it on. And I have sewing related plans this week -- First up is fabric shopping with Miss Dashwood this evening for lace for her bustle. And tomorrow I have tentative plans with a friend to help her on some sewing projects. She's a relatively new sewer, and I just can't help myself, I want to guide her along.

A bientot!

Miss Leah J Wilde

Me Made March entry

I haven't done any sewing today but here's a little MMM update:

First of all, like I've previously mentioned, I almost always sleep in pj pants that I've made. Recently its been the Kermit pants, the clockwork pants and the Paris pants.

Saturday I went to the club with a visiting friend and wore my hooded lace jacket with my purple corset vest, both of which I made, and my black mini skirt which I remade from a pair of cheap gaucho pants a few years ago. The lace jacket was made within the last couple years, the vest dates from the early 2000s.

Today I'm wearing a pink suede pencil skirt that I made several years ago. I paired it with black tights, black blouse and black boots. The pattern (which I have used for other items) calls for too short of a zipper in my opinion -- getting the skirt over my thighs and hips requires lots of wiggling. All other pencil skirt incarnations have used a longer zipper, usually a nine inch instead of a seven inch.

A bientot!

Miss Leah J Wilde

The Joker 4 now with photos! and Me Made March

First off, some photos of my ever so lovely zipper on the Joker trousers.

1. The zipper unzipped, and yes those are hand stitches you see:
2. The zipper zipped:


3. The zipper zipped with the placket laying flat:


4. And the back of the zipper showing the placket:


I told you it looked rather lovely. I need to finish the edges of the zipper plackets so they don't unravel.

And I don't know if this really counts as MMM, but I'm counting it. Today I'm wearing a pull over that my grandmother made for my mother when my grandma was in the hospital. Its a cream polyester (I assume) and its hand embroidered on the neck and sleeves. It did have a hood, that was removed a while back. I'm tempted to find it and put it back on. The hood is embroidered as well.

Me wearing the pullover:


And a close up of the sleeve embroidery:


That's it for now! A bientot!

Miss Leah J Wilde

Corset Commission 5 and Notes on Other Projects

Corset Commission:

Yesterday, I sewed the boning casings and inserted the boning into Bob's corset. He's going to try it on tonight to see if we need more boning or if what I've done so far is acceptable. I also finished the bottom edge. If it doesn't need any more boning, all that's left is finishing the top edge and putting in eyelets. Almost done!

Imperial Officer uniform:

On Saturday, I added a hook and eye to my officer's uniform collar. And got some advice from another officer on how to make the collar fit better, so I'll have to do that before I wear it again.

To Do List:

• Finish Bob's corset - fitting, finishing top edge, eyelets
  
• I need to finish my beau's Joker costume - trousers and vest. I'm almost done underlining the trouser fabric so all I need to do is construct them and then the vest. I need to sit down with him and go over some things.
• Lace trim on Miss Dashwood's bustle (once she buys the lace)
• Buttonholes on a skirt for Miss Dashwood
  
• Alterations for the Captain and Bobbie
  
• New bustle and petticoat ruffle for Harley Quinn.
  
• Embroider Lady of the Ottoman Empire vest.
• Steampunk Confederate costume.

On the MMM front, I'm not doing a very good job. Pretty much all I wore over the last few days was my Imperial uniform and pajama pants that I made. Today I'm not wearing anything either. I think its just because I don't really have too much available that's office appropriate that I've made. At least not in March since a lot of my summer wardrobe I've made.

A bientot!

Miss Leah J Wilde