What Miss Wilde Did This Weekend...And this week's to do list

Some sewing for Beau: Replaced a zipper in Beau's vest. Sewed Velcro onto some patches. And helped him put grommets in a banner.

Worked on my projects:

• Worked on my crazy quilt skirt. I now have a mere 5 seams standing between me and my last gore being finished.
  
• Started the petticoat. I used a petticoat pattern from Simplicity for the yoke and cut it from some white broadcloth. I laundered the muslin and cut it into strips: two 45" pieces for the first layer, two 90" pieces for the second, and one 90" plus six 45" pieces for the third. The first layer is a little narrower than the other two. I also pulled, washed and deconstructed my eyelet skirt, but I haven't cut it up yet.
  
• Worked on my basque. I laundered the interlining fabric, re-did the pattern pieces in a larger size, and cut out the satin and the interlining. I also pinned the interlining to the appropriate satin pieces because it's going to have to be hand basted.
• I looked for fabric for the playsuit / skirt combo, but failed. I might try to squeeze the playsuit out of a piece of lilac linen I have, I'm only 1/4 yard short...
  

Week of March 12, 2012 To Do List:

• Finish my embroidery. EDIT -- I finished my third gore and my mother finished her second. Pictures tomorrow!
• Work on the petticoat. EDIT -- This is probably on hold til the weekend. The 'gathering' thread I used doesn't want to pull through and gather. I'm going to have to re-do it.
  
• Baste the interlining to the satin for my basque bodice. EDIT -- Started the hand basting tonight. I have two pieces finished.
  
• Finish cutting out the basque bodice (I still need to do the contrast cuffs and collar as well as the lining)
• See if I can use the lilac linen for my playsuit.
  

Gypsy Steampunk: Crazy Quilt Skirt Progress -- Halfway DONE!

Picture time!!!

First up, my mom sewed a crocheted flower onto the gore she's working on right now. She thinks its from a doily one of her grandmothers made.



Next, I just finished my second gore! That means the skirt is halfway done!



And last but not least some detail shots:


I stitched down a little flower applique to cover up the knot at the end of cording I couched down along another seam. From left to right, the blue / green is a double herringbone, the green is a Russian chain stitch (I think), the pale blue (looks white) is a braided chain stitch, the orange is a cretan stitch, the gold is a blanket stitch. And in the lower corner, is some green feather stitching.


This is a new stitch for me and I really liked it. The pale green (once again it looks white) is a fly stitch. Above that is the basque stitch and in the lower corner you can see some blue feather stitching.

I'm feeling really good about this project right now. We have three of the six gores embroidered. I've been working on calculating fabric requirements and dimensions for the petticoat.

Speaking of the petticoat, my original idea was to make each tier twice as long as the one above it. Yes, I want a FULL petti for this costume. But...when I went through all the calculations, I came out with needing 12 yards of fabric for the bottom ruffle.

Um...12 yards for ONE ruffle? I don't think so.

So I went back and re-calculated at around one and a half times the size of the ruffle above. Not as full as I like, but Miss Wilde is frugal. I'm still going to need about 5 or 6 yards of 45" fabric for the bottom ruffle. But I'm a little more comfortable with that than with 12 yards.

Brewing Ideas...And a Progress Report / Weekend To Do List

I have a ton of ideas brewing in my head (yes I know, shocking). And I wanted to get them all down somewhere I won't lose them, so here you go! lol

1. A diagonal seamed corset. The obsession started a few days ago when I saw this on Bridges on the Body. Then I found this post today on a new blog, The Laced Angel, and she had a link to an article on Foundations Revealed that tells you how to make a diagonal seamed corset. So now I know HOW to make a pattern I have into a diagonal seamed corset. I really want one, probably an underbust since that's my favorite. I kinda want one that's longer, like an Edwardian corset...
2. I still want to make an 18th century outfit.
3. And I've been having these Regency cravings lately. I even bought a Simplicity Regency gown pattern! I want a gown with a spencer soooo badly. Not that I have any idea where I would wear it...

Progress Report:

• Mom's second gore is almost finished for the crazy quilt skirt.
• I have five seams to go on my second gore.
• I'm going to do another mock up of my vest basque this weekend. Heather from TV thinks I have my bust measurement wrong, so I'm going to try a new size for the front only and see how that works before I re do all the pieces.
  
• And I think I've figured out the fabric combinations for the bodice. I was going to do the vest in the contrast Paris print, but didn't know how to do the collar and cuffs. I just saw a version w the vest matching the rest of the bodice and the collar / cuffs in a contrast. I think I'm going to go that route.
• Playsuit / skirt ideas: if I have enough of both, I'm thinking green patterned cotton playsuit w a lilac skirt. If I don't maybe do the playsuit in the lilac and get a contrast print for the skirt. Yardage estimate: 2 yards for the playsuit, 3 yards for the skirt.
  

Weekend to do list:

1. Replace a zipper in Beau's vest.
   
2. Embroider on my skirt, at least finishing the current gore. EDIT -- Since the current gore is DONE, I might just try to get my last one done this weekend. :)
   
3. Start on the gyspy petticoat. Launder the muslin and start cutting it into strips, after I decide how wide said strips need to be. Cut out the yoke. Pull out my white eyelet skirt for cannibalization, wash it as well, but don't cut into strips until necessary.
4. Also launder the interlining fabric for my basque so it loses some stiffness.
   
5. Re-trace the front basque pieces in a larger size, cut new muslin pieces and re do the front of my bodice for another fitting.
6. Once the fitting issues are figured out, start cutting out the bodice fabric if I can.
   

Progress Update - March 8 2012

Gyspy steampunk by April 27th for Steampunk Empire Symposium

• Skirt gore #1 is already embroidered, thanks to my mother
• I just finished skirt gore #2 so...we're 1/3 of the way done!!!! EDIT gore #3 is about 1/2 way finished.
  
• And I bought some more muslin for the petticoat yesterday (it was a remnant, too good to pass up)
• Plans: Work on the embroidery and probably start the petticoat this weekend. I can wash the fabric and at least start cutting the tiers, if not gathering. I can't do the length, but I can work on the upper sections.

Skirt gore #2, completed!

Paris steampunk by April 27th for Steampunk Empire Symposium

• We fit my bodice yesterday and it's too small: The front doesn't close at all and then Edwina noticed it was pulling pretty much everywhere. We're thinking I should go up a size to account for the lining, interlining and boning. So I get to re-trace the pattern.
• Plans: Retrace a larger size of my basque pattern and start working on it, hopefully this weekend.

Playsuit / skirt combo by May 3rd for Florida trip

• Bought Simplicity 2401 yesterday but didn't find any fabric I loved.
  
• Plans: Start by checking my stash and seeing if I have anything I can use. Maybe that lilac linen would work for the playsuit or the skirt and then all I need is a coordinating fabric for the other.
  

I also need to put a new zipper on a vest for Beau this weekend, but that shouldn't take long.

Adding to my immediate sewing list...

The first weekend of May, my mother and I are taking a trip to see our family in Florida. My beloved grandmother (the one I'm named after and who taught me to sew), moved down there earlier this year. As you can probably imagine, I've been thinking of what to pack because yes, I do plan ahead that much.

Today, I randomly wondered via Twitter if I should sew something, like a new sundress. A friend commented that I should and we discussed our mutual love of retro fashion. And inspiration struck: I should make that playsuit / skirt combination that has been on my to do list for a year. So I start thinking about combining patterns, like was my original plan, and I do some Google-ing. Low and behold, Simplicity has a decent playsuit pattern. It's not perfect, and it'll need some modification, but it'll be easier and quicker than franken-patterning my own.

Planned alterations: A shorter length, the legs of the playsuit look a little long. Maybe a different neckline, more like this one from one of the retro sundress patterns I got from Diary of a Renaissance Seamstress a while ago. And I'm probably going to change the zipper to a back zipper and get rid of the way that back looks, I think it has elastic in it.

Or maybe I should just franken-pattern it, if I'm going to be making all these alterations anyways...Actually I think altering the playsuit pattern will probably end up easier, because its already meant to fit a certain way, whereas I'd probably run into fitting issues if I tried to combine a bodice from a dress pattern with a shorts pattern.

So I need to pick up Simplicity 2401 asap, and about 5 yards of a nice cotton. I may have something in my stash, but I'm not sure. I'll check clearance today, but if I don't find something it'll be okay -- I've got some time.

New sewing list:

• Gyspy steampunk by April 27th for Steampunk Empire Symposium
• Paris steampunk by April 27th for Steampunk Empire Symposium
• Playsuit / skirt combo by May 3rd for Florida trip

God, I'm a glutton for punishment...

Gypsy Steampunk: Crazy Quilt Skirt Progress

Gore #1 is finished with the embroidery, courtesy of my mother! And I'm almost done with the gore I've been embroidering, so hopefully by the end of this evening, I'll have it finished and we'll be one third of the way there! Each of us are doing three of the six gores, and have plenty of supplies. We're mainly embroidering the seams, with some trim and applique application. I told Mother that I'm taking whatever she has done when I'm home for Easter. If I have to finish some of her work, that's fine, but that's the last chance I'll have to get it from her before the Symposium.

I'm getting most of my embroidery from this website. Good directions and step by step diagrams. A lot of other how to websites I found just gave you word directions with no diagrams, and were basically useless.

Picture time!


The gore my mother embroidered. Yes, she totally sent me a photo, without prompting!


Part of the gore I've been working on. You can see some feather stitching in the orange thread, and there's a herringbone done in two shades near the bottom.


Another part of my gore. The white in the upper corner is a buttonhole stitch, the blue / purple is called a basque stitch and then there's a double line of herringbone in a blue pearle cotton.

What I need to do to finish my gyspy steampunk costume:

• Embroider my three gores
• Assemble the gores into a skirt, attach a waistband and closure (current thinking: hook and eye closure on a side seam), hem with polyester horsehair braid and maybe attach lace to the bottom
• Make a petticoat: I'm seriously leaning towards a gathered tiered style because I feel like the skirt is heavy and is going to need some support. I'm going to make it out of white broadcloth and muslin and may cannibalize a white eyelet skirt I have for more fabric (I rarely wear the skirt). For maximum fullness, I'll probably cut the tiers a little on the narrow side. I'm also going to try a new gathering technique: zig zag stitch over cording. The bottom one or two ruffles will be black broadcloth. I'm also planning on a yoke instead of an elastic waistband to reduce bulk.
• Finish decorating the head scarf.
  
• Gather lots of jewelry to wear.
  

In other Symposium news, I'm stopping by Edwina's quarters this evening for a fitting of my Paris bodice. I really feel like the gypsy costume is doable for the Symposium, and hopefully the Paris outfit as well. *fingers crossed*

EDIT On my lunch, I stitched down a piece of lace trim along one of the few seams I had left to cover. I now only have two long seams and one short one, the latter I plan to use a little applique on.

March 2012 To Do List

First up, a look at February (although most of this was done in March...):

• Sew D rings onto the gypsy corset: DONE
  
• Started stage two of the crazy quilt skirt!
• Paris overskirt: DONE
  

March 2012 To Do List: This is mainly preparation for the Steampunk Empire Symposium next month.

• Gyspy Steampunk: I'd really like to get the skirt finished this month (or early next), but a lot of that depends on my mother. I'm planning to give her a deadline on getting her three gores done. I did enough yesterday that I feel I could embroider a gore in around a week, so I think the end of the month, or early next month is doable. Once the skirt's done, I'll start on the petticoat. I may actually start on this sooner, because I could get the length from my three gores if I sew them together once they're embroidered. I'm currently trying to decide on what style of petticoat I want to make: plain with ruffles at the bottom v. a tiered gathered petticoat, probably with a yoke at the top. I also need to finish the headscarf. Deadline: End of April for the Steampunk Empire Symposium.
  
• Paris Ensemble: The overskirt is finished and the mock up of the bodice is put together. Next comes fitting the mock up, then starting the actual bodice, which is going to be quite the undertaking. Deadline: End of April for the Steampunk Empire Symposium.
• I may also try to get my Keeper of the Keys cincher finished as well as fixing the skirt (the zipper is broken and it needs taken in).
  

Things that have been taken off the 'immediate' list:

• Concert tshirts throw
  
• Make Beau a bag for his closet to keep his unmentionables in.
• Make Beau Star Wars pajama pants if he wants them.
• New fleece coat for Beau's Snowtrooper.

EDIT -- My mother can't find my embroidery book, so I saved some tutorials on my flash drive and printed a couple out in case I can't open the document on my laptop at home. Internet, I would be lost without you. I found some really cool complicated stitches too. Oh yeah, I'm gonna embroider the heck out of this skirt.