Turns out frosted pink vinyl and dry erase markers don't mix. Who knew?

When I bought all that fabric a couple weeks ago, I also picked up some translucent pink vinyl. Today, some of that vinyl became a skirt. I've seen these skirts online before and liked them, though never really considered making one until I found the colored vinyl.

It was a pretty quick project overall. I drew two doughnut shapes with a center hole the size of my hips, one a little narrower than the other (on paper then traced onto the vinyl), cut them out, edged with bias binding, and added a jersey waistband so it's stretchy without needing elastic. The hardest part was sewing the waistband on since the vinyl didn't really want to move though my machine smoothly and kept getting in the way (it doesn't exactly smoosh and fold out of the way like fabric would).

I could really use a wish right now ~

Airplanes by B.o.B. has been stuck in my head since I started working on this skirt. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, here's a remix I kind of like of the song in question (on youtube).

I really like how the skirt looks paired with this top. I've had it for years but never wore it until now. Glad I didn't get rid of it!

As you may have noticed, I love quirky prints in clothing, so when I saw this fabric at the store I knew right away it was meant to be a skirt. One of the best parts: the repeat of the print was the right size to use without cutting any planes in half.

The skirt has side-seam pockets, two rows of elastic in the waistband, thread belt loops, and a hand-done invisible hem. As far as I remember, this is the first project I used my serger on. I like how much faster than zig-zagging it is, but for some reason the stitching is not very pretty. I need to fiddle with the tension settings on it, and learn how to keep the stitching from coming apart where I start/stop.

One of the more popular questions about my skirts when I'm out in public is "do you have something under it to make it so big/poofy/etc.?" I usually answer by flashing a couple inches of petticoat. To answer the question in picture form, here's what it looks like if you were to peek under my skirt! Of course I'd normally have legs, not a metal pole like my dress form : P

Candy-colored heart-covered skirt and Victorian project news

A couple weeks ago I started this circle skirt and stopped working on it when I got to the hem, but last night I took a break from work for a few minutes and got it finished! The hem, waistband, and lapped zipper are all top stitched in pink to make it easier for myself (much less hand sewing) and add some detail at the same time. I wore it out today to run errands and got some photos while I was at it. I had made the top a while ago as well; it's sort of a fancy t-shirt.

I stopped by work dressed like this and my supervisor did a double take. It looks a whole lot different than a black shirt and jeans! Oh and the hair... that too.

Victorian project - update 3

I'm sorry I haven't been updating as much as I promised myself I would. There's so many (sometimes odd) things going on lately that sometimes I feel like I'm in an Asian drama, though that may be because I was watching one a couple weeks ago.

I have made some progress on the Victorian costume, but it still has a long way to go. I don't know if I mentioned this before, but the deadline has moved to May 26th, so at least I don't have to get this done by the end of the week!
Tonight, I made a bustle pad of sorts (following these instructions) to help fill out the back of the costume.  This is pushing it to a different year, but I'm okay with that since it makes the bodice sit better.

 
Last week (or the week before maybe), I got the back pleats of the bodice taken in, overskirt figured out, and added a waist tape to the inside of the bodice. The bodice is much lighter with the smaller pleats and feels much nicer when on, though the lining still peeks out.

She's here! and a whole lot of fabric is too

There's been a lot going on lately, giving me little time to post, but Monday of this week deserves a mention.
First of all, my dress form finally came! She still needs a name; I'm a little stumped. My friends have made some good suggestions, but none of them feel quite right. Here she is in her natural habitat:

I think there's someone in my room every time I walk in... wonder how long it's going to take for me to get used to that.
Draping my Victorian costume skirt is a lot easier with the form, though the bodice does not fit her at all because of my sway back, even with the size set to the smallest one (which is around 3 inches smaller than me).

That same day, I went fabric shopping and came home with something like 35 yards of these awesome fabrics! I'm hoping to use some of them to make items for sale, most likely skirts and bloomers/lounge shorts. Like I mentioned in a previous post, I know the market for these items is pretty saturated but eh, might as well give it a try, that is, if I find the time to.

Completed: Victorian hat

It is done! Well, mostly. I should sew some elastic or combs to the inside so it stays on my head better.

Here's a shot of the back to show the trim on the underside:

Before I could finish it, of course it needed to threaten me with more physical pain... I wasn't falling for it this time! (here's the previous post if you're wondering what I'm talking about). After pinning the purple trim on, I went to put the hat on my head twice, not considering the pins were sticking straight out into the inside, as seen below. Ouch! Glad I stopped myself both times, disappointed in myself that I didn't learn the first time.

Oh thrift shopping, how I love thee.

I really want to take a moment for a short post about my most recent thrift shopping trip. I've scored some great stuff in the past (two pairs of platform sneakers and UFO pants within an hour in one store, on a half off sale day? One of my best shopping days ever.), and yesterday's haul is pretty sweet. To keep this somewhat sewing related...

check out all that bias tape! If I recall correctly, there's 13 packages there, with only 4 or so that have been opened - all for $3! On my way to the CD section after grabbing up that bias tape I noticed the modern cookie press ($8, a little pricey compared to my usual finds but it looks well made) then turn around and find the vintage one from the 1950s for only $4! It even has the instruction book! Check out the animal shaped disc for it, isn't that awesome?

I also got a new wallet, beads, tights, and some CDs (it's weird I didn't already own DJ Sammy's Heaven... It's one of the things that got me into electronic music in the first place, and still one of my favorite CD cover/insert designs. The other one is 97 Octane by Dieselboy. I'm not much of a fan, but it caught my eye the last couple times I saw it at this store so I went for it).

I can't praise thrift shopping enough. You never know what great things you'll find.

The hat of pain and pattern of many pieces

In my last post, I wrote about purchasing this hat pattern from Truly Victorian and some millinery supplies. Well, the pattern came on Saturday and the supplies a day before, so I got to work on my hat all day Saturday. I probably could have finished it in a day, but got stuck because I don't have enough trim for the edge of the brim. (Why do I never have trim?)

The pattern is great though (it's not the pattern of many pieces, that one will be discussed later). I've been doing it a little differently than instructed, mostly because of the qualities of my fabric - not because I can't understand the instructions or think they make things more difficult than necessary, which can happen with commercial patterns. This fabric is not the easiest to work with, don't let its simple black appearance fool you. It's pretty drapey, so the edges of the frame were very obvious when I tried covering it. To remedy this, I added a layer of fleece over the buckram frame.

"So," you may be wondering, "how is this the hat of pain?"

New fabric, and some other exciting thoughts

Today, I wanted to share my latest fabric acquisitions. The heart fabric especially drew me in, so cute! I might go back for more to make a couple skirts for sale (if the store still has it).

These both came from one of my favorite fabric stores, where everything is $1.99 a yard. They always seem to have something super cute or useful and just because all the fabric there is cheap doesn't mean it's poor quality. It's the same quality of fabric you'd find anywhere else, sometimes with factory errors or already cut into odd sized pieces, but often times no issues at all. The downfall is that the stock is not constant - see something amazing today? It probably won't be there the next time you go. I've gotten awesome fabrics in the past then wished later that I had bought twice as much, only to never see them sold again (the one I used for the yellow polka dot skirt is a perfect example of this).

They had several other fabrics I loved, though I'm trying not to buy more than I can store (it's becoming a problem...). This leads to the other thoughts I mentioned: I'm feeling particularly adventurous right now and considering pulling some money together to purchase some of the other fabrics I saw, then making some skirts in several styles/sizes to sell. It's risky, I don't know if anyone will buy my products because the market is pretty saturated with the skirt styles I like (well and there's that storage issue), but perhaps worth a shot. I'll see how I feel about the idea in a couple days, though I welcome any thoughts from you in the mean time.
Like I mentioned before, a dress form would really help in this sort of endeavor, so I caved and just ordered one.
I think I've fallen into the "retail therapy" trap this week, having spent money on patterns, millinery supplies, fabric, and now a dress form. I can just call these business expenses, right? Let's hope that's how this ends up.
Speaking of millinery supplies, I am expecting some in the mail soon to make a hat to go with my Victorian costume. It won't be exactly like the one pictured but similar. I purchased this pattern from Truly Victorian since I've never made a structured hat before. Lots of things to look forward to in the mail!