Update & To-Do List

Short update!

I've cut out all the bodice pieces. I decided to sew boning onto the interlining of cotton canvas and I cut out the top fabric and based it to the interlining tonight! Tomorrow I plan to finish the bodice hopefully! here is my to do list:

-Sew Lining onto inside lacing sections
-Sew Lacing wholes all the way down the insides of the bodice
-Finish the boning on the left side of the outside bodice
-Bast left interlining and top fabric together
-Sew side seems and shoulders of top fabric
-Press seems out
-Turn seam allowance in and sew down, herringbone stitch apart from middle section and outter arms for sleeve attachments
-Sew lining into bodice
-Sew internal lacing thingy into the bodice
-Lace and measure exactly where the bodice needs to end on each left and right sides to not have a gap
-Measure out spacing for the hooks and eyes and sew in alternating

SLEEVES, may need further patterning
-Cut out straight sleeves and attach to bodice

SKIRT
-Cut out skirt panels - I want to used shaped panels here I think, might need further investigation/patterning
-Work out how I want the skirt to attach with pleating etc..
-Line skirt
-Whip stitch the skirt and the bodice together

-Need to attach trim all around edges of the dress
-Forpare, need to attach the white to a skirt of appropriate similarity - might use white skirt Tex gave me.
-Muff.


........Hm..... that's a lot of things....better get cracking tomorrow after some study.
But I have all night! Its clan! =)

Change of mind...

Was feeling lonely in my isolated blog, so I felt like following a whole bunch of other things....so apparently I blog a lot. Maybe I'm just weird. Maybe I just feel the need to *someone* about all the things all the time, this way you can choose to listen =p

Now Its time for True Blood and The Borgia's.  =D

Muff

Last night I was looking at different blogs and I came across this Ladies website: belphoebe
also this: adventures of a wannabe seamstress

And as a result, I want to make a Muff to go with my practice Tudor dress.
I have this bunny fur, but I think its a little too small for a muff. It would be amazing to have a large one that I can keep my hands warm in and keep on a belt look or something.

I think I'm planning to line it with fake fur, depending on whether its expensive or not when I go to spotlight tomorrow or just wool. I am going to have an interlining of loose wool fibers, and cover it with the black velvet the same as my dress. It will just be a large rectangle and the same lining as the dress. Also it will close on the long side with buttons. I think I want to play around with ribbed buttons.

Anyway, back onto the websites I found, the first, the Lady has made the EXACT outfit I was planning with my red wool: a doublet, like this. ALSO ALSO this is the most amazing Tudor I've seen  It looks so perfect. *sigh* I want to my garb to be that amazing!

OH-MY-GOD!

I haven't blogged about the fabric's I bought recently!

ok here are some pics of the black velvet fabric and trim I bought for my Practice Tudor:

Here is the Tudor again:

and the red silk that Alana convinced me to buy:

I'm going to make into this dress:

I think....The fabric is so nice I might just do something Tudor with a flat front and side lacing to show it off....

That's All For Now! =D

Overdress

Hi there person reading this (Alana and Nancy :p)


Well, I've started designing and patterning my overdress, here is my patterning attempt.

I think I will make the point on the front a little shorter, but then again I think it might make me look more triangular. I wonder if they measured the angles and more elongated points on dresses meant something. Hm...
Well, they had different colours to mean different things, and the more elaborate your outfit was the richer you were etc... So, it is entirely possible right? I wonder if there is any way to find this out, other than searching ALL the portraits of the era and working it out based on who the person was and their status and all that. Interesting. 


Actually, looking over the pictures again, I like how the pattern is sitting, and I think that point is good, maybe I was just worried to start with because I was looking down at it and it looked bigger or pointer that way? =p


I think I am going to change how it sits on the back, so it's higher. Just in case. The worst thing possible would be to have BRIGHT YELLOW showing through when I'm wearing a black dress...THAT would be rather rude, I guess. Or unfortunate. Silly, considering its my underwear, its like having a see through top and a red lacy bra. Just not a good look. I would be considered a ginormous hussy, and that is no good, no good at all!


Trying to decide whether I should by linen to do the lining. I've only ever used linen for a while now, and I save up and then buy the stuff...only, I only have a week left then I'm back an uni and then there is two weeks to the event. I NEED IT NOW. Also, I can't afford the linen. Option 1 I just buy cotton, and justify that because I'm poor and no one will know or see it but me. Option 2 I buy cotton linen because that is cheaper and still a little bit linen and I can buy that Tuesday. I don't know why not buying cotton is so heart-breaking for me. Maybe I'm just a giant fabric snob. It's not like I have a problem with anything cotton, I think I just don't want to buy it. Yep, I'm a snob. I'm buying the cotton. *Sigh*. 


Oh, here are my design drawing for my bodice:

basically there will be a second layer just under the front of the bodice. This layer will be very Lightly boned and will have a lacing strip down the middle. This lacing strip will lace up then there will be a "placard" style close over the front. This layer will have some boning and hooks and eyes to close it. definitely having a boning channel down the closing edges to keep it flat and the material from stretching closed and creating gaps and all that.


I think the hardest part is going to be after I attach the inside lacing section, I'll then lace it closed and see where the outside placard needs to be to fit perfectly closed. Then the hooks and eyes need to be in the exact place so they don't make the fabric buckle or stretch.


I'm so excited to start this project!

Patterning

Started the next part....
Gotta make a pattern over the corset for the bodice piece. Issue is, I Haven't ordered my linen or bought any... Which is for the lining.
I decided I would sew it with a "placard" style front, so the front has two pieces each side and it will lace up underneath and then hooks and eyes will fasten the velvet over dress part closed so by lacing it takes the pressure out of the hooks and eyes and hopefully the hooks and eyes don't stretch out and have weird gaps and it's all a seemless line. I will put boning down the front, and at intervals along the bodice so it stays flat and doesn't roll or bend up with the curve of my body. I hope I have thought of everything, I'm not really using a specific pattern, so hopefully it runs out. It's a practice after all anyway.

First part done!

I finished my Corset! Or rather, my 'Effigy Bodies' I think it turned out quite well.
I think maybe it needs higher cuts up the side.

Also I'm pretty impressed with my hips, I will look like a triangle!

On a side note I seem to have HUGE boobs with this corset, totally unintentional I swear. Going to be interesting.

Anyways a here are some pics:

Blogging Again!

OH MY GOD!

I CAN BLOG AGAIN!!!

.....Well sorta. I decided to turn my old epic slow laptop on and use that whilst my PC is still not fixed.

SO... wait for it.....

waitting....

just another line....

I'VE DESIGNED AND STARTED A NEW GARB PROJECT!!!!!!!

First time I've done that in over 18 months. Proud of what I have done. I decided to go ahead and make the black Tudor. After DAYS of trying to re think what colour would work best, and then what type of material would suit it. Decided upon a dark red velvet. I went looking for cotton velvet but couldn't find any. Regular synthetic velvet, though, costed around $40/meter at spotlight and i quickly decided that I didn't want that!

Then after thinking about other fabrics and other things I found some synthetic feeling black velvet at homecraft textiles for $13!!! So I bought up a whole bunch. and some braid to trim it with.

so far I decided upon the Effigy, Elizabethian 'Bodies' in the Tudor Tailor, and made myself a pattern. I cut out some calico, roughly sewed that together and put a zip down the front where the lacing would be. I decided against the busk eventually, because I want the whole design of the dress will lacing down the front so I can get in and out of the dress myself - be self sufficient etc..

So far the corset is turning out ok, I used cotton canvas as the interlining and Yellow silk as the outter, I sewed the channels into the yellow silk, so they are visible like the pictures, I figured this would be ok. I did toy with the idea of useing reed, but gave up thinking it was too hard and its just a practice anyway. As of now, I just havve 24 lacing wholes to go, also I don't have a lining, was just going to do that later though,

I really want to finish It like NOW so I can put it on and see if it fits and is comfy.

I cant decided whether I should buy black linen now to line to dress or go buy cotton. I would like to just use whatever is cheaper and the linen will take a while to get here and may be a tad more expensive. I was thinking I would make a better lining than poplin or cotton or what-have-you, but I don't know yet. Still undecided. I guess I better hurry up because I have to have this finished in two weeks because that is when I go back to uni.

I'll just add pics later!!!