Diary of a Costumer

This weekend went by soooo fast. On Saturday, my BF and I went to Steamport Gamble, which was a very tiny Steampunk event in that cool Victorian town I like so much. I will do a separate post on this event and what I wore.

Yesterday was mostly spent running errands, cleaning in preparation for my new roommate, working on audition music, and going to a callback. I did manage a little Rapunzel sewing, though. I took off the terrible fraying etsy piping from the bodice, made new piping, and started on the embroidery! I just did the first motif, but the skirt edges are all marked for the embroidery, so it should be quite easy to do the rest starting tonight. I realized I haven't embroidered in over a year. My poor fancy machine. I've really only done three large projects on it (Anna, Rapunzel #2, and the Court Gown), plus several smaller things like reticules and t-shirts. Hopefully, I will have enough thread and stabilizer for this whole project, though the stabilizer may require a Hanukah miracle...

Here's a bad picture of the first motif. This is one of the front corners.

I picked up the boning yesterday after dinner, and decided to swing by Joanns to get something to use for the lacing. Since mine is a real corset, and not decorative like the other two I've made (or like what she actually wears in the park), I wound up with pink ribbon instead of rat-tail. I sewed in all my boning channels, and put the boning in, but haven't yet closed off the end of the channels. Once I do that, I'm going to move the piping down just slightly in the CF, because I think the CF of the bodice is coming up too high.

Honestly, I'm not loving the fit on the bodice right now, but it's too late at this point unless I want to redo everything. I think it could have used more hip flare (I probably also could have left the hip 1" longer, but oh well), and I don't like the way it makes my bust look, but I think there's no way of getting around that with the seaming on the corset. I'm hoping that once I add the sleeves, and the lace, and the skirt and everything that I'll like it better! the hip flare may also just be a matter of breaking in the corset - I decided to use all flat steel, and I'm hoping I'm not regretting that decision! Part of me almost wants to order a few spring steels and pick them up tonight, and play around and see if I like it any better. It probably would only cost me $10 and 30 mins... Maybe I will.

I also am not happy with the piping I got, but it was the only one I could find, even online. For the past two Rapunzels, I had purchased the pink satin piping at the Sew Expo or in the Fabric District, but since those weren't options this time, I ordered it from someone on Etsy. I probably should have just made my own. The piping is really tiny, and it frays like nobody's business. Before I even started on the boning channels last night, I had to fray-check and whip/patch down the binding in the corners where the straps meet the back - it had pretty much frayed all the way to the seam. I suppose it's not too late to rip it all out and make my own, since I haven't started whipping it down anywhere else yet, but then that's just one more thing to add to the list. Hmmm... Any opinions?

Oh, and I did get slightly distracted at Joanns. They have a whole bunch of ribbon on sale right now, including quite a bit of Disney ribbon. The wider Mickey and Minnie ribbons were $.50/yd, and the polka-dot was $.97/yd. They had mismarked the narrow Mickey and Minnie ribbons as $.05/yd. Naturally, I made them give me all of that ribbon, since it was so cheap (though the first lady I talked to tried to tell me that her coworker was having problems with the "0" key on the price tag maker, and would have to charge me $.50. Umm, no). I also gt a couple yds of 3" wide hot pink satin ribbon for $.50/yd (not pictured). I figure I'll make all sorts of bows and things to decorate myself with at Disney World. :)

Here's a pic (please let me know if Google is still blocking images, and I'll fix it!)

I have done almost no sewing since my last post. In fact, I wound up with a massive headache yesterday after work, and fell asleep at about 9:30, which for me is insane. I figured I would probably just wake up early and sew this morning, but I actually managed to sleep for nine hours! I guess I needed it. I did have enough time this morning to serge two of the Rapunzel skirt panels, but that's it. (Have I mentioned before how much I hate poly satin on the bias?)

My cedar balls also arrived yesterday, so I took the boots out of the freezer, vacuumed all the moth poop out of them, and put a few cedar balls inside, as well as the slipper socks that were keeping the non-moth-eaten one upright (maybe moths don't like slipper socks?) They are now back on top of my bookshelf. My guess is that my moth traps will arrive today, so I'll put one of those up there too, and I'll be monitoring both the traps and the boots very closely over the next several days. Fingers crossed!

I got a fair amount done on Rapunzel this weekend. I mocked up the pattern, which was a nearly perfect fit. The only thing I had to change was the angle of the straps, so I only had to recut one of the pieces, and everything else from the mockup will be my interlining. I serged all the interlinings to the outer pieces, and sewed them all together. I'm pretty sure my Rapunzel pattern has more pieces than any other bodice I've made. There are 17 pieces, and two layers in each piece. But it always has turned out really nice before, so I hope this is no exception.

I've decided to go with flat steels for the boning. I just don't feel like spiral steels are going to have enough hold, and I've never worked with them before, so I guess it makes me nervous. I don't think it will wind up too terribly stiff. There will be a piece of boning on each seam, (stopping under the bust in the front), and the front lacing will have boning on either side that goes from bottom to top. I would like to figure out the measurements today, but at the same time, I'm wondering right now if I have it going too far over the hips. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to make that call until I start the skirt and see them both together. So the boning may have to wait. Luckily, there's a local lady who sells pre-cut boning, so I can order from her and just pick it up, which means no waiting for shipping!

Speaking of shipping, my Vogue fabrics order should be arriving today, which means I'm going to put Rapunzel aside for a day or two, and hopefully finish off the 1890s outfit. It shouldn't need much, and I find that giant gathered sleeves are always easier than fitted ones. I think I may do a fitted liner inside the pouf to keep the pouf in place, but it doesn't have to be pretty!

In other news, I went to the Ren Faire on Saturday. It was way better than when I went a couple years ago, probably due mostly to the perfect weather this time. We only stayed for a few hours, but my bf found pants that I think he can use for Flynn, and he got to try on the boots that he's ordering online. I didn't feel in the mood for hoops and velvet, so I wore my maiden outfit, which is basically my Ren corset, a peasant blouse, a couple of 18th c petticoats, and lots of flowers. It was comfy at least!

And a follow-up to my last post. It sounds like my boots somehow got moths. :( They're in the freezer right now, so hopefully all the moths will die. I checked all my other antiques, including the Victorian clothing and the vintage furs, and there's no sign of the moths in any of them. It definitely makes me nervous, though - how did they get in? I've had these boots for two years, and this could only have happened (at least I'm pretty sure) in the last several months. 

Last night I finished the binding on the plaid portion of the 1890s bodice, which means that's about as done as I can get it before the organdy arrives, and I pick up whichever cotton from Joanns. Luckily, though, Joanns came out with a coupon this morning, which means after work today I'll swing by and pick some up. On the other hand, though, I have yet to get an email that my Vogue Fabrics order from two days ago has even shipped! *Sigh* All of my other recent fabric purchases have shipped, but none of it is expected till arrive until sometime next week.

But that's okay, because last night, I also started on Rapunzel. I dyed the bodice fabric, so that is ready to go, and I hope to start on the patterning this evening. Luckily I've made this bodice before, but of course, both times was for a much smaller person. Hopefully I'll be able to just enlarge the pattern I made for them without too much difficulty.

I finished Rapunzel yesterday. It feels soooo good to be done! I'm mailing it off this afternoon.




And today, I started working on an 18th c suit for my BF for a SITU event coming up in a couple weeks. 

I sewed most of the lace around the neckline of the Rapunzel bodice on the bus today, and I'm sure I'll finish that (and hopefully start on the lace at the hem) tomorrow.

I also started on the Delysia LaFosse outfit. I drafted out a pattern, cut out the body and skirt pieces, and sewed together the skirt. I'm not sure I'm in love with the look. In the movie, the skirt is darted in the back and gathered in the front, which I feel like makes me look a little dumpy. I'm going to stitch up the bodice before I really decide how dumpy I look, though. I don't think the 30s are going to do me any favors... Oh, and my hat is not going to be an exact match. I have a wool hat that I dyed blue, but is not the same turquoisy blue as the fabric. Oh well. This whole outfit is going to have to take about 15 or less hours to sew, after all.

Oh, and in other news, I now have an entire dresser drawer where nothing in it is newer than 1910 (and probably more like 1905, but I need help dating one bodice). I know I still owe you all pictures of the two newest acquisitions. They'll happen eventually.

I put my zipper in. Two days ahead of schedule. Ok, that's not true - I wanted this done a month ago...

I sewed today! I finished the piping around the neck and waist, and I also made the "blouse" pieces that go in the center front and the back neck. The center front one is already attached, so I took a picture as proof.



I start my stitching job at ACT in the morning. I'm a little nervous! I always have major doubts about my abilities, since I'm completely self-taught. I hope I can do everything they want me to!

Oh, and we had our Regency tea on Saturday. It wound up being a little smaller of a group than I had hoped, but there were 8 of us there (plus a baby) and the tea was yummy, if a little unusual. Hopefully pictures will be coming soon. I didn't take any, so I'll have to wait and steal them from others.

The Rapunzel skirt is almost finished. I had a lot of battles with the satin today, which really slowed me down, and I've now decided that satin is officially my 3rd least favorite fabric (behind chiffon and that white linen from my pink candy early bustle). But anyway, at this point, all I have to do is hem the front panel, add the lace to the hem of the front panel, and put a hook and eye at the waist. Then it's on to the bodice. Here's a pic:



I have to admit, though, working on this is making me itch to get back to my handsewn 1860s bodice!