The Green Dress.... getting paid to have fun!

Yes, one can get paid to have fun. Having been lucky enough to have that much fun, I just have to share this one too.

A patron of the ballet bid to have a walk-on part in the annual production of the Nutcracker, one night only (not recently). The problem was that the front office forgot to mention the situation to the costume shop for a few months - bidding was in the Spring. We started the costume in late November, a couple weeks before that year's run was to begin. Something to be said for communications, huh? Any way, we had to scramble to build a costume because we had no spare costumes suitable for the party scene, for an extra person.

We also didn't have funds to spend on this project. My boss handed me the project and said, "do what ever you want with this - have fun", and then handed me the green fabric and said, "but use this." What could I say - cool fabric and a free hand. The plaid fabric was a donated silk taffeta, and there was only a limited quantity, in 3 or 4 smallish sections. I couldn't spend much on trims, but I had an idea.

I picked the 1857 Walking Dress from the Wisconsin Historical Society pattern line. This pattern has since been published by Simplicity. It has a blue sample dress on the envelope cover. For our purposes, the skirt was slimmed down slightly and the petticoats were minimized.

The front of the dress was made as if to open, per the instructions, but then invisibly stitched permanently shut. The back seam was finished with facings and hooks and bars.

The trim was where I really had a ball. I cut strips of the taffeta, selvage-to-selvage, about 8" long. I hemmed one edge, and ran gathers about every 6", across the 8" length. The gathers were pulled up and tied and a gold, gimp-type trim was sewn to the raw edge, making a really nice trim - not period at all, but nice. The original pattern called for fringe but we used the custom trim wherever the fringe would have gone. The front is accented with a couple of Josephine knots in green rattail, with purchased tassels attached.

The gimp trim, backed with a bit of scrap lace, made for a nice accent on the collar.



















The cuff, plain white cotton edged with the same lace as the collar, is attached to a removable undersleeve of the plaid taffeta.











I started this post several months ago, back when I started this blog. I know I intended to type more about this project, but can't remember what I had in mind so, here it is!

Things I'd nearly forgotten

Yes, I'm really deep through the old folders tonight. Some of my
favorite work was the dance costumes that I built for the ballet - good quality fabrics make such a difference.

I still chuckle at my trepidation when, on my first day on that new job, I was handed a rather worn Nutcracker tutu for which I needed to salvage the shredded lace and build a whole new bodice. I wish I'd photographed the old bodice. The finished new bodice looked so good and even I had a hard time believing what I'd accomplished, carefully recreating missing bits of the silver and gold metallic laces with metallic embroidery threads. There were no flowers left to replace
the old, worn flowers, but even those looked much better once they
were fastened on the new bodice.

Hmmm...is it me, or is this editing software really, really difficult to manipulate?

A few more projects from the past

Several years ago, I was the very lucky recipient of this delightful 1940's hat. A dear friend with no one else to whom to give it, opted to pass it on to me. The fabric, lime green with a plaid of shades of blue, black and white, feels like a very fine silk taffeta. It's the structure of the hat that just amazes me!

I photographed the hat so that I could send the images to someone else, but I just had to share them here too. The model is the nearly 1/2 scale My Size Barbie, wearing a very curly red wig made for a doll, though not necessarily her size. The hat was made to be worn by an adult woman. It sets a bit forward and to the side on the head, with the ring opened away from the crown, to catch on the back of the head and probably be bobby-pinned into the hair. It's really surprising how well it does set on the head, though I'd never wear it without securing it thoroughly.











Front and Top views


















Underside/inside view with ring held open





























Back view on the 1/2 scale model
















Side front view

I've studied the inner structure, as much as one can without disassembling the hat. It is so intriguing. I intend to attempt to reproduce it, using buckram, crinoline and wire for the foundation. Sections will be built and covered, before being joined together.

When I get it done (no, don't ask when) I'll post photos of the process and the copy.

Introducing...(the post that never had a title)

I've lost count of how many times I've started a blog only to lose track of weeks without making an entry. I've deleted them after only one or two posts, usually several months apart.

I'm going to try again.

This time, I'm going to do as so many other sewing list members do, and use my blog to share my projects with others who share my fascination for all things fabric and thread.

Actually, these days I'm getting paid to do my thing with fabric, making patterns and costumes for a local theatre company. It's nice, most of the time anyway, though theatrical costumes
seldom call for nice fabrics, just cheap. But we've got a fun show coming up, with the mundane costumes all being shopped and the fun/fantasy costumes being made in-house. We're doing The Neverending Story. So far, the theatrical version does little to remind me of the movie (just as well) and I don't remember the book well, but this is interesting.

I won't be able to post pictures of that work, but I have some other things to share. Most recently, I've been doing embellishment to jeans for a rock drummer, my son's drum teacher, David. This has been fun and quite far outside of my normal range of work.


Feet On Fire
These were done at David's request for something that would give the sense of his feet being on fire while he's playing! Given how hard he plays, this is not so very unlikely! The black jeans were opened up the inside seam and appliqued with red satin and flame-print cotton 'flames'. The raw edges (yes, all of them) were just zig-zagged, nothing as dense as a satin stitch. They are a little stiffer than I would have liked, due to the fusible web, but I think they'll soften up over time.

The whole thing actually began with this pair:

The Leopard Print
The first time that David and Lars (guitarist) came to the house to discuss this project with me, they just blew me away! It was the first time ever in all my years of having a fabric stash, that anyone of the opposite gender ever showed any enthusiasm for that stash! I had been planning on running the guys up to the nearest fabric retailer, but they stood in my studio and shopped MY fabric! It was so funny and so fun!

Differences between the two guys' tastes become evident very quickly with David choosing this soft, rayon leopard print and a grey/black-on-white snakeskin print, while Lars opted for plain denim for one pair, and a shades-of-grey camo print for the second pair. Those first four pairs were simply a tapering of the fit in the thighs, and adding the triangle flares in the lower side seams. They were fun and the guys really loved them.

Then came these:


The Snakeskin Print
I had a bit more fun on this pair. In addition to the flare, I added diamond-shaped appliques up the right side, above the flare, satin stitched in black.

Next up will be some tribal images, cut in suede and appliqued; also maybe, some custom glove.