Sewing (again)
Aug. 29th, 2011 11:46 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
totchipandaI know I said I wasn't going to sew again until September 15th (arbitrary date to recover from the last few projects), but after seeing and wearing lovely costumes at Worldcon, I'm almost eager to get back into my sewing room. Just with hopefully less frantic projects looming. This is also somewhat tied to the vague notion I've been concocting about having a "persona" and website to attach a business card to, for future needs I haven't entirely sorted out yet, brought on by a couple events that happened in Reno.
Anyway, first on my plate will be a new corset for myself. I want to try making my own again, at least a mock-up, and see if the overall length and shape might not be better for me than the one I purchased last year. It's a beautiful corset and certainly fulfills my needs, but I find it a little long, especially in the front. I read somewhere that a habit Elizabethan women had while corseted was sitting with one's legs spread, which is very unnatural to our modern habits. Certainly is to me! I did attempt to employ it at the con when circumstances allowed, namely while attempting to sit up straight in chairs in crowded panel rooms. Also on the train trip, I managed to bend one of the bones into an L-shape at the very bottom, from sitting too long, I guess. Maybe a corset that's an inch or two shorter will be that much shorter in the hip and not dig in. We shall see.
I will have to wash my skirt as it collected a lot of dust and hair from the convention center, and then I'll have to get dolled up at least that far with my new boots on to see if I need to alter the hem. It would mean having to remove the pleats, re-hem the skirt, and then reattach the pleats (cry!) but then I could also fix the pleats in place with a row of stitching down the back of each one. And then attempt to figure out some trim, as I still find it a little plain.
I want to get some more Victorian patterns, mostly ones that don't require the massive bustle (even though the bustle is my favourite part). I don't see why I couldn't, on the days I have off and am going somewhere, dress in Victorian. A bustle-less dress would draw slightly less attention. Don't get me wrong, I love getting compliments on my dresses, but going to a mall instead of a convention is a vast difference. Weather will play a factor, as well.
Top of my non-personal lists is Dad's frock coat, and Joe's lolita outfit. After that, I may consider taking commissions, or making ready-to-sell items for some extra income during slow seasons at work.
Anyway, first on my plate will be a new corset for myself. I want to try making my own again, at least a mock-up, and see if the overall length and shape might not be better for me than the one I purchased last year. It's a beautiful corset and certainly fulfills my needs, but I find it a little long, especially in the front. I read somewhere that a habit Elizabethan women had while corseted was sitting with one's legs spread, which is very unnatural to our modern habits. Certainly is to me! I did attempt to employ it at the con when circumstances allowed, namely while attempting to sit up straight in chairs in crowded panel rooms. Also on the train trip, I managed to bend one of the bones into an L-shape at the very bottom, from sitting too long, I guess. Maybe a corset that's an inch or two shorter will be that much shorter in the hip and not dig in. We shall see.
I will have to wash my skirt as it collected a lot of dust and hair from the convention center, and then I'll have to get dolled up at least that far with my new boots on to see if I need to alter the hem. It would mean having to remove the pleats, re-hem the skirt, and then reattach the pleats (cry!) but then I could also fix the pleats in place with a row of stitching down the back of each one. And then attempt to figure out some trim, as I still find it a little plain.
I want to get some more Victorian patterns, mostly ones that don't require the massive bustle (even though the bustle is my favourite part). I don't see why I couldn't, on the days I have off and am going somewhere, dress in Victorian. A bustle-less dress would draw slightly less attention. Don't get me wrong, I love getting compliments on my dresses, but going to a mall instead of a convention is a vast difference. Weather will play a factor, as well.
Top of my non-personal lists is Dad's frock coat, and Joe's lolita outfit. After that, I may consider taking commissions, or making ready-to-sell items for some extra income during slow seasons at work.
