This black silk robe a la francaise is about 80% hand-sewn, more than I ever intended. I've retrimmed it 4x now!
Recreating the pink portrait of Mary Queen of Scots had long been a dream, & I finally did it for my birthday.
My drag alter-ego is Leonard Autie, hairdresser to Marie Antoinette. He sometimes gets a new suit for Carnevale.
I cut the sari! Scary, but it’s looking good. I debated which part to use for the bodice — either the choli end, which has a tight repeating pattern, or the end of the sari that hangs over the chest, which has a big wide pattern. Decided to use the choli for the bodice and
Sewed the lining of Aouda’s bodice last night (tried it on the dressform, fit weird, need to try it on me). Massive mad props to Kendra, who draped a pattern on me last weekend!!! I gave up on the Simplicity one and just went to the expert. The muslin looked awesome. Just doing a double-check
I hate fitting!!!!!! *$&)*@#_*!@#&$()& Time for a beer now before I torch my sewing room and the dummies and everything.
Tried to fit the Aouda muslin on my dressform last night. I’m hoping that even though she’s a bit boobier than I and I can’t corset her, this dressform will be a smidge better than trying to pin stuff on myself. At least for the first muslin. ‘Cept nothing made sense to me. Dunno if
Tickets for the GBACG’s Around the World in 80 Days are on sale! It will be on October 21, 2006, from 1pm to 5pm at the Duke of Edinburgh Pub, Cupertino. I need to get crackin’ on my costume! I’ll probably use the Simplicity 9761 pattern as a base, and I have all the notions
Shortly after Gatsby 2005, I bought this dress off eBay. It was listed as 1920s, but I think the style is more ’30s. It’s a somewhat transitional shape — neither fully straight nor fully fitted in the bust or waist. The waist is dropped, and the handkerchief hem is just around the knees. The dress
My first and probably only occasion to wear this gorgeous antique was the Time Travelers Gala at Costume College 2006. The event’s theme was Tango Argentina 1910s, so this gown fit right in. I accessorized the dress with a rhinestone and pearl headband atop my hair piled on my head. I wore long, dangly rhinestone
Well, that last idea went in a totally different direction! But in the Garment District after Costume College, I picked up a few yards of a brilliant blue-green silk taffeta that coordinates beautifully with the black embroidered linen. So I *will* make a caraco jacket out of that and a petticoat out of the silk!
July 15, 2006, at the Piedmont Cemetery Our inaugural Lumieres picnic was beautiful! I had a most delightful time, and I must thank the most gracious Comtesse de la Valliére for her warm hospitality. The Comtesse, my cousin Cecily, and myself ventured out early — around noon — to the far reaches of the Valliére
Photos from Let Them Drink Wine, an 18th-century picnic and wine tasting event in Sonoma, CA, by the Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild.
Blast it all — weather report last night said this weekend will be hot! According to weather.com, the location for Sunday’s 18th-century event will be 87 degrees. Not terrible, lord knows it could be worse, but it ain’t great for wearing a wig. And what have I been busting my hump to finish the last
One of my quests in the Garment District after Costume College was to find something for that Elizabethan gown. I had no real plans or ideas, other than wanted something super pretty, mostly historically accurate, and slightly ambitious. Towards the end of the day, under Bridget’s excellent guidance, I found a burgundy patterned cotton-blend velveteen
Despite a record-breaking 102 degree heat yesterday, I finished the dress. All trimmed up with super-cutesy ruffles, also hemmed. Used the ruffler foot (always tricky, but when it works, it’s freakin’ awesome) to make the trim. Oh, and the strip of white cotton I used for this trim? It was excess cut off from the
I’m stuck on the pleating. Can’t figure out a simple equation for determining how much fabric should be in the pleat and how much between each pleat. My petticoat is 184″ around the hem. It will have a pleated flounce at the bottom. I sewed together all the strips for the flounce, and it measures
