Pages

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

1920's Day Dress - (HSM #3)

I spent a long time thinking about this month's challenge, stuck for several weeks. While I had plenty in my stash that I could draw from, I had a hard time finding any inspiration. I can't tell you how many times I sorted through my patterns and pinterest boards, looking for something that would spark my interest. 

Then, about two and a half weeks in to March, I happened upon a new show.



There are two seasons on Netflix and I'm already on my second watch-through.

It's about a female detective, Phryne Fisher, who solves crimes in 1920's Australia with the aid of her wonderful friends, the local police, and Detective Inspector Jack Robinson. The show is filled with fun mysteries, lavish sets, and some of the most amazing chemistry between I've ever seen. Not to mention gorgeous costumes.


     

    

And so I decided that for the third HSM challenge, I was going to make something from the 1920's. I have a set of instructions for the infamous "One Hour Dress," but I'd made it once before a few years ago and I wasn't happy with how it turned out. So, I turned to the internet to browse for a new method of construction.


I was a big fan of these dresses and I had a pattern in my stash that I could adapt to make a similar skirt.


Simplicity 1802. Last night I spent twenty minutes cutting out the three pattern pieces that I would use and sorting through my stash to pick out the fabric.

In doing so, I discovered that most of my stash is made up of quilting cotton, which was too stiff for this project. I wanted something sheer, but, in the end, went with a length of green fabric that I'd forgotten I had. I have no idea as to where it came from or its content, but it drapes nicely and I had enough of it to get a dress out of.

Fabric up close. It's less olive-y in person.
I used the bottom half of the pattern, dropped it down a few inches so it would start around my hips, and drafted the top part of the dress from a loose-fitting t-shirt that I have.



I cut it out in two pieces, front and back, plus the four u-shaped godets. Then, this morning, I sat down to sew.


It went pretty quick and I had it done early in the evening, though I would have been faster if I hadn't been distracted by TV while I was working. After a while I turned it off and put music on instead and worked much more efficiently.

Trying it on to check the fit of the top.
Trimming the bottom.
By the time I finished it was dark, so there wasn't enough light inside to get good photographs. But phone pictures will do until I'm able to take proper pictures of it with my Nikon.





It's a very simple dress, but I like it. It went much better than the last '20's dress that I made (too tight across the chest) and is very comfortable, especially with summer around the corner. It's nowhere near as fancy as Phryne's outfits from the show, but I could see her companion, Dot, wearing something like it.

The Challenge: Stashbusting (HSM #3)
Fabric: Green knit
Pattern: Skirt from Simplicity 1802
Year: 1920s
Notions: Green thread. No closures or anything; it slips over my head.
How historically accurate is it? Ummmm, 50%? That would be my guess. I went for more overall aesthetic than accuracy on this one as '20's styles aren't the most flattering on me.
Hours to complete: About 7.
First worn: Tried it on to take pictures. I will probably wear it on Thursday.
Total cost: Since everything came from my stash, $0. (I don't remember what I got the fabric for when I bought it but I know that I got the pattern for $1.)

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Little Finds | An Afternoon Shopping Trip


Before I moved, I used to live pretty close to an antique shop that I visited often and soon became my favorite. I don't live as close anymore, but when I am in the area I make a point of stopping by to do some shopping. I had the chance to spend an hour there last week and I found some great things!



First up is this cookbook, New Delineator Recipes. It had been in the shop for a few months; I'd seen it on the self once before but ended up putting it back. This time I couldn't pass it up.


It's from 1930 and isn't in the best shape, but I prefer to view it as obviously well-loved. The first page was ripped halfway up but it was patiently taped back together and there are a few childish scribbles in and on the front and back.






One of my favorite things about it is the menus they suggest. The recipes are great in and of themselves, but I like to see what they were meant to be paired with.


Page 95 is marked with an old label from a jar of Crisco. After a quick Google search, it looks like the label comes from the 50's or the 60's, so this book was used and loved for a long time.

There are a few recipes printed on the back of the Crisco label, so it's too hard to tell whether it was saved for its own recipes or whether was saved to mark a recipe on the page. 

 

The next thing that I picked up was this embroidery kit. There were a few in a bin to choose from, but this design was my favorite.


I want to try it out on one of my many cardigans and, if it works out well, I may go back and purchase a couple others.



Lastly, I found three packets of sew-on snaps and some buttons that I can add to my stash.

So, in all, that trip was pretty successful. I had a fun afternoon and I'm really happy with what I found. Hopefully I'll be in the area sometime in the near future so I can stop by again.

Monday, March 2, 2015

Once Upon a Skirt

Once Upon a Time is, hands down, my favorite show. If you've never seen it, it's basically the story of all the famous fairy tale characters cursed to live their lives trapped in our world, the "land without magic." It's full of true love and heartache, good and evil, princesses and pirates, and some of the most stunning costumes I've ever seen. So, in honor of its winter premiere last night, I want to share a project that was a long time in the making.

Back in season two, Belle (yes, as in Beauty and the Beast) wore this skirt and I loved it as soon as I saw it and knew that I had to have something like it.

This project wasn't at the top of my list, so I worked slowly over the next few months, planning it out and hoping that I would happen across the fabric. After compiling and analyzing images of the skirt, I settled on a 3/4 circle skirt with about a 2" waistband.



One of my favorite details about the skirt is that it isn't hemmed. Instead, it's left to fray with a line of thread about an inch above the bottom to keep it from unraveling too much.

Source

In researching it online, I came across two exact matches on WornOnTv and read that it was lined with yellow fabric. I couldn't find any pictures of it, but I could catch a few glimpses of it during the show and in gifs.


So when I came across a cut of this fabric in a second-hand shop for $3 I was ready to start sewing. It was remarkably similar to Belle's, only slightly more blue. Unfortunately, when I got it home and unrolled it I found that there was hardly anything there. Less than a yard, in all.

So I spent a few days marking out my measurement with pins, taking it all out and readjusting to try to get enough out of it. I kept trying to get it all cut in two to three pieces, but it wouldn't all fit onto the fabric. I shelved the project for a few more weeks, wanting to wait until I'd drafted a paper pattern that I could cut up and piece together as needed.


But before I got around to it I found this pattern on sale for $1 at Joann's; just the thing I was needing.


I was just able to cut out all that I needed. I had to make one piece into two parts (making a 5-piece skirt instead of 3-) and cut the waistband out in three parts, but it worked out in the end.




I dug out some blue fabric left over from a project from a few years ago to line it with. It hangs loose, a couple inches shorter than the outer layer, and makes a rather lovely swishing sound when I move.


Final Product:

Front                                                 Side

Back                                                 Lining


It closes with a zipper at center back and two hooks-and-eyes on the waistband. I had to help the fraying hem along a little, pulling the strings carefully apart around the circumference, but it is still one of my favorite things about the skirt.

I finished it back in the last few weeks of January and have worn it several times since. It's definitely one of my favorite pieces to wear.

Have you ever made anything inspired by a television show? How did it turn out?

Bonjour & Welcome