Plaid Ruffles and Polka Dots

I realize I've taken quite a break from blogging recently (considering I was able to crank out a post almost everyday in may), but it is because I've been busy with lots of fun crafty things which you'll read about in the next few posts.

My biggest news is that we have finished a couple really important pieces for Oklahoma!. There are 6 dresses we had to make for female leads and we have about two thirds of them in working (ok, fittable) condition. One difficult thing about Oklahoma! is that there are several costume changes for the leads, all of which are very distinct and absolutely crucial for the story. Thus lots of work for the sewers.

Think of…the Tony!!

As some of you may know, the Tony Awards are tonight. This celebration of broadway is my absolute favorite award show of the year and I tend to plan my night around the ceremony so I can watch it live. Now in the age of Twitter, Facebook, and other online networking sites, information about the nominees is widely available, with lots of updates from sources like Playbill.com and Broadway World. While browsing the Playbill twitters, I found two gems that represent my favorite parts of theater: the spectacular costumes and the actors off stage.

First up is a video and interview of Elmo and Sutton Foster (nominated for Best Actress in a Musical) singing on Sesame Street. It's very fun and energetic (very Sutton).

Second is a sneak peek photo gallery of Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark which will be performing tonight  and opened May 12th at the Foxwoods theater. I saw a couple of the featured costumes up close while in New York in April and am excited to see them finally in use on stage. The show also features Jennifer Damiano of Spring Awakening and Next to Normal fame. I've never seen her live, but her voice is incredible.

Oh yeah, that project...

While I was at JoAnn’s on Thursday, I picked up a Butterick apron pattern since all Butterick patterns were $2.00 a piece. It is quite versatile and has multiple sizes and styles (plus it only requires less than 2 yards of fabric!), which will be great if I need to make other aprons in the future.

I personally really like View C (the one with the cherry fabric) because it reminds me of the fancy aprons I see around town near my school. It is also quite reminiscent of a 50’s apron. It will probably be made out of a fun novelty cotton (which my cousin and I will figure out somehow this summer) with her choice of apron style.

Just a list...

to figure out exactly how many projects I have started in the last couple days.

- Drafted [or maybe purchased pattern] Apron for my cousin (and maybe myself too)

- Dotted blouse (lined)

- Green Skirt to match

- Baby bibs (2) and burp clothes (a few) for my mom's coworker [These can't be that hard, and should be pretty quick] finished 5/14
- Dotted Skirt to match (lined) finished 6/10

Oh, and maybe any other things that decide to pop up.

Pretty Polka Dots and Silky Cottons

Finally home after a long and hot day of work. I'm a bit exhausted from today's travels, but I'll do my best to update you all about my crazy - but very productive day!

Yesterday I met the other three interns who will be working alongside the other crew members - two are college seniors (one of which goes to the same college as me and works in the theater department!) and a sophomore like me. We figured out that the costumes will be rented from UNCSA…well, about half of them. We have multiple actors (say, 20) who are larger than costumes that UNCSA can provide (including several of the leads), so we have to create alternative methods of acquiring costumes and it looks like it will be in the form of building lots and lots of fitted prairie blouses and ruffled skirts, as well as digging through jam-packed racks in an overcrowded basement for cowboy shirts, pants, and a pair of size 15 EEE cowboy boots. So we definitely have our work cut out for us. It looks like we'll be racing until the final bell. 

My biggest news is that today my supervisor and I went fabric shopping for suitable fabrics for the various costumes. As of present, our Ado Annie and Aunt Eller, will not fit the rental costumes, so we are building those from scratch, as well as a couple female ensemble members. The tricky thing is trying to find fabric that will fit in with the costumes that are being shipped to us - ones that are bright primaries and plaids. Surprisingly, our trip was very successful.

Stylin' at the Five 'n Dime - part 2

After much anticipation, I present final photos of my first set of 1930's blouses and skirts. Both are about 95% finished, but completely wearable. I need to readjust the back placket on the skirt, once I purchase a zipper and wash the white blouse to get out any remaining marks, but beyond that, they are beautiful.

TaDa! A nicely hemmed (and horsehaired) skirt and finished blouse. You can really see how the horsehair braid holds out the skirt hem.

The blouse alone. The top of the button holes and buttons are tacked down to create a mock collar. It looks nicer than just a flat front (which is my intent for a second blouse, but that will have a real collar).

The skirt alone. As you can see, it falls to about low calf, which is lower than I'm used to ever wearing, but I think it will prove nice. I plan to wear it out to dinner tonight.

My next set of plans (which I have been hinting at) is to create a short sleeved blouse out of the remaining dotted fabric, as well as a lime green skirt for extra options when costuming this fall. Now, to leave you all with an artsy photo - just me playing around in Iphoto with one of the better shots in my mock photo shoot.

Stylin' at the Five 'n Dime - part 1

I finally hunkered down and got a lot done on my blouse and skirt set - and have something to show for it! The last two nights I sewed together the seams on the spotted skirt and ripped a few seams to make the lining (or my skirt muslin) fit inside the spotted skirt. I sewed them together at the back placket (where the skirt closes in the back, for those of you non-sewers) and then basted them together at the top (so they would stay together until I could get the waistband on. It looks really nice. All I have left to do is sew some closures in the back (snaps, hooks and eyes, skirt hooks, whathaveyou), sew on the waistband, and hem both skirts. One of the hems will have a length of crinoline or (plastic) horsehair braid to help keep its shape. I'm thinking it will be the lining so the spotted skirt will stand out nicely.

I also decided to use my muslin as an actual blouse (I put so much time into it anyway that I might as well use it) and mostly finished it last night. The sleeves and blouse edge are both hemmed, with the buttons sewn on, the only (REALLY MAJOR) thing I am missing is the button holes which will hold the blouse together. Kinda important. I've been trying to get the sewing machine to make the correct sized buttonholes for my 5/8" buttons, but it doesn't want to cooperate. I'm waiting for my mom to help me figure out the machine so I can have a beautifully finished blouse (that is, after I wash it to get rid of any wax paper marks or such). I'm really excited to have made a nice dent in both pieces, but I still have an entire skirt and blouse to go (yay for mix-and-match separates), which I hope to start before Reagle eats my summer away.

So drumroll please….

Spending Habits Now and Then

I just found the most excellent article featured on Etsy's front page - it is about "The History of the Cheap Dress." After reading it, I thought about my own closet and what it consists of. In an attempt to be cost effective, I try not to buy anything full price, unless it is impossible to do so. Most of the solid cotton t-shirts I wear are sale rack finds or from the closing sale of a store. My sweaters are a mixed bag, some from Nordstrom's preview sale in the fall or their sale section as well as Target or Kohl's. Only when I get to the other items does it get tricky. As I type, I am wearing shorts from American Eagle last season (which were on sale), a yellow Aeropostale shirt (that was free when presenting a magazine cover a couple years ago), and a pair of silver Havaiana's flip flops (which I bought full price at school the day we made a trip into town and my shoes were giving me blisters). So it does tend to depend on my circumstance. I also frequent TJMaxx and Marshalls (but have much better luck at the former), and have had great luck. My best finds were two past season Nanette Lepore pieces - an eggplant textured boiled wool coat (which I wear all winter) and a navy semi-formal dress (that I wore to my high school graduation). Although my wallet seems to hate the prices, I know that an investment (especially in an expensive piece that was marked down) will help my wardrobe in the long run.

Back to the article, I am a bit appalled by the number of people who shop at places like Forever 21. Their clothing is made horribly and out of cheap fabric, then marked up for people at "cheap prices." I just don't understand it. My bitterness could be a result of the clothes hardly fitting me, but also looking quite sad in comparison to anything more expensive. I do realize that this store is supposed to be good for those trying to cut costs, but I suggest trying another store.

This way of thinking is far from what drives my love of retro and historical clothing and my passion for sewing. No, that is driven by my urge to create beautiful things for others to view both onstage and in my everyday wear (this much less so as I trend towards fanciful costumes). If I had the confidence, I'd wear retro clothes everyday, but I haven't worked up to that yet. Maybe sometime soon.