Corset wishes and scotch-brite plaid

I dream of making way too many costumes. I really want to make an 1830's era dress but I don't have the correct undergarments and am a) not skilled enough to make the patterns on the market, b) too bogged down with other little projects to make them and c) slightly too lazy to make them. Of course the answers to all my prayers comes with a $277 price tag (actually a $220 one because of a sale). The 1805 Patricia corset at Period Corsets is on sale and I have been lusting over it. Except it is really pricey - almost 2 paychecks worth! I have to make up my mind soon because the sale ends on July 4th.

On another note, On the Razzle opens soon and I'm making a bumblebee plaid skirt for one of the actresses. The black and yellow is so hysterical - I can't wait to see it all finished. That's my project for the next couple days.

Lacey Gorgeousness

Did I mention I finished my chemise? It's finally has hand-sewn lace on the hem. It looks really pretty. I also sewed on a snap for the closure and stitched the hanging piece of fabric down so the chemise wouldn't gap or look funny. The batiste is wonderful to wear - I wore it to bed a week ago. Hopefully I will get a photo up soon.

"Unhand my foot, sir!"

Ah yes, Vokes has started work on costumes again - and there are 2 and a half weeks until they need to be finished. As I mentioned before, they are doing On the Razzle which has a plot similar to Hello Dolly! only minus the character of Dolly. I went yesterday to help Elizabeth figure things out. We have a cast of roughly fifteen and that means there are a ton of required costumes. One big joke within the show is that Macbeth has just opened so there is a big Scottish craze sweeping Vienna (where the show is set) and thus everyone wants a plaid outfit (which causes confusion and mistaken identities among all the characters). Sadly, plaid is difficult to come by (and hard to match). We have three plaid capes from the last production and so we are trying to match them. If anyone has any extra plaid material, let me know.

Because we need soooo much plaid, I get to help with sewing for this show! Mom fixed her machine last night (phew) and now I can sew again. I'm sewing a kilt for a Scottish man within the next few days. I'll also probably sew a couple skirts for the ladies (the era is 1890's or so). There is so much to do for this show!!

Uh oh.

I may or may not have hurt my mom's nice Bernina. Oops. I was about to sew another cord onto my corded petticoat, but didn't move the needle over and then the needle broke. I think I got rid of all the pieces but for some reason the needle holder is not resetting itself when I turn on the machine. I just hope I won't have to put all my college savings towards paying for its repair.

Now that summer is starting, I need to find a couple sewing projects. I finished my Laughing Moon chemise. I hand sewed the hem (which is slightly uneven) and the lace. Now I'm working on my corded petticoat. It currently has 3 and a half rows (I'm hand sewing on the 4th). Hopefully it will hold out skirts and be really stiff with a lot of starch.

After I finish, I have a couple options - I'd love to make an 1830s/40s dress (it will be good use of the corded petticoat) but I'd need another corset for the 1830's dress. I'm also considering a hoop skirt kit and a new hoop dress. I could also make a bustle and a skirt and bodice to go over top. Hmm...decisions.

I hate change but...

it's time to change this blog around a bit. I love historical costuming and want to continue with this blog, but don't want to create a new blog just for my musings. So I have now changed my blog title a bit and will be posting costume news as well as other news. One big change is the countdown at the top of my page - it's for my college orientation. Now you readers can tell how much longer until my next big step in life! I can't wait until college!