Wicked mask

12/12/2010 4:40 am \ 6 Comments \

Last night we attended a masquerade Christmas cocktail function, and I needed a mask, so I visited Spotlight and picked up some basics to decorate one.
Boy, was this fun…  I felt like I was in kindergarten all over again!  Glueing stuff on and sprinkling sparkle dust is a heaps therapeutic way to spend and hour or so; so I do recommend this!  Oh, I miss when the kiddies were little and I had a legitimate excuse to indulge in this kind of activity…  now they’re all grown up one needs a Good Reason to get out sparkle dust…   luckily this was it.
So I purchased two small packets of feathers and two masks; one gold and one plain white plastic, and put together some other bits and bobs I had already.
I didn’t have a firm plan but just gathered lots of stuff together to play with.  Some black lace, black net, some scraps of sequinned fabric, glue and sparkles…  I did get out some old stamps and a stamp pad, but ultimately didn’t use these as the ink wouldn’t “set” on the plastic and just smeared off…

I bought two masks because the ones in Spotlight were so flimsy I worried that they would crack or split too easily… and glued them together for a firm base to play on.  (I almost typed in “work with” there but then got real, hey, “playing” is a far more appropriate verb, methinks!)

Then just started glueing…  I only used a tiny fraction of the feathers I bought and there is heaps left over for some other project…  

Once I had enough fluffiness I cut out a lace motif and glued it over the top of the gluey ugly bit where all the feather shafts were showing.
Dabbed glue and sparkle gel on and around about in a random artistic way, and sprinkled wicked green dust over…

I later added a bit more black net over the nose region, sliding it carefully underneath the feather and lace.  Would have been better to have thought of this in the early stages, but meh, got it in there OK.
Also later noticed a bit of white from the under-mask showing, so I used a Sharpie to draw in “eyeliner” around the eyes, both to colour in over the white, and to add a bit more drama.
Voila!
Here are the masks we wore; the one on the right was made by my son a while ago, and worn by my husband.  Needless to say, the ladies’ masks were all tres glamourous at the event, and most of  the mens’ were plain and rather sober.  Well, this is Australia.  Generally speaking Aussie men struggle with the concept of sparkles.

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On ankle-strap shoes

11/12/2010 3:02 am \ 10 Comments \

Shoes with ankle straps are tricky.  I have this firm belief that they shorten and stumpify (I didn’t make up that word but isn’t it just perfect?!) women’s legs. Now shortening and stumpifying might be desirable to the rare woman with very long and skinny legs, and such woman may may experience an inexplicable wish to sabotage this wonderful feature of her body… but I think it’s safe to say for most of us we have the opposite intentions.  
So with this in mind I avoid ankle strap shoes like the plague.
I think they can ONLY be successful in very few cases; listed as follows:
1. You are the above mentioned lucky willow who wants her legs to appear shorter and … er,  stumpier…
2. You are wearing an above-knee garment.  No exceptions.  A skirt or dress hitting at or just below the knee, combined with a strap wrapped around the ankle; well that short section of calf in between hem and strap is not going to be flattered by being visually sliced off at it’s slimmest points ie, the ankle and the point just below the knee.  Oh OK, well it’s occurred to me there is an exception to this one; as follows:
3. You are wearing a floor scraping number, and so your ankles are hidden from sight underneath, in which case go for the ankle straps with a clear conscience.  No one can see the fashion crime occurring visually underneath your fabulous maxi-dress.  Relax and enjoy your cocktail.
Now this pair of shoes is the closest I have to ankle-strap shoes, and I did weight this fact up before deciding to purchase, and I ended up (obviously) going for them because the ankle strap was firstly, low enough that it sits over the foot, really more of a shoelace-y effect rather than an ankle strap, and secondly, the strap is really really skinny.  But possibly my ankle-strap phobia is the reason I don’t wear these shoes more often…
But my dress hits just above knee.  So I think it’s OK.  Hopefully the fashion police won’t come a-knocking…

Details:
Dress; NewLook 6699 with modifications, various printed cottons
Scarf; black net, refashioned from an old skirt lining
Shoes; Jocomomola

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B is for beach

10/12/2010 4:41 am \ 6 Comments \

This is my newest project; top “b” from the Japanese pattern book “Unique Clothes Any Way You Like” by Natsuno Hiraiwa.  It is designed to be worn both ways front and back however desired and has a button band up the centre of the front… or back, take your pick.  All the internal seams are finished with flat felled seams and the armhole edges are bound with self-fabric bias binding.  I’ve had this crisp-ish white cotton in my stash for a while, probably at least a year ulp, thinking it would come in handy for something or other one of these days and it finally has.  Yay! for using up a bit more stash!  
I really like the boxy, undefined shape of this top; the unfittedness of course being the factor allowing one to wear it either which way… but also making for a delightfully cool and breezy shirt to wear during the hot hotter and hottest days of summer.  The Fremantle Doctor can just sail right on through these big loose armholes to refresh and revitalise me on a scorcher.
Hehe, I know what you’re thinking and you can just stop right there;  just to explain, the Fremantle Doctor is the name given here to the afternoon sea breeze…  
An added bonus here is that this shape is gloriously trendy at the mo’, see the big boxy white top in the photo below from Celine Spring 2011?  Nice to think my sewing efforts are resulting in something super fashionable every now and again…  well, I try.
Now perhaps I just need to make myself a pair of loose floppy wheat-coloured linen pants in order to really nail this look right down to the ground…?
This is the fourth white shirt in my Great White Shirt project.

Details:
Top; “b” from “Unique Clothes Any Way You Like” by Natsuno Hiraiwa, white cotton
Skirt; Vogue 7303, raw silk
Sandals; Perrini, had for many many many years

Below at left, worn the other way around; at right, from Celine Spring/Summer 2011

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Fisherman’s Rib 2-piece

09/12/2010 2:11 am \ 7 Comments \

Another blast from the past for today.  Actually this photograph is marked “Father’s Day” so should have come before the previous oldie I put up here, as this date puts Tim at only 2-3 months old.  He is held by my husband (wearing a jumper I had knitted for him, too!) and flanked by Craig’s Dad and Grandad, so this is a four generation photo.  Quite cool, no?
Tim is wearing a pale green outfit I had knitted for our new baby whilst I was still pregnant.  It is in fisherman’s rib; thus turning me off this stitch for many years, man, you know how I’m into quick knitting projects…!  Come to think of it, I’ve not knitted another fisherman’s rib project since…
  The outfit was from a Patons baby booklet and comprised pants and a cute little fisherman’s jumper, with a half tab button front and a little collar.  Oh, but it was cute!  The buttons I used on the front were little wooden toggle buttons, hand-carved by my father, and were adorable.  I still have some of the leftover buttons in a little paper bag, marked “Timothy’s buttons”.  I’ve never done another project worthy of them….
I don’t know where this little outfit is now.  I thought I had passed it on to one of my sisters-in-law but it seems to have disappeared.  This makes me a little sad.  But I know I shouldn’t attach too much sentimentality to “things”.  After all, I’ve got the most important, er “things” here with me still, meaning the men in my family.  Right?  Right.

(if you want to see what this cute little bubbsie looks like now, go here)
(On another note; you can just see a glimpse of the collar of the shirt my husband is wearing underneath, which has since been refashioned here)

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Pinky pink.

08/12/2010 6:19 am \ 15 Comments \

It took me a while to settle on this outfit today.  I had originally planned to wear my brand new top, from the pattern I was tracing out yesterday (yes, it’s finished!!) but it was lacking the right buttons to finish it off completely.  I had sewn on two complete  and different sets of buttons from my button bag, and ultimately just felt dissatisfied with each set…  so I had to trek out to the fabric shop to locate the perfect buttons today.  And I was very good and only bought one other piece of fabric whilst I was there.  And it was from the remnants table, so I am, you know, doing my bit, helping out the fabric store in getting rid of unwanted fabric.  I’m doing a good deed.  Practically a community service.  Not a self-indulgent or unnecessary purchase at all (cough cough)
Also while there I purchased two patterns I’m pretty excited about for my autumn sewing plans… lookee below.  The jacket pattern is one I’ve read about on other sewing blogs and am keen to give this a go.  Apparently it contains details on reproducing couture construction techniques, so I’ll be following these carefully.  The only problem I’ve discovered in my experience with Vogue top and jacket patterns is that they seem to be set on a default fitting for quite big-busted women.  On me, an only slightly blousy top ends up looking like a deflated balloon and kind of ridiculous.  I find Burda patterns to fit beautifully with no adjustments required.  I don’t know if this says anything at all about the relative shapes of the average American versus European woman or not.  Japanese patterns fit me well too.  But I am determined to work very properly and meticulously with this one and make it a rip-roaring success…  Promise I won’t get bored and try to whip through so I can just move on!! (a recurrent failing…)
The gloves are a no brainer.  Yah, always looking for a new challenge, hehe…  Keep you posted on how these go…!!

Details:
Dress; Simplicity 3745, significantly modified, pink lace
Camisole (under); Country Road
Skirt; “m”, from Unique Clothes Any Way You Like, by Natsuno Hiraiwa, apricot/grey linen mix
Thongs (flipflops); Mountain Designs
Necklace; a gift from my friend K

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On tracing out patterns

07/12/2010 1:19 pm \ 18 Comments \

Technical stuff today… 
Everybody has their own method of tracing out patterns; I thought I’d show here how I’m currently doing mine.
A few years ago our eldest had a Glitterati party where a “red carpet” was required, so I visited Spotlight and bought a 30m roll of red plastic tablecloth.  Specifically a 122cm x 30.5m roll.  Or 100 ft.  Yes, last time I was in Spotlight I did go and check these dimensions for accuracy in reporting here.  I’m that committed …
We used about half of this down our front path and along our hallway for the party.  As well as being a fun prop for the theme of the party it was an absolute godsend when it came to clean-up time afterwards, just imagine; winter party, bit of mud and wet leaves being trekked in on people’s shoes, spilled drinks and food etc… fantastic to just bundle it all up inside the “carpet” after; bingo, clean floor!  Highly recommended…
Anyhoo, I digress as usual; the rest of this plastic tablecloth roll just sat in the cupboard-under-the-stairs gathering dust… then I read a reader’s tip in Threads about using clear plastic to trace patterns.  And wondered how well the tablecloth plastic would work for this purpose…

And imo, this stuff is perfect for the task.  I would never go back to paper.  Although the next time I buy some I think I’ll go for ivory…
Firstly it is translucent enough that tracing is quite possible, easy even.  Far easier than the butcher’s paper I was previously using …  It’s quite thin and very light.  Cheap, another plus.  

Yes, I admit; kinda tacky stuff when considered for it’s real role, but highly desirable for tracing purposes…
It can easily be drawn on, and as the plastic is tougher than paper it will not rip or shred as easily.  Plus the folds don’t hold like they do with paper, making it easier to re-use the patterns again.

Once I’ve traced, cut out and used my patterns, I store all the patterns from the one book or magazine all together in one large re-cycled envelope, and keep the envelope along with the book, for future use.
What do you use for tracing?  And what factors made you choose it?

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Khaki scarf; a refashion

06/12/2010 5:18 am \ 14 Comments \

I took the Tshirt below and followed my own tutorial to make this new knotted scarf.  Though for this one I cut the front in two pieces and the back in three…  
Nothing earth-shattering, but will be a useful little thing to go with the other khakis in my collection…
I love khaki/olive, obviously; one of my best neutrals.  This was my daughter’s old Tshirt, and when she gave it the heave-ho I baggsed it; immediatement.  That last word is Franglaise, a form of butchered French/English, a language often employed in this household… er, by me mostly.  I do have this bad habit of making up words and sometimes even talk in weird, vaguely European accents, particularly after a few drinks.  I haven’t on this occasion.  Had a few drinks, that is.  So got no excuse, really.
Back to the scarf…
The Tshirt in its original form was one of those really badly constructed ones that would not lie straight, and developed strange twisted folds if you tried to fold it flat along the side seams when hanging it up on the clothesline.  This is because the sides were cut and sewn just a little bit off.  Grrr… my pet hate.  Look how it used to be, below… soooo skewiff.  So I was pretty elated to be given the opportunity to take the scissors to it. 
Now it has a new lease on life, and will not cheese off this laundress ever ever again.  Hehehe….

Details:

Top and cardigan; Country Road
Pants; drafted by me, white linen
Scarf; refashioned from an old Tshirt
Thongs (flipflops); Mountain Designs

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Burda 7767; a pattern review

04/12/2010 2:22 am \ 18 Comments \

Yesterday I surprised myself when I tried to create a link to the review I wrote for this pattern and found out it wasn’t even here!!  I wrote this for Pattern Review; oh, months ago, and …er, forgot? to put it here on my blog too.  I’ve updated the review here only slightly, to take into account the fact I’ve used it an extra five times since writing this review, and to note some of the variations.
I decided today to wear one of the earliest versions of this pattern I made for Craig; as an overshirt, folded over at the front asymmetrically and belted like a sort of coat.  Please note my fabulous salon-styled do; this kind of glamourous hair doesn’t appear here often…

Details:
Shirt; Burda 7767, burgundy linen
Dress; Burda 8511 with fitting, neckline and zip placement variations, brown wool mix.  oh, and fully lined too…
Belt; kept from a pair of old cargos
Socks; knitted by me
Shoes; Francesco Morichetti

So without further ado, here is the review:

 Pattern Description:
Men’s dress shirt, one version with front pintucking option, the other plain fronted and with four collar variations
Pattern Sizing:
European 44 (US 34) to European 60 (US 50)
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
I’ve only sewed version B without pintucking, but yes
Were the instructions easy to follow?
very easy
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I liked everything about this pattern, nothing to dislike. It’s a basic men’s shirt!
Fabric Used:
Linen
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
The first time I made this pattern up it was for a birthday present for my husband and I had to make it in secrecy with no fittings! Luckily it fitted fine, however the subsequent times I’ve used it I fine-tuned the fitting to accommodate my husband’s measurements perfectly. Namely by deepening the armholes and correspondingly widening the sleeve at the underarm point. Obviously this wasn’t the pattern’s fault, that I couldn’t perform progress fittings, however!
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Yes, I’ve sewn this up eight times now; for my husband, our two sons and even for me, and plan to use it many times over again in the future. Would highly recommend to others as a simple basic shirt pattern.
Conclusion:
What’s not to like about this pattern? Men’s shirting needs are often simple and uncomplicated and this pattern serves the purpose exceptionally well. Being such a basic pattern means you can add your own variations such as pocket flaps, welt pockets and fancy topstitching variations as much as you wish. You could also shorten the sleeves to make a summer button-up shirt too. The times I’ve used this pattern I’ve varied the pocket slightly each time, and played around with contrasting topstitching details. It’s a simple matter to lengthen the body pieces to create a curved lower hemline if this is desired also. An advanced seamstress could also play around with varying the yoke.
For the versions for my teenage sons I added tabs inside the sleeves that button back on themselves on the outside of the sleeves to hold up the sleeves when rolled up; I also used press studs in lieu of buttons; sewed on two breast pockets with flaps and angled the pocket flaps and cuffs to give a funkier look to suit a teenager’s tastes. This is only one variation of many one could try out with this great pattern. 
Later edit; looking at the other reviews of this pattern I was reminded that the yoke pattern piece had “cut 1” printed on it by mistake instead of “cut 2”. I think this is a simple typo, and not really a problem as the pattern instructions clearly require for there to be two yoke pieces cut, and the pattern cutting layout also illustrates two yoke pieces laid out.

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