Patriotic A line dress costumes

Land of hope and glory...

A-line dresses are quite straightforward when you know how.  Front piece.  Two back pieces.  Top inners and (in this case Velcro for a quick change).

So to make a few of them for costumes was a real joy.  There really is nothing more satisfying than seeing items of clothing/costumes I've designed and made in action!

Next...

Being bold

I really can't get enough of big, bold patterns.  There's something so scrumptious about them.

So when I spotted some gorgeous fabric in Ikea a couple of years ago I earmarked it for future reference.  And yesterday, I eventually decided to just go buy some LOL!

But then, what was I going to do with it?

Decisions, decisions...

I find it really exciting when I see fabric with potential.  It's sort of like a sheet of white paper - so many things you can possibly do with it; so little time.

But I decided on an A-line skirt (well, to begin with anyway!).

With a side zip and button fastening.

I get to road-test it tonight for the first time.  Can't wait!

I have enough fabric left over to make at least one bag.  A satchel maybe, or a rucksack...

Time will tell!

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Sewing Bee Challenge: A Line skirt

Anyone watching The Great British Sewing Bee programme at the moment?

It's fabulous!!!  Anything that can get sewing back into the mainstream is a brilliant idea as far as I'm concerned.

The first challenge the 8 contestants had this week was to make an A Line skirt.  One person lined theirs.  Another added homemade bias binding to decorate it.  The skirts themselves were just three pieces of fabric, with darts and a concealed zip at the back.

Funnily enough, before the programme was aired, I was also making an A Line skirt with some corduroy discovered in a charity shop.

My skirt pattern also had darts.  But it had just two main pieces of fabric, a waistband, side zip and a button closure.

Here is the end result

It fits beautifully and hangs like a dream.  I love corduroy to soften curves.  It's also so very tactile.

This is one of the darts I inserted.  It really does help to shape the skirt.  You start to sew from the widest to the smallest part leaving a tail of thread which you then knot to prevent the dart from falling out.  Always remember to press darts after creating them.

The waistband was a new technique for me.  The previous waistbands I have made have had raw edges inside.  But this was handstitched on the inside.  It makes it much more elegant (not that anyone knows that it's there, but *I* do!) and durable.

The side zip was relatively well concealed.  Given the choice, I would probably make a back zip next time.  If you don't get it right, side zips can pucker easily.  And besides, it's always easier to sew something on the flat rather than round a curve!

I have an admission to make - I've not figured out how to make a buttonhole on my machine until now, either LOL!  So this was a first (and so easy with a buttonhole foot - I really must do a post on sewing feet soon!)

As I was looking through my Janome instruction manual trying to find out how to make a buttonhole, I also figured out how best to use the blind hem stitch too.  So this was what I used to complete the skirt hem.

What do you think?

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More costumes - A-line dress

One of the things I love most about sewing is that I get to a) play with fabric and b) figure out how to make things as I go along.

So when I was given an A line dress to see if I could make something similar as a costume, I didn't hesitate to give it a go.

Here is the dress I was given:

I always like to make a mock-up of a new garment/item first and only then when I'm satisfied with it, do I go on to make the item itself.  I learn loads along the way.

So this is the dress that I made from a pair of old curtains that were sitting in my airing cupboard:

And this was the resulting costume that I made.  I was given some really pretty lace to add to the top and bottom to make it look similar to the blue dress.

I loved the whole process of figuring out how to make the costume - especially the little puffy sleeves.  You see, the more I sew, the more I discover new techniques that I can bring to my own creative process the next time round.

Along the back seam I inserted velcro to make it easier to change into and out of.  Gotta think of these things with little ones and dance shows!

It wasn't until I was watching the dance show that I realised that the blue and pink dresses would be worn alongside each other. 

 

I think they went really well together!




Dancer photo reproduced with kind permission Kathryn Hurley Dance Academy
Copyright Rich McD