beading

bead, bead, bead.

I'm sewing them on in sets of three, anchoring the third with a sort of back stitch (I don't know proper beading terminology).  This will be the midriff - beading will continue up the sheer part of the bodice and down to around my hips.

Bodice muslin nearly complete!

sinus infection face didn't need to be on the internet

Granted, it will be all the same color, but this is more or less what my dress is going to look like.  (Also beads)  I'm thinking of putting a small crinoline underneath to make it more of an A-line instead of just falling right off my hips... but that can wait until everything else is done.

I want to do one more version with the chiffon overlay, to get the wrinkles, and that funny fold ober my bust out, but otherwise, its looking pretty good.

The bodice is a super hybrid franken-pattern.  The front of the underlay (highly modified) is New Look 6557, the back of the underlay is a cropped Vogue 8727, and the overlay is By Hand London's Anna Dress, also cropped.

I'm about 90% certain the pulls on the lower back are due to it continuing beyond my natural waist and not having room for my hips.   In the final, the skirt will be sewn on and the area beneath it trimmed. (Also, it will be reinforced and beaded, which will help)

Think happy thoughts, since I'm going to start on the beading tomorrow!

I have a skirt!

This doesn't do justice to all the pinning, gathering and hand basting that has been going on to connect the three layers of the skirt.   (Cotton batiste half-circle base, silk chiffon full-circle middle and silk chiffon 2.5 full circles for the top layer.)

I took over the living room for the evening.  (ha - let's be honest, I've taken over the living room for the month and will continue to work on it there, as the cats have been banned and cannot caress my lovely chiffon with their pointy little claws.) 

Don't I look absurdly tall?   The funny crease around "ankle height" is actually where the skirt hits the floor and flops horizontally for about 6 inches.  Chiffon *grows* -- especially on the bias.  

swords and things.

My fiance has taken to storing his swords in my stash.

but then, we have a drying rack just for armor. 

If you will be in the area, come see all the swords and things in action in January.   This is historically accurate recreations based on translations of 15th century texts.   Its a nifty bunch of people, and I'll be there as a scorekeeper / timekeeper.

bits of progress

I've started in on the bodice - this is the (first draft of the) plan for the underlayer

Downton Abbey, season four

The current plan is for a beaded chiffon overlay, somewhat similar to this.  I am going to use the Anna dress for the upper bodice, to get the cap sleeves and boat-neck, but there will be an under-bust seam and discrete midriff.    (Also, the tiara, headband, sparkle-hat she's wearing?   I have that too.)  (Its kind of too much, but its also kind of amazing.  I was trying to find something similar to what Mary wore in her wedding - a wreath like look, and found the actual vendor for the above headpiece.  In the description, it is listed as 'as seen on Downton Abbey, season four, so off to google I went, in a giddy frenzy.  It is stupid sparkly in person.)

Jenny Packham wedding dress

My plan for the beading is a little closer to this -- more twisty branches than geometric patterns.

I would say it looks a lot more exciting in person, except after getting one of the five skirt panels beaded (quite a bit more than this) I decided it was all getting hidden in the drape, undid it, and am planning to do the beading on top of the gathers around my hips, so it shows.   The beading will continue up to the neckline, but avoid the skirt, so the chiffon can still billow about.

Not really dress related - but fun - Greg is practicing calligraphy, and if he is happy with the result, will be doing our invitations.

holy bias-stretch, batman!

measure measure, cut cut

and then hanging until the bias stops growing.....

frankendressing

Silk shrinking worked out well, and the first three panels of the skirt are cut out (chiffon is kind of annoying, so I'm taking it slowly)... but I still haven't decided on what the bodice will look like.

current thought:

Charles James - 1945

Maybe something along the lines of ....

super photo shop skilzz

  

I'm already set on (and committed to) the flowy chiffon skirt -- but most of the bodices I've been thinking about don't really need chiffon -- in fact, they are better with something sturdy and structured.  But a gathered sort of a bodice, with an opaque something or other underneath, could look rather nice.

hrmm hrmm hrmm     I keep changing my mind every few days, which is why I started with the skirt.   The way I see it, this will be my most photographed dress ever, so it had better look good.   (Plus everyone, their brother and their second cousin twice removed has been asking me if I'm making my dress and then saying they are looking forward to seeing what I come up with.  So I need to collectively stun them.)