Miyavi Concert Outfit

Miyavi is coming!! I'm so excited. And with Miyavi coming for a concert it means that Grip N Flip needs an outfit. This outfit is all her own design. I violently and vehemently rejected her first design thusly making complaints on her second design null and void. We're not even going to discuss why the first one that she designed was so reprehensible, it just offended all of my sensibilities.

There are three parts to her outfit. The first part is inspired by this sarong skirt by Refuse To Be Usual (I was afraid to post the picture in case there are some copyright infringement permission line the would be crossed). We made it a little shorter and not ALL the details are the same but that's why it's an inspiration. I actually took apart an old jacket that I didn't wear the make this. I was able to keep the pockets from the jacket. It took apart an old bag for the buckles and belt.














The skirt is mostly completed. I think the biggest challenge wasn't recreating the skirt but figuring out how much fabric I had available from the jacket. And living in fear that if I messed up I wouldn't have any fabric to replace the pieces. It made the process a lot more time consuming and premeditated cutting was necessary, as opposed to my "cut first, figure out later" methodology. I turned out better than I expected. I have it wrapped around a pillow for lack of a model.
















I still need to add a chain, but other than that this skirt is 98% complete.

I still have two more pieces to go. Lets hope that they won't be a pain in the bum.

Lace Gloves

Here is something I thought I would NEVER do. Well, never say never.

Grip N Flip ask for long fingered lace gloves. FINGERED LACE GLOVES. This project wouldn't have been that difficult if I had purchased stretch lace. But because I'm thrifty and found non-stretch lace for $1/yard I would obviously choose pricing over ease. Well maybe that wasn't the best decision. After several tries I was able to finish the gloves. There are slight fit issues.

I didn't have a plan and basically traced her arm & hands, then sewed the outline. The gloves were actually sewed against the grain, if lace even has grain, because the selvage had this beautiful scalloping that I used at the top of the gloves. I'm sure there was a better way to do the gloves then how I did them, but I'm still just in awe that I made gloves out of lace!!



She wore these gloves with a pleather outfit that her friends gave to her as a collective X-mas gift. A few weeks later one of Grip N Flips' friend borrowed these gloves for prom.

Grip N Flip-form

So Grip N Flip and I were able to find some time together to make a dress form out of duct tape. For all of you that don't know what a dress form is a mannequin/torso dress makers use to drape or fit the garments they are constructing. They're nothing like the ones you see in department store displays.

I've been wanting to make one since I read this article a year ago Clone Yourself A Fitting Assistant. The idea is that you make a dress form out of your own body. There are a few options to choose from but I ended up using duct tape since I had a lot readily available, or at least my dad does.












I taped up Grip N Flip. I had to start over once. I didn't read the directions carefully an didn't start from the bottom. Good thing I didn't get very far. I used the silver duct tape to start and ended with the red duct tape. We didn't plan this out very well. By the time we started on the last red layer it was the height of the afternoon and pretty hot. Grip N Flip was sweaty and gross. She was also not happy with me taping a good bit of her hair at the nape of her neck. The pain we go through for fashion. When we were done with the last layer we cut her from the back.


After I cut Grip N Flip out of the dressform we taped it back up.


It's hollow at this point and options for filling the center are stuffing or a insulating foam. I thought the insulating foam would be a good idea.


The only problem was that I didn't have any on hand. It took me a few days before I made my way out to a hardware store to buy some. At this point my dressform had been sitting around getting deflated and deformed, loosing all of it's shape. The bust became concave.

I decided to just go ahead and fill it with the insulating foam. I was hoping that the foam would fix my problems. But because I wasn't sure if the foam would work out I only bought 1 can.

In the end this dressform became a concave half filled slouching mess. I don't have a picture of it because it's a disaster. Maybe I'll post one up later. Right now it's sitting in one of my dinning room chairs, staring at me in all it's red mocking glory.

As of right now, I'm trying to convince Grip N Flip to do another dressform. She's not budging since it's hot and sweaty work. I'll have to try and convince her again in the winter.

Swimmy

For my FASH 1B class, a few semesters ago, I had to knock off a swimsuit. I decided to copy this swimsuit that I "borrowed" from Grip N Flip . She really liked this swimsuit but it's too small for her now.

ORIGINAL SWIMSUIT:

I ended up using this green and black fabric I found in the garage. I think it has an authentic Speedo pattern printed on it. My dad said someone gave it to him as a drop cloth *gasp*!!! It was really easy to sew on. This was my tester swimsuit. I had to alter the pattern to be a little longer and the bottoms a little bigger, so that Grip n' Flip would be able to fit it.

KNOCK-OFF SWIMSUIT:





















Apparently, since the construction of this swimsuit, Grip N Flip has gained a little pudge (aka Love Handles).

I like how this swimsuit turned out. But sewing it was hellish. I never want to sew swimsuits or lingerie. Hard as heck!!! On that note, I ended up sewing an altered pattern of this swimsuit. I didn't finish it for class, due to some sewing machine trouble, but I'm hoping that I will eventually finish it in the near future. I'll leave it as a surprise for now, but it's super fun!!

Bill Skirt, Part II

So this is the follow-up to the Bill Skirt Post. I was finally able to give the skirt to Grip N Flip.






















And basically we found that her 16 year old legs were definitely not as sexy as my stepmoms' 50 year old legs. It's a sad but true fact of life.

The skirt turned out pretty well . . . . I think?

LEO Pillows

For Spoon's LEO Club, they had their final gift exchanges. Their SL (Secret Lions) were revealed. A final gift was given to their SL recipient, and a gift back to their SL giver. Meaning that I had two gifts to produce. We decided to make pillows for the both of them.

The first gift for her SL giver. We were inspired by this sign, which Spoon received when she was accepted into the club.

I enlarged the lion image and used it as a template for the pillow.


We decided to do free standing letters to give the pillow a novel look. It took me a few tries to produce, since it was harder to do free standing letters as opposed to stitching letters onto a rectangular pillow. Eventually, I was able to achieve a look I was satisfied with.

This is the finished product:

For her SL recipient, we created a lion head pillow. I had Spoon sketch me a lion head to size. This was a lot easier than the first pillow. The lion head is actually a separate pillow and cover. This way her SL recipient will be able to wash the cover.

I hated this pillow at first. I was dissatisfied with how it turned out. But being pressed for time, there was no chance to fix it's imperfections. Later upon reevaluation, I've come to realize that this pillow is perfectly fine and I was just crazy.


I was told by Spoon that these pillows were a huge hit. And there is talk about doing more. We'll see how that will turn out.

Skirt for Bill

There are 2 variables that came in conjunction for the creation of this skirt. The first variable, was the purchase of this cloth. It was $5 for 4-5 yards. It had an interesting texture, if that's what you would call it. My stepmom, who is a casual sewing, said that she had a hard time making a top with it. I was curious to how difficult the material would be to sew. That is not a normal reaction, but sometimes the weirdest things ignite a fiery challenge as opposed to abhorrence. The second variable, Grip N Flip needed a skirt to go with a t-shirt she had screen printed of Bill from Tokio Hotel. Apparently the skirt I made for J-Rock Revolution is too much for everyday use.

This whole skirt was done on a whim, with very abstract ideas. I was going for a punk/goth/rock look, nothing specific, just in that genre. I ended up forcing my stepmom to pose in it for me.

She was embarrassed, but I think she has sexy legs.

The only thing that I'm worried about is if it would fit Grip N Flip. Somehow, when I sew an elastic waistband, I always overestimate how much should be taken in, to account for the stretch. Well, I hope that practice and experience will fix this problem in the future.

LEO Frame

Just a quick project for Spoon (sister of fork) as a secret gift exchange. The name of her club is called LEO hence the cute lion paw prints. This was done with some Ikea frames, rope, and the wood burner. These hanging frames are easy, quick, thrifty, and versatile.


I haven't been sewing at all. I'm not especially motivated to sew anything right now. I'm a little more excited about craft projects.

J-Rock Revolution 2007

In May of 2007, I had sewn Grip N Flip an outfit for the J-Rock Revolution Concert. For those of you that don't know J-Rock stands for Japanese Rock. This outfit was neither planned nor executed well. I guess a part of the reason, though not a valid excuse, was because the sewing class I was taking at the time was so frustrating. We were excused from taking a Pattern Making by Draping class due to the timing. The teacher told us that she would guide us along and it wouldn't be an issue. But it was an issue and I felt like I was drowning. So when this project came along I just wanted to sew and not "think". Which obviously isn't the smartest thing anyone can do, especially someone with my limited experience. But I guess that I always like to learn things the hard way or they don't stick.

The shirt and fishnet stocking came out of my closet, from a thinner time in my life. The gloves came for an old tacky scarf I found in the garage with large decorative sequences - "waste not want not." The goal of the skirt was to have volume and slightly cascading in the back. It's not my best sewing venture. And maybe "cut first, figure out later" wasn't the best approach but it worked out in the end. Finally the half-sleeve, I don't know what else to call it, was inspired by old princess-like dresses. I only have one sleeve because I wanted to use this piece to balance out the asymmetry of the shirt.

Unfortunately J-Rock Revolution was on the weekend before finals and I couldn't go. Grip N Flip had a blast at the concert and we had tons of fun talking about it afterward. She showed me lots of pictures and other peoples outfits. All I have to say is that I need to work on embellishments, trimmings, and accessories. I'm looking forward to see what we might do next time since J-Rock is so over the top with so many different categories and sub categories. Maybe I'll do something with buckles. . . . . . .

Happy New Year!!

Best wishes to everyone for the New Year. It feels so strange that it's 2008 already.

I'm really excited for this year. I get to go to Thailand for my friends wedding, which really translates to: traveling & eating!!!! Miyavi is having a wold tour. Those are just a few things to be excited about this year. I hope everyone has many things to be excited about too!

Sheepcap DONE!!!

And here it is ladies and gentlemen the finished product.

Stuntbear Modeling Final Sheepcap

OK, I know you're all wondering how is THIS Sheepcap any different from the other two that I made. But if you held the real thing in your hands, you would be able to tell the difference in the wooliness. Fork and I are very happy with the results. Hopefully Bear will love the Sheepcap. I told Fork I want pictures of Bear in Sheepcap!!!

And just for fun . . . we put Stuntbear in all the Sheepcaps. It looks like he has a sheepcoat on.

House of Chanel

Sew Shy sent me a link to Signe Chanel. It's a glimpse at how a collection is created; from initial design to the runway show. I ended up watching all five episodes at once. I definitely bow down to all the seamstresses that work in this industry. They are so amazing. I still have a long way to go before my skills are even close, but it's awesome to watch them at work. Even if Haute Couture isn't your thing, it's still worth the watch.

Signe Chanel

Everything is in French with English Subtitles

Episode 1 Part 1. Watch all 5 of them.

Gypsy Pants

In Morocco, I saw a pair of pants that were fun and comfortable. They were worn by European vagabonds, their style of dress was reminiscent of gypsies, hence the name gypsy pants (picture Aladdin's pants from Disney). I was too lazy to haggle with the Moroccan merchants and decided that I would just sew the pants when I got home. . . . .. how hard can they be . . . . . .?

I decided that I would sew these pants for L****** C***'s (aka Cheeky Monkey, Sailor Venus, Moco) Birthday, since she also fell in love with these pants in Morocco.

I bought a nice stretchy red knit fabric with a hint of glitter for $1/yard. I wasn't sure if the glitter would make the pants a bit tacky. But then I realized monkeys LOVE red and shinny things, or at least Cheeky Monkey does.

I wasn't sure where to start and ended up making a pattern out of cotton pajamas. I altered the pattern, thinking I needed them smaller. I went to sew the inseam and side seams, but somehow the pants turned out all wrong.


As you can see, it's not baggy and somehow the crotch area is EXTRA wide. I was disappointed and frustrated. Thankfully, I bought 2 yards of fabric. I went to redraw the pattern and did NOT alter it. I started to sew my second pair and realized the mistake I made with the first pair. I had reversed the leg seams with the crotch seams!!! Feeling silly, I finished up the seams on the second pair and went to fix the first pair. Upon sewing the first pair I realized that it would have been too small for Cheeky Monkey. I finished up the first pair and started the waistband on the second. For some reason I couldn't get the waistband to stretch. After several tries I realized I wasn't stretching/pulling the fabric while sewing. After realizing this the waistband came out better on the second pair. I'm pretty happy with the results.

First Pair

I ended up giving this pair to my other friend, Buns!! (aka Sailor Mercury, Bunny, Ostri) She's tiny, unfortunately, she said it was a bit tight. It only needs to be adjusted at the waistband. I'm glad they fit somebody!! I have no idea why I thought this would have EVER fit Cheeky Monkey.

Second Pair

Cheeky Monkey wearing her pair of gypsy pants. They're too cold to wear right now, however they're perfect for summertime. She would also like a longer pair . . . . . ungrateful little monkey!!

Pirate Pillow Case

This wasn't anything spectacular or difficult but I wanted to share the fun skull and cross bones with everyone. My friend had bought this handkerchief to patch her jeans since it was such a fun pattern. I had so much left over that I ended up making this mini pillow case for her corn heating bag. The old pillow case is tacky and . . . well take a look for yourself:

Clearly not as fun as this one:

The only thing I have to say about sewing this project is that even thought it's simple, don't do it when you're sleepy. Well I guess that applies to anything you're doing. Why I decided that I had to sew at midnight is beyond me. But because of that, I end up making several mistakes and frustrating blunders. Even with all these hair-pulling moments, I'm happy with the end result.

Sheepcap, The Horror!!

It took several tries, but I've finally devised a pattern that will fit correctly. The strange roundness mixed with flatness of the Bear/Stuntbears' head was what caused most of the patterns to become ill-fitting.








With this pattern I finally used the sheep fur and finished my first cap. I was quite happy with the results but the true test would be to see if Fork would be satisfied with the results.

And apparently he wanted the ears (not shown on this picture) to be more visible since the fur is sooooooooooooooo woolly. This fabric makes it difficult to take apart anything that you sew. It was easier just to cut and sew new pieces instead of taking this one apart.









And here is Sheepcap #2. Fork, NOW, thinks that the fabric is too woolly and the ears STILL aren't very visible. I don't disagree with him. So to try to counteract the supper woolliness of the sheep fur I brushed and trimmed it (as you can see in the picture). I'm not sure I like the results. I'm thinking that I might have to do a Sheepcap #3 and maybe sew the sheep fur down before I sew the cap together. Let's hope that works.

Well at least the whole yard might get used . . . at the rate I'm going.

Sheepcap for Bear

Even though on an earlier post I said that I would be working on the sheepcap, I've actually haven't done anything past buying the fabric. But before I get into the sheepcap I thought I would introduce everyone to Bear.

Bear

Bear has great open-minded parents. Instead of forcing him into the rigid unforgiving society of bears, they've decided that he should be able to experience new cultures and exotic lands. Hence the creation of the sheepcap. If Bear should ever feel the desire to not be a bear, his parents have devised a way for him to become a sheep!

Since all this is a Christmas surprise for Bear I have hired the help of Stuntbear to use as a stand-in:

Stuntbear

As you can see Stuntbear has already suffered the trauma of a fitting and is now covered in lint, thread, and sheep fur. Their heads are an odd shape and I've already made a few tester caps on scrap fabric. So far, none of them fit correctly. Hopefully I'll have better results tomorrow.