Stuff I've made and forgotten to post about

Between the larger projects at school, I did some smaller scale stuff for myself that I haven't gotten around to blog about. 

I planned to sell the peredhil gown, so I fixed it up a little before changing my mind. It's been on many an adventure and ended up looking a bit too shabby for me to send it off with a clear conscience. But there's lots of fabric in it, so it's waiting to be cut up and made into something else.

This cotton poplin was bought in Finland a few years ago. It laid around waiting for the perfect project, and I love how the skirt turned out. Lightweight, easy to sew and the skirt is perfect for spinning around in. Closes with a zip in the back.

I had an old leather suitcase that fell apart, so I made it into iron age shoes and three corset belts as pictured.

Most of the things I've made have been historically inspired, so I haven't worked a lot with more modern inventions such as fusible interlinings and batting. I tried out a few different interlinings with collars made from this pattern.

This underbust vest was a late Yule present for a friend. I made it in January, at school and my energetic go getter teacher was really impressed that I'd started making this year's presents a few weeks into the new year. I didn't have the heart to tell her.

Elsker gullsnirklene.

This vest is old, but it's one of the things I haven't posted about because the fabric is impossible to photograph.

The rag quilt I started on last December is finished, just in time, because autumn rolled around a few days ago and it got cold really quick.

My first smokkr was sewn with side gores, a cut that doesn't fit my body type, so it's off to a new owner in Denmark.

Mockingjay: Capitol Couture

Went to see Mockingjay with friends and had to dress up for the occasion. I'm with the districts, of course, but costume-wise I find it a lot more tempting to dress up as an overpriveleged child-murderer exquisitely dressed Capitol fashionista.

In the movies, Capitol clothing is very sculptural and extravagant, tailored deliciosusly close to the body. I wanted to keep a sense of haute couture instead of making a costume, so I aimed for something tightfitting with unusual details.

I bought a black organza skirt and a tight, tight velvet dress second hand and combined them. The dress was very tight, so I had to add a gore to be able to fit it over my hips. Look closely under the organza - the gore fabric is a rubbery pleather type thing that stands out against the red velvet. (I thought it a nice detail, even if it barely shows. 

While I was working, I realised having a mannequin is the best thing ever. It's not always easy to fit anything when you're wearing it.

Here I've pinned the dress onto one of the mannequins at school, just playing around with different details.

I was in love with the hip-detail from the left picture, but when I removed the dress from the mannequin, the needles fell out and after three failed attempts at recreating it, I decided to go for some big fucking rosettes instead. (More is more.)

Pinterest was life-saving while searching for inspiration. I found these tights, and made a sort-of copy with flatbacked rhinestones and beads. The best way to get the rhinestones on was to glue them on while wearing the tights. Glue+hairy legs is not the best combination on any day, and the textile adhesive I used didn't wash off with water, so I walked around with glue on my legs for a few days. Very much haute couture.

I'll post better pics when I get them.

In addition to the dress and tights, I forced my feet into shoes without heels from Bianco, wrangled my hair into submission, used more makeup than I usually go through in six months and even bothered with fake eyelashes (without gluing my eyes shut, go me). I painted my hands black seeing as some Capitol people dye their skin,. (Using waterbased makeup for my hands was not the best idea ever, when we stepped outside, it started raining.)

But so much worth it. The dress doubled as Christmas dress and the movie - just fantastic.