POTC2 - Elizabeth Swan

So I finally managed to get some photos done of my Elizabeth Swan costume from Pirates of the Carribean 2. I am actually really happy with how it turned out. I have actually worn a few pieces already for my steampunk costume. The shirt should come in really handy in the future for anything regarding pirate. The vest is probably a little bit short in length and it would probably look better without a bra underneath (too much shape for the time period in masculine clothing). I am very happy with the jacket and all the braid and buttons I managed to find and stitched on. Took forever, but it looks pretty good. And of course the hat. I love my hat and cannot wait for International Talk Like A Pirate Day to actually wear it in public. The quality of my photos are probably not the best. I have three options for photographers. My Mum is terrible at framing photos, my Brother is too tall and takes photos at a weird angle for me, and my Dad (he took these). He is actually pretty good at taking photos but he has bad eyesight so really cannot see properly through my camera, and he cannot bend at the moment for different angles. Hmmm, but at least I have photos. Now I just need to get some more of my other un-photographed completed costumes.

Holiday Plans

As of 5.00 this afternoon, I am on holidays. Only for a week, but still better than nothing. I have big sewing plans for my time off. I spent last weekend cutting out a heap of fabric so that I would be prepared to get stuck into getting my sewing done. And I was successful. My back was a little sore from bending over my cutting table (or coffee table – depends how you really look at it), but at least I got a heap done. The main list for the week is:

Victorian Natural Form Petticoat

Victorian Natural Form Skirt

Victorian Natural Form Bodice (just got new fabric for this as I was not overly happy with the stuff I had as a bodice fabric – I would be perfect for a skirt though).

Victorian Drawers

S-Bend Corset (yes it is ready to be made).

After that I am going to try and make a start on my cage crinoline and petticoats. I don’t have the fabric for my bodice yet for the ball, but I can at least get all the skirts ready. I am even hoping to squeeze in a little personal sewing. You know, clothing to wear to work. Lolita dresses, Vintage.

Speaking of Vintage dresses. After wearing my 40s dress to work last Friday, I have decided that I am going to do a vintage day like I do my Frilly Lolita Friday. Maybe Mondays. But since, I have lost weight (stomach flu) a couple of my dresses no longer fit (and cannot be altered) so I really need to get stuck in and make a few more. I cut one out on the weekend of some polycotton I had around. So I am hoping to get that made up on my holidays. I will then be able to embrace the Retro Monday. I probably won’t do the complete makeup with the red lipstick (mainly because touching up throughout the day is annoying) but I will get my hair in some rollers for a bit of curl and primping. Hopefully this will help to brighten up my Mondays a bit and now that I have the perfect shoes to go with my outfits, I am all prepared. I am just very excited to be on leave now. A whole week of sewing. I aim to get so much done. And hopefully I will even manage to find a bit of time to get some photos of my outfits up (once they are complete of course).

Flex day...

So, I had my “relaxing” flex day yesterday. Turned out that instead of staying home and getting some sewing done, I decided to do all my running around that I would not normally get done on a Weekend. I started my day off with fixing up one of my Lolita skirts. I wanted to add some ribbon above the ruffle and figured that since I was awake I would do some sewing before the shops opened. My first stop of the day was off to Spotlight. I got my fabric for 2 elliptical petticoats – one ruffled and one with pretty white trim. I got fabric for Victorian bloomers and Lolita bloomers and a some white cotton lawn to make up my S-Bend Corset. As well as the shapewell to go with it. I was after a few other pieces of fabric if I could find them, but no such luck. I was amazed that I got out of the place within 1hour 15. Probably one of my quickest fabric shopping expeditions.

I then traipsed over to my makeup supplier to get some bits and pieces for Zombie makeup. I got a bit of blood, some latex, and some flesh putty for making scars and wounds, and some blood coloured cream. They were out of a few things that I was after, like the bruise cream wheel, but I managed to find that cheaper on E-Bay last night. And the best part is that it is shipping from Brisbane so it should not take too long to arrive. I then decided to make a stop in at Chermside on my way home. Mainly because on weekends it is way to busy for my taste in shopping. Nothing really noteworthy that I got, just some new work pants and a very nice necklace for Lolita (intending to wear tomorrow). I even managed to squeeze in an afternoon nap and get some mending done for a friend at work.

On another note, I am pretty sure I have decided on my theme for the Zombie Walk. I really wanted to do a themed sort of outfit but could not decide. But I think I have narrowed it down to the 80s prom queen look. I am going to trowel through some op shops for an appropriate 80s tulled dress. Tear it up a bit, smear in a bit of blood, get the fishnet stocking happening (maybe boots to go with it), add a tiara in the zombified 80s hair and the gruesome wounds, and I will be set to go. At least it will be cooler during the day by then so I should not get to hot under all the latex and makeup. Oooh, getting excited.

Update

YAY. So very happy. I have a day off tomorrow. I have started tracing off some of my Victorian patterns that I need for our event in may. And of course I ran out of tracing paper and could not get any more in the city today, so I have run into a bit of a wall. But at least I have started. I am hoping to get them all traced up by this weekend so that I can make a start on getting some of the pieces put together. Namely my Natural Form skirt, petticoat and jacket. I still do not have any trims for my jacket or skirt yet, but I am hoping to remedy that problem tomorrow. With…

A trip to Spotlight. I know it sounds very cliché but it is the best thing to do on my day off. All the running around that I find difficult to do on a weekend. Hopefully I can pick up the other remaining pieces of fabric that I need as well. With a bit of luck it will not take too long to get over there. I am also planning to make a stop off at one of my makeup suppliers. Mainly to get some blood and special effects products for the up and coming Brisbane zombie walk. Or shuffle. Really depends on how you see it. I have put it up on the forums and am hoping to convince a couple of other people to come along with me. So far, I have Cherie.

In terms of costume for that it should not be too hard to put something together. Basically you get some old clothes either your own or from the op shop and rip them up a bit, smear in some dirt and blood, add the right makeup and you are set to go. At this stage I have a few plans in my mind. Maybe a drag queen zombie, or a 70s Disco Zombie, or 50s housewife zombie. There are just so many options. But I really want to go with something a bit different. Something with some crazy colourful makeup underneath. Just to make it a bit more fun. Hmmm, not sure. But at least I have a month to decide. I may have to do a bit of research on what I could go with. The Zombie bride is done to death. But it could be fun.

So I may be trawling op shops tomorrow as well trying to find a nifty zombie outfit. I am hoping to make a stop over at Chermside as well. I am still on my Lolita hunt. Trying to find cardigans and blouses that will work. So far I have not had any success. But I figure with a huge shopping centre like Chermside, surely I will be able to find something. I am going with my fingers crossed. Ah, well. I am off to the movies tonight to see Superhero Movie. It is another spoof sort of movie, but I just have the urge to go to the movies again. It has been a while and I just feel like it. If only something I really want to see would come out. There are a few this year that I intend to go to. But they all seem to be later in the year. Damn. Oh well, at least I will have some mindless entertainment tonight. Until next time…..

Victorian Undergarments

Well I had a semi productive weekend. I got my Victorian corset finished. Which was my main aim for the weekend. The best thing is that I have got it down pat so that it only takes me about 3 hours to completely make it up, granted that it was already cut out. As I have said before, this is the corset that is going to be the base for my natural form Victorian outfit, as well as my Victorian ball gown set, so it was really important that it fit nicely and comfortably. And I have got the pattern to a stage where it is perfect for me. The bust line is now sitting at nipple height, the length is sitting correctly at my hip (I have a high waist ), it is not digging in under my arms and it is sitting flat in the front (I have had trouble with it kicking out at the bottom). Also, I made it a smidge smaller so that if I lose weight (hoping to) it will still fit me. As you can see, there is a pretty big gap in the back for adjustment. This one is made from silk – so very nice to sew with. It is a three layer flat lined corset. Silk, shapewell and cotton lawn lining. It wasn’t so much a matter of I picked the lining, it was that I had it left over from one of my Lolita skirts, and I though, hey that would look cool. It is also a very pretty pink colour. The colour of the silk itself is not a white. I thought of doing white but decided that it was a bit stark so I went with a very pretty pinky peach sort of colour. I am superbly happy with how it turned out.

I even put it on with my chemise and got my mum to lace me in so that I could take my measurements and start tracing off my pattern pieces this week. Hopefully come this weekend and my rec leave next week I will be able to cut fabric and start making up the pieces. I didn’t do a very uncomfortable tight lacing. I probably could have gone quite a bit smaller, but I didn’t really want to be uncomfortable, and I think my mum has issues with lacing me in any tighter. But I did get a 1.5 inch waist reduction. The main thing for me though is that it smoothes out my front flabby bits, so that I have a nice line. But my waist is still defined. I am pretty lucky though, that my shape is that no matter how much weight I put on, I will always have a waist (I would rather loose weight than put it on though).

I also managed to get a lolita skirt made up this weekend. It was originally supposed to be a dress but for the life of me I could not get my machine to do the shirring again. So I scraped the original plan and went for a skirt. I made it elastic waist so that it is a bit more comfortable than some of my waistband skirts, but because of the fullness of the skirt, I am not sure that I would do this again. I also added some ribbon eyelet tape and a frill. But I am thinking that I need to add some red ribbon over the frill just to brighten it up a bit more. It is very cute, but I just think it needs something. Hopefully I can wear it sometime this week (Frilly Friday). Will have to see though. I really need to get some cardigans, but I am having trouble finding stuff. I might need to some lunch time shopping this week.

Update

Well, we had our monthly guild catch up last night. It was actually supposed to be on last Tuesday night, but we were all held up with getting everything ready for supernova. But it was still nice to catch up again, but in a more relaxed atmosphere. And I must say it is really motivated me to get started on some of my projects this weekend.

For a start, I need to make some progress on my Victorian pieces. Which, lets face it is the next big event that we have coming up. The fashion show on Sunday the 18th May. My Edwardian blouse, skirt and petticoat are completed, which takes a lot of pressure off. All I need to make now to complete the ensemble is my s-bend corset. I have drawn up the first draft and it actually fits me. All I need to do is adjust it a smidge at the centre back so that it will meet. But I need to be careful that I do not add too much, otherwise I won’t get the cinching that I need. My first mock up was just made of scraps and did not involve any boning. So this time I am going to get some nice white cotton and make the whole thing completely. And then if I need to do more work to adjust it, I will be able to see where. I have my fingers crossed that it will work well.

Apart from that I need to make more progress on getting my Victorian natural form skirt, petticoat and polonaise made up. I have made the chemise for underneath. Not that big of a progress, but it is a start. I have also got the corset cut out and ready to be put together. Once that is done I will be able to take my measurements and draw up my pattern pieces. So I am hoping that I will get the corset done this weekend, so that come my holidays I will be able to just get stuck into cutting the fabric and making up the pieces. The only thing that I am a little worried about is the trims and decorations. I am having a lot of trouble getting trims in a colour that will match my skirt to trim the bodice. I really want to leave the skirt plain, as it is natural form with a train. And, as the fabric has a self-print I think it will be enough on its own. But I would really like to trim the bodice. I may just resort to getting some ribbon to pleat into place. I think that would be enough and it will still carry the colour through so that it will match. Hopefully I will have enough time and leftover fabric that I can make a matching hat of some sort. Otherwise I need to come up with some sort of way to do my short hair that will make it look period styled. At this stage, I am focusing on getting the garments made first. Accessories can wait. And I figure that if I don’t get my Victorian fully completed, it is really no big deal. The only think I am worried about otherwise is if the polonaise is actually appropriate to go with the natural form skirt. I already have the fabric for it, which there is a lot of, but I am starting to wonder if I should just make a vest or jacket sort of bodice instead. At least I will have enough fabric for it. Hmmm, I may need to gain a second opinion. As it is, I have a lot of choices for the bodice because I keep buying the Truly Victorian patterns. I really need to decide soon. I may just have to do that when I get home tonight.

Supanova 2008 Sunday

And of course finally Sunday. My lovely Sunday started out with a wake up at 5 am and a trip to the airport to send my parents to Melbourne for the week. Unfortunately my brother cannot drive (still on his learners) so I was really the only option for them. This is my older brother we are talking about too. So by the time I got home from that I was wide awake. And I had the best start. The new season of Battlestar Galactica. YAY. I was so happy. So not only was dressing in a BSG costume, I was watching it for the morning.

Speaking of costume:

I am rather happy with how it turned out. My undershirts turned out nicely (with a bit of fiddling and cutting), but my favourite part is the jacket. I am now thinking of making some just for regular wear in different colours, but still the same style. And to top it off, when I got home late on Friday night, my tags had arrived. I was overjoyed. After late postage and the seller no longer being registered I was starting to get a little worried. But they arrived. The only thing I am missing is the replica gun that I ordered. I was hoping that it would arrive, but as it didn’t I will just have to do a second set of shots with me in my costume with the gun. Just because I can.

Sunday was a lot slower sort of day. But there were still some amazing costumes around. My favourite by far, though was the girl dressed as Sozuku from Farscape. There was a really neat Eternal Sailor Moon and a very cute Bumblebee as well. So it was pretty neat to sit and ogle the costumes as they went by. I think what surprised me most about the second day is that people were wearing the same costumes that they had on for Friday night and Saturday. And unless they washed them overnight, all I can think is gross. Because it was not really cool weather, and surely they would have sweat into their outfits. Apart from the gross factor, it is just neat to have 3 different costumes. But now, photos.

So now I need to start planning my costumes for next year. I will definitely be doing the three days again, mainly because I love the fact that it is a whole weekend of costuming. Even if it is exhausting, it is still well and truly worth it. And there will be at least one Anime outfit as well. My brother has even said that he will come dressed up next year. So I warned him that I want his costume choices by Christmas complete with research pictures and full information. That way I am guaranteed to get them done. Especially if he wants 3 and I want 3 new ones. It will be a big call. But I am up to it all for the spirit of costuming. YAY….

Supernova 2008 Saturday

And Saturday. It was a long and exhausting day, but I had such a good time. I caught a few acts and saw the cosplay. There were some amazing costumes around and I tried to get a heap of photos. Cherie and I headed in at about 9 and we got there to park. Turns out it only costs $6 per day for on site parking. So really, this is fabulous. Because next year we are thinking we will drive again, and that way we can take lunch (instead of the greasy crap they sell there) and if we want to do two costumes in a day, we can.

As for my costume for the day, I was Alice (From the computer game American McGee’s Alice). I originally made this Halloween last year. And believe me when I say that I had been desperate to make it even then. Though, after wearing it once I decided that I really needed to make some adjustments to the costume. Apron, petticoat, wig to name a few. And this time, I am really happy with how it turned out. It was not nearly as recognisable as my Chi outfit on Friday night, but there were still quite a few people who went hey, it’s Alice. But it is not one of those costumes that is easily recognisable. However, I love it. The blood splatters dried nicely on the front of the apron and I had my knife too. I even managed to get my brother to take some good photos (he has a shaky hand so some were out of focus even on my camera). I was even surprised about my boots. I was worried that they would kill my feet again after last time I got blisters. So I padded up my heels with blister stop and put on my long black socks. And I was surprisingly comfortable. So yay. I did have shoes in the car if I needed to change. Thankfully I didn’t.

Afterwards, we had intended to do a huge ACG dinner out at JoJos in the City. But we were all way too exhausted to move from the hotel where everyone was staying. So instead, we did a takeaway evening. Most ordered Pizza and the rest of us made a trip to KFC and Hungry Jacks for dinner. It was actually really nice just hanging out, and I didn’t get home to almost 11.00. So I pretty much crashed when I got home. But, photos of the day...

Supanova 2008 Friday

Cherie and Bec as Susan and Lucy from Narnia


Narelle and Paul as Beatrice and Benedict from Much Ado About Nothing

Cheeky Surprise Abi as Gisel from Enchanted...

And just some of the many other costumes that were there...