Wearables Sewing Project: Theater/Masquerade [ Round 104 ]

This is very similar to the one I'm going to make. I hope you find the pieces!

 

@Teddy
they're actual bells! I have a few more lying around so I'm gonna see where I can put them lol!
can't wait to see the look you're making for your doll! sounds like it's gonna be so elegant and fancy

@cthulhu
ty! pretty much what I'm going for hahaha! can't wait for it to be done and share with you guys!

@Lillith
yesss!!!! I love clowns/jesters in general and had to do this look

 

Thanks

The hunt for the baggie continues....

Teddy

 

Alrighty! The work table was cleared. The unpacking was accomplished. And the sewing I hoped to begin last month is sorted.
I think Madam Vastra and the dress I'd like to make for her can be considered theatrical...she may disagree but she still needs clothes!
While I'm a week behind, luckily I made myself good notes last month for design ideas and patterns to utilize.
So, Madam Vastra (Modified Supia head on a modified Iplehouse SID body)


And a rather theatrical dress inspiration which caught my eye last year. Not sure how similar I'll make the sleeves...first I'll figure out the skirt and vest.


The stash raid provided a purple wool purchased over 30 yrs ago, black satin brocade off cuts from my work, beaded black taffeta purchased for doll clothes sometime, and lots of lace, velvet ribbon, & trims I've been saving up plus some sheer black beaded stuff my grandmother had saved which may date back 100 years!
Plus some of the possible patterns.


But first, Vastra needs a petticoat as none in the wardrobe are her size! This one she has borrowed is at least an inch short & someday Sayomi will want it back if I ever make her blue wool bustle day dress...


So my first project goal will be turning this scavenged doll or baby dress and trims into a proper petticoat.

This trim has been waiting decades to find its best use!

 

@cthulhu Oh, that's going to be absolutely awsome! I am not familliar with the charachter of Madam Vastra, but I have been lurking your project thread for her mods and it's such a cool project. It's going to be amazing to see her warderobe be created as well.
And the "never ehough petticoats" still holds true.

 

That is stunning!

So is the baby dress piece you;re using for the petticoat

Teddy

 

@cthulhu .
You have a delicious stash of fabrics! I love vintage!

 

@cthulhu Great use of your vintage stuff!!!

I've made a little progress.
Progress? by SteamWitch, on Flickr

 

Yay!

Teddy

 

Steamwitch, looking forward to seeing it in 3 dimensions. That fabric will be amazing!

Who knew a "simple" petticoat modification could take up the entire afternoon???? Lots of pinning to get the lace & batiste layer even with the georgette lining since a previous modification had everything a tad wonky. And hopefully got the length about right? Finally ready to start gathering it onto the waistband. Whew!

 

Thanks Lilith! This petticoat might have been quicker if I'd started from scratch...but the lace insertion is so sweet & has been waiting for the right project ever since I found it fs at a doll meetup several years ago. ;D
I was only familiar with Tom Baker as Dr Who until my dear daughter went to college. She came home with links to all things Who & we began at the beginning, slogging our way through partial films & stills etc. The Silurian Victorian detective is right up my alley & a great excuse for sewing more Victorian clothes. ;}

 

Looking forward to what you make from your impressive stash raid @cthulhu !

I decided my dress's sleeve ruffles would look nice lined with gold satin, but the extra fabric made them look like cones instead of ruffles. Unlined it is.

 

It's definitely tricky, Leo Phoenix, getting fabrics to drape well in miniature. ;}
Good luck!
Hmm...I'd better check whether the purple wool is light enough to work for this project...

 

You know it will be worth the effort once it's done.

Poop!

Yes, getting the weight and drape of fabrics right for doll scale is one of the hardest parts of sewing for dolls.

Teddy

 

PoeticSoul, my bright idea last winter has indeed become an epic adventure!
Today I'm making notes & figuring out this masquerade dress. Next step, her skirt pattern. This ensemble on her being Purple, black & green...it's beginning to sound like Vastra will be ready for Mardi Gras in Venice if I survive. Now that would be a fun Dr Who adventure... ;D

 

I'm always grateful when the skirt hem actually turns out even & the length I intended.
We just won't mention the part where I thought the back would have a slight train... ;}
I'll try to get a photo tomorrow after trimming it & adding the waistband.

 

If you substituted white instead of black, she's be in the British sufferagette colours. Green, White, & Violet sharing initials with Give Women Votes and all the symbolism that carries (which strikes me as a movement Madam Vastra would be all in favour of). The Vencie Carnival does, however, sound like it might offer more opportunities for fun and at least equal opportunitie for intrigue.

Who needs it? Trains are all very well for the look of the thing but can be so inconvenient, in so many instances - like when trying to surreptitiously back away from a dangerous situation, for example.

In other news - Still no sign of my missing ziplock baggie....

Teddy

 

Perhaps the elusive baggy has decided you need to work on something else first? Poor Teddy!
My son was missing his glasses when I arrived last week. He'd been late to an event looking for them & was telling me about it while we were in the kitchen. He picked up a light aluminum tray sitting on the counter needing to be put away & poof! There were his glasses. :O
I wish something similar might happen Teddy!
Thanks for all your good thoughts by the way.

 

{nods} If I can't find it by Saturday, it's off the list for this month and I'll pick another project to work on.

It willl, of course, show up when I'm fully invested in looking for something else... My husband says that's one of the Laws of the Universe.

Teddy

 

Yes, that does seem to be a rule for missing objects. They turn up when looking for something else entirely.

I made considerable progress on my green dress yesterday - the assembled bodice with ruffled sleeves, and it sewn to the satin skirt





I've decided I need to redo her muslin petticoat in white poplin to make her stiff skirt look right. But first to hem the overskirt.

 

Leo Phoenix, nicely done!

 

Yay!

It's really coming together.

Teddy

 

That's really well done!

 

Hello everyone!

Just checking in with some progress notes: the under robe just needs a few more stitches. I played with a variety of sleeves, but decided to go sleeveless so the next layer doesn't risk getting bulky under the arm. I wanted more drape at the back of the collar as he has some nice sculpt details front and back that I wanted to see more, but this is the best I could figure out. Under the robe he wears ... A surprise I'll save for later, lol!

IMG_20211111_120633_hdr_kindlephoto-288115834 by Coulombe, on Flickr

Really enjoying seeing everyone's progress! Thanks for looking!
~Val

 

I like the way you've used the finished edges of the original h=garment to achieve the front opening and neckline.

Teddy

 

Yes, this is panning out to be a glitter monster. I think I bought that intending to use it for a skating costume and then the pandemic happened and it got cancelled

Anyways! Most dramatic shirt ever™ is almost complete. I need to add some lace around the collar and some closures on the sleeves. And then I need to make everything else rip

 

@Biofreak659
oohh yess i love the floof of this shirt! looking good so far!

@Valdemagra
love the fabric choice! so vibrant and sparkly!
can't wait to see the surprise

 

finally finished the mask! I had to paint it twice bc the modge podge I tried to use to seal it ended up wiping away all the paint
this version came out simpler but still very fancy!
currently pinned on the side of her head but I made it so she can wear it either on her face or as a hair accessory



can't wait to take pics of everything together to share with everyone!

 

Masquerade seems to have brought out plenty of satins, And vivid colors! Nicely done Valdemagra.

Here's the petticoat I completed a couple days ago.

The fabric for the petticoat was a modified vintage piece that I bought as an over sized doll dress at a meetup in the before times. This project is finally putting all sorts of things from my stash to good use.

Yesterday & today I worked on her skirt.



All the black stuff & trims have been saved up for years in hopes of making a gothic Rococo dress...which means I was all set when Vastra needed something elegant in black. ;D
The pleated trim was a splurge several years ago from a store in TX which later was hit by a tornado in 2019 & then closed permanently in 2020. :/ They had such good trims...some of the other trims may have come from there as well. The Venice lace over the pleated trim makes me very happy, even though I had to hand stitch it in place. XD
The skirt hem used up almost all of the pleated trim and lace. And the 6' roll of velvet ribbon ended up being just enough for going around the skirt & up both sides! Good thing I bought enough when I didn't know what I was buying it for. ;}

Next step will be the vest, once I decide whether to use more of the brocade or something else...
For the skirt I was able to simply lengthen the skirt pattern I've adapted for my other SD girls.
But the vest pattern may take more work...

 

Biofreak659, that is indeed an epic shirt!
ohnoiawa, the current version of the mask is really cute. I'm sorry the modge podge disappointed you & made for extra work. :/

 

@Biofreak659 .
That is indeed a Puffy Shirt! I like the romantic sleeves! A poet's shirt is a better name, but Seinfeld show renamed them, lol.
@ohnoaiwa .
A Mask! How fun! Nice work! I'd like to make one too, if I can stay on track time-wise.
I was thinking a goat head, and the surprise of his gentle face underneath. I keep imagining Ymir and Mu meeting at a masquerade.
Maybe I need to make her a mask, too!
@cthulhu .
Still drooling over those fabrics! It seems a shame to put that gorgeous vintage lace petticoat under the skirt,
but as much work as you've dedicated to Madame Vastra, why skimp now! Well done!

 

Yay!

Bunny! Excellent!

Coming along so well.

Teddy

 

Oh, so much lovely progress made! This is a very fun round.

@Leo Pheonix that dress is coming along nicely!

@Valdemagra Nice robe, I love the fabric and the collar looks nice!

@Biofreak659 Dramatic is the right word. Lovely fabric, it makes the shirt look soft and light.

@ohnoaiwa That mask came out super cute.

@cthulhu That outfis is getting more stunning all the time. The petticoat turned out absolutely perfect and I love how you play with textures in the skirt. Working with black on black without loosing details is a skill in it's own right. And as a bonus it seems to be a bit of a stash busting project as well.

For my own progress I have been working on a pair of puffy pants. A bit of a pluder hose inspiration with embroidered panes.
I utilized my embroidery machine to get most of the embroidery done and I am now working on embellishing further with a bit of beading.
Here is the embridery straight out of the machine, I needed two of these. I kind of hate this machine tbh. I could probably have gone back into the program and adjusted for the problems I had, but it didn't seem worth it. As it was I had to babysit the machine the entire time as it would pull the bobbin thread to the surface in a few places and it broke the embroidery thread about a dozen times.
I got it done, I think it will look ok once the whole thing is finished, but yeah, not the best of times.


All pants cut and partly assembled:

And a close up of the finished panes:


The front will probably close with some sort of flap or cod piece, but I have not decided on if I want to make a sort of a false fall front as I did on Samuels pants for his fairytale outfit or if I want to go all out and do a cod piece. I am leaning towards the later since they do seem rather humorous with modern eyes and that works fine with a jester, but I want to see the pants on the doll before I decide.

 

Ohh....Lillith!! The first photo had me thinking I might need an embroidery machine. (My arsenal of machines are all 401 Singers from the 1950s) Then your explanation of the process reminded me why I avoid these modern innovations. ;}

What fun! Both jesters this time are unique & creative.

As to textures, they are the spice of the project. Teddy suffered through numerous photos yesterday as I pinned & auditioned possible combinations. I've learned that taking a photo of the project helps me "see" what is or isn't working.

 

I think the embroidery machines are one of those things that sounds like a great idea, a time saver and a way to expand what you can do at home... until you realize that what they can really do is quite limited in it's own way and it's realy not that often that a person sewing their own projects at home have the time needed to put into getting a specific embroidery to work out flawless. I mean, sure if you do put in all those hours of testing and tweaking then it will give a good preformance every time, but it takes enough time that if you only need a few of the finished piece it would have been faster to just do it by hand right from the start.

As a peson who dress in mostly black and make most of my own clothes I can relate to that! Anything that helps you see things in a new light helps, regardless of if it's literally different lighting, or if its on a screen.

 

It's looking lo9vely even at this stage....

Teddy

 

@Lillith .
I was wondering about the cloth thickness, if that makes any difference in the ease of the machine embroidery?
I'm using a machine I'm not very familiar with yet and I've not tried any of the embroidery stitches.
You've inspired me to try! Any recommendations? -I'd better go find my instruction book!
Looking forward to your next photos!

 

This is really well done and so detailed!

 

Jiuyu (The Devoted Student) is watching me slowly figure out the over robe. He plays a violin to sooth his Master Mu, so patiently waiting as I 'fiddle about' (no pun intended) with paper towels, pinning and unpinning, draping and undraping. And there will be no pattern when I'm done either. The violin plays on...

IMG_20211112_182349_hdr by Coulombe, on Flickr

 

I'd hide that violin if I were you - I mean music is nice but if it's on all the time it can get irritating and distracting... {grin!}

Teddy

 

@Valdemagra as long as it's helping his master's patience, let him play on!

I remade my petticoat in poplin, and I'm much happier with it now. It better supports the poofiness of the satin skirt and fits better. Its curved instead of straight, and drafted with the help of a dinner plate for a template. I decided how I want to finish the neck edge of the dress, only to discover I don't have any thread to match the ribbon I want to use. I'll have to go buy some before I can finish the dress. In the meantime I can work on the overskirt, and put a fastener on the petticoat.

And now I'm thinking she might need a cape, and a leaf shaped mask...

 

Well... Let's see if I can clarify a little bit.
There is essentially three types of machine embroidery.
*The most basic is in the form of the decorative seams that some machines can do (and utilitarian seams used in a decorative way). Those can be sewn in the same kinds of fabrics that the machine in question can sew in general. No special requirements.
*The second is free form embroidery. Not all machines can do this and it does take a bit of practice to get good at. Essentially you lower the feed dogs, mount the fabric in an embroidery frame and manualy move the frame around as you control the speed and if you like the width of the seam. A short, wide zig-zag is most commonly used as it forms a kind of a satin stich this way.
*The third is embroidery done by an embroidery machine. This is what I have done here.
This machine moves the frame by itself accordingly to an embroidery file that you have to program beforehand on a computer. For this type of embroidery you will feed things like density of the fabric and about a million other little things into the program so that is can adapt the density of stiches, the tension of the thread etc. to fit the project. Usually you can find a way to embroider on anything that you can mount securly in the frame. You also need a stabilizer under the fabric. There are many different types made for different fabrics, but the mos basic one is one that you tear away once the embroidery is done so that it doesn't interfere with the drape of the finished garment.
If done right the idea is that once everything is set up, you just push the start button and the machine magically churns out a beautiful embroidery for you. In reality it often takes a lot of trial and error to get to that point and in this case I settled for "good enough".

Then, of course, there is the matter of thread. Machine embroidery thread is often made from rayon to give a silk-like sheen. This is very pretty and can often be used in regular machines as well. There is also some fun special threads avaialble with effects such as glow in the dark, changing colour in UV-light and glow in UV-light. It's well worth experimenting with.
Then there is the matter of the bobbin thread. Dedicated embroidery machines usually uses a thinner bobbin thread. This is mostly to fit more thread on the bobbin, as it can cause some problems if you run out in the middle of a large embroidery. For regular machines, however, you are better off with a regular thread in the bobbin. This is true when using affact threads as well since they don't always play n'ce with the tension when used in the bobbin.

And then there is the needles to consider...

So, to sum it up, it's a rather large topic.

 

I ran out of fray check, so I'm going to start on the velvet pants while I wait for a delivery.

 

@Lillith yay for basic patterns, and the embroidery looks marvelous! I'm firmly in the hand embroidery camp, but a repetitive pattern like that seems like exactly the thing you'd use a machine for, and the result looks very good, despite the troubles in process.
@Leo Pheonix The green dress is indeed very green, a lovely combination of colors, looking forward to see the finished outfit.
@Valdemagra , the under robe looks striking, I'm very curious to see the next layer(s).
@Biofreak659 Great shirt! How did you trim the front opening at the neck?
@ohnoaiwa Lovely outfit and mask, very festive!
It got me thinking that my Anwen would also need a mask for her outfit, especially if she still doesn't have a faceup by the end of the month.
@cthulhu That petticoat is to die for, and the skirt looks amazing! Your stash of materials is truly a treasure trove.

As for the winter bluebell outfit, I've been making slow progress. Most of the major parts are sewn but need adjustments:
Winter bluebell - in progress 2 by helgie, on Flickr
- the waistband of the shorts is too wide, I don't want to completely redo it, but may add some elastic thread to better keep it in place;
- the tops of the stockings are not finished. The material stretches widthwise, but not lengthwise, so every time Anwen bends a leg, the stocking top is dragged down. I don't want to add a garter belt, but a simple elastic at the top will not be enough. I wonder if there is a (safe) way to make the stocking hold onto the body, like silicon bands on human stockings?
- the outer layer of the bodice is not fully attached to the inner corset layer, and one shoulder strap needs to be a bit narrower. But the good news is that though I decided to add a panel under the lacing in the back after all, the gap there is not wide, and the general fit is ok. Once the adjustments are done, it will be time to decorate .

 

Helgie, I did not understand your design idea when you said bodice & shorts...but now I see how sweet it is! She will be a bluebell!

I'm in a similar boat, critiquing the work I've done. Wishing the waist looked slimmer on the skirt. I used a double layer of calico & may go back to correct that while moving any gathers of the skirt to the back. Hopefully the vest will help slim down the silhouette for me. Your bodice certainly does the trick for the bluebell.
I've had a similar problem with stockings before. Especially when I used to collect t-shirt fabrics for narrow stripes. For Vastra's stockings I had a single knee-high sheer black stocking in my pile. It is easily enough for both legs of a doll & has the knitted in support at the top. For an msd you'd be able to make tights with the band as the waist band. For this taller SID I made separate stockings and the band keeps them up nicely.

Now I have a wicked cold & have spent a couple days resting while it goes through all it's stages. :/

 

@cthulhu
Oh no! Get well soon!

 

@helgie How puffy and adorable! To answer your question, it's just folded under and held with tiny scraps of fusible. I pinned it to my ironing board so nothing would move, then steamed it

Pants mostly done! I need to add a clasp, but aside from that they're finished. I figured it'd be easier to use a pattern I already had printed rather than dig up my pdf for a vest or draft one myself.

 

Those pants look really nice @Biofreak659 ! There's a lot of us doing elaborate outfits this round.

 

Love love LOVE Tom Hiddleston!!!

 

Not compared to my lack of progress!

It's looking really sweet. Good luck with the adjustments.

Yay!

I have given up on finding my baggie of part mad parts and, yesterday, switched ot anothe rproject. On the grounds that a bunch of girls in Victorian bathing costumes in various colours could easily be the Major General's daughters in a production of Pirates of Penzance, (https://www.sanluisobispo.com/entertainment/arts-culture/5izqnt/picture61065587/alternates/FREE_1140/Frederic and Mabel and the Major-General’s Daughters) I switched back to working on that project. I dug outall the fabrics, and cut all the pieces (removable skirts, waistbands etc) and a replace ment for a missing sleeve for one suit, plus setting aside pieces for cutting the detachanble sailor-collars for each (once I create a better pattern for it) for each of them.

Then (while watching Dr Who and the Strictly Come Dancing dance-off), I continued hand-sewing bits (hemming sleeve openings, sewing down the second edge of leg and sleeve- bands etc) that need to be done before moving on to the next stage with most of the bathing costumes (sewing the bands of white trim on sleeves, neckline and legs - I sourced some narrow tape that should work although it's not as nice/tightly woven as the rexpensive stuff I ran out of).

So a bit of late-started progress - they should all move much faster once I get past the hand sewing bits, since the bodies of most of the bathing cotumes are already sewn together (one to go)

Teddy

 

I do a lot of hand embroidery as well and there will probably be some of that on the waist band of the pants to tie it all together. As is often the case with these things, both kinds of embroidery has their merits.
Your bluebell is coming together so well, it looks so sweet!

Oh, that's too bad. I hope you get well quickly!

Looks great! Pants are always tricky.

Sounds like a plan!

 

Bravo Teddy! The girls as the chorus sounds like a perfect excuse to proceed. ;D

 

Thanks @Lillith, @cthulhu , and @PoeticSoul

Not much of an update, but here's the piles of pieces I ended up with on Sunday:


Teddy

 

It's going to be a colorful chorus line Teddy.
So far this week I've had enough energy to put up the new drapes & put away a big pile of future costume sewing dreams. But each time I think it's time to tackle the vest, my energy runs out. :/ Oh well. It'll happen when it happens. The skirt, petticoat & stockings are more than what she had when I started. ;}

 

I certainly hope so. When first conceived there were only seven SD girls in the family, and I wanted them to represent the rainbow, then... came more girls and the scramble for extra colours.

Probably best not to push yourself until you're fully recovered.

Teddy

 

@Teddy Lots of bright and pretty colours. Your girls will look amazing in their bathing suits.

@cthulhu There is still plenty of time left of the month.

 

Lots of pretty colors for your costumes @Teddy !

I need to buy some olive green thread for the neckline before I can make any more progress on mine.