The Singing Costumer

  Today, I thought I would show an oldie-but-a-goodie. I made it years ago, perhaps in 2012 or 2013. I have no idea of the circumstances, but I somehow acquired this bright blue fabric. Did I buy it at Joanns? Did I find it on the sidewalk? A thrift store? Did I get it from a rag lady? There is no telling.  All I know is that it is blue and has a bit of a seersucker texture to it. I love this blue. It’s just the perfect shade of turquoise. I have no idea what pattern I used. It may have been a McCalls pattern. I did a big purge of my patterns within the last couple years and this pattern was probably one that I let go. I know this is the second version of this dress I made. The first one was a fail, so I took off the bodice and cut a new skirt. The bodice is lined, and the skirt has a separate lining that acts as an underskirt. I even added a bit of tulle for some volume in the skirt. I wish I could give more details, but sadly I’ve forgotten almost everything about this make....

This was supposed to be my Christmas 2021 dress. However, I had to toss it in the naughty projects pile for a bit. I wasted a lot of time fitting it to myself and I got annoyed with it after a while. Maybe there was a reason I chose red fabric instead of green. A red dress works just as well for Valentine’s as it does for Christmas. I don’t see a reason to force myself to continue when there was no real need. The need to push myself to finish my projects and the need to be kind to myself is difficult to balance, but not impossible. My pile of unfinished projects is diminishing over time. And I love that for me.  This pattern, Vogue 2903, is at a medium difficulty level. There are a couple spots I couldn’t quite get right. The princess seams going into the armscye were especially fiddly to get smooth. But I think I was mostly successful. This dress has a nice, full skirt. I did a lot of preparatory work which I normally don’t. I serged around each pattern piece separately. I hand dr...

  I a m pleased to return from my blog hiatus with my Valentine's Day dress from 2021. I didn't blog about it at that time, but I did post pictures on Instagram. It turned out adorable, in my opinion. It's simply scrumptious. I especially love the way light reflects and dances across the satin fabric. A lovely shade of pink, gentle gathers, and a beaded net overlay combine for a soft and romantic look. In real life, I don’t wear dresses to work or church often. But I love sewing and wearing them for photos! These photos are from last year. One of my favorite past-times is refashioning dresses from the thrift store. Sometimes, the dress doesn't fit and I have to figure out a solution. I used a pink satin bridesmaid gown for the main dress. The gown was long, so I had plenty of material to cut the bodice and skirt panels. The beaded net overlay is from another bridesmaid dress. I love the combination. The pink satin and the embroidered and beaded flowers on the net go so...

       This is the last installment of my blogs on my new Edwardian undergarments set. I have 3 petticoats. I shall write about them in chronological order as I finished them.      The first is a white cotton petticoat trimmed with lace, shown below. I made it at least 4 years ago or more. I used the Free Hoop Petticoat Diagram on the Truly Victorian website for cutting directions. I don’t think I followed it exactly to the letter. I just did two tiers total. It was way too long, but I had already attached the lace at the hem, so I couldn’t just cut it. So I instead made rows and rows and rows of tucks at the hem. It only took 5 million hours. It is beautiful, though. This was simple to make, but tedious. This will continue to be a theme as I write about each petticoat. The top edge is pleated and sewn to a ribbon for a waistband. This is meant to be worn under my Belle costume, so I chose a pretty scalloped lace for the hem to match her petticoat. One...

     Please allow me to take you back to last year. Well, actually, that might not be the best plan. Let’s leave 2020 in the past. Anyway. In 2020, I had a project which I called “Unmentionables Through The Decades”. As a whole, this project was very successful. I managed to complete a good number of my planned sewing projects that year. There were a few projects that I didn’t blog, a few that I might do later, and a few that I don’t plan to make after all. Today, I thought I’d get back to my Edwardian undergarments set. This is by far my favorite set in this series. I blogged about the drawers, the chemise, and the “bustle”  last year.  This week, I’ll write about the corset and the corset cover, and finish up the 1900s series next week with the petticoats.      Corsets are always my least favorite projects, but I am incredibly pleased with this one. They are usually a lot of work, for a garment that isn’t even seen. This is the “Edwardian Straig...

My first medieval fair dress was made in maybe 2010 or 2011? I don’t really remember. I was part of the cast for the local Medieval Fair for many, many years, and this was my first costume. I wore it for several years and it served me well.  But by 2015, it was looking a little worse for wear. The trim around the neckline was getting ruined by this one particular necklace I often wore with it. (I know, I know. Be sensible and quit wearing jewelry that destroys costumes.) I was going to be walking in a Christmas parade with the Medieval Fair cast, and I just thought it needed a bit of an upgrade. And if I could give it a bit of holiday pizazz and bling, all the better.       I first removed the damaged trim. At Joann Fabrics, I found some really pretty red and gold brocade. It complemented the red main fabric and the gold lining of the sleeves rather well. So I bought a few yards of it and got to work. I decided to use the brocade as a trim, basically.  I do...

  How do I even begin this blog? Little baby Sarah’s dreams are coming true! Beauty and the Beast has been my favorite Disney movie since the first time I saw it as a little girl. I am still obsessed with the gorgeous stained glass imagery, the catchy Alan Menken music matched perfectly with the clever Howard Ashman lyrics, the flawlessly flawed villain in Gaston, the timeless story… I could go on and on. I was honored to be cast in a production as a Silly Girl in summer 2021.       This dress has been in the works for at least 5 years. I found an Instagram post from 2016, announcing Belle as my Halloween costume that year. That didn’t happen. A few years later, it was almost finished, then I decided I didn’t like the design. I added another layer to the skirts.  And finally here in 2021, I am finishing it up. It consists of a separate bodice and skirt with multiple layers.       For the bodice, I added boning and slightly adjusted the s...