A Couple of "Aha" Moments

It's been interesting, the past few months, coming to the end of some chapters and starting new ones.  Here are some rather profound thoughts that flashed across my brain that I wanted to share with you all...

I borrowed the most recent The Three Musketeers (2011) from the library and was not so much watching it, as frequently and compulsively pausing it and running it frame by frame so that I could study the costumes and their various trims, materials and contours.  Soooo pretty.  (And that's just Athos...)  I realized that should I ever come into a large sum of money, I would spend absolutely ALL of my time constructing period film replicas out of silks and brocades and then I realized, that's probably why I'm not wealthy (yet), is because the Lord in His wisdom knew once I went into a fully equipped costume studio, you lot would likely never see me again! ;)

I finally know what I want to be when I grow up (I can hear you all in a collective and very sarcastic "NO, really?!") but it wasn't always so clear, and anyway, even if you know what you want the end result to be, that's still a far cry from knowing the steps you have to take to actually get to that point, right?  Right.  So I finally have begun to wrap my brain around some of that and I figured out that achieving my dreams will mean giving up living debt free for a little while.  I paid a high price (not just monetarily, but emotionally and etc as well) to get myself out of credit card debt some years ago.  Recent events have forced me back in just a little (not to credit cards, thank heaven, but to family), but the education required to acquire the skills I will need to get the career that I so desperately desire will throw me back into the deep end of owing people money, and I am balking at that like a toddler getting their school immunization shots.  It's got to be done for the greater good, but I DON'T WANNA!  Factoring in tuition, gas money, materials, books and other general expenses, my degree is going to come with a doozy of a price tag.  I realized what else could be done with an equal sum.  There are the obvious things.  Buy a small house outright.  A couple of brand new luxury cars.  But I could travel to England on that.  And stay for an entire summer.  I could get myself and 99 of my closest friends into Dragon*Con with $900 spending cash each.  Or one could also buy 25,000 frappuccinos from Starbucks (close to 69 years worth, if you bought one a day).  If you're a Sci-fi fan, you can even own the Stargate from the SG1 series for that.  Of course, the cost for school isn't going to come all at once.  It will be spread out over 4 or 5 years-ish.  Still.  It's daunting.  There are grants and scholarships, of course.  I plan to find every single one of those that I can.  This is doable, and I will see it done.

As much as I want to go to the premier of first Hobbit movie in costume, it's 3 weeks out and I am nowhere near happy with my current design/materials.  I have decided that this will be much more worth the wait to postpone until next fall (Dragon*Con/Halloween) or even until the big finale third film is released.  This "Aha" moment was bittersweet, because it means not working like mad to get the outfit done by year's end, but all told, I feel really good about shuffling it to a later date so that it will get the time and attention (and therefore quality) that it deserves.  I've moved up a couple of Regency ideas in its place, the sales of which would afford better materials for the Hobbit dress.  Yes, that's a much wiser way to go.  I did come up with something BRILLIANT for the hobbit feet, though.  Short of how they made them for the film(s), of course.  (I don't have access to those quantities of prosthetic latex and molds, yak hair and spirit gum.)

That's about all for now.  I'm back in the studio doing some Christmas orders for the Etsy shop and figuring out some next steps all the way round.  Stay warm and cozy as the weather gets colder, my dears.  I'll see you again soon.
Love,
Lucy Jane

Sneak Peek!

I'm offering a little hint of something I'm working on in the studio!  It's for "the other me"'s blog, The Modest Peacock.  There will be a giveaway soon, to celebrate TMP's 4th Blogaversary, 300+ posts, 50K+ pageviews, and 100+ followers, and an undying love for post and parcels!!!  (Combos are worth more, right?! :D)  What do you think it will be? :)

Sneak Peek!

I thought you might enjoy seeing what I'm doing this week.
Besides running around half mad because it's so close to my deadline.

Steampunk Lucy

I finished the concept board for a Steampunk style costume.  I'm hoping to start prep work on this in earnest sometime in late June.  There are still lots of accessories that will be added here and there, but this is the first draft.  What do you think?

The concept board, with a little room on the
left to add extra inspirations/changes.

The shirt is a grey cotton (breathes!) and
the sleeves are light-as-air black chiffon.

I am in LOVE with this suiting.

Various and sundry trims

Not sure if I'm going to stay with pewter or
change to brass/burnished gold.  I have a
while before I have to make a decision.

The honeybee holds a sentimental significance for me.
This will go at the collar closure.

That's what I've acquired so far...  Here are a few more "I want this!" images:

Double buckles will match the ones on my bodice.

I want a mini top hat kinda like this one, but
mine will have more gears and a set of
Brass Goggles.

Now that I have all of this on the concept board, I can focus on getting finished up for the Hydrangea Festival.  Not too many more days left to be ready!!! :)

Concept Boards: The original "pinning"

I shared a little about this in an earlier post on the Hobbit costume, but I wanted to share another one I've finished, and also why I love them so much.

There are so MANY ideas and inspirations running around in my head for pieces to make (just take a look at my list in the right sidebar!), that sometimes I miss out on wonderful materials or design ideas, simply because they fly by too fast.  Concept boards allow me to hang on to a basic idea, and then piece things together either as I find them, or (more commonly) find time for them.  I'm not a spectacularly organized person by nature.  The concept boards take a lot of stress off of me to remember whether I've found this or that bit for trim, or what the exact color of the main body is, etc.

Oh, and about the title: Some of you have asked, but I'm not on Pinterest, simply because I've heard how addicting it is, and I already have MUCH TOO MUCH to do as it is.  I'm convinced, at least for the time being, that joining Pinterest would send my creative happy little brain off the edge and you'd find me in a padded room saying "I want to do this, and this, and thisandthisandthisandthis!" over and over whilst hugging myself. :} Society can do its "pinning".  I'll do mine. :)  Getting back to the concept boards...

I finished out the Hobbit board by FINALLY finding the right contrast fabric for the bodice.  I'd fallen in love with the stitching on this material:

But when I paired it with the bodice swatch, the flowers were WAY too purple.  The bodice linen is more of a wine-ish shade.  So, as much as I hated to, I had to nix this as the contrast.

Next, I tried a couple of plain neutrals.  Here are two that were considered:

But ultimately, while I liked the textures, I didn't like the fact that there wasn't any pop of color.  The entire look has to be achieved by all of the elements working together, like instruments in an ensemble.  If one part is "off", the whole look loses its full potential.  So, after several more afternoons scouring the fabric stores (and another thing- in this instantaneous society, people often want to know "Why does it take you so long between when you promise photos of a costume and when it's actually finished and being worn by the model/client?"  This is why.  I don't just throw any old thing together.  I take my time and find the right parts and then do all the work of cutting and sewing.  To quote one of my favorite films, "You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles."  Okay, tangent/rant over!), I finally found what I'd been searching for:

It has the right texture, the fabrics complement each other and are very "Hobbity" together, and the color of the flowers and the bodice linen are a perfect match.  Here is the completed concept board:

The colors aren't showing well in the photo, but
trust me, they look great!

As you know, I don't need the Hobbit outfit until December (which is no reason not to hurry up and finish it, I know, I know!).  I DO need this piece in just over 6 weeks- this is the sheer overlay Regency dress for the Hydrangea Festival that I've been telling you about:

Close-up of the design sketch.

Notice how I am sure to turn the fabric to the direction I want it on the dress
rather than just randomly pinning it to the board.

This trim is going to look so sweet around the neckline
and around the sleeve cuffs!

I hope to have more concept boards finished soon.  The Hydrangea Festival is getting the lion's share of my time right now.  It's going to be a busy summer! :)

Belts and Buttons

Welcome!  If you're stopping by from the A-Z, a special welcome to you!
Today's post is the letter B, which made me think of Belts and Buttons in costuming.

Many eras and genres of costume make bold use of belts.  Sometimes they are utilized as a means to secure weaponry and supplies.  Legolas's held his daggers (presumably to make his hands more free to use his famed bow. ;)).

(yes, please, and thank you!)
(c) Newline Cinema

Lucy Pevensie's held both her dagger and her healing cordial.  And let's not forget these three lovely ... er... people, who use their belt(s) to become rather armed to the teeth in order to fight their way out of the messes Captain Jack manages to get them all into. :)

(c) Disney Pictures

I found 3 such belts that I plan on using for battle/preparedness gear on some upcoming costumes.  (Think Laura Croft/Witchblade/Steampunk/Kick@** female fantasy epic type character, etc, etc.)  I got a great deal on them- only a few dollars each at the local thrift store. :)

Conversely, belts can be used strictly for decorative means.  Just wander down to the textiles/fashion room of ANY major art museum.  They can be fabric (scarf-like), beaded, or embroidered.

Check out this embroidered belt (circa 1912 costume design) in "The Music Man":

I cannot flipping wait to make my own
reproduction of her costume!!!

I found one (same thrift store as above) to go with a 19teens era dress in the near future.

Here's a closeup of the embroidery:

B is also for buttons.  While myself keeping things viewed through the lens of a British influence/era, I do currently reside in the Southeastern US.  And nothing says "Southern Sewing Gentility" like a mason jar full of Grandmother's (and in this case, Great-Grandmother's!) buttons in the sewing room:

Last but not least, don't forget about these buttons for the Hobbit Dress! (Which, regrettably, has been put on hold until the Regency pieces get done!)

More Hobbiting

I found this the other day and loved it:

And as promised, here are the concept boards.  I'm still working on finding the right contrast fabric for the center of the bodice, but I'll update when I find it.  I may be searching some specialty stores in Marietta this week before I make a final decision.  Anyway, here is what we have so far:

Not The Regency Dress I Was Intending...

but it was on my list anyway, so it's all okay.  Let me explain:

JoAnn Fabrics has this wonderful white cotton with pale blue stripes that I want as the fabric for my Regency dress to be worn at the Hydrangea Festival in June.  Because it is a "coordinate" fabric, it falls under a certain group of cottons called "Baby Basics" on the shelf.  You know, mix-y match-y stuff for a nursery, etc.  For the longest time, it has been on sale.  But not a very good sale.  Like, part of last month, it was $1 off per yard.  It's originally $5.99/yd.  $5 a yard isn't terrible, but I knew I could do better.

It finally did come off being $5/yd, only to be on sale for 30% off.  Which makes it $4.19/yd.  Ok, yes.  Less than $5/yd, but still not quite the deal I'm striving for.  Then this week I got a load of coupons for a "make your own sale" event.  YAY!  "Surely,"  I thought, "surely it will be off sale and I can use the 50% coupon and get it for $3/yd.  Please, please, please!"

No. Such. Luck. :(

It is STILL on sale at 30% off ($4.19) until March 17, which is the day AFTER the coupons expire.  Argh!!!  But it's ok.  I'll keep watching and waiting.  Eventually sometime between now and May 1st, it just has to go off sale and there also be either a 40% or 50% off coupon in the mail.  Preferably the 50% one, but you know, I'd even take the 40% if that was the best one offered, because that would still make it $3.59/yd.  Anywhere less than $4/yd would be awesome.

So there I was in the fabric store, with a bunch of coupons in my hand...

And I remembered the sheer overlay confection that I have wanted to make and absolutely could not justify spending the money it would cost on.  I couldn't afford it at regular price; not in my wildest dreams.  But for half off, well now... I might could shift some other projects around to make that happen!
And that's what I did.  I ended up with this:

This photo does not do those sweet, sorbet colored stripes any justice!

I'll be working up a concept board for it this week, so you can better see what it will become, but the general idea is a short sleeved Regency era dress; the main body of the gown being the white muslin and then the sheer stripe wonderfulness over that, with the front skirt part split up the middle to the waist line so it is all flow-y and gossamer and ethereal.  The sleeves will not have the muslin under them.  They will just be sheer cap sleeves.  Don't forget how hot it gets here in June!

I'm planning on wearing this on one of the two days of the festival, since it's a hassle to sweat so much in one on Saturday, get home right away and have to wash it out and let it hang dry and hope it is ready by Sunday morning!  This way I have a dress for each day.  And more justification for buying the pretty sheer! ;)  If you really want to know, it was more than $20/yard at regular price.  Those 50% off coupons make this little seamstress a happy camper.  Er... sew-er. :)

That white and blue striped cotton will still be mine.  Eventually.  For now, I have materials to play with while I watch and wait for it to go off sale again. :)  I'll post the progress as soon as I can!