Where Things Got Messy.

 I had just sat down to work on my blog when I heard a noise I both knew and dreaded, Drip, Drip, Drip. I jumped up and ran over to my costume/fabric stash closet and opened the door. Yup, there was water coming off the shelf, down the boxes holding my fabric and pooling on the floor. "MOM!!!!" I called in a dignified and genteel way (I was yelling and running like a chicken with my head cut off). Mom couldn't help me as she was the one in the shower causing the leak but I did have my  older brother help be to get the doors off the closet and get the boxes out while dad shut the pipe off. Mom was done with her shower....hehe! Sorry Mom. We also found a mouse hole in the back of my closet but it doesn't sI eem to be in use.  I decided I couldn't keep all the fabric in the house and would have to put some in storage and re-arrange my sewing space. It took me about 4 or so hours but I got it done and I think it will work out just fine with the new set up.

I knocked but no one answered. And then things got messy.

I was in to much of a hurry to get everything out of the closet to worry about a neat and orderly fashion and this is the result. 

This is the pile of costumes I decided to put in storage. Looks like a crazy mess of this and that. 

We had 2 buckets to catch the water drips and those are the trouble pipes.

 Mostly cleaned up and organized just need to put the doors back on the tracks.

Still looks like a mess but there isn't as much as there was before.

I am planning another project and as a teaser I'll tell you one of the items I bought. An artificial Christmas tree. 

Happy Dress Up Day!!

  So it is now Halloween and what is the best thing about Halloween? Everyone dresses up!! I love how I"m not the only one out there dressed up so I don't get as many weird looks. Don't get me wrong I still get them, just not as much.
  I had a lot of trouble this year trying to decide what I wan'ted to dress up as. Did I wan't to be "Valerie" from the movie Red Riding Hood?

Did I want to be Harley Quinn?

Or did I want to have another bustle dress??

 I almost had settled on "Valerie" since I AM Valerie when I happened to see the most PERFECT outfit on pinterest. (I you have not been on pinterest I both recommend it and warn against it as it is absolutely addicting but so full of wonderful things!)  When I saw this picture I fell in love with the dress and wanted it for my own. It was designed by a very talented artist  Juliajm15 on deviantart.com  and she was kind enough to let me copy her design.  I CANNOT TAKE CREDIT FOR THEY DESIGN OF THE DRESS IT BELONGS TO JULIAJM15   just in case I didn't make that clear. So without further adieu her design.......

Isn't that just do die for?!? Sigh!!

   I did make some changes to the dress to fit my particular needs and because I just can't do what she can. I didn't but the design on the bottom of the dress because I'm just not that good but maybe someday I'll try to tackle that challenge.

 Sleeves have points over the hands since I wasn't wearing gloves.

I have a hidden zipper in the back, other than that it is very plain.

 I tried and tried to get my hair to go up the way it looked in the picture but in the end had to go with this as it was the closest style I could get my hair into and because I was going to be late for work if I didn't.

 The dress is made from heavy bridal satin for the white and a polly satin blend for the gold with velvet ribbon for the black and red accents.
  Funny thing about me, I can't make my own pattern. I have tried and failed and have finally given up on the idea altogether. This dress is a mix of 4 patterns altered by myself to merge into what I had in mind for the structure of the dress. I am rather happy with how they went together but would use a different pattern for the bodice if I were to make this again. It didn't tailor well for me and I ended up using my corset so I looked like I had SOME shape.
  So after the trials of trying to do my hair then get into my dress without messing up my hair (thank you Mom) I then had to put on my face without getting anything on my very WHITE dress which wasn't hard because it was mostly just mascara. Just when I was about to get my shoes on my mom calls in that I need to get my car started right then because I had  ice covering my car. UGH!  So I turn my car on and move it to the sunlight where I let it sit for a few minutes while I grab my purse and lunch. Was the car ready to go? No. Haha!! That would be too easy silly! No, I had to get the scrapper out for the windows. What do you think happened next? You got it! I accidentally brushed against my car. Black marks all across the side front of the dress. I about died right there. I ran back into the house and got a wet rag and some Granny's magic spot remover and you can hardly see that it happened at all. I love that stuff!! I'm sure it will come out when I wash it but I didn't have time for it just then and it covered up the "oopsie" wonderfully. And no I wasn't late for work. I knew you were wondering. :D Other than that I had smooth sailing and a Fabsome time wearing my new dress. Thank you so much Juliajm15!!
 I hope you enjoyed looking at my dress and thanks for stopping by!

~Valerie.

Elsa and Rapunzel inspired princess dresses!

I went shopping with Jason's family the other week at Walmart. I  took the girls with me and went to  the craft section (their choice) as Jason and Sheri went grocery shopping. Well, the girls saw some fabric they loved and asked if I would make them a dress. YES!!! I made the dresses so they were wearable everyday not just as a dress up play dress so the girls could get more wear out of them, but were inspired by the Disney princesses Elsa and Rapunzel per fabric color and design choices. 

 Vanessa  wanted her hair up like her dolls hair. She fixed her dolls hair. :D

 Victoria wanted her hair like Elsa's hair. The braid goes around the front of her head around the back.

 She really wanted the doll on her shoulder in the picture.

Rapunzel in her tower and Elsa in her palace. The blanket on the floor in the back is a field of wild flowers for them to play in. 

Renaissance Festival Dress

I decided last Wednesday  that I wanted to go to the Renaissance Festival. So with that in mind I set about getting time off and working on my costume for said event. I decided I didn't want to be royal or nobility this year but decided a peasant sounded like lots of fun! So began the research on what style of clothing and the colors that were available to them then came the real work. I wanted to try my hand at cartridge pleating as it is historically accurate and gives the shape required for the poofout of the dresses without wearing layers of underskirts or a bum roll.

Not the best job ever but it works! I hand sewed everything at the waistband which includes an underskirt and the over skirt. I then moved on to the bodice. When I was ready to try in on for size and make sure the shoulder straps were tight enough I noticed something about my dress that set me off. I kept staring at it thinking how familiar it looked. It took me a few seconds then it hit me. I cannot find the words to describe the look of horror, shock, and denial on my face.

Do you see it? Do you know what that looks like!?!?!?!?
Let me show you.

My least favorite princess EVER!!!!!! I have never liked Snow White so isn't it poetic that she is the favorite of my nieces? I looked like the plain version of Snow White and that was not acceptable. Back to the drawing board! So after scraping my (very nicely done for once) bodice I had to find fabric for a new one. I found fabric I was saving for a different project but thought this was more important and started work on the top again. I'm rather glad I changed the top since the new top is much more me. And this bodice was even better than the first haha.

But something was missing...I needed a purse! One that blended in and wasn't a pain to carry. Something that was more historical looking that my big over the shoulder purse....something I didn't have but have been looking for an excuse to make! Not that I need excuses but it makes it more fun. So I went through my fabric closet and found some vinyl leather looking stuff that had the perfect weight and began on the construction. I'm so happy it wasn't complicated.

 Four pieces is all that was required. How wonderful!!

 I added an inside pocket for my money and the deeper pocket it big enough for my camera, brush, and phone with room to spare.

 You never know what you have till it's gone. That applies to the tools needed to put the grommets in place. I had to use a seam ripper, paint brush, knitting needle, and a hammer. The seam ripper to start the hole and the paint brush/ knitting needle to enlarge the hole enough for the grommet to enter. I then used the knitting needle to bend the ends down before hammering it open. Same process I had to use for the bodice lacing.

 I then added the clasp on the outside and it was done!! I put the clasp at an angle because if there was any give on the fabric it wouldn't stay shut so by putting at the angle it kept it shut even when given a bit of slack.

 The shirt I have had for years and really should make a new one but don't feel like it right now and the belt is from my medieval peasant costume I did last year. I just have to fix my shoes so they have straps and I'm ready to go to the Festival!!!!! Just wish  I wasn't going alone. :(

Small Sewing Breaks

I made some Dressy Towels...again.  :D    The cupcake ones were for my boss and the green one was for a friend of mine. Yes, they are hand towels. No, you can not wear them.

 Another friend of mine just got married and so the night before the wedding I whipped together my first casserole carrier. I really liked the colors and the way it turned out. When I make another one thought I do have some adjustments I'm going to be making.

And that's all I've had time to sew recently. Hopefully more to come soon!

Gone is the Old and Here is the New!

As some of you my know I have been in the process of moving recently and am FINALLY settled into the new house. It's taken some getting used to but I'm really starting to like the new house. We went from a 4 story house to a 1 1/2 raised ranch. The hardest thing for me was to let go of having a private sewing room. I now have a sewing corner and though it's not the same I am starting to like it also.  I am really excited about my new room though! I have been wanting to give my room a make over and this was the perfect opportunity for me. And now a look at the rooms......

 One of the things I miss about my old room is seeing this. I don't know why but I loved the way it looked there. It's nothing that spectacular but it seemed to light my imagination spark and get me going. I found it by the road one day and I have no idea what it is and haven't seen anything like it since. Wish I could see in alive and in bloom...whatever in bloom was. :)

 Here we have my lovely full closet complete with cubby holes and drawers the whole way around for storage. You wouldn't believe how much it could hold! ~sigh~ I loved that closet. But I do have a nice closet now. Not quite as efficient, but nice none the less.  I had two shelves on the wall plus the cubby holes for my porcelain doll collection and am now down to just two shelves but that is okay!

 I LOVE green. It's one of my favorite colors and when I got my own room for the first time I wanted it green! It looks lighter in the picture. It's really a pretty rich green with some emerald tones mixed throughout. It had a marbleized look.  Don't mind the bed frame.

 This was some of my storage set up. I had my costumes hung up on the left (obviously!) and had ribbons, trims, sparkles, bangles, and all kinds of accessories stored on the shelves and in the drawers. My dad made that storage unit for me when our fridge broke and we got a new one. I got looking at the shelving and the way it was put in the fridge as we took it apart so the garbage men would take it when ~lightbulb~  there's nothing wrong with them and they are adjustable! DAD!! Isn't he great?

You can see a bit of the dresser on the right. It was over against the far wall when I was in the room and had all my sewing needs stored in the top drawer and fabric in the rest of the drawers. I also had the far left corner in the picture filled with boxes of fabric. It was soo nice!!

Now onto the New!

Here we have my new sewing corner! It's a work in progress but it's starting to grow on me. I also have half the closet on the right for my sewing supplies. It's so full it's about to explode. I'd kinda like to see that....

What you first see upon entering my room. For some reason it keeps reminding me of "MOM" haha.

My mom and brother helped me paint my room. I had never done plastic bagging before. It turned out exactly how I wanted my room to look! Thank you guys!!  I also have a daybed now! I have been wanting on for a bit and  it is perfect! The rose decorations match my wallpaper almost perfectly as if it were a set. I have a few of my dolls out as you can see but I didn't want them ALL out so I left some in storage. I'll rotate some of them out when winter comes since some of them are angels or in winter clothing.

 This is my one of my favorite things about my room. I LOVE MY BOOKCASE!!! It has twinkle lights! And a wishing well! And who can resist the flowering tree thing?!?
Can you spot the difference between these two pictures? No. It's not that the light was on in one and off in the other.

 Here's a picture with the light on so you can really see what you are looking at. I love the little fairy in the front with the castle in behind the rose wall.

 My wonderful mom helped me paint the dresser. The original color was showing through in spots where the paint had scratched off and that was just unattractive. It had been a burnt red color before we painted it a pretty white to match the rest of my furniture. Mom also helped me cut the scallops on the wallpaper boarder. It had the dark print on top and bottom so we each took a roll and followed the scallop design and voila! Instant Victorian boarder. The carpet is even one of the light shades of pink on my wall. How perfect is that I ask you.

 And what room of mine is complete without a fairy corner? My mom made the fairy on the right for me. She does beautiful cross stitch. This was a kit she did for me and she said never again would she do one. I guess she didn't like that the pattern didn't match what the printed on the canvas. weird.

 And on my other window we have a picture of my best-friend Rosie! No, not the one with the wild hair. sigh~ you are so obtuse sometimes. I think you do it on purpose. She's the one in the pink hoodie in the far left picture. The other beautiful pictures were had drawn by a very talented friend of mine and she does have cards available for purchase at a good price!

And finally what girly room is complete without a shoe shrine? Yes, thank you. I do know that the rose isn't a shoe. Really, now I know you are doing it on purpose. I'm so onto you. If you hadn't noticed the angel isn't a shoe either. So there. I just thought they looked nice with the shoes so I put them there.

And that completes the tour of my old and new rooms! I couldn't have done it without my mom!

Thanks for stopping by!