Circles in my skirt, circles in my hair

Another week, another skirt that I finished ages ago and never posted. This time it's a circle skirt. I used a self-drafted pattern that I've made at least a dozen times already. What can I say? Circle skirts are so easy to sew, and I love the way they look.

It's made of waxed cotton. It's the same fabric I used for this dress. I have a bunch of it because it drapes really well (and it was cheap).  

My hair looks kind of weird in the photos above because it has victory rolls in it. This is only the third time I've managed to do them (semi) successfully after an embarrassing amount of time spent trying.  

I look evil but you can see the victory rolls

Shoes: Op shopped
Cardigan: Op shopped
Top: K-mart

Skirt: I made it

Veggie wearing veggies

I have a quite a few skirts that I've made and never posted about. I wear them pretty frequently but never seem to get a picture when I am. Here's one I made ages ago.  

It's just a simple pleated skirt on a waistband. I didn't use a pattern. I just did one inch pleats until I got the right width to fit around my waist. 

The fabric is a quilting cotton. It was printed off-grain which always infuriates me. What is the point of printing fabric that isn't on grain? Because of this I cut it so the vegetables were lined up. If I'd cut it on the grain all the rows of vegetables would have been wonky. I didn't know if this would have an effect on the way the skirt sat, but it seems fine.
 

Cardigan: Op shopped
Top: Op shopped
Skirt: I made it
Bangles: Etsy and Ebay
Shoes: The Warehouse

Lost and Found

While looking through my fabric stash recently, I found a project that I started almost two years ago. I'd given up on it because one side of the front bodice would not fit properly. The other side fitted fine, and I had done a muslin so I couldn't understand why it wouldn't work. I spent weeks pinning, sewing and unpicking. When I finally got the fit looking better I was so sick of the whole thing, I just put it away and forgot about it. Two years later, I've finally finished it.   

It didn't take long. All I needed to do was attach the skirt to the bodice, put in a zip, do the hem and sew on the buttons. I didn't line it because I'm lazy, and I wear slips all the time. 

The left side bulges where the zip is which really annoys me. I've tried steaming it but that makes no difference. An invisible zip would probably solve the problem, but I hate them with a passion. They break so easily. Maybe I'll take the zip out and put in some snaps instead. 

The button closure makes it look like a space uniform. The pattern is from 1963, so I'm guessing this was meant to be the 'tame' version of the space age fashion trend that was around at the time.

Hat: Op shopped

Belt: Op shopped

Dress: I made it

Shoes: Tony Bianco

  

Radio Silence and Google Reader

Follow my blog with Bloglovin.

I dislike the obnoxiousness of that, but apparently it's the only way I can, 'claim my blog'. I avoided the whole google reader shutting down thing when they announced it because I was hoping they'd change their mind. It doesn't look like that's going to happen, so I signed up to bloglovin the other day. It really annoys me that you can't see whole posts, though. I tried the Old Reader as well. It's kind of slow but I think I'm going to stick with it because it looks/works like google reader.  

This is my still-working Bakelite radio

Also, I haven't posted in a while. This is mostly because I've lost my camera cord. It must be somewhere around the house, but I can't find it. Until I do, I probably won't be posting much. Unless you want to see selfies taken with my phone.

Oh, and thanks for all your lovely comments on my suit in the last post. 

McCall's 8813 Suit: Finished

My suit is finally done. I was waiting for some good weather to take pictures outside but it doesn't look like that's going to happen any time soon (it's meant to snow tomorrow), so inside photos will have to do.

I've written a bit about the construction of the jacket in the previous posts, so I'll spare you any more about that. The skirt was pretty easy to sew. I tapered the bottom in a few inches because I don't like straight skirts.

I really should make some sort of effort to change my facial expression between photos

I lined the skirt in a black satin from my stash that someone had given me, because I didn't have enough of the fabric I used to line the jacket. In fact, almost everything I used for this suit was from my stash and/or second hand. 

I look surprised, probably because I managed to make a suit. 

Hat: Saltaire Vintage Fair
Hatpin: I made it
Suit: I made it
Vanity case: Sumner Street Fair
Shoes: Op shopped
Tights: Columbine (still made in NZ)
Gloves: From the dressing up box we had as kids. They probably belonged to my grandma.

I took this photo with the flash on. It gives a better idea of the actual colour. It's not as dark green as it looks in the pictures above.

My hair is always messy at the back...and at the front, but more so at the back. 

Here's one of the hatpins I made in action on the hat I was wearing.

McCall's 8813 Progress

I've almost finished the jacket part of the suit I'm making. It's taken me quite a while because of all the hand sewing. I hand sewed the whole lining in place. This is an experience I'm not that keen to repeat because it took forever.  

The lining is the leftovers from some fabric I used before to line a jacket. I love fancy printed linings. It's not actually lining fabric so it's really nice and soft. It originally cost me just over $1 a metre, but I'm going to call it free since it was leftover from another project.

The flaps look like they be pockets but they're just decorative. I stitched them down with a few hand stitches because they were flapping all over the place. 

Just ignore the fact that it doesn't fit the mannequin. It's smaller than me. I have a few little things left to do on the jacket, like pressing and stitching down the collar, and then I'm done.

After that, I have the skirt to do. I'm using Simplicity 3581, view 3. It should go together much quicker than the jacket.

Fake Hatpin DIY

I have a couple of hats that need something to secure them so they'll stay on my head. I don't have any hatpins, and the vintage ones I've seen are really expensive. After seeing this tutorial, I decided to make one.  

You need a long doll needle to use as the pin. I had to buy a whole pack because you can't buy them individually. I also got some black faceted beads and some crimps.

I ended up hot gluing the bead over the eye of the needle because the crimps didn't feel that secure.

After making the first one, I made another shorter one with a bead from a broken necklace I had. 

I put an earring back on the end to stop any hatpin-related injuries. I really should get a silver one but, since I don't wear earrings, the gold was all I could find.

This was a quick project and so much cheaper than buying hatpin. I'll post a picture when I actually wear one of them with a hat.