2nd mock ups and sewing the final iteration

Today I went to the sewing guild and took along a few essentials. My 2nd toile of the bodice for catelyn's dress and the 2nd toile of the hobbit bodice.  Usually I take more things than I can possibly hope for, but today it was only what had to be done.  Oh, forgot the 3 bra-laundry-bags that needed the zips replaced. That was a quick win to spur me on.

If the hobbit worked I was going to use it as a strength layer, but it didn't. I need to rotate the dart from the armhole, and I forgot to move the shoulder seam back. Lastly I need to insert a hulking hip gusset on the middle of the back panels and take the same amount from the hip side seam. Volume in the wrong place is still the wrong volume. Seeing as this gusset is going to be below the waist and thus under the skirts, it's not a biggie. I put the zip in the CB seam, or I'd pop it on & take a photo to show what I'm blethering on about.  I don't want the bodice to finish at waist line, cos that can be uncomfy with the boning, an there's a risk of gaping if the skirts drop at the back. It was making my quick & dirty oktoberfest costume a couple or 3 years ago that brings this to mind (it happens with that bodice & skirt).

Foolishly I didn't get pix of myself in any of the toiles.  The first dress mockup indicated that it needed to be taken in 3cm at the centre back seam, same at centre front seam, and a FBA done to compensate for the loss of frontage + a little extra. Also my standard 1.5cm sway back alteration.

And that half the FBA needed to be done on each of the two front bodice pieces. Oh Joy. NOT.   So I did that and cut out a 2nd toile & packed it into my sewing tote for today's group.


The 2nd toile needed 1 alteration, it gaped on the neckline so I had to fold that out of the pattern (18mm on the neckline!) I can tinker with the shoulder seam a little when the body is completely assembled & before I insert the sleeves. Then my brain melted a little when I remembered that I'd have to cut each panel into 2, as Catelyn as a 16 panel dress. I was winging the hem volume as I did went. I had to fit the pattern to the cloth as I only had just over 6 metres of fabric. It shrank in length & width in the dyepot.  No pix of the cutting & chalking proccess. I'd like to have much more width in the hem, but it is what it is. 6.4m of 140cm is a crazy amount to need more of. I may have cut longer than needed, but I knew that I was better off having to cut of an inch or so than need that inch.

I got half the seams sewn before it was time to pack up, and most of the rest once I got home. I flip flopped and dithered and felt obliged have the back seam lace closed, but I just wouldn't be able to dress myself if I do that. So after much angsting and consulting a couple of valued friends I decided that an invisible zip will be just the thing. I'm not aiming for screen accurate, just close enough to be recognisable.

So I've got 12 of the 16 body panels together and the other 4 in pairs. I'll insert the invis zip on the CB seam and then join the back 4 pieces to the rest. Stitch the shoulder seams and see if there's any tweaking to be done.  This looks like the fit is rubbish, cos it's being held up at the wrong level.


I was feeling so stressed this morning - over both work and costume deadlines and a day of sewing helped me decompress.