stacking up my crochet squares

I've not been entirely unproductive, however it's my reading time that has suffered in the production of crochet squares. Here's 3 of the 10 dozen I'll need for my blanket.

I'm almost finished the 4th dozen, and thankfully doing a dozen at a time hasn't left me bored witless. As I'm only taking 1 ball of wool with me, last Thursday I ended up at the hairdresser having just finished 12 inners, and as I couldn't put my glasses on to read I got to 10 more inners and was about ready to scream from boredom. It helped me appreciate my plan all the more.

Once I've got all 120 squares I can decide if I'll use a darker purple to join them or not.

I've got a cold - or virus like that. Not asthmatic with it, yet.

vintage faux fur jacket to repurpose

I really want curly lamb (or astrakhan) collar & cuffs on my coat, and there's a really good quality rayon faux fur available ... overseas!

Instead I chose to bid for a vintage faux fur jacket on ebay, and I won the auction last night. Irritatingly, I can't get the image coding to work today, so until I get home and update you can copy & paste the address to a browser
http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFg5MzE=/z/cJkAAOxyaURThS5T/$_57.JPG

I was home sick yesterday, doing a good job of fighting a cold virus. Today I don't feel like the swollen glands are strangling me from the inside, and thankfully bid for the coat already as I dozed all day. Didn't watch TV/DVD nor read nor crochet. I made giant mugs of tea so I got out of bed less often. A friends gift of a novelty zombie head mug came in handy as it holds the equivalent of 2 ordinary mugs. The mug's theme reflected my own brainpan.

1929 coat for winter (using Eva Dress #33269)

Back in May I decided to sign up for the PR outerwear comp, because I'd decided that this year I need a proper coat for winter. The past 6 or 7 years I've been using my dark ages kaftan - it's a single layer wool crepe. So definitely warm and drapes well but not what most people would recognise as a winter coat. Mind you nobody has spotted that it's a costume either, it's mistaken for an artsy style.

The pattern I chose is this 1929 coat from Eva Dresss #33269 and I bought the larger of the 2 sizes that it's available in as it's easier to grade down a tiny bit than up a few sizes. And as we're used to a looser fit compared to back in the day, I may prefer this as is.

Clearly I'm not going to get it done in time for the competition, because only today I cut out the pattern pieces at lunchtime, and also bid for a not-too-vintage faux fur jacket to recycle as the collar & cuffs. I'm going to cut out a mockup in a couple of fabrics I kept for that purpose, and see if I need to do more than narrow the shoulders a little (if at all). That and shorten it as I'm more dwarf than elf.

I'm still going to use 4m of wine red wool fabric from the stash, and remembered some nile green silk crepe de chine that I'm hoping is enough for the lining. I may need to line the sleeves with something else.

(edited to fix the picture coding)

Sewing ADD - or why is the next thing more interesting than the current project

I'm always thinking more about the next project (or the one after that) while I'm working on the current one. Possibley cos I enjoy research and making something almost more than wearing something new.

In 3 weeks I'm in a historical clothing fashion parade at a National Trust venue, for which I'm wearing my 1790s womens archery uniform (based on the Royal British Bowmen uniform jacket in the Manchester City Galleries). I've not yet even looked properly at my JAFA photos where this outfit debuted.

The weekend after that, I need a new costume for a friend's regency era dinner party. Complete with 3 removes for dinner. We all get to make something to bring so it's not a huge cooking burden on her, and as there's so much food vast quantities of each aren't needed even though there's 12 people dining.

In my UFO list is a 70% made open robe in the blue with black diamonds, back is already pleated & sleeves are ready to insert (hand hemmed sleeves even!). I've gone about this back to front, cos I now need to make the bodice lining and futz around drafting a 'waist' band based on the Janet Arnold or Blanche Payne's History of Costume open robes. I'm leaning towards making a simple round gown using the tufty/striped grey fabric - it tones better with the blue. Though I'm also tempted to make a black lawn gown. I've got the lawn, although it's tagged for another project. Maybe I should just make what I want/need and buy more if I ever get around to the black with blue trim roundgown.

Ooh, and I could finally motivate myself to make the jewellery I had planned for JAFA. Must get onto actually doing that.

And although I'm staying as an overnight guest, I can make my red cloak for a pretend arrival. Maybe.

last minute sewing for a deadline - that's usual for me

I've been a last minute stitcher my whole life. Or at least since I started sewing when I was 11. These days I know the procrastination is due to a perfectionist streak. As long as it's not done, there's a chance of it being perfectly executed (or perfectly matching my inner vision). But once you've cut that chance diminishes. So once the deadline is almost right there, then there's no option but to simply do your best and cross your fingers for that perfect result.

If I hadn't been sick before & over the June long weekend, I'd have sewn this ensemble then. Plus also a top to go with it. But I spent time looking for the green silk - which is hiding from me.

What I'm making is quite different from the dress & bolero. Mainly because I can't find that silk. So instead I'm using the same draft skirt that I used for a goth cancan dancer costume a couple of years ago, that corset and the bolero remains. I found a too simple black top that I can add some beading too, and wear that under the corset.

Because Winter has Come, and the wedding is out of the city it's going to be very cold in the late afternoon and evening. So I'm using a cross woven English Super 200s Cashmere wool fabric. It's tiny squares of navy and burgundy, so reads as a shot purple. Delicious, fine quality and warm! Plus dark purple really does suit me, and at least I'll look as good as I can. Stash fabric, zip and thread, so that's great for my year of stashbusting for real.

I'm using a Lekala bolero #5853, but have emailed them as the sleeve width is 3cm narrower than my actual measurement, and there needs to be ease on top of that. I know how to alter the pattern to fit (only too well) but am surprised that the custom draft pattern doesn't match the measurement I provided. I didn't ask for the refinements of narrow shoulders, short waisted etc as another person who's similar to myself had a very hinky pattern when she included those details. I can quickly change that up, so long as the design and fit are pretty good on me. The mock up gets thrown together tonight - so I can sew it on Friday night. Yes, I have left it to the last minute.

V&A exhibition (Undressed) coming to Bendigo July-Oct

Next month a new exhibition from the Victoria & Albert Museum opens at the Bendigo Art Gallery in Victoria which I'm really looking forward to. I've already got a trip planned with a couple of friends, meeting the Adelaidean there. We compared our busy schedules and found a weekend that all 3 of us were free and it's booked in my diary. Yes, we'll be wearing costumes to see it, though one insists we wear all the layers, and not just the underpinnings. So now I've got to think about what costume it will be - an old or a new?

[re] organising my costume jewellery

I had a small desktop set of 3 drawers that I had my jewellery in for a variety of costume genres. But it wasn't the solution I was anticipating.  The drawer would either hide what I wanted at the back, or the drawer would pull out and be a hassle to get back in without removing everything from all the drawers.  So I'm going to try this instead. I've tried to group like things together, and at least I can see at a glance whether something is here or plonked somewhere else and to abandon hope of finding it quickly.

I did include my assortment of mother of pearl buckles, and the square shell buttons for my lobster-bustle - don't want to risk losing them in my general sewing stash. That can be a scary place at times, as I have too much stuff.

crotchetty and crocheting

I've been home sick with something of the gastro variety - possibly even a repeat of giardia. Anywhoo this time I had a raging high temperature for 5 hours and slept for the better part of 36 hours (waking for bathroom visits and not much else). I wasn't worth much - it took me 6 hours to make a coffee from turning the kettle on the first time, to drinking it cold out of hard hearted pragmatism.

I've no sewing progress to share, so I'll talk about a crochet wool blanket I've wanted to make for about 4 years. I roughly knew the colours I wanted (light green & lavender) and that it should be motifs rather than rows.  Practicality, because the one I made *cough* years ago got very bulky to carry around near the end. This way I can work on it on the bus or at work lunchtime, but only take 1 colour and batches of motifs with me not the whole blanket. After testing out a couple of ideas, I've gone for a netted granny square.

I didn't really get much done while home sick - too sick for all but marshmellow-brain non-challenging TV

The first sample I made was this one. (I've not blocked the squares so they could look prettier).



However, I didn't like it this way (not that I expected to) and wasn't sure what it was that niggled. So I looked back at my inspirations and they all had the lightest colour in the centre, so that's what I tried next. Along with balanced rows of colour.  I hadn't planned to use the darker of the 2 purples, but it was flat without it, so I undid the row of green and put in the darker.  What I love about crochet is that I don't mind undoing as it's so quick to do (compared to knitting. I'm a very slow knitter).

And yes, It's a keeper ... I'm working on the rest of the blanket now :D



I calculated that I'll need 120 of these (10 x 12) and will work in batches of 12, crocheting or darning any ends in as each batch is done so that it's not a monumental task by the end. That would lead to procrastination and avoidance.

Not likely to be finished by the end of this winter, but I'll get a good start on it, and will know how many more balls of wool to order from Bendigo Woollen Mills. Using Classic 8ply in Celery, Aster & Blueberry.