Monday, November 24, 2014

And there was much rejoicing; yay.

So the convention was great, all of the bodices were boned in time (Gabriel's being boned on the drive down but finished before first wearing). It was amazing, we went to the panels, the karaoke, the cabaret, and got to meet a few of the actors. We won second place in the costume contest, mostly because Osric Chau personally pushed for us because despite an unenthusiastic response from the crowd he could see how much work went into it. The person who won first place totally had a novel concept behind her idea and was utterly deserving of the first place position. But I'll take it next year ;). I'm still waiting on photos to be able to post shots of the costumes, but they will be coming soon.

It was amazing to be able to spend a weekend with friends. So often when we hang out other things end up happening. Samifer has to go out to the ranch to tend to horses. Gabriel has work to do for school. There was an emergency at the cat shelter and Crowley wasn't able to make it down like she hoped. Castiel has to cover someone's shift. For the first time in ever, the five of us were able to just hang out. No one else, no priorities, no emergencies to be handled, no one to hold ourselves accountable to. We decide to skip a panel and sleep? No big. We all realize we're hungry? There was a fast food village across the street that we tried and graded and ate at when we felt like it. We decided to find a geek shop and pick up new dice for the Dungeons and Dragons game that I was running (only my third time ever GMing) and got to laugh about the faces the men who were there made when almost a half dozen women walked in and made a bee line for the dice. (We did not get the 'women in a comic book store' discount, so they obviously get female patrons, but they were still kind of shocked to see such a large group without any menfolk in sight.)

When I got back my husband had hoped I'd take a break from sewing for a while, but I'm not as burnt out as I thought I'd be. So my piece for the next Sew Historical challenge is already finished, and a post will be forthcoming. A co-worker who went to a Supernatural convention in 2013 said she was already planning to attend this year before the previous con had ended. With my friends, it was the same. By Saturday we were already making plans as to which tickets to get for 2015, things we need to bring, things we didn't end up using, and what the costumes should be.

I'm feeling viped and want to do more. Of everything. And even with working the holiday season and the stress that brings, I'm finding my energy. And it feels good.

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Convention? Convention!

First of all, let me say:
EXCITED! EXCITED! EXXXCCCIIIIIIIITTTTTEEEEEDDDDDD!

Whoo.

Secondly: I did it! As of today I sewed the buttons and buttonholes onto Gabriel's bodice, meaning all costumes are officially wearable. Awww yeah! With two more days until the convention, I can bone the bodices that still need bones, add in pockets where I can, and generally take it easy. There are still some minor things: waist tapes that have hooks but still need eyes, Samifer's and maybe Crowley's bodices need hooks to attach bodice to skirt in order to prevent gaps when arms are raised. All little things that can be done day of if needed. I don't have enough boning caps to bone all the bodices, but I'll pick up some heat shrink tubing to cap them with. Castiel has offered to help me sew the boning in, and between the two of us we should be able to get the boning in and the seam allowances whipped. We've also been working on props. She completed stage one of angel blades today, and I've turned two confetti guns into the Colt and Dean's gun.

Gabriel's bodice. This was before the buttons were on; I was checking the overlap to figure out button placement. I also needed to see if the bodice was long enough that I could do a facing or if I needed to bias bind. I was able to do a facing.
Gabriel's bodice was hard to fit as she has 5 gallons of tits. Seriously. So many bust alterations.
The (confetti) Colt. This will be carried by Crowley, since he has the Colt when you first meet him.
Dean's (confetti) gun. Displayed on yarn because it was still drying. I will be carrying it. Also, all of the confetti shots were topped off with glitter, for the ultimate "I will fuck you up"
My Samulet. It has since been painted. It's too big, but still wearable. Apparently my friend ordered one for me online, but if it doesn't arrive in time I will wear the one I made.
I made a little rose pin for Samifer to wear. I was unhappy with the rose selection available, but this turned out well I think.
I actually bought these for a Halloween costume for myself, but I think they'll look great on Samifer.
The piece de resistance. I designed this guy on Cafe Press, and now I finally have an awesome flask. I've been wanting a good one for years, but was never satisfied with the ones I found. This one's smaller than I'd originally hoped, but that makes it perfect to slip in a back pocket. It reads: "Sometimes, wrestling with my demons is the only exercise I get"
Still to come: angel blade pictures, full costume images, and convention weekend photos. This thing I've been planning since January has finally come to fruition. And I still have two more days before we head to Burbank. My head is so full of fuck right now.

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Historical Sew Fortnightly #20

Late post because I was so busy finishing one of the outfits. Current status of the project is two costumes done, two wearable (no boning and the seams aren't whipped down, but not obvious). The fifth bodice mock-up has been stitched (except sleeves, which I will do tomorrow), and I have just about a week to make it. Since I won't actually be able to see Gabriel until Saturday, tomorrow will be spent finishing all the bits I can on the other costumes before putting my nose to the grindstone on the last bodice.

The challenge is the easiest for me since all of the costumes I've been working on qualify. Taking the characters and outfits from the show Supernatural and turning them into late bustle era costumes falls pretty solidly under the header of "Alternative Universe." This particular one is the most recently finished in the line of five costumes: Samifer.

In the show, Lucifer escapes the cage that he has been locked in and starts running amok. Angels don't have a physical form humans can see (and survive), so they possess humans that are strong enough to endure it. One of the main characters, Sam Winchester, is the chosen vessel of Lucifer, and when Lucifer finally gets a hold of him, he is dubbed Samifer (as opposed to the other vessel he was running around in which is just generally called Lucifer). In an episode that takes place in an alternative future we meet Samifer, and he looks like this:
Wearing a white suit in a rose garden, making him the biggest show off in the series. So when it came to making this outfit, it needed to be over the top. Lots of trims, lots of details, and a train. This is someone who knows how to make an entrance. So the skirt is white crepe suiting with cream colored pleats and two different ribbons stacked on top.


And red roses underneath that looks like the flames of hell. The bodice continues the look.
The boob-framing look comes from image I found of a woman who I assume to be an actress wearing a bodice with a similar cut. The sleeves have similar trim to the skirt, cream pleats with a two ribbons sewn on top. The inside edge of the cuff was bias bound with the red rose fabric, to keep up with the rimmed in hellfire look.
Close-up of the bottom. The center fabric has a herringbone weave, and the entire front is trimmed in a box-pleated ribbon with a bit of white and gold cording tucked inside. The bottom cording is off-white and gorgeous.
The false shirt is the same cream as the pleats, and trimmed in one of the ribbons from the skirt along with another trim I had kicking around.
The train is cut as one piece with the back and side back pieces of the bodice using the full width of the fabric. The extra was pleated into inverse box pleats and stitched down, with a decorative antique gold metal rose on top.
The train laid out.
The edges of the train are trimmed with off-white rose lace, and the two ribbons that were used on the skirt. The ribbon hides the selvages, and is box pleated along the bottom to make is easier to curve with the cut of the train. I actually didn't have enough lace for the full train, but I did have the same pattern in a proper white, so I used about 6 inches of that to cover gap left at the very bottom of the train.
I don't have any images of the outfit being worn after the sleeves were finished and the neckline changed, but here's how it looked at the nearly done stages.
Back view, with train down. This was before all the trimming was applied to the train.
Side view, with all the bustle-y goodness. The mock-up sleeve was slit open because it was too tight and I needed to figure out how much to add for movement.
Back view, train up. Since we're going to be at a convention with lots of people walking around, we figured it'd be safer if their was a way to pick the train up at times so it wouldn't get stepped on. The interior has two sets of ties that can to tied together to bustle up the back of the train and prevent it from dragging.


The Breakdown:

The Challenge: #20 Alternative Universe

Fabric: White polyester crepe suiting, muslin, white herringbone suiting, cream cotton sateen, rose printed quilting cotton.

Pattern: Self made

Year: Mid-1880s

Notions: Cotton thread, hooks and eyes for closures, white satin ribbon, white and gold brocade ribbon, lace, white and gold cording, white fringe-y trim, thick off-white twisting piping.

How historically accurate is it? The design is based off of elements I've seen in dresses dating from 1884 to 1888, but this outfit has a lot of polyester elements. 75%, maybe?

Hours to complete: Lots. The pleats on the skirt alone took close to 18 hours, and because Samifer has interesting shoulders I had to do more mock-ups for this outfit than for any other. I'm going to put it in the realm of 50-70 hours.

First worn: Not yet, but the convention begins November 14. Squee!

Total cost: Again, lots. $55 for the suiting, and probably another $20 just for the muslin for mock-ups and flat-lining. At least $40 for ribbons and lace and notions. I'd put it around $150 total, which really isn't that much all things considered.