Mickey's Halloween Party!

Photo dump!

Max and I hit Mickey's Halloween Party a few weeks back. I have to admit, it was a great event! We didn't have time to put together amazing costumes so instead we opted for our Steampunk wear. (Though I did make Max a new Aba. He needed one.)

This was the first time I ever went to the park in full costume and it was a fantastic and almost magical experience! Here are a few pics of the two of us all decked out.

 

Morocco Mole and his lady hit the seas!

We mainly took photos in Adventure land because we matched the decor best there.

 

HAD to take a photo with The Genie while dressed like this.

 

 



Our friends Steve and Sammy wanted in on the photo fun too. Thank you Sammy for taking almost all these photos!

 



This one is my favorite. In front of Aladdin's Palace

 



With the flash on. THAT'S what we looked like.

 

We'll End this post with Morocco in his sweet ride.

 

Drive Morocco! Drive like the WIND!!

Steam Punk Dance Costume Photos.

I finally found a good pic of my Dance costume for Gaslight Gathering! In usual fashion, I was too busy running around like a crazy person to haul out my camera...such is my absent minded way. But I did get this one great photo of me!

Photo taken by Mr. Muggles, He always makes me look good!

In reference, here's the original sketch again: 

Not too shabby! In retrospect, I think I'm going to change the shape of the sleeves of my chemise. They seem a bit too wide in photos. But they moved really well on the dance floor. Still, I may narrow out the sleeves and keep the flair at the elbow only.  The ensemble was extremely comfortable for a full day's wear. I was a bit worried since both the ghawee and chemise were mostly polyester. But it breathed great!

Here's me in action... Ignore my dancing concentration face. I need to work on that.

Photo by Jerry Abuan.

As with most of my steampunk stuff, I'll be doing little tweaks here and there when I need to wear it. But overall I feel this was a success.

The entire crew. Photo by Jerry Abuan.

My next venture into costuming will be at Labyrinth of Jareth Masquerade Ball. My friend Jen and I will be heading out as Steampunk style saloon girls. Progress shots soon to come!... Now that I have all the materials finally that is. Also, all my patterns are FINALLY bought to start my Victorian Walking dress. Better late than never I say!

 

Also, I'll be donning my 12th Night dress soon as I head to Caid Coronation in June. Hopefully I'll remember to get some decent photos of it. Cheers until then!

Gaslight Gathering Dancewear!

I'm Back! And sewing like the wind!

Gaslight Gathering is approaching and the Calafian Middle Eastern Guild has been asked to provide ambient entertainment again. Needless to say, I am STOKED!  Finally the three of us dancers decided to put something together... at the last possible minute of course. Well in my defense I DID buy the fabric weeks ago.

We're all going for a basic ghawazee and flowing pants look. I went with a very rusty color pallet to fit in with the whole steampunk feel. Here's my basic design sketch for what I'm trying to do:

Rust orange for the ghawazee,  beige for the chemise, and orange for the pants. You can't tell in this photo, but the fabric for the pants have some gold sparkle in it. I used a basic ghawazee pattern and lengthen it to a little above the ankle. You can't tell in the photos, but the side and back seams are split up to the hip for movement.

Work in progress!

Found some nice frogs at Yardage Town for 1.50 a piece. So much nicer that the $6 a piece Joann's was asking for.

Here's where I stand so far with it. Its pinned a bit halfassed to the dress form in this pic. I was tired last night.  Yes, I am using that bra YET again. I took many a finger wound for that bra so I am getting my fill out of it! I'm considering taking the hem up of the ghawazee a few more inches. Not sure if I'm happy with where its laying.

A quick detail shot of the patterns.  I was at first afraid to use so many prints but since they are both small and subtle I went for it.  I've been on this weird "I NEED TO WEAR PRINTS" kick lately.

And that's where I am about now. I should hopefully have this all done by tomorrow if the fates allow. I also am in the middle of making a cowboy duster for my friend, and another ghawazee for a fellow dancer. Needless to say my plate is full!

Stay tuned for pictures of the finished product!



Middle Eastern Coat and Aphrodite Headdress.

I hit an SCA tourney last weekend all decked out in my middle eastern garb. And it was actually cold enough that I could wear my Persian coat I made for Estrella.

 

Here it is on a body! It really is a very comfy overcoat. Nice and warm and comfy. Though I am thinking of taking the wrists out a touch since it can be a chore getting it on and off. Thank you to my friend Ty for taking this photo.

I also am starting my Aphrodite costume for this year's Labyrinth of Jareth. Some other gal pals and I are all going as various Goddesses. I ended up drawing Aphrodite from the hat. And while I've never felt like the Aphrodite type, I have been having a great time figuring out how I want the costume to look. I am going for a Alphonse Mucha style costume. The dress is going to be very simple but the accessories will be very ornate.

So far, I got the head dress done.

The Jeweled band there is recycled from a previous costume when I went as a female version of Bacchus. I wanted the crown to look very Mucha-esque. I don't believe I will go much further than what I got. I think I'm currently walking the fine line between elaborate and tacky.

 I'll be starting the dress hopefully this weekend. Labyrinth is on a couple weeks so I have a limited time. But since the dress is so simple, I think I can pull it off pretty quick.

More progress shots to come!

Persian Coat from Reconstructing History Pattern

And now, a break from something truly amazing to look at my crap again. ;)

Here's the finished Persian coat I made from a Reconstructing History pattern. Overall its a nice pattern. My only warning would be to size UP when you're selecting your pattern size. The pattern that was made for my measurements turned out to be too small so I had to jump to the next size which fit much better. Other than that, this pattern is relatively simple. I have yet to make the other garments from the pattern though. Its on the ever growing list of projects
Note the gorilla sleeves. The wrists are tapered tightly so I can smoosh the sleeves up onto my arms, which I was told is a period fit for a coat like this. judging by the research I've seen, I'd say that's pretty accurate.

The fabric came from Home Fabrics which was closing its doors and had a HUGE sale. I believe this cotton was originally around $7 a yard. I got it for $2 a yard. TOTAL STEAL! But even though its cotton, its extremely heavy. I've pretty much regulated this to a outdoor coat. It came in handy during the very chilly Estrella War this year. The buttons I picked up at Estrella. The button hole technique was taught to me by Baroness Briana Je Nell which is a FAR more elegant manner to do button loops than the way I've been doing them. I really should document a step by step for it soon...because its a great technique.

I'd have to say my favorite part of the coat are the gores on the side. It give the whole garment fantastic movement, especially for belly dancing in cold weather.
I think next time I try this pattern out again I'll try it in a silk. I also am hoping to try my hand at the full outfit. Overall though its a useful coat, especially for someone who gets cold at the drop of a hat.

Also, my Regina Black costume overall is more or less done finally. Pictures to come soon!

Finished Gift Persian

As usual... I got busy. Erf.
But I did snap a couple of pictures of the Persian Coat I made as a gift for my friend, Ty.

Tah Dah!

Click to Enlarge

Unfortunately, my real camera's battery was dead, so I had to use my Camera phone. This was made from the Folk Wear pattern for Persian coats. I just received the Persian pattern from Reconstructing History though and build a quicky out of it. Much easier, more historically accurate, and flattering pattern for sure (not that my friend Ty doesn't look great. That woman can wear a burlap sack and still be gorgeous *jealous*). I'll post pictures of my Persian experiment soon.
And the hubby requested a new Coat for Court. Going to try my hand yet again at some Men's garb.

Also, I picked up a pattern for a Regency Morning Gown which I an very stoked to start work on.
So much to sew! So little time!

Iiiits Persian Time!

Gift Persian Coat is GO!

Another project I did over the Holidays. Here is a Persian coat I did as a Christmas gift for my friend Ty. It's finished, but I still need to take photos of her in it. I'm hoping to get a couple pics of her in it soon.

I didn't use a super authentic pattern for this. I used one from Folkwear. But it works! Ty's main garb consists of mostly of Persian and Middle Eastern style garb. Its perfect for fighting and equestrian. The fabric is leftover linen from my Viking apron I made last year. I wanted to make the coat machine washable so Ty could wear it not to just tourneys and court but for all her equestrian events as well. Gotta look good on that horse!

The trim I had for years. I picked this up in LA after I designed a production of Aladdin. This was the trim I used on Jafar's robe. I loved it so much I bought some for myself. It sat forever in my stash until this Christmas. The red and the purple work great together! That trim was a bitch to put on lemme tell ya.

I wanted to at least give the coat a bit of a period feel so I tried to find a contrasting color to line the coat. Persian coats usually were lined in fabric that was a contrasting color to the main fabric (Orange to Blue, Red to Green, etc etc..) But I'm pretty sure Ty isn't a huge yellow fan. So I opted for green. I figured there was so much red in the purple and yellow in that green that it would work. I think it looks pretty spiff. Its also Ty's wedding colors so a little added bonus there. That green cotton had been sitting in my stash since 2002. It was great to finally find something to use it for.
So there we go. Hopefully I can snap some photos of Ty in her new duds soon to post!

Fighting Coat, Gawhzee, and Persian Coat.

My Husband Max's Rapier fighting coat and A few other things for Estrella War.:).

So We're gearing up for Estrella and I've been sewing a bunch. The big project was Max's fighting coat for Estrella. Its my first fighting coat not to mention my first male garb that wasn't a T-tunic. It turned out better than I expected.:)


It looks a bit wonky on the dress form since the form is for a woman and is much smaller than Max. It looks pretty darn good on him though. Hopefully pictures of him IN it will come after Estrella War.

With the left over fabric, I made myself a Gawzhee.


I reversed the fabric so it wouldn't be too matchy matchy with Max's coat.

Detail of the clasps:


It can get pretty chilly at Estrella so I dress in layers. Though sometimes my cloat gets in my way. So I put together a persian coat out of linen to wear when I'm not in the mood to put the cloak on.


THis is my first try with a persian. I had to play with the pattern to remove the darts in it...but unfortunately I made it a bit to small so this won't be closing. The sleeves are a little wonky but nothing horrible. I can probably fix it on my next go around with a persian coat.

Detail of trim:


I also cranked out quite a few pair of pants, and a tunic and a coat for a friend (unfortunately I didn't get pics of those yet)

I plan to take a short break from SCA garb for a bit and move on to working on my Steampunk costume next for a little variety.

Thanks for looking!