Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Alice In Wonderland: Sewing Session 2

The blue dress is almost done. As I write this post, my husband is working on attaching the invisible zipper. My first attempt was an epic fail, in my opinion, so we (or should I say he) had to unpick the seams of the zipper and is working to attach it again. He said I needed to take a break because I was being far too hard on myself and was working too hardon the dress. Is there such a thing??? *laughs*

So, as it stands, the zipper is being attached. The bottom of the dress needs to be shortened after it hangs for a bit (to stretch the cloth and get an even hem) and the ruffle to be added to the petticoat. Then the loose threads will be cut and the main part of the outfit will be done. The waist is a bit higher, as the pattern is made that way for a more old fashioned feel (most clothes we wear today sits really low on our bodies compared to how things were worn in the Victorian era, which is the period the Alice story takes place and the outfit hearken back to). The sleeve cuffs will be loose but the puff will remain proper, which will allow better air circulation. The dress so far looks pretty correct, given how the apron will fit over top it. The picture makes the dress look a bit wide, but that's because it's laying flat. Sometimes I wish I had a child sized sewing mannequin...

So after the dress is done, we will work on the apron and then the bloomers. My husand will likely do most of the rest of the blue dress, since I did most of it up to this point. My goal really is to get started on the apron tomorrow while my husband works the last bits of the bue dress.

I do admit that my overly critical eye is driving me nuts. I always do this where all I see are the things that aren't absolutely perfect. My husband is helping me stay grounded. It's a good thing I majored in Fine Arts. In those classes, you learn that most artist are overly critical of their work, which often leads to overworking the piece of art. So I do take 'a step back' and remind myself that I'm not being fair to myself. My husband also has a degree in art (Graphic Design), so he's able to remind me of this too (because he's the same way with his creations at times).

Today was our first anniversary... but we really enjoyed working together on this project. We both have a history of sewing and costumery and this was a nice bonding experience for us that we don't get too often... a project to actually work on together! We also did take a break (forced again). My mother took our son to visit with my nephew (which they both enjoyed) and my husband and I went out to dinner. We didn't exchange gifts like we had hoped, but that's okay. We both know what the other wants, and realized we'd need to buy them online most likely. We didn't get to go to the sprayground (or splash park), but that's okay. It was really warm today, our son had a long nap, and then my mother took him for the evening. We'll go another night. It was a nice day indeed. :-)

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