Posts

Post the Sixth: A Decent Pair of PANTS Part 1

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Finally. Six posts in and the sewing blog actually does some sewing.  Where did I leave off? Oh, right. Continuing on with M8473.  Corduroy is a pain to cut out. See, normally patterns do this super-helpful thing where they show you a pattern layout on 45" and 60" bolts. Blesséd be the layout.  But corduroy has wales and to insure those wales stay parallel means cutting everything out piece by piece. That's cool. Totally wasn't planning on doing anything else tonight. Or the night after. Swear to you this is the same fabric from the same bolt.  And then there's this whole other thing.   Know I said I would cut with the nap going up, but with fabric in hand I think the other way is the way to go. But you can clearly see that, can't you? With the nap running down the color is noticeably richer. Just glad I noticed this BEFORE cutting pieces out.  So, one eternity later, we have our cut corduroy. It's often recommended to finish the edges on corduroy, bu...
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Post the Fifth: I Got Spurs That Jingle Jangle Jingle

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Dapper.  Welcome back! Been busy collecting bits n' bobs and various other accoutrements and today I wanted to go over what I've been able to find thus far. This is pretty photo-heavy, so grab yourself a cheese sandwich and settle in. Wouldn't be much of a fantasy outfit if there weren't bags of junk attached everywhere, now would it?  Taking off the jacket so it's easier to see what's around the belt. Also, to be fair this outfit can stand on it's own. The pants are just a placeholder, but it's really sharp how they match perfectly. That never happens!   Not much of the sword is glued just yet, so I have to hold it in it's scabbard for now. Still no idea on how to hold the focus in place, but there looks to be enough space to put it on my hip at least. It'll overlap with the hip bag, but shouldn't be too badly in the way otherwise. There's also enough space on that side to squeeze in a small water bottle.      Calling it now. That top-...
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Post the Fourth: Dittoing For Dummies

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It's me. I'm the dummy.  Okay, last time you were promised some sewing and now...I get to disappoint you. WAIT, NO! IT'S JUST A LITTLE BIT. Let me back up and explain.  Originally the plan was to ditto an old pair of pants. Still in good shape, they fit me really well and if you're at all familiar with pants you know that's something of an uncommon thing. One might even go so far as to say it might even be prudent to make a master pattern of these pants, so as to make adjustments on any and all future slacks, jeans, capri pants, shorts, and so on.  But notice I said "still in good shape." As in, totally not ripping up a perfectly good piece of clothing for the sake of cosplay. That's a stupid waste of money (--and time. Seam ripping is the worst.) Which is totally do-able, as this video shows:   How to Copy a Pair of Pants (Get yourself a sandwich and buckle up, folks. This video is nearly two hours long.)  Sssssoooo...I've cloned things like shir...
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Post the Third: Sawing and Sanding (but Not Sewing)

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     Against my better judgement, got a new sword. Forgive me, I have certain weaknesses. Pointy weaknesses. This one won't be awkward to keep on my right side at least. Yes, yes that's it! This was a thuroughly practical purchase that was in no way motivated by unfettered otakuism. Manderville rapier and focus. Because the Antiquated Murgleis somehow felt like too much honkin' sword to drag around all day.      Sword is noticeably longer than Talekeeper (by a solid 7 inches/17.78 cm). That officially makes it longer than my luggage case. Which is sort of a problem since we're flying down. There was a trick I pulled with Talekeeper, where the hilt could detach and that made it noticeably easier to transport. Might be able to pull off something similar here.        No clue how to attach the focus to the belt or anything. Not all of us can just magick it in place. Maybe invisible thread? ...Although that would be hard to detach. Generic l...
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Post the Second: Gathering Way Too Many Bookmarks

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      So last time there was a laundry list of things to do and start gathering. At this juncture that means bookmarking a thousand things and then waiting like an ambush predator for it to go on sale.       What? Did you really think I was going to pay full price? For any of this? I'm flattered. But you saw that sketch. I have a job, sure, but it doesn't pay sword-pimp levels of money.      This go-around the fabric order included some red corduroy, gold belt buckles, and ostrich feathers. Also included, for no additional charge, was a month long shipping ordeal as everybody's packages got snarled, lost, and then found again. Love ordering stuff in December. Never a dull moment. Everyone should try it at least once. Oh wait. They did. Eeesh. Only been worn once and it already looks worse for wear. So embarrassing.        The feathers do fluff up the hat a bit. They're...not bad. Just one would think  eight...
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