Posts

Post the Fourteenth: Cape 2, Appliqué Parlay

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   Okay, so last time we left off with shaping the cape and getting that sewn together all proper-like. This is a mage's cape, so it needs to be fancy. And nothing says fancy like embroidery .   I don't have my own machine, but buying premade appliqu é  patches is mercifully easy. These almost always have an iron on backing, but let me tell you a secret from many long years of being in scouts:   DON'T IRON ON PATCHES.   Or, rather, don't rely on ironing them. Invariably the glue is cheap and will give out. If you want make sure the appliqu é  stays put, you have to sew them on.   I'm sorry. The under stitching is kind of pretty, in a perverse "wow, that took a moment" way.   I mean, really sorry. Needle drew blood at least three times and slid under a fingernail at least once.   But yes. Brew a pot of coffee and buckle up, buttercup. Since the long side hasn't been sewn up yet, I pinned the appliqu é  patches into place-...
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Post the Thirteenth: Millinery Magnificence

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    Last time--if you can remember back that far, goodness knows it was a struggle for me--the hat style and size were determined and all the pattern pieces cut out. To help shape things, the pattern uses a much thicker interfacing and a double-sided one at that. So, you know the score by now. Cut out all the pieces, including the layers of interfacing.     As with every other time with the interfacing, it needs to be ironed to the fabric. Since this is double-sided, do yourself (and your ironing board) a favor and insert a sheet of parchment or wax paper between the interfacing and whatever you don't want micro-glued.     Okay, now take the long strip and make our crown. Pin the edges together, inside out. Stay stitch, then check to make sure the fit is good (I apologize for not having a photo of a shot so ridiculous). Make sure the edges are folded open, not both folded to one side or the other. Then do a regular stitch to lock the whole thing into place....
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Post the Twelfth: The Jacket

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    In which we start work on the jacket. We're making the whole thing in one go, so grab yourself a sammich and let's get cracking on this.   Starting with the first version of this by seeing what alterations I want to make to this.    One: changing the trim to the same as the black and gold the cape has. Doing this by adding 1/4" to any side that has trim. That should give enough room to cleanly sew in the trim.   Two: adding a flap to one side of the jacket so that it can be secured without completely zipping it up or whatever. Why? Because I don't want to be constantly tugging at the jacket because the cape is pulling it all over the place.   Three: Going to button down the epaulets to maybe make them look nicer. Not a huge fan of them as is.   Four: Upgrade with nicer buttons. Not really an alteration per se, but I have newer buttons that match the vest.        For the record, this is McCall's M7616. It's a fairly straight...
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