Beret Brim

Today I eventually started working on the beret.
I put two circles of velvet, right sides together, and a supportive piece above bore the pattern.

Although I pinned them and even basted the pieces moved a little, as you can see. I know already what the hell for seamstresses looks like. They sit at machines with fabric slipping, they're trying to repair the stuff and it's worse and worse all the time :-D

Cut in the center and turned over. This will be a brim.

I had to toughten the edge so that it remained flat. It's my favourite stitch I call rice stitch:-) Ironed. I got something like a pancake.

Enough for today..

Necklines

And necks are here..
When you make a paper pattern for a neckline, you should mark the center or the axis as the hole's quite asymmetric if you take the front and back. I pinned a rectangle from the other side - you can notice that I attached its corners as well, as I'm able to sew them accidentaly to the neck..

I pinned it this way not to have to pull them out when sewing. Serging..
After that I cut the hole several milimeters from stitches and turned over. And ironed. Now I iron everything :-D

Two lines of attaching stitches and done :) But you must be bored by this as I've decribed it many times here..

Red Sock Poi

People like striped poi:-) I have a new red order.
As usually I laid the two poi one next to the other and sewed the stripes on both of them at the same time. Not to draw on the right side I made a small cut at the sides to mark position of the red fabric.

Here they are. I accomplished my dream as I've wanted to make red-black poi since I made the orange ones. I would just use slightly different proportions next time - bigger margins, and maybe with different width. Lectures from graphics at school seem to have bad influence on me :-)

This time I repeated a motif I'd used before. I didn't find any new and nice and I like this little sun.

Surcoat Embellishment

I'll just call them surcoats:-P
Today I was sewing a satin lace on them. I pinned the edge before sewing.

I tried what I'd seen at a dressmaker when she was making my dress. I took the edge, folded it and fixed with an iron. It's fast and comfortable - and similar to sewing. You lay the iron and as you're moving it left, you're folding with your left hand. What's more, you gain a nice, continuous line. And save some seventy pins :-P You just have to be careful not to burn your fingers with steam.

The first piece. Ironing repaires many wrinkles so that it looks like nicely sewn:-P

Flag Poi Sack

There had to be a special pocket made for the flags so they wouldn't get creased. Rectangle. The upper side "overlocked". From now on I'll fold the edges before serging at such light fabric. The rest sewn and cut. French seamed.

Then I folded it so that the buttonholes were on the doubled fabric. Then I put two cords inside - they were tied into two rings. When I pull two opposite "stitches" out, it closes and they form a loop for hanging. It's the most comfortable sort of fastening:-)

Flag Poi

Yesterday I saw something at a juggling festival. I had to try it:-) The flags might have been made of parachute fabric. I didn't find two nice colours in this light type of fabric so I just took a plain synthetic fabric.
I have a new iron:-) My first one. I cut these shapes out and ironed the black one so that the edges were folded about half a centimeter and ironed flat.

Then I swapped the two colours. I sewed them together, ironed the seams flat and cut the edges a few milimeters from the stitches. Then I used my favourite stitch that looks like an overlock. You can see how it shrinked. I hoped it would disappear after ironing..

Then I folded the other edges and processed them similarly. The seams were better after hand expansion and ironing. My first iron - my first hole. I used too high a temperature. Fortunately this is for me. If it was for someone other I would have to make a new one..

I put the colourful piece into the black one. As I had ironed the edges I didn't have to fear I would hit it only at the top. I also made small sacks that I put inside as a weight. At the top of the poi I inserted a small rectangle of a tent fabric. It helped to harden it under the metal buttonhole.

There are swivelling pieces between the loops and the poi. One didn't work well and the flag was winding, but a drop of oil repaired it.
They're just cool! :-D When spinning they flitter with a very nice sound and their move looks marvellous.

Happy happy:)

Sagums Concept

Wondering what I've been doing last days? No, I haven't been slacking:) I have to sew four new sagums. I don't like the word, I think it's not proper. The German word for Czech varkoč is Waffenrock, French one's said to be surcoat - this one might be English as well, but I'd appreciate something more exact as surcotte can be something else as well..

You can take a look at how I transfer the pattern to the fabric. I drew a symmetrical pattern with the axis line at the center. I laid the fabric so that the edge was straight and pinned the center line several times at the same distance from the edge. Then I pinned the edges of the pattern.
I don't draw like normal people. I take a chalk with its flat part and draw over the edge of the paper. This way the result doesn't depend on my dexterity very much - there is an almost photographic image of the pattern created. And what's more I sharpen my chalk:-D

Velvet's back. I have to clean my machine inside after every piece.. There could be an application of gryffin on the chest, but I have never done such a demanding task and dunno whether I'll be capable.-)

Beret Band

I have a task - to sew two historical head covers. I have started with the easiest and most grateful part. There will be a thin band around a beret I'll make. Again I used my favourite gold cord.
I had four pieces (two of them four times longer). At first I made one square knot. Then I made a loop like this on the right, on the left and so on.

They were five on each side, the first and the last the smallest, the third the biggest. Then I made a second square knot. They hold it all together and keep the distances, because the inner cords are straight all the time and the rest may slip.

I put a huge bead through the two inner cords and fastened with a square knot with the others. In spite of the cord being quite thick I wasn't in trouble threading the beads. The inner cords were actually one folded. I put a thin thread around it - this way it went swimmingly. I found out I could thread them all and just make knots between them.

Maybe completed:) Don't know the exact length..
I'd never think I'd do macramé before. I've only seen it at the cloths that look all the same and make for nothing:-)

Looking Better

So I had to rip the whole side out. Once I've seen directions on the Web about how to rip stitches easily. I didn't believe it would work well but now I decided to give it a try.
You cut every fourth or fifth stitch with the seam ripper on one side. On the other you can just pull the thread away. I was really surprised how easy it was. The stitches let go of the thread instantly.

That's for the ripping. The best to do then was to sew the pike in hand (which I had wanted to do as last). I folded it like a jeans pocket and attached with never disappoining invisible backstitch. This way I could be sure the gore wouldn't move anymore.

I started to sew exactly at the point I had finished at. Now it's a lot better:) However I wish I found a method of inserting a real triangle smoothly, but until then this does.

Now I have the petty almost finished, my friend just has to come and let the skirt shortened on herself. I'm quite happy that this dress doesn't require many trials except for this one. I like this work! :-)

Gore Failure

I got down to the unpopular front and back gores. I tried a new method. By the way I don't cut the gores as two triangles out of a rectangle. I begin the separating line a few centimeters from the corner so that I get a truncated triangle. It's better:-)

I put it a bit higer than the start of the cut in the skirt. I began to sew at the level of this cut. Then I wanted to attach the other side and to solve the pike afterwards.
You can take a look at how it ended up.

I didn't pin it or mark somehow and I managed to sew the other side higher than the first one. I still have a lot to learn:-D
I don't like this type of gores... grrr