Gryffin Flag - Done

Here it is, my big application project.
In the end, when the flag was packed as a tube, the gryffin shrank anyway and my shar-pei unwanted effect got lost in it.

The think at the bottom is gold fringe.
I wanted a yellow one, but this must do.. :-)

Larp Easy Dress

This is my dress for the next larp battle I'll be a part of. I and two friends should represent witches. I didn't have anything to put on, so we went to a local cheap (used) fabrics shop and bought some. Then I cut out the shape - half the chest girth at the top, flared from the waist.

I added two tucks at the brest (really necessary to fit :-) ) and turned the edges in. I eventually added a tiny lacing to the waist for the front and back pieces to relatively stay together.
I made a "belt" from a rope I twisted thrice around me.

Quite wearable, if I admit that at first I just intended to cut the shape out and put on like that :-P

Shar-Pei

Not to post motivational pictures all the time, I have one demotivational for you. What is it like to make an application on a huge flag? :-)

Pulling the flag through the machine, there and back again and again.. The glue probably needs less than this to unstick from velvet. Quite unpleasant.

I sewed these parts first as they should be under the other layers in the end. When I have sewn a piece of a line, I re-iron the part of the gryffin that's to be sewn as next.

A word to the technique - when you make a sharp tip, it quite often happens that when you turn the application and sew back over the stitches, the needle gets stuck and the fabric's not flat eventually. I solved this by using a bit longer stitch for these places. Than the feeding works stronger.
The high curvature. Another hard matter. I cheat by sewing to the middle of the arch, turn (too much) and finish the curve. It's not a perfect arch, but it looks so:)

I'm really sorry about this. Hours of work and you get a hybrid of gryffin and shar-pei. The legs weren't glued enough and moved when I sewed them. When ironing them again, this occured.

The gryffin's done.

Gryffin Flag

I finally got to the gryffin flag. I peeled the paper off. I was very curious if my trick would work. I laid the animal flat and ironed (over the baking paper). It held nice:)
I might have bought a spray textile glue, but I couldn't imagine how I would aim where the application should be..

When I was tearing the paper to peel it easily from the application, I realized one think. If I hadn't, I could have got an exact tamplate (ironable, after my ways of storing patterns it would be handy:-)). Next time I will keep it.

Woolen Cloak - Sewing

I sewed the darts. You should tend to have a gentle passing between the seam and the part without seam.

I cut the unnecessary fabric and ironed flat. Wool reacts nice and when you iron the seam well, it's almost invisible:-) It copies nicely the shape of the body - wool is said not to have to be ironed, it's enough to hang it and it will draw up straight.

I hemmed the lower part of the cloak, using gathering as at the monk robes. As far as the neckline, I didn't gather anything. I just worked with my fingers so that the seam would be nice and flat.
You may notice I didn't serge anything. I didn't have enough time and wool shouldn't be machine-washed either, so I left it out.

I got this. Fastened with a safety pin for now. It's so warm and cosy I almost envy :-)

No, I really envy! :-P

Woolen Cloak - Cutting

This will be a present for my friend. We bought wool with some synthetics (we are poor students:-)), it should be warm enough..
I placed a pin to the center of one side and tied a cord to it. I made a knot at the right length and started marking half the circle with a charcoal. It's annoying that almost every string stretches. Maybe I might try the one masons use:)

As a concept of a future neckline I made the same in smaller version.

After some trying on I got about this pattern for the darts. They are necessary as the cloak's not made of a full circle and it would open in the front.

I had to cut out the edge a bit - I found out it's perfect when you take some pattern of a neckline, apply the back part to the part between the darts and the front part to the right and left - 90° turned.

Gryffin Flag - Preparations

My new project - huge heraldic flag. I often wish we had chosen a simpler sign:-D
I found a new product in a store - vliesofix. It's a glue that's usually on vlieselin, but just on a paper. I traced the picture to the paper (mirrored) according to the instructions. I roughly cut it out.

I cut out a piece of vlieselin even bigger than the previous one (at first wrongly mirrored:-D, but the second attempt was ok) and ironed it on. It's necessary, the glue itself can't prevent the fabric from fraying.

Then I ironed the vliesofix on. To protect both the iron and the fabric I did it over a baking paper. If you have your iron too hot, this ensures the glue won't stick to it.

Then I could cut the gryffin out. And it's not a matter of quarter an hour:) I like snipping the shape so that the tips of feathers and claws and hairs touch the first shape, at the second turn I cut out the details.
It's comfortable to have the exact line on the paper. I can't imagine I would have to draw it on the fabric with charcoal or with my superspecial marker that disappears within twenty minutes..

This way I should have the same result as if the vlieselin had glue on both sides. I wonder why something like that cannot be had at us:-)