One Short Day in the Emerald City........

Well Hello Everyone! I am incredibly sorry that it has been so long since my last post but alas, between working a second job and trying to fit in family time my life has been literally too hectic for crafting!! (Le Gasp* .... Le Sigh*) But, I am pleased to report that things are settling into place and my creative ju-ju has come back to me ten-fold! I have several projects and blog posts coming soon that I am really excited about!

So, this idea all started when I had a sudden desire to make my own costume this year for Halloween. I absolutely love Halloween and everything about it! This time of year the leaves are beautiful, Jack-O-Lanterns fill the steps of houses, people get to dress up in fun costumes and just have a great time. To be honest, I have never really had much interest in making my own costume before because I (shamefully) have always bought a pre-packaged one or just threw on a pair of wings and a tiara and called it good! 

Before I started sewing I never would have thought to look at the finished seams, or materials of a costume before because even though they can be fairly pricey, at the end of the night they have always been essentially disposable to me. Well that was certainly not my attitude this year! I browsed a few costume stores and looked at literally hundreds of costumes and I was just not satisfied with any of them! I was a little miffed at the realization that I have been getting ripped off by paying 2-3 times what a costume is really worth since I was basically old enough to Trick-or-Treat! 

This year I decided to take my costume fate into my own hands and see what I could come up with. I knew that I wanted it to have a fun 50's retro-vibe to it and came up with the idea of being a "Wicked Housewife" after finding this wonderful wicked witch silhouetted fabric at Jo-Ann's (It was even on sale! I'm telling you it was totally fate!) I found this fabulous Simplicity pattern with a princess seamed bodice, full circle skirt and cute retro bow detail at the waist and decided to take the plunge! 

I chose view B with that cute bow!

I won't lie, I was pretty nervous about how to sew the bodice because I have never worked with princess seams before, but now I am in absolute love with them! With a little help from Gertie's Blog and the Curvy Sewing Collective I was able to ensure a perfect fit! Huzzah!!!! I clipped, notched, and pressed my seam allowances open on my fashion fabric and my emerald green lining before sewing them together. This pattern is fabulous and I definitely recommend it for anyone sewing with princess seams for the first time! For this project I also decided to give horsehair braid a try when hemming, and let me tell you...what a great idea it was! Not only did it make hemming the circle skirt easier, it also helps give the skirt a little more structure when wearing without a full petticoat underneath. 

 

For a project of firsts, I am so incredibly proud that this dress turned out exactly the way I envisioned it.Sure I hit a few small speed bumps along the way(like accidentally sewing my lining pieces the opposite way the first time around), but surprisingly I managed to not make any major mistakes! Also, I just have to add...why in the heck have I been skipping the lining step in my dresses?! This is a mistake that I probably will not make again, not only does it make the dress look/feel better when I wear it, it was only a few extra minutes to sew up the duplicate bodice and sew it on! So for all you non-liners out there, give it a shot...it is definitely worth it!!

                                                               Seriously, Look at all that lovely 50's-esque poof going on here!!!

***Super Happy Fun Update*** 

I have some fun things that I will be adding to my blog in the upcoming days/weeks. I am going to be adding some themed days as well as one project/tutorial a week. I finally will have some free time to commit to this blog on a more regular basis and I intend to do so with Gusto!!

So for all of you out there reading today I just want to say, Take the plunge and give something new a try...you might just like the results! Remember... A little silliness never hurt anyone, Strive to be healthier in your own skin, and keep being amazing!