I'm In a Treasury (or Two or Three)!

A Coupon!

If there is a belly dance veil in my Etsy store that you've had your eye on for awhile, now's the time to buy! I just posted a coupon to my Twitter feed (see the right hand column). It's only good until September 30 (Friday!), so don't delay!

And yes, you could also use it on the medieval gown I have for sale. Wouldn't that be a steal?

My Shiny Dell Mini

So I was playing around on my new Cricut and made some vinyl decals for my brother, who is the browncoat who spotted Miranda on the new Star Tours ride. I did a few extras for myself, and dressed up my little pink laptop a bit. I think it's super cute, and it's a great barometer of people's taste. I get two reactions--either "Do you speak Chinese?" or "Hey, are you a Firefly fan?"

Why yes, yes I am a fan. And I only know swear words in Chinese. =)

A Medieval Gown, For Sale on Etsy

This is a one-of-a-kind, ready to ship, fabulous medieval gown. I don't sell costumes very often, so snatch this one up while you have the chance! Click on any of the pictures to see them full-size. To purchase this gown, visit my Etsy store.

It's of a stunning mid-weight burgundy upholstery fabric with a gorgeous sheen--it used to have a watermark design in it, but I washed the fabric before sewing it and most of the design washed out. (Yes, this costume is machine washable!)

Gold metallic embroidery encircles the neckline and both wrists, and I finished them off with a hand sewn gold metallic bias tape binding for a bit of bling. Bright gold two-piece machine set grommets run down the back and are laced with a gold cord. A simple double strand knotted metallic gold cord belt draws the gown in to fit you perfectly!

Speaking of fit, medieval gowns from this era are not traditionally form fitting. My dressform is set to a 37 inch bustline, 29 inch waistline, and a 37 inch hip line. As you can see, this isn't tight fitting, and by leaving a gap in the lacing it could fit a variety of sizes. I included underarm gussets for ease of movement and visual interest. The sleeves are made overlong, so they should just reach your knuckles and gather beautifully along your lower arms.

The skirt flares out from the hip line from four inset gussets. This makes the skirt unbelievably full! It is also overlong, in the medieval style, so you can pick it up and walk princess-like or let it pool around your feet. The hemline is serged and double turned--you can leave it long, or have a local seamstress hem it up for you if you'd prefer to have it floor length.

Although this is based on a historical t-tunic pattern, there are some decidedly non-historic aspects to it. The metallic machine embroidery, metallic bias tape, and metal grommets are definitely not authentic to the time period. The seams are also serged for durability. (Can I do historically accurate? You bet. But I chose not to for this one.)

If you're looking for a stunning Halloween costume or a head-turning Ren-Faire outfit, this is it! Transform yourself into Rapunzel, Maid Marian, or Guinevere for the evening! Or add a pair of fairy wings and be the prettiest girl in the realm of the fae!

A Zumba Fairy Costume. . .

I got an interesting request last month--my sister is a Zumba fan and her instructor was going to a convention and needed a costume for a party they have there. She had three requirements--it had to be white (to glow under black lights), it needed to look good with a set of fairy wings, and it needed to be funky and floaty.

My first thought was a handkerchief skirt, so that's where I started--two layers, one of a sparkled bridal fabric, and the second of a polysilk. But then I needed something else underneath it, since as soon as you spin in a handkerchief skirt it goes flying. Really flying. (And leaving little to the imagination if you aren't wearing something underneath.)

So taking my inspiration from those wrap pants you see everywhere in the Caribbean, I fashioned some funky bloomers out of the polysilk and integrated them into the skirt. So the bottom layer you see is actually the points of those wraparound bloomers. I put the whole thing on an elastic casing, because I hate fighting tons of layers and making sure nothing is slipping or showing when I'm dancing. I then took some scraps of the organza and serged the edges to make some cute spiraled accents that I could layer on top (the organza is a separate skirt, since it's dry clean only.) Voila! One funky, floaty, fairy skirt.

On top is a simple peasant blouse out of the same polysilk, with slits up the sleeves (oh yes, her face and shoulders were also going to be painted so they needed to show--so I guess that was the fourth requirement). I had this leather obi belt in my stash to tie it all together. I think it turned out pretty cute. I may whip up another one of these fairy skirts in a bit longer length to wear to belly dance class--I hate wearing a ton of layers when it's summer, and the breezy design would keep you comfy while you dance!

Click on the photo to see it much bigger if you'd like to see the costume's details.

Any interest in me adding these skirts to my Etsy store inventory?

My Absence, and My New Goal: I Need a Sewing Room!

Part of the issue with my absence the last year (aside from just too many projects, too little time) is that I moved. My sewing room is in a corner of an unfinished basement. And the sink in my kitchen is WHITE. Ack. A tie dyer's worst nightmare!

Veils have been on hold, sewing has been on hold, everything's been a bit packed away and forgotten. That's been bad news for those of you who needed veils during the past year, so my apologies. The good news is that I have a lovely unfinished basement with room for a sewing room AND a shop for doing all of my dye experiments in. (With a stainless sink, of course.) But it's going to take some work. So in order to make that crafty dream come true, I'm doing some massive projects in the coming weeks. This includes a lot of veils, but more importantly, a lot of costumes.

I don't usually post my costumes for sale, I know. But I'm gearing up for Halloween, and relentlessly raiding my fabric stash, so now is the time for you all to take advantage of my temporary lapse in sanity. =) Now this isn't a you-send-me-your-measurements-and-I-stress-like-crazy bunch of costumes. Right now I'm planning on offering them in pretty standard sizes (the 36-28-38 and 38-30-40 ranges) and hoping they'll fit the majority of the people interested. If you are interested in one in a different size let me know ASAP and I may be able to work it in.

So what do I have in the works?

A burgundy medieval gown with gold embroidery at the neckline and wrists. It laces up the back with gold grommets and has a skirt you wouldn't believe! (Obviously, not SCA-style with the machine embroidery and grommets, but based on a medieval pattern.) This one is almost done and will likely be posted for sale first.

Arwen's farewell dress from Lord of the Rings. Yes, this is the one I posted pictures of here ages ago. My friend jokes that it's really not a costume, just a decoration for my dress form. It's finally getting finished! I need to add the collar and sleeves on, finish the under dress and sash, and this one will be ready to go. The bonus with this one is that the under dress will be a stand alone princess-seamed purple gown that you can wear on its own--so you'll be getting two gowns for the price of one.

The blue gown from the new Red Riding Hood movie. I loved the costumes from this one, and I have the perfect worn-looking blue cotton for her dress. I have some red that may work for her cape but it's silky, not wool. (Do you really want to wear wool to a party anyway?)

Belle's gown from Beauty and the Beast. I have two different fabrics to work with, so I may do two. One is a beautiful heavy daffodil yellow watermark fabric, the other is a lightweight faux silk in a brighter golden yellow. I may kick myself for even attempting these, but we'll see how it goes.

Steampunk outfits! Oh my goodness, do I have a beautiful new pattern that I can't wait to try out. A long flowing coat, a smart bustier, and bloomers! (Come on, do you really want to wear a long skirt? You have to show off your cute shoes!) I have enough fabric to potentially make four different outfits, with the following for the coat material:

• Plum microsuede
• Grey microsuede
• Olive microsuede
• Brown pleather (but a gorgeous pleather!)
  

A handful of Regency dresses. There are a few casual day dresses, but also a couple of absolute stunners for your next ball. One is out of a beaded sari from India that is going to be fabulous! These will be based on Sense & Sensibility's historical patterns.

A couple of flirty overdresses. Picture a Renaissance style bodice with a poofy loopy skirt. Perfect for ANYTHING--a pirate, a fairy, a wench--you name it, this is the most versatile costume piece you'll ever own.

Eep! Not quite sure I'll make it, but that's the current plan. Follow me on Twitter if you want to be the first to know when each one is posted for sale! (http://twitter.com/dintarmawen)

Potato Chip Hats!

This semester I had the opportunity to teach my first 4H class! Called Costuming for Beginners, we learned about everything from figure drawing to basic sewing. We did a brief overview of historical fashion from Egyptian to modern day, and did a bunch of fun projects. The kids were great, and it was an excellent experience for me too!

At our parent night, I had one of my colonial dresses on display. I had a request for some instructions for a colonial hat, from the sister of one of our students who needed something for a school project.

I like to call these potato chip hats, because they resemble a Pringle perched at a jaunty angle on your head. =) So, if you'd like some instructions on how to make one, here is a handout I put together with some basic instructions.

Stay tuned for another method for potato chip hat making--involving placemats and IKEA! Will it work? I'm not sure. In the meantime, happy snacking. . .um. . .millinery!