I Don't Much Like Bright Shiny Obj - Oh Look!! Some Glitter!!!

Really.  You won't often find me wearing much of anything bright and shiny, other than a bit of jewelry, perhaps a touch of metallic thread - I'm just a bit more of the earth than I am of the stars.   Except for those times when my mind is wandering through the galaxies, but that's another matter....

But still.  How easy it can be to get distracted by the glittery baubles that jump into our path, squealing "Look at me!  Pet Me!  Touch me!   Sew with me!"  Right?   Not that I ever actually bought and sewed with any of it, that is....until.... A friend asked me to make her a flashy, over-the-top, steampunk bustle.   And then another one.   And my little Etsy shop was born.  And even though I will likely never wear this sort of flash, sometimes it's just flat out FUN sewing with the metallic, the shiny, the polyester and velvet and tulle and sparkles.   And although I've never before been much of a fan of raw edges in garments, with the bustles and costumes I'm really feeling a penchant for slicing and dicing and shredding and letting the raw edges flit and fray and live their own life...

One bonus of sewing with fabrics like this is that people often end up with them in their stash and have nothing to make with them - sometimes it's a "What was I thinking?!" matter, sometimes it's just leftovers from a costume or some other project - whatever the reason, my darling friends find a bit of glitter in their stash, think of me, and say "Aha!  It's bustle material!  Dump it on give it to Jilly Be!  And I happily fondle it, knowing I have material for another over-the-top concoction that I get to dream up :)

Here's my latest creation, custom made for a client who is making articulated fairy wings (!) to go with it.

Back view, inside and outside - This one is reversible!:

Side View:

Once I (thought I) was done with the new client's bustle, she asked me to embellish a bra that was to be part of her costume.   Oh goodie!  More flash and glitter!   I thought this would be a simple fix.  Hah!   (Note to Self:  Do NOT, repeat NOT, agree to work on someone else's sewn item before you've had a chance to actually inspect it.)   After replacing the nasty, scratchy, el cheapo ties on the original bra, and then repairing the poorly sewn beads, (all of which took WAY longer than my embellishing!) I was finally able to get to the fun stuff.   Here's the result:  (Note:  my dress form is about 2....or 3....sizes larger than the client)

The client is going to add the wings, which she is making herself.   She has promised me pictures, and I hope I'll have permission to show y'all the completed costume!

How fun can sewing be, eh?   Now it's back to more practical stuff   (i.e., sewing for moi...)   Oh, and a gift for a special someone - another creative and too-much-fun goody, I hope!

Can you tell that sometimes I just love to sew?  ;-D

Oh, and by the way, in case you're wondering about that friend who got me started on the bustle-making, she wears hers to steampunk events, where she sells her art - the most amazingly awesome snowglobes you have ever seen!   I DO hope you get a chance to see them in person, but in the meantime, here's second best, a link to her website, Camryn Forrest Designs

Bustles! Times Two. And Stuff...

I've been sewing, but I have more half-finished pieces than finished to show for it.   Part of the reason is that ... (insert drum roll please) ... I received my first actual real-life honest-to-goodness Etsy order from a total stranger!   Out of the blue, unexpected!   Seriously, I had a couple of photos of finished steampunk bustles listed on Etsy as possible "Custom Orders"  (i.e., I'll make one similar to this in your color choice).  The only reason I had them up was to keep my shop viable until I was ready to actually start making stuff.   Sort of like a "Coming Soon" sign in a shop window.

I didn't expect anyone to actually ORDER one from me!

But someone did.

And wouldn't you know it, it was a "rush" order.   To be shipped to Australia.

So, in between a busy work week, my cat shredding both hands with another biting episode (my poor hands...yes, it was, and still is, a big "OUCH!", and poor kitty....this was the final signal that he HAS to get to the vet to find out what's going on with him - I just pray that it's a) curable and not too serious, and b) not going to break the bank [gulp]), settling my new housemate in (all is going very well on that front), moving through another episode with a damaged rib, and, well, life...... I made this:

for a delightful-sounding young woman in Oz, who is dressing up in a Harlequin costume for her birthday, and loved my "Tattered Series" Etsy bustle.  She gave me her wish list (including a matching neck ruffle), we struck a deal, and I got a real customer for my pretend store!

I also finished a reversible bustle - this was another one made for a friend - and I think I may have another viable concept for those traveling bustle-wearers who would like two options in one piece of clothing :)

Bustle Back - tattered side and smooth side

Side View - Tattered and Smooth options

I also went to TWO (2) gatherings with local sewists!  At my TNT group, BABES, I thought I was doing a GREAT job of clutter-clearing when I took a large box of patterns and fabrics to re-home, but I ended up filling the box to the brim and bringing home lots of shiny, satiny, bustley potentials!   So much for clutter.....  You know what one of the wonderful side effects of  making these sorts of goodies is?  It opens up a whole NEW WORLD of fabric possibilites!   All of the sequins and glitters  and polyesters and taffetas that never got a second glance from me before are now turning my head and actually making me go "squeeeee" with delight!   Who knew?  Then I was a guest at another gathering of incredible sewists - what fun it is to meet the many creative and talented people who abound in this area - sometimes I feel so utterly blessed.  :)  Although I have to admit that, when my "show and tell" items were passed around the room, I found myself cringing more than a little when I realized the scrutiny these talented ladies were subjecting my stitching to.   [gulp]

And then, to top it all off, I was browsing through Stonemountain on Saturday (I can't seem to drive within 10 blocks of it without my car finding its way to a nearby parking spot and pulling in.....) and I heard a familiar laugh coming from the next room ... and there was shams, with Elizabeth of Sewn, and Steph of The Dashing Eccentric.   Two more new sewists!  What a full and delightful week it's been.

Except for the cat thing.

Hope those of you U.S.'ers who had the luxury of a long vacation weekend enjoyed every moment of it :)  Oh heck, whether you had a long weekend or a short one, and wherever you live, hope you're enjoying your weekend and/or your week.  Let's all count our blessings. :)

And forgive our cats.

Justine - The Tattered Steampunk Bustle

Bustle-making is still fun!  Here's Justine, my second fancy lady:

She had her public debut at the Cañada College Blogger get-together, where she was well-received, then she went up in my Etsy shop (which is still too empty to link to here), and she will soon be winging her way to her new owner!

Here's Stella the Sassy Steampunk Bustle being worn:

I'll keep making bustles as long as it's fun to do, and right now, it is seriously fun!

I seem to have hit a bit of a slump in the self-sewing motivation area, but a dear friend came over with a project for me yesterday (this is someone I owe....BIG time....) so I have a practical project to keep me busy while I search for my personal mojo....I know it hasn't wandered far!

Keep smiling...and feel free to send a few my way; I could use them right now...  :)

Stella the Sassy Steampunk Bustle

A good friend, who shows her (amazing!) art wares at steampunk events,  asked me if I would be willing to make her a bustle.   Hmmmmm......   She said she would send me all of the materials, and give me total freedom to do anything I wanted with them - the wilder, funkier, and crazier, the better! With terms like that, how could I resist?  And as she says, she "wanted the bustle to wear at art festivals since a drab artist is no fun at all."  Here is her website, Camryn Forrest Designs - she makes the most unique and intricate and beautiful waterglobes/snowglobes/art creations - each one is an experience!  She has an Etsy Shop as well - Camryn Forrest on Etsy   Check it out!

Since everything I knew about bustles could fit through an eyelet on a corset, I had a bit of research to do.   I had lots of fabulous fantasy pictures rolling around my brain, but construction-wise...hmmmmmm....  I nearly got permanently stalled at step one, how to do the waistband.  Waistband?  Hipband?  Straight?  Curved?  Stretchy material?  Stable?  Would it fit over the corset or under it?  Could I make something that could fit at either the waist or the hip?  What kind of closure?   Once I got through all of that (we decided to do a waistband that would fit over the corset), and I had the band made, the fun began!!!

And oh.  my.  Did I ever have fun with this!

The Evolution:

I wanted to drape a base fabric from the waistband, and figured out how to do this by attaching strips of binding from the band:

There's something just a tad obscene about this pic,
but  you have to start somewhere...

Then attached the base fabric to the waistband

Next I just started draping and pinning and sewing and playing and planning...
and generally staying up way too late having too much fun!  :D

It's starting to take shape..... (everything is just pinned at this point)

In spite of my friend insisting that she would love whatever I did, when you're sewing for someone else....well, you know how it can be....   I was overloading her with pictures, saying, "What about this?  Let me know what you think...too much?  too little?...more of this?   less of that?   She was oohing and ahhing over every little thing I did, and I think that eventually I DID start to believe that she really liked whatever I was doing :D

And.....the completed Stella:  (UPDATE:  Egged on by a comment from Camryn - quote "More is more" /quote, I...welllll....added more :D.   And tweaked a bit here and there, so I'm replacing the formerly finished Stella photos with the really (for now) finished Stella:

Eventually I will (hopefully!) have some pics of Stella being worn in full regalia.  :D

Oh, and I've been talked in to making some more, too.  Twisted my arm, really hard, she did  (not).  ;-D

Hope you're having fun, whatever you're "working" on  in your creative space...... :-)