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The Latest Bag

Here's another version of the two-hour bag I completed yesterday. This is definitely a good start to making my Christmas presents! The top photo is the skirt that the fabric came from. I removed the drawstring from the skirt and used it as the drawstring for the bag.

The Little Shop of Horrors Project: Design

I am in the planning and design phases of the "Little Shop of Horrors Project." My goal is to make the show look very "cartoony" or other worldly, with a 50's flair. I want to use bright bold colors and play with interesting shapes and fabrics with texture.

My thoughts have turned first to Audrey, of course, who will be my most compelling project. I'm thinking at least 4 outfits - two for act one, her "Suddenly Seymour" dress and her nightgown for the end. I think I have come up with a concept for the "Seymour" dress already. It will possibly be a design like this, which is modeled after a dress I saw at a thrift store today (I don't think I've drawn it right; I'll have to work on it a bit):



These are the fabrics I plan to use. I've had them for other projects, but want to use them for this one because they fit perfectly into my concept and I love the bright colors. At first I thought of using the black-with-pink-polka-dots as an overlay, but it takes away from the bright pink of the satin so it's going to be interesting to see what I want to do with it. Suggestions are welcome!

The Two Hour Bag

So after posting before I got a surge of inspiration and wanted to use some fabric scraps to make something new. I am all about using what I have on hand these days, in an effort to save money and it turns out the resources are actually great - old t-shirts, remnants from other projects, notions saved from various locations, etc.

This purse was made out of the fabric scraps from the Messenger Bag and ribbons I saved from Christmas presents. The lining is also leftover from a dress project I did a few months ago, so everything is "recycled!"

Here is the finished product, done in just under two hours! Now that I know how the pattern works, I can probably get this down to an hour and a half. Just think of how many I can get done in one weekend - Christmas will be completely taken care of!






This bag was so easy to put together, I think I'll be hammering out a bunch more over the weekend. There are so many options for combinations... I'll have to do some thinking and playing with fabrics. I have some eyelet and some pink and purple gingham that I think would make a very sweet looking bag. Then there's some leftover crepe-backed satin from a dress project that I could make a fancier purse out of, and I think the black ribbon would be very complimentary. Not to mention, there's always the option of simply making it one block color, which reduces the work involved as it's just a square with a drawstring!

Plans for the Weekend

In an attempt to get the etsy shop up and running, I will be tirelessly making a bunch of bags this weekend. I also want to get a jumpstart on my Christmas gifts, as I've already seen how tired I am going to be this year.

Looks like Fashion Club will not be starting until October, but hopefully I can get it going sooner. I want to begin next Thursday, September 11, so that my crew can get to learn basic sewing on the machines and how to follow a pattern. I can't wait to get the girls (I'm assuming only girls will join this particular club!) going on their collections, but first we have to tirelessly prepare for November's Charity Auction. Best case scenario, we have 30 girls who each make 2 bags. We sell the bags for even just $5 and we've got an awesome cash flow coming in.

Not to be greedy, as I would love to spend the money on charity, but I think we need to put some of it towards the club itself. I don't think the dues will cover all our fabric, notions AND costumes budget for the musical this year.

Preliminary "Little Shop" Planning

I've been collecting images to help me design my "Little Shop of Horrors" Costumes. I'm doing this SO prematurely, but I don't care! I get excited! Anyway, I'm researching old girl groups of the 60's to design the costumes for the doo-wop girls. They will be my favorites, I think. Though I was told we could buy a lot of the costumes, I'm sure I will be ambitious and actually make a lot of them.

Costume Review: Othello

I've decided to add a new feature, since I now just stare at costumes during various movies and productions now. To disclaim a bit, I know virtually NOTHING about historical accuracy or anything, so I'm pretty much just commenting on what I think is pretty or not, or suits the character or not.

This month, I had the pleasure of seeing a production of Othello at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Massachusetts. The performance was very good, but I found myself watching Desdemona's costumes more than the action of the play. The dresses to me were, as far as my historical outfitting knowledge goes, in a Regency/Romantic period style, with high waists and full skirts. However, I was really impressed with the fabrics - all very flowy and drapy, something I am always looking for in a dress! Even her nightgown was really pretty.

I managed to find some pictures that show most of one dress, though I don't think they do it justice.