I Made A Hat, The Last of My Steam Punk Costume

  So I am very proud of myself.  I made a hat.  All by myself.  Well okay I didn't actually make one, so much as alter one. And trust me I wanted to make one, but looking on line there were lots of ways to make one.  And they all seemed really complicated.  And after the issues I had with making my spats, I was not going to have any of it.  So I just decided to alter a hat.
 Just to give you an idea, this is for my steam punk costume.  Here is my last post about my costume.

This is the hat I started with, I got it at party city.  I forgot to take a picture so took this one off their site.  Imagine that is me, she is almost as hot as me.

  I first had bought these little plastic hats at the dollar store.  But they were flimsy and I wanted to have the hat on clips so it would stay in my hair.  So as soon as the party store started bringing out their Halloween things I grabbed the cheapest mini hat I could.  Now cheap it was not, I paid almost $15 for this sucker.  And I sort of kick myself, but at the same time, I knew it was the only way without actually having to try and make one.  And that would have ended up costing me more I bet.  So I got it.  I also went to Micheal's and got a feather patch thingy, you know like the ones that were all the rage on head bands for a while?  Well I got that in a nice brown colour and I was all set.

I thought I took a better picture but obviously not, so here is my hat, from the side.  I love it!

  I really only had one shot at this as I was almost out of fabric for my costume.  I had actually ruined a good deal of it trying to make Hubby a vest.  I failed miserably at it.  Could have something to do with the fact I did most of it while watching TV, but who really can say, right?

  So to start I had to cut off the crappy flower and netting that was on the hat already.  And it was hot glued to that sucker good.  I was so nervous that I was going to rip the hat.  It was only thick cardboard from what I could tell.  So I got that off then I had to think about how to put the fabric on.  I didn't want a plain smooth hat, I wanted it to look more rich.  Not sure how to explain what I wanted, but I got it.  So it's all good.

This is just a bunch of watch parts and a few Tim Holtz gears.

  To start I cut out a huge circle of fabric, one that would be big enough to cover the whole hat.  Then I took some hot glue and glued the top of the hat to the middle of that circle.  I found that the hot glue really was not sticking that great, so I had to get some fabric glue.  And that worked like a charm.  Once the fabric was set I started to pull the fabric down to have it pleat how I liked and I pushed long sewing pins through the fabric and the hat all around the hat, where the hat band would cover.  I had bent each pin, which was really thick so that it would not come back out.  Then I glued the fabric down over the top of the brim, all the way around using cloths pegs to hold it to dry.

I am mad at myself for not being neater with the glue as you can see it a bit on the brim, but what can you do, I won't see it when I am wearing it, so that is all that really matters right?

  Once that was dry I started gluing the fabric down over the brim, to cover the bottom.  Again I used glue and cloths pegs to hold it all together while it dried.  After it dried I went back and glued down any bits that had not been secured.  Then I took a thick ribbon I had bought before to use on the costume and glued that around the hat, holding it with another thick pin.

  Once that was dry, I used some more fabric glue and painted it around the pins, on the inside of the hat.  This way they would be stable, then I took my jewelry cutters and cut the pins so they were still holding the hat and fabric, but they were now not long and did not pose any stabbing issues.

  So once I did that I glued on the feather bunch over the ribbon where the ribbon seam was.  Looking back I should have sewed it on a bit too.  More on that later.  So I did that and then set to work making a charm to go on the hat.

  I have this bag of old watch parts so I just started with a big watch face and added some of the large Tim Holtz gears I had, then I just kept gluing parts on, I was trying to get some height out of it.  So I did that and left it so set.

These are the clips that came on the hat, so I hope it holds, I  may need a liter of hair spray, or something.

  Once it was set I glued it onto the hat.  And I was thrilled.  So I showed Pork Chop who wanted to try it on, and I let him, so I could take a picture for Facebook.  Then he dropped it and the watch parts almost fell off.  So I ended up adding lots more glue.  Then I went back and sewed a few stitches through the feathers and the watch parts to make it more sturdy.

  Over all I love it, I just don't know how to wear it, my hair is kind of short, so I have to think of a way to wedge it on my head some how, I just think it is the cutest hat ever.

  So there you go, and I promise to share pictures from Halloween, we will see how it all goes.

I'll be like a little mad hatter, just cooler.

Steam Punk Outfit, Part 3, All Done

I hate having my picture taken.  And this is why, I look stupid.

  Okay, so  it's done.  Well as done as it's going to be.  I mean, I cannot do any more to it.  I am not thrilled with everything, but until I actually get a free month this is how it's going to be. And I cannot believe I am putting this on the web, because that means it's going to be there forever.  When I am 75 I am going to be all "look hardly any wrinkles."  So I am doing this for the future me.  

  Your welcome future me.

  And if you have not read my first two posts, go take a look here and here.  I can wait.

  So here is what I did , and some pictures for you all to see.  Then some more of me in it all.  It was super hot and I got dressed and ran to the back yard and got Hubby to take some pictures.  But I was all "I don't want anyone to see me."  Then my jack ass of a Hubby told me the neighbor totally saw me.  I wanted to smack him, but it was too hot. So I pouted and that is why I look so bad.  

  Well at least that is my story, and I'm sticking to it.

  So anyway here is what I did, and what not.

  So my parasol, I love it!

This is how it looks all closed up.

And this is how it started out.

And this it the tea, I made like 10 bags in like 1 cup of hot water.

I am so happy with how this turned out.  And try to ignore Hubby's foot, I was out of my outfit when I remembered I forgot to get a picture.

These are the sponges I used to make the circles.  I just used metallic paint and these .

 I so wanted a parasol after seeing these on clockwork couture.  I found a white wedding parasol on a craigslist type site for $10.  It was very white, but I figured I could fix that.  It was a sort of waxy paper.  So I thought the best and cheapest way to do it would to be tea staining.  Now I have never done this before, ever.  I just read about these things then pretend I know what I am doing.  So I brewed a few tea bags and then tried to paint the parasol.  The first batch was too weak, so I brewed about 10 tea bags in about 1 cup of water and let it really set.  Then once it was done I used a small foam paint brush to paint the whole thing. I would paint it then let it dry for about 15 minutes then go do another layer.  I think I ended up doing 5 layers in total, until I felt it was aged looking enough. 

  Then I wanted to do some black swirls but my plan to use an ink pad didn't work so I used these Martha Stewart sponges and some metallic paint.  I just sort of put them on and I love how it turned out.  I don't think I will bring it to the expo, I want my hands free for shopping you know.

   Then I finished my under dress, I wanted a shirt, but a shirt that would not ride up.  So I made this. It is actually from a pattern for an Alice in Wonderland costume, I just did it in plain white.  It is very super thin fabric and it's great.  At first I hated it, because it was so thin, but it will be perfect.

So this is it, see how see through that is?  If I was hot I wouldn't care, but you have seen me.  No one wants to see that in a see through outfit.

You cannot see but there are the cutest buttons, and I have a tie that I made and wore for my pitcures.

So here it is with my skirts and belt.  I am torn about the belt.

  So I liked how it looked but really didn't love the belt any more, I mean it looks good, but I am rolly and polly and wanted more shape.  So I found a site on line that sells nothing but corsets, and they were cheap.  I may have actually found some for $30 in a store and decided I didn't like how they looked once I got them home.  But after shipping it was just $30 for this black one.  And it said it was steel boned, but it isn't so I can breath and it gives me a little shape.  Not much, but you know better than nothing.

And all together, that belt does make it look nice and slim, I will not be so lucky when  and if I wear it.

This is me wearing the jacket and purse.

So here is the corset I got, I like how it gives me a bit of  a shape.  And I hate pictures of me, sigh.

And you can see my goggles, nothing great, I just spray painted them and put stuff that looked steam punky on them.  I wanted to make a top hat too, but you know how I feel about actually doing things.

This is how the back looks I think if I had Hubby help me tie it up it would look better, but I am still happy.

I am not 100% about my spats, but I think they look okay.

And my watch and my simple ring.

  So that is all for me, I am sort of worried about wearing it, as Hubby has no idea what he wants to be and I think we have like 5 weeks until we are going.  Sigh, watch me not even wear it.  I will kill him.

  And I am almost done my vacation so I am writing this sitting in bed while trying to stay awake.  I think I need to work, it keeps me focused.  And yes I cannot believe I said that either.


I am linking up Here and Here

My Steam Punk Outfit, part 2

This is one of my better pictures, which is sort of sad if you ask me.

  So I posted a while back about how Hubby is a comic book nerd.  And I also posted about how I have to support him in all things, as that is what a good wife does.  This led me to the problem of how to make supporting his nerdiness fun for me.  I found a way, because you knew I would, and I shared about it a bit here before.  And that post also became my second most viewed post to date, which is crazy!  You all are fun!

These are my cute boots, they have a low heal and they zip up on the inside so I don't have to untie them, thank goodness!  Also ignore my horrible basement walls, I try to.

  So in the last post I shared how I had made my skirt, jacket, belt and purse.  Well not really shared, I just showed you pictures of how they are looking and told you lots of details, because I forgot to take pictures.  This should not surprise you, I get in the zone and just go.  So this time is no different, be warned.

  Firstly I wanted to share the cool boots I am planning to wear.  I say planning because knowing my luck after an hour in them my feet will hurt, but I have high hopes at least.  I had planned to wear my paddock boots, you know those riding boots that are short and lace up.  Only because they sort of looked like something that would go with my outfit.  But, they are really big now, when I lost weight I lost about 1 shoe size.  Not a big deal when riding, but walking for a while in them is not the most comfy thing.  So I went on line and googled and what not, and everything I found was costly or not available here or whatever.  Then I found some cute things on pintrest which brought me to Clockwork Couture.  I was so excited to find these boots, for the price and shipping cost how could I not be.  And they also had lots of other stuff I wanted, but you know, one thing at a time right?

Okay, so it is really dark, but these are my spats, those are gears in real button holes, which I will never do again.

  So I got my boots, and I had big plans to make spats.  I had this vision in my head of spats that would match my outfit, but the buttons would be huge gears.  So again off to google I went and found this info on a site called Thread Banger.  I watched it a few times and felt confident with a few adjustments I could so do it.  So I did, I went to work using the green fabric I had and some thick interfacing.  My first attempt turned out okay, they were not perfect, but you know not horrible either.  Until I went to put button holes in them.  I spent like an hour putting button holes in, then sat down to use my seam ripper to open them up.  But the fabric was bulky and layered because I messed them up.  Then it happened, my seam ripper slipped and I ripped one of the spats in half.  I was done, so I packed it up to try again another time. Also I may have cut my finger too.  Just so you have some sympathy for me. I physically hurt myself to help support Hubby.  (That should count for something.)

  I got back to it a few weeks later and took my time.  I measured much better, ended up having to put a bit of a pleat in to make sure they fit better, and I did my button holes again.  My mom told me to put a pin at the end of the button hole and that would stop the seam ripper from going too far.  And it worked.  Then I lined up my gears and sewed them on.  At this point I will say, I would not do them this way again, because unless your dumb like me, you would have realized how hard it would be to put gears, which have all these bits poking out, into a button hole.  So whatever, it works, but I will try to put them on then slide them down over the boot.  So once the gears were on I attached some elastic under neath it to hold them in place a bit.  And I was never so glad to be done with something in a long time.

Okay it seems my basement does not allow for good pictures, or my whole house for that matter.  I spent I swear like 20 minutes taking pictures and these are the best ones.  I hate that!

  Next I wanted to show you my super easy earrings.  I just found two matching watch gears and stuck them onto some earring backings.  I know; I must be a genius right?  Well no, a genius would have taken the stupid pin in the middle of the gear out so they lay flat, but whatever, I am hard core steam punk, we like pins in our gears.  ( And yes, I fully admit to having no clue about steam punk, other than it looks cool.)


  I have plans to make a sort of tie for my shirt so I figure I needed a tie tack.  And I found a really nice gear and stuck that to another earring blank, because I am too lazy to try and find a real tie tack blank.  It will work, or at least it better.

Okay this is the best out of like 20 pictures, this gear has watch writing on it, and I promise a better picture when I get it outside.

Then I also added this cute key charm I found at Michael's to my pocket watch full of gears, we can say it is the key to my air ship.  Because that is so something a real steam punk person would say, right?  I know, I'm still not cool.

I showed you the watch before, but I added the key.  And see that cool book, it is not a book, it is a box!  How cool is that, I got a few different ones to put my steam punk stuff in when I am done.

See how cool is that?

  So that is just a short update as to what I have been working on.  I have started and almost finished my under dress blouse thingy, sort of worried how it will turn out as the fabric is a bit thin.  And I might add, according to the stupid pattern I am a size 18.  I usually wear a 12.  So that pissed me off, and made me eat lots and lots of chocolate.  Which you cannot blame me for, I have a size 18 to fit into now. But it is almost done, so pictures of that and the rest soon.

  I also scored a huge lot of watch parts to use to make my goggles, I just have to get the sewing done so I have room to spread out my stuff.

  Also I saw on Clockwork Couture that they had these really cute parasols, and they totally rock.  So I wanted one of course.  And of course I am not to be spending money, so I went on Kijiji which is like craigslist, and found a white one for $10,  so I have plans to age it and make it awesome.  Or ruin it, one or the other, who can really say how it will all go down right?

 So we are getting there, and Hubby still hasn't picked an outfit, he has been warned that the lion costume may be what he has to wear if he does not decide.  That would be awesome! I always wanted to own a lion.

Okay, not really.

Now for Something Totally Different - Part One of my Steam Punk Outfit

  

Try to ignore the stuff all around, I was sprawled out on the sofa trying to get the whole dress in the shot. 

So this is going to be a bit of a different post, it is going to be all about my new obsession.  I get obsessions frequently then have to deal with them right away, or I lose interest.  I know, lame but I can admit it.  My newest love is Steam Punk, and by love I mean, I want to be part of it, but I am not totally engrossed in it and can totally admit I am only doing it because I love the look.  So, please bear with me if you find yourself rolling your eyes and going, "what was she thinking?"  Because clearly I don't even know what I am thinking.

  So here goes!

 I read a little blog, you may have heard of it.  Cake Wrecks, it is a hilarious blog written by a lovely girl and her hubby.  They basically post pictures of cakes that are just horrific.  I mean you cannot even tell what some of them are supposed to be, and then the ones with spelling mistakes, just kill me.  I had and still have a slight fear that any of the cakes I have ever made might show up.  But I figure, at least I can claim to be famous if it ever happened.  

 So while reading this blog I noticed that the writer also had another blog, Epbot.  So when I found it I spent hours reading and thinking, how cool.  I mean my husband is a total comic book nerd, and I love him.  And I loved all the cool things this girl was making and doing.  How perfect.

I think it looks so good, but then the dress form is not all lumpy and bumpy like me.  So it may not have the same affect when I put it on.

  Then I saw the posts of her going to conventions and all the fun things people made to wear.  And I told Hubby and said maybe we should go to a convention.  He was all "Really?  That would be so cool!"  Then I told him we had to dress up, he was not so "cool" with that. 

So I said something along the lines of "I am trying to be supportive of your geeky interests and the least you could do would be to wear a totally amazing outfit to match me."

Then he said something about maybe being Green Lantern and I tuned him out.  I mean if I make something he will have to wear it.  Ask him about the lion costume I made him and he didn't want to wear.  He wore it, I mean I used fun fur, that stuff is annoying, so he had to.

This is a close up of the side, in case you couldn't tell.

Okay so long story short, (I know, that ship has sailed.) I decided I wanted to be a hot steam punk chick.  Then I realized I am like 5 foot nothing, so the hot part was out.  And I am more of a gal than a chick.  But none the less, I got started.  And I kept telling myself to take pictures as I was going, and of coarse because I was usually sewing, baking and watching TV all at the same time, there are no in progress pictures.  Sorry, but you get to see this, and you just read like the longest intro ever, so it sort of works out.

 To start I had a picture in my mind of what I wanted.  I wanted a longer skirt with an over skirt and a bustle, then a matching bolero and boots with spats and a purse and a hat or goggles and you know everything.  So I checked out the local fabric store and was thrilled to learn that there was a buy 1 metre get 2 free.  It was fate I tells ya!

I am so in love with the fabrics, except for the stupid plaid that keeps fraying and leaving bits all over the house.

  I was looking for a large stripe fabric for the under skirt and a solid for the over skirt and jacket.  I was getting really upset because nothing I saw was right or it was way too much.  Then I happened across a really great earthy plaid and a perfect green.  And with all the discounts I got 14 meters of fabric for $50.  Ya me.

  So I first started with the skirt because I figured that if I screwed that up I would stop.  I didn't have a pattern and just sort of went to work.  I started by making the underskirt.  I made large pleats, which I think are called box pleats.  Then I decided that I wanted to add a lower ruffle, but wanted it to be more structured so again I took a long piece of fabric and hemmed one side then box pleated it and added it to the bottom of my skirt.  Then I stopped, because it was really full and annoying to deal with.  I asked my mom to borrow her sewing dummy so I could pin it up and that was just perfect.

Close up of the pleats, which I think are called box pleats, I just sort of took a ruler and pinned it how I liked it.

You can sort of see how the front over skirt and the bustle are stuck on there, all willy  nilly.  But I love it, sort of.

My mom got this dummy years ago, I think she may have even used it once, so I was all excited when I got it home and set up.  Until I started measuring it and myself.  I had to let the dials out all the way and even then the butt was not exactly big enough.  Then I felt fat for a few days and then I got over it.  Sort of.

  So I pinned my underskirt onto the dummy and went to work draping the solid fabric on top to make an over skirt.  I pinned it to get it to lay how I wanted then I folded it in half and cut it sort of in a semi circle, then I went ahead and box pleated a strip to edge it to match the underskirt.  Then I sewing it on, gathering it at the sides so it sort of gathered up.  I was so excited and I loved it.  At this point I left it to make a jacket and a purse, because I had patterns and that was going to be way easier

I put the over skirt on first then the bustle, and the bustle just overlaps the front skirt.

  So when I got back to the skirt I took a long piece of fabric and hemmed three sides, I put a slit right in the middle where the zipper was going to go then pinned it to the waste of the skirt.  Once I had sewn it I started to tack and pin the bustle until I got the shape I wanted.  I am still not 100% happy with it, but it's not bad.  then I took a long strip and sewed on a waist band, folded it over and hand sewed it to finish it.  Then I put it on my dummy and thought, wow she's hot.  I still have to add the hook on the back but that can wait.

I totally got something like my finger in the bottom of this picture, but I didn't realize it until after I uploaded it.  Also I am not 100% on the way my bustle is gathered, but I did it like 5 times, so I may take it out again.  Sigh.

My jacket is just perfect, it will allow me to cover my non existent boobs and you know, it will keep me warm.  Two important things.

I flipped the collar a bit so you could see the lining. I am fancy like that.

I also made a jacket, I wanted something with shorter sleeves as I get hot and I also wanted it to be simple.  I found a historical costume pattern at the fabric store and set to work.  The jacket was lined and I was totally not going to bother, but then I thought it would be cute so I did.  I made it in about 5 hours, but I was watching Dexter with Hubby and would pin and then stop the show to sew a seam then pin some more.  I bet if I had just sat down to do it it would have been a 2 hour job at most.  I love how the pleat under the bust makes it hug my curves.  And by curves you all know I mean my flab right?  Well you do now.

 So once I was done with the jacket I wanted a corset.  Can I say right now that if I had $300 I would so buy one, there are so many nice steam punk ones on line that I drool over.  Also it would so suck in my curves (flab) and make me look way hotter.  But as I am not supposed to spend more than  I already have I had to make it and much simpler too.

  I found another historical pattern that had a corset like belt and a cute purse and arm guard thingies. I don't think I need arm guard thingies, but if I do, I can totally make them now.  So I bought some brown pleather to match the boots I got, and I had to repeatedly tell the lady at the fabric store that yes I knew what I was doing, no I did not want velvet and yes I know I am not hiding the seems and no I do not want to try it your way.  And no I am not worried that over stitching on pleather will look bad.  I had a pattern it was going to work. 

My belt, it ties at four points and looks great on the dress form who has abs of steal, my flab my not be so flattering in it.

 So I got my pleather cut out and went to work ironing it to double sided fusing.  Which didn't work because that fusing was a pain in the butt.  If you did not heat it enough it would not stick if you heated it just a little too much it would not stick. I even called the store and then got mad because I was on a roll and did not want to go out again.  So I just sort of ironed and changed the lining fabric and figured I was going to sew the pieces together anyway so whatever.  I sewed the pieces together then over stitched them all, and they looked awesome.  I then used fabric stiffener to seal the edges as the lining fabric frayed like crazy.  There are bits of it all over my house.  If I bothered to vacuum that would not be an issue.  And I don't vacuum so you know, we are dealing with it.

  I needed eyelets but the size they recommended were not at the store, and they wanted like $4 for 10, and I needed 40, so I went on Etsy and totally scored 100 in the right size and perfect colour for under $7 shipped.  When I was ready I marked the pieced with a pin mark and cut out the holes with my cropodile.  I then set the eyelets and tied it all together with some cording I bought.  I am happy with how it looks, it won't suck me in but for the $15 I probably paid for all the stuff, you cannot complain too much.

I put a gear on it to use as a button so that totally makes it steam punk.  Or so I have been told.

 I also wanted a purse because if my Hubby is going to be wearing a skin tight Green Lantern costume (Oh boy will I post pics!) I need something to carry my phone (totally historically correct by the way) and money  ( I hear there may be shopping at these conventions, so you now know the real reason I want to go)  It is fully lined so it is nice and sturdy and the ribbon ties it closed.  I used a gear from the Tim Holtz set I got at the craft store.  It is not huge but it will work for what I need.

And lastly I also made my steam punk pocket watch.  Because if there is one thing I know, if you put a gear on it you can call it steam punk.  Totally making reference to a funny you tube video someone sent me about it. So I used like a million little gears.  I won this Tim Holtz pocket watch embellishment thingy on another blog. And I was so excited, then it arrived and there was a crack in the glass, due to the cold weather probably, I was so bummed.  But then I thought that just makes it look cooler right?  I wanted watch gears but they were costly, so I ended up finding some on Etsy for about $12.  I used a lot of them, but I also made earrings and a tie pin. So this was so random, I put in a few large gears that are also Tim Holtz  in the bottom, then with clear adhesive stuff and tweezers just sort of started sticking the gears in all willy nilly.  I like how it looks and it will go great with my outfit.  I attached it to a chain and clips I got at wal mart and will hang it off the ties on my belt.

My watch full of gears.

Okay so that was the worlds most wordy blog post ever, but seeing as I didn't take any progress pictures you need my amazing words to understand what the heck I was doing.  Also the shirt on the dummy is just so you can see the stuff, it all sort of blended with the dummy. I have plans to make a nice white blouse with a skirt for under the dress.  I still have spats to make and a tie. And the local hard ware store is ordering me some welding goggles and I have some itty bitty plastic top hats to maybe cover in fabric.  I have my jewelry ready so I can share that next.  

So now you can see why my Hubby loves me, I support his nerdiness, and have fun in the process.

I have another secret project I have to finish in the next few months, so I will get back to this and the finishing touches in a while, but wanted to share what I had done so far.

I'm linking up here at Made Famous By.