Wheee! It's a new costuming project!! I knew an interest in bustle dresses would lead me into trouble. Friends, never ever ever mix a bout of Victorian costuming research with a renewed interest in steampunk literature.
I should come equipped with a shock collar for true costuming emergencies.
My latest project idea is to make a steampunk Victorian outfit, something I can wear to Norwescon this year and whatnot. I have an idea of what I want, and at some point in the next few days I'll be sitting down to sketch it out. For now, you get some pictures and a quickie description, mostly so I don't forget when I can finally get the fabric.
Steampunk is really forgiving, in that it takes the basic historic facts and alters them for a more fantasy/science fiction feel. My inspirations have been Mina Harker's black ensemble from League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, bustle dresses from around 1879, and menswear.
I already have the materials to build an hourglass corset. The pattern is the Silverado corset from Farthingale's. The exterior is a green linen-look fabric that will be bound with black bias strips. It will be lined with a plain white cotton coutil and boned with a combination of spring and spiral steel. I'm hoping to get around a 4" compression at the waist with this. The final touch is the soft cream flossing in a feather pattern.
I'm think that I'll layer a white Victorian men's shirt and tie under the corset. I like the higher collars with a modest cravat, or the American Western shirts with a velvet ribbon string tie.
Bottoms will be one of two things. Either a. a modest black underskirt with striped edging or b. a pair of slim black men's trousers. My goal is really to end up with both, so that I can wear whichever strikes my fancy. Rounding it off would be a pair of button boots, or a pair of very tall stompy boots like Hessians or riding boots with buckles.
The overgown will be the fun part. I'm visualizing something that looks much like a women's riding jackt or a man's waistcoat from the front, but that is skirted as a bustle dress in the back so that the "tails" of the coat are swept up into a falling bustle. If the tails don't work, I may make the bustle portion button-on. What I'd really love is to make this in a navy or midnight blue shot dupioni silk like this one; I think the changeable colours and the rustle of the fabric will give about the impression I'm hoping for.
And to top it off, a top hat. I want to make something like the topper mentioned in this post on a steampunk LJ community. However, the plan is to start with a plain black wool felt top hat (maybe one of the Mad Hatter styles with a flared crown). I'll then add a black and white striped band, green and blue feathers, some green and black net veiling, and actual clockfaces from the hobby store. If I am careful, I may be able to figure out how to attach battery-operated clockfaces, so they will actually tell the time.
Source Images:
Jen Thompson has webbed several issues of Peterson's Magazine from the late 19th century. This image, specifically the dress to the viwewr's right, is close-ish in how the overskirt tucks back and the overall lines are somewhat masculine.
The overall look of this jacket is almost spot-on what I want.
In this image, again to the far right, are longer tails and a slightly more modest bustle.
This image, far right, shows an overdress arrangement with drawn back overskirts that segue into a bustle.
I love the bustle arrangment here, and I think I'll end up stealing it.
The standing collar on this dress seems like it would accomodate a cravat or tie fairly easily. At the very least, it shows that a tall collar would work resonably well on such a garment.
Like the back seams on this jacket a lot.
Hats in the Belfry has a couple of top hats I think are keen. This one is a basic style, or I could go with the Mad Hatter style (if I'm feeling flush).
I'm in the process of puzzling through the decrease pattern for the trunk. S/he still needs an I-cord tail (which was not in the original pattern) and a little scarf. S/he also has two arms which are not sewn on yet.
The pattern is from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. The original pattern called for two circular needles, but I adapted it to a set of dpns. The yarn is a double strand of Red Heart acrylic in Royal Purple (hey, no snobbery-- it's for a young'un).
Eventually, s/he will also have a pair of embroidered eyes.
Yes, you read that right. I finished the Shawl of Doom.
It's a bit smaller than I had hoped, and it looks like the small wonkiness down around the hem is not going to block out. But. It's warm, and more importantly, it's done.
I knitted on it at the local fibre guild meeting this past Saturday. I have to say, I liked the women I met there. Nobody can replace my back-home knitting group, but this was more like...like finding a roomful of mentors. Every single one had good and interesting advice, and they applauded when I finished the last bind-off stitch.
It's dark here now, so I'll post photos of the FO later this week. To celebrate, I cast on for a gift for my mom.
It's another shawl.
I begin to see that I've made a poor choice. November has started and with it NaNoWriMo and a slew of work responsibilities. And honestly? I've been avoiding the website because it's depressing to go every day and see more people finished. It's become a daily reminder that I am a slow, sucky knitter, and it's just not fun anymore.
I haven't decided if I'm quitting, or waiting to see if this funk rides out soon. I've taken up avoidance knitting in the meantime, and am working on a ballet wrap in Lion Brand Colourwaves. I also have a super secret Christmas gifts on the needles-- nearly done, in fact-- for a friend back home.
The good news of the week is that I've bought a digital camera. Finally. I know. Once I figure out how to make the flash work effectively indoors, I'll take photos of stuff. Until then, you'll have to bear with me.
I think I'm going to go home and eat ice cream soon.
I'm knitting again! I finally found the inspiration to start a new project-- I joined the Peaceful Palms Knitalong over on Nona's blog.
I need gloves, badly. It's coming on winter here pretty quickly, and all I can find right now is a pair of leather gloves that do not fit. So here's the plan:
I'm making a pair of long fingerless gloves. My basic inspiration is this portrait:
I may be wrong, but I really think these gloves have a thumb and no fingers. I have a better image of fingerless gloves stored somewhere on my computer, but I can't find it either.
Anyway, the main body of the glove is 3x3 ribbing, black, with a three-row band of wine red at the top edge. It's done in Caron Simply Soft yarn (did I mention I love Simply Soft? So cuddly). I don't know if I'll go as long as the ones in this portrait; however, I cast on 48 stitches, so I may be stuck. The tinking, we hates it, precious.
Apparently, my entire yarn stash somehow disappeared on the move. This has put a serious dent in my knitting plans for a while.
I'm still working on the secret pattern goodness, but it's coming along slowly. Let's just say that three colours and stripes can be very frustrating. Other than that, I bought a large skein of Caron Simply Soft (no, still not a yarn snob) to make myself a pair of arm warmers. I found a pattern I like better than the one in the Stitch & Bitch books. Now I just have to find/acquire a set of size 3 or 4 dpns so I can start knitting.
I hope Fred Myer has needles. Or WalMart, as much as I despise the Evil Empire. I need these things quicklike. It's already freezing at night here.
That's right. It's a finished object!!
Please. Don't faint. It does happen, even to me.
This project is a gift for a friend. I used the "Numbers" bag pattern from the latest Knitty as the base pattern. After looking at the illustrations, I noticed the author was right-- this bag does come out looking very much like Navajo pottery. Instead of leaving it simply knit, I decided to felt the bag to reinforce the pottery feel.
I used space-dyed worsted and fuzzy wool held together in a blend of warm and cool tones to knit the bag. I deliberately dropped the fuzzy strand for several random rounds, hoping that the texture would change noticeably.
Unfortunately, after felting the texture shifts were largely lost. It's still an attractive piece, especially once embellished with strips of dyed leather that match the darker blue tones.
