Mad hatter, part the I-can't-remember-what-number-we're-on
Pearled goldhaube. Several years ago, I took some gold and white shot silk, cut what I thought then was the right shape for a goldhaube, and set set black/gold metal cording on it in a 1/2" criss cross pattern over all of it. Then I alternated crosses of (real) pearls and tiny gold beads at the interstices. Then I took my hiatus from re-enactment, and it lay unattended in a project box somewhere. I did manage to prove for certain it was bullion cord, because there are faint rust lines under all of it.
I knew I wasn't going to be particularly functional today, so yesterday I took out and prepped a bunch of hat projects that I could just futz around on. Including this one. When I went to bed last night, the silk had been pleated and sewn into what I hoped would be a reasonable shape, and attached to a shaped band.
This is one of those projects where you think, "Oh, that won't take me too long to finish." And then every time you're almost done with it, you find something else that needs to be done/would make it better. Like adding a black velvet ribbon to the band along with the metal-worked trim. And adding a few more pearls in spaces that ended up blank because it wasn't cut to be constructed this way. And padding it out with something. And adding a lining... There has got to be a technical term for sewing projects like this. In project management, we'd call it "scope creep." (I'm sure there's something clever having to do with animals that creep along, or somehow grow new heads. Sewing Hydra, maybe?)
Yeah, it *could* be worn now, but I'm making a padded lining so that it falls correctly. Guess I'm limited to finishing only one project today. At least it's part of the Dread Beast Backlog.
ETA: OK, it's done except for some method to keep it on my head. Pins will work just fine, but I worry about the silk, so I may sew a comb in. What else did I learn?
1. Padding is critical to getting the right silhouette. I used braided strips of felted wool in this one, and that helped immensely.
2. Bullion with a black ground is too close to my hair color - the whole darn thing blends into my head. Oops.
3. I want to master this!
I knew I wasn't going to be particularly functional today, so yesterday I took out and prepped a bunch of hat projects that I could just futz around on. Including this one. When I went to bed last night, the silk had been pleated and sewn into what I hoped would be a reasonable shape, and attached to a shaped band.
This is one of those projects where you think, "Oh, that won't take me too long to finish." And then every time you're almost done with it, you find something else that needs to be done/would make it better. Like adding a black velvet ribbon to the band along with the metal-worked trim. And adding a few more pearls in spaces that ended up blank because it wasn't cut to be constructed this way. And padding it out with something. And adding a lining... There has got to be a technical term for sewing projects like this. In project management, we'd call it "scope creep." (I'm sure there's something clever having to do with animals that creep along, or somehow grow new heads. Sewing Hydra, maybe?)
Yeah, it *could* be worn now, but I'm making a padded lining so that it falls correctly. Guess I'm limited to finishing only one project today. At least it's part of the Dread Beast Backlog.
ETA: OK, it's done except for some method to keep it on my head. Pins will work just fine, but I worry about the silk, so I may sew a comb in. What else did I learn?
1. Padding is critical to getting the right silhouette. I used braided strips of felted wool in this one, and that helped immensely.
2. Bullion with a black ground is too close to my hair color - the whole darn thing blends into my head. Oops.
3. I want to master this!