Ghettotastic petticoat is done; or, Measuring is for Chumps
and it is sooo ghetto I can't even. I bought one of those 6" tulle spools to avoid having to cut fabric into strips and sew them together, because ew. Then I measured four sewing-table-lengths, folded it back toward the spool, and let my machine gather the two layers together (coat thread in the bobbin and a long stitch worked quite nicely to gather it as I went). After very sloppily roll-hemming the edge of a torn and pieced strip of muslin -- cut a piece that was 24x60, found that 60" wasn't quite a large enough circumference at the knee, and added a 12" strip between the ends -- I found a mark on the arm of my machine, lined up the hem, eyeballed about an inch, inch and a half farther for the tulle to end, and started sewing Strip #1 down. They didn't quite stay even, possibly due to the 100% lack of pins i used....
I sewed the second strip down in a similar fashion so it overlapped the first by about an inch. Then it was time to make the waistband! I planned to overlock the top edge but my overlock stitch decided to forget how to function so zigzagging is what happened...until the last foot, when the overlock showed up again. D'oh! To my great surprise, I had some 3/4" elastic in a box somewhere, but once I sewed it on with great finesse I found that the resulting bunching showed up under the dress's skirt in an unattractive manner, and pleating was probably the way to go. And I'd wanted to do it so quick and dirty, too! Pleating feels way too legit. Sadface
Never fear, I dug out a spool of white grosgrain ribbon, and actually spent the time to find even intervals a quarter of the way 'round the ribbon and the petti edge to match them up. Then I plopped some pleats down...I thought I must be doing it wrong, because I only needed one 3/4" pleat every 3" or so. Where was the huge amount of fabric needing to be pleated? I don't think I've ever had to not-overlap-pleats!
Can't
Compute
Overload imminent
So once I very carefully pinned each pleat to the ribbon, folding the ends of the ribbon back at one of the seams in the muslin so I could open the seam later for the overlap, I started sewing....and realized I should have pleated in the other direction, because I was sewing AGAINST the pleats. Which were not at all carefully pinned, despite what I just claimed. There are definitely some edges that folded up under the presser foot. Uuuhhh....
I knew that sewing down just the top edge of the pleats to the ribbon was more than enough, haha, so that was that. I opened the seam about 6", tried it on to figure out how far to overlap the edges, and sewed on a skirt hook and eye. I would have left it to safety-pin shut, honestly, but assumed that might well show under the skirt and after all this trouble that would just be SILLY.
Time to try it on and test the fluffiness....turns out two rows of tulle wasn't sufficient. So I measured out 2 2/3 tables and folded and gathered, and rather than sew on under the first layer which would make the tulle stick way out, I sewed this batch on in between the two existing rows. About 1.5" up, I guess? Maybe. Measuring is for chumps. Turns out 2.667 tables wasn't long enough, because I had a gap of about 10" when the strip was sewn down, so I made another wee folded gathered thing and sewed that on, too. Wheeeee!
Trying it on under the dress revealed that it was a bit too long (the tulle showed here and there, probably where it ended up closer to the edge of the muslin than I'd intended, oops!) which is almost certainly a result of my having not folded down anything at the waistband, which I had planned for in the 24" length. Time for a tuck!
I folded the top of the petti under the tulle-covered part so about 2.5" were sticking out, and let the seamline fall at about 5/8". That's the only even part of this tuck. It woobles aaaaaaall over the place. It's amazing. The most woobly tuck ever. I'd be embarrassed but I think it's pretty funny. And to think I was tempted to go all out and make a proper petticoat of all muslin with ruffles and lace and stuff....and then came to my senses because I'm making a dress out of a cheap-ass poly-cotton blend based on a DISNEY MOVIE. No, I am not making a 'real' petticoat for a costume for one night. No.
What a close call!
I actually managed to do the buttons and buttonholes on my pinafore, as well. I had a multi-pack of plastic buttons I got cheapo years ago, and there were some 7/8" ones that seemed appropriately cartoony, so those were the ones I picked. I probably should have done 3 smaller ones in retrospect, but TOO LATE NOOOOOW. Also the buttonholes are not behaving very well, largely because I made them on the bias of the fabric without any sort of interfacing. Oops again! Pity I'm not redoing the pinafore, har har.
Now all that's left is the collar, which I very well may get done after work today, because I get out at 2 instead of 4, yay! I also have massive amounts of pizza in the fridge to feast on, because a wee Papa John's ad in the junk mail made me want pizza, and they had a buy-any-pizza-get-any-pizza-free pre-Halloween sale thing, so naturally I got two pizzas. For myself. I think the freezer may have to intervene....
Now off to work to see if I can get anything out of the back while helping clueless people figure out how tall they are, yay!
Maybe I'll take some pizza for lunch. ;)
I sewed the second strip down in a similar fashion so it overlapped the first by about an inch. Then it was time to make the waistband! I planned to overlock the top edge but my overlock stitch decided to forget how to function so zigzagging is what happened...until the last foot, when the overlock showed up again. D'oh! To my great surprise, I had some 3/4" elastic in a box somewhere, but once I sewed it on with great finesse I found that the resulting bunching showed up under the dress's skirt in an unattractive manner, and pleating was probably the way to go. And I'd wanted to do it so quick and dirty, too! Pleating feels way too legit. Sadface
Never fear, I dug out a spool of white grosgrain ribbon, and actually spent the time to find even intervals a quarter of the way 'round the ribbon and the petti edge to match them up. Then I plopped some pleats down...I thought I must be doing it wrong, because I only needed one 3/4" pleat every 3" or so. Where was the huge amount of fabric needing to be pleated? I don't think I've ever had to not-overlap-pleats!
Can't
Compute
Overload imminent
So once I very carefully pinned each pleat to the ribbon, folding the ends of the ribbon back at one of the seams in the muslin so I could open the seam later for the overlap, I started sewing....and realized I should have pleated in the other direction, because I was sewing AGAINST the pleats. Which were not at all carefully pinned, despite what I just claimed. There are definitely some edges that folded up under the presser foot. Uuuhhh....
I knew that sewing down just the top edge of the pleats to the ribbon was more than enough, haha, so that was that. I opened the seam about 6", tried it on to figure out how far to overlap the edges, and sewed on a skirt hook and eye. I would have left it to safety-pin shut, honestly, but assumed that might well show under the skirt and after all this trouble that would just be SILLY.
Time to try it on and test the fluffiness....turns out two rows of tulle wasn't sufficient. So I measured out 2 2/3 tables and folded and gathered, and rather than sew on under the first layer which would make the tulle stick way out, I sewed this batch on in between the two existing rows. About 1.5" up, I guess? Maybe. Measuring is for chumps. Turns out 2.667 tables wasn't long enough, because I had a gap of about 10" when the strip was sewn down, so I made another wee folded gathered thing and sewed that on, too. Wheeeee!
Trying it on under the dress revealed that it was a bit too long (the tulle showed here and there, probably where it ended up closer to the edge of the muslin than I'd intended, oops!) which is almost certainly a result of my having not folded down anything at the waistband, which I had planned for in the 24" length. Time for a tuck!
I folded the top of the petti under the tulle-covered part so about 2.5" were sticking out, and let the seamline fall at about 5/8". That's the only even part of this tuck. It woobles aaaaaaall over the place. It's amazing. The most woobly tuck ever. I'd be embarrassed but I think it's pretty funny. And to think I was tempted to go all out and make a proper petticoat of all muslin with ruffles and lace and stuff....and then came to my senses because I'm making a dress out of a cheap-ass poly-cotton blend based on a DISNEY MOVIE. No, I am not making a 'real' petticoat for a costume for one night. No.
What a close call!
I actually managed to do the buttons and buttonholes on my pinafore, as well. I had a multi-pack of plastic buttons I got cheapo years ago, and there were some 7/8" ones that seemed appropriately cartoony, so those were the ones I picked. I probably should have done 3 smaller ones in retrospect, but TOO LATE NOOOOOW. Also the buttonholes are not behaving very well, largely because I made them on the bias of the fabric without any sort of interfacing. Oops again! Pity I'm not redoing the pinafore, har har.
Now all that's left is the collar, which I very well may get done after work today, because I get out at 2 instead of 4, yay! I also have massive amounts of pizza in the fridge to feast on, because a wee Papa John's ad in the junk mail made me want pizza, and they had a buy-any-pizza-get-any-pizza-free pre-Halloween sale thing, so naturally I got two pizzas. For myself. I think the freezer may have to intervene....
Now off to work to see if I can get anything out of the back while helping clueless people figure out how tall they are, yay!
Maybe I'll take some pizza for lunch. ;)