The Finished Hoop!
At long last I finished my crinoline!!!
I still need to make a small pad for the back to help balance the cage while I am wearing it, but that is small beans compared to the epic saga that came before. For reference it is this kit in the 95" width :http://www.woodedhamlet.com/costume_accessories/CagedCrino.htm
I made a few changes to the original Kit. I changed out the brown leather strips (For the front opening) with some white leather scraps I had, since my petticoat is white and a bit sheer I liked the color harmony. I also bleached the tapes to make them more white. They came in a deep natural color, and I didn't like that the hoop came pre-antiqued. It took me about an hour altogether to bleach them in a sink, stop the bleaching with vinegar, and throw in a bag in the dryer. Next time I am at CVS I am going to look for some white or cream nail polish. I'm hoping I can lightly coat the copper metal spots to make them less obvious and a little smoother to the touch. My kit ended up having white a bit of extra supplies, so I threw those in for the hell of it.
After HOURS AND HOURS of futzing I finally got a shape I was happy with, then I spent HOURS AND HOURS putting all of the little metal spots to fasten the wires to the tapes. Putting all of this together took much longer than I had anticipated, I felt bad for my roommates, my room was too small so they couldn't use the living room for two days because it was covered in wires!
I'm happy to be done! next up is to start draping the pleats on the skirt of my ballgown!