Making a dress - Hanfu top

Inspiration

So I have the trousers and the jacket but now a top would be nice.  Of course it is is a nice day a strapy top could be used which would mimic the wraparound top nicely.  However what about the colder days?

There I would a proper top or shirt in my work world wardrobe.

Design

Luckily there is a pattern for this.

https://torguqin.wordpress.com/2010/07/17/ganlings-shuhe-duanda-patterns/

Okay it is not correct for the period but then again I am not going for historical accurately here.

I had to tweak a little around the shoulder area because I learned from the jacket that I have wider shoulders then the patterned allowed.

Ever the hoarder of fabric now, I had some cream polycotton lying around.

Construction

I decided to tackle this in a serious of rectangles and then make the adjustments for the collar and sleeves once the fabric is all sewn in place.  This will save time in figuring out how long each piece of fabric has to be.

Now lets attached the front overlap to the main body.

Then the sleeves.

Now to taper the sleeves to the final shape.

Now to play with the collar and front.

Now to sew the sides and sleeves and add a collar and we are done.  

If you are wondering how I finished the seams on the body, I flat-lined them.

Finished

I don't know why I did not take any pictures of it when it is finished but here it is in action with my hanfu suit as I am going to called it.

Conclusion

I know I made the top for winter but it is still a bit too thin for my liking.  So this is now a summer top.

It is also on the see through side so I will need to wear a top inside as well.  Yeah not quite turning out as planned I have to admit but it was a good exercise and now I know what fabric I need to aim for in the future.  Thick cotton!

I do love the long and flowing outline of this outfit.

Will need to make the trousers shorter as they are a bit too long for office wear but are probably the correct length for the style.

Now when will I find the time to wear it??

Making a dress - Hanfu Jacket and matching trousers

Inspiration

For some reason, I went from making a simple underskirt to making a jacket for my Song outfit.  Yeah my mind was being very indecisive but once it settled on the the jacket I was happy to follow through.

Looking at my previous inspiration pictures, it had to be a long jacket.....very long and of course long sleeves.

And at the same time I thought I might as well make some matching trousers

Design

I decided to play it safe for the jacket and use one that I found on pinterest.

https://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=675958102

Looks simple enough!  I did a bit of measuring and found out that the sleeves would have been a bit too long for practical officewear so I chopped of 10cms or so off.

Also due to fabric constraint, I had to shorten the jacket by 30 cms as I only had 222cm of fabric left.  Opps but as you will see later it is probably for the best.

Just need to draw it onto my fabric.

Construction

As always cutting the fabric is scary.

Man the design is simple but finishing the seams took forever because the material was so thick and heavy.  I really need to find a better thimble.

And then there is the collar.

It should be cut out in one piece but alas I didn't have enough material so what I did instead was make it up with three strips.  I made sure the pinstripes matched up so it is not too bad.

The construction of the trousers is the same as the previous one.

Finished

At first I was very pleased.  I love the long outline.

BUT something was not right about the shoulder area.  It was as if something was pulling on it even though it was not tight.

Maybe I didn't make it loose enough?

Conclusion

Not bad but definitely need to make the armholes and the chest wider so it drapes better but still it is a good outfit.

However I will need to reserve it for non-windy days or it will flap everywhere!

Making a Dress - Qi-lolita Overdress

Inspiration

Now I have conquered my fear of wa-lolita it is time to turn my attention to qi-lolita.

Well it seems only fair that I do, since I am Chinese so it is a sub-style most suited to my culture.

Design

Luck would have it Otome no Sewing book 10 had two patterns for an qi-lolita overdress.  They are pretty much the same expect where the dress is split.

I went for the side split one.

Of course the book is recommending that I use chinese brocade but this would be a bit outrageous for work so I went for my trustworthy black bi-stretch but to add a little colour I would be using red lining and some red cotton trim.

Construction

During my shopping trip I could not find any decent red trim so I brought some white cotton trim that I liked and decided to dye it.  

Going well...

Unfortunately it is not as red as I hoped but maybe that is for the best.

Now to tackle the pattern.

Looks like I will need to add a little width as it is a little tight on my Miffy 2.  I want to be able to wear this at work and most importantly move.

There that should make it a little more comfortable to wear.

And then I forgot to take construction photos apart from when I finished sewing in the lining for the zip.

and sewing the armholes.

Sorry must try harder in future.

Finished

Ta-da here it is!

I have paired it with my cotton tiered undershirt but I plan to make another one that is easier to look after for work.

Closeup of the top part which still needs some button closure but I can't decide what style.

The back which involved a lot of hand sewing for the invisible zip because of my use of the lining.

Since it was such a plain overdress I went for a bright and colourful lining.

One slight problem is that my seams don't quite match up on the back.  I am always a millimetre out for some reason even though I take so much time to line them up.

Conclusion

I really enjoyed making this overdress as I have been wanting a qi-lolita outfit for ages.  I would like to make another one just because I love the look.

Although next time I will make the side slits a little shorter as they go right up to my natural waist!  So I have to make sure I wear a strappy top.

Making a Dress - Navy spotted Lolita Sack Dress

I promised during my hiatus on blogging I have been sewing.  

This was the dress I made before I completed the lolita apron dress.

Inspiration

For some reason, I wanted to make a loose lolita dress.  I had the idea of making a dress which I could wear under any overdress or skirt.  So it had to be made from durable fabric which was not too fussy.

Design

As every Otome no Sewing comes to the rescue and this time it is book 6.

 

Fabric

I didn't have a fabric in my collection which would be suitable for making this dress and I thought it would be one of those projects where I would be looking for the fabric for a long time.

However luck would have it, one of my favourite haberdashery shops in Belfast was selling some cotton fabric and one just stood out from the rest.

It was a lovely herringbone weave cotton with white dots printed on top.  It was lovely and I brought the remaining 3 metres of it without battering an eye.

Funny thing is that it was only when I got home when I realised that the fabric was similar to the one used in the book.  Clearly a sign!

Construction

Yeah no photos I'm afraid.  Was just too excited to make it.

Finished

Yeah one sack dress!

This is the first dress I made which has such a high "waist" line.  I thought it would make me look pregnant but it didn't.  Maybe it is the overall look that helped.

Unlike any of my other lolita dress, no bow!

Lovely sailor collar.

I was quite please with my cornering skills.

Pockets because we can't live without them.

Sleeve details.  Just the cotton trim something simple but very striking.

The original design was a bit too short for my liking and it didn't occur to me during pattern drafting that this needed to be lengthen so I went with the easy option and added some frills. 

Which was a good choice as I think it made it less look like a pregnancy dress.

Once I finished making the dress, it dawned on me that it also makes a lovely summer jacket.  So this this actually the most useful clothing item I have made to date.

Making a Dress - Lolita hakama skirt

Inspiration

One thing I don't wear often enough is a hakama with my kimono.  Kitsuke is easier and you don't have to worry about short kimono and flashing your juban.  Also it is brilliant for wet weather as I found out 3 years ago when I decided to walk back home in pouring rain.

However the hakama is not what it seems.  There is a lot of fabric in that garment because of the pleats and the length makes it awkward in certain situations.

Therefore my mind though why not make a lolita version?  I have been toying with the idea of venturing into wa-lolita but most of the skirts that you can buy will not stretch to my size once I tucked the kimono.

Fabric

As with all my lolita pieces they much be work friendly so it has to be made from something washable and dark coloured.

Luckily I went a bit overboard with the the purchase of black bi-stretch fabric so that is what I will use.

Design

First thing first one must study the hakama.

Lets look at the pleats as to me that defines its.

Here are the front pleats.

And here are the back pleats.

The most obvious difference between the two is the number of pleats, the front has 6 (one of the pleat is hidden under the centre one) and the back has 4.

The only way to show how the pleats work is with a diagram.

As you can see it is a bit complicated but how am I going to incorporate those pleats?  Well what is life if it was not for the challenges.

My starting point was this pattern minus the ruffles and the high waist part.

Then I inserted the pleats using a lot of masking tape.  Luckily I was decorating at the beginning of the year so a roll was at hand but I much buy some more.

Construction

First thing first I needed to re-thread my new toy!  My overlocker.

Now that is done, time to cut it out.

A straight line stitch on the inner pleat to hold it in place.

Side pleat pinned and ready to be stitched into place

And the ironed creased.  A lot of steam and a wet cloth was used to create this.

Oooo a closeup of the back pleat.  I had to stitch the back pleat together to check them in place.  Otherwise they would flap about and I could have made a mistake.

Time to join the back 3 panels.

And this is where my overlocker came in handy.  It finished off the edges so nicely,  I love my new overlocker, look how pretty the edges are.

Okay that is the back half of the skirt all done on to the front with more pleats.

Unfortunately no photos of the intermediate steps for the front panel as I was concentrating hard to make sure I ironed and stitched the right pleats.  

Here you can see what it looks like at the back and the stitch that is holding the pleats in place.

Don't worry, the yellow thread is to hold the pleats in place while I am making the skirt.  Seriously they really got in the way.

Okay the back and front are done,time to join them at the side.

The side seams didn't quite line up as nicely as I hoped.

The other side is a little better but still improvements for next time.

However not bad for a first time and I know where on the pattern to make it work.

Now the straps.  May have made a bit of a mistake in that the front straps are ridiculously long.  as in 4.5 metres in total.  Yeah next time make them shorter but at least they will go wrong my waist easily!

Yep you guessed it I forgot to take photos.  I only attached them just before dinner and I wanted them on so that afterwards I could take photos of what the skirt looks like on Miffy 2.

It is going according to plan, just the lace at the bottom and we are done.

Finished

And here it is!  I have to say it has turned out very well indeed.

An a-line lolita shirt with hakama pleats.  

I did find one advantage of long straps and its that I can tie a double bow which is super cute.

The lace at the bottom gives the skirt a nice edge I think.  Without it I think it would have looked too plain for lolita.

The pleats are holding well!

They are staying closed when they are not moved.

It is not very poffy the petticoat but I'm quite like it as suits me better for my day to day wear.

And here are the pleats opened.  Crisp and clean creases.

Here you can just about see the hidden middle pleat.

Now I have a work event on the 6th so I might wear it them.