Costumes of 2019

This year, it finally happened:

I am happy it's a family set, but Dad's a Slytherin. 

 I'll be honest: this really is years too late. The licensed fabric is still full price at Joann's though.

Or the bathrobe version, if you prefer double duty.

I think I prefer the unlicensed costumes this year, which is good because they vastly outnumber the official ones.

I mean, what's not to love about this description?

Also loving the Branded familiar pillow pals (Hedwig, Crookshanks,Pigwidgeon - what, no Scabbers?), and the Unbranded Fantastic Beasts pillow pals - Platypus and Owl.

As for the McVogurrickity patterns, mostly available at Joann's*

I believe this is a riff on Greatest Showman (see the upper right red). It needs the coat.

I have no idea what this is. I'm guessing it's a game, but it is very specific. Also, dad/kid cosplay sets are rare, so I'm giving it love, even if I have absofrigginlutely no idea what it is.

One of you will enlighten me.

I know the right is a Red Riding Hood, but....who is the one on the left? It's so very Cowboy specific, and I can't find a reference anywhere that links up with it. Overwatch?

HELP ME.

Nov 25: I have asked every meme-lovin costume sewin' human I can find about this, and only one person thought Maybe Somewhere in Kingdom Hearts? Or One Piece?

Still we don't know.

The spotters guide (aka Spirit Halloween online) isn't helping

https://www.spirithalloween.com/thumbnail/halloween-costumes/mens-costumes/

The rest of these make sense. Whew.

Finn, Rey, Aquaman with interesting faux Maori face painting, and Kate Bishop Hawkeye.

It's a nice set of costume pieces, frankly.

I appreciate the 'We Can Do It' reference, and I appreciate the heavy black backpack straps to imply you could do some Ghostbustin' in the khaki version

This is from last year, but I felt you should get more coveralls action plus Rose Tico 

 A little Game of Thrones "inspired" for you

She Who Drinks Wine All Season and Arya

Cersei look two

Daenarys, two looks

Wednesday from Addams Family finally gets her due

https://blog.pattern-vault.com/2019/10/29/the-addams-family-patterns/

Star Wars never goes bad, this one is new

Arya on the right, Rey and Rey on the left

This one is from last year, but it's still a killer.

And I could not find any Pennywise patterns. I know you guys have been sewing your own; any patterns you're using?

*there is something going on with the high numbered patterns not being available at Joann's and it's bugging me. They are just available on the website and grrrrrrrr

Too Many Curtains: Folding Videos in October

https://www.threadsmagazine.com/2019/10/10/wrangle-your-fabric-stash-video

Seamwork's folding technique on YouTube  https://youtu.be/VF19yPgIUcQ

These both arrived in my (and your) inbox this week. Coincidence? 
 The Threads is solid gold. Using the storage box lid as a folding guide, or making a folding template (those flexible kitchen cutting boards to the rescue again) is super smart. Helps stack and sort (and retrieve) the stuff on the shelves. I use foam board, and old plastic corrugated campaign signs are FREE and plentiful.

The Seamwork one is ADORBS, but who sews with one yard? 

This stash sorting/refolding is pretty much what I did this morning, in anticipation of a trip to Ikea and the curtain department (where we get the linen Aina curtains to make pants for my sister and I).

My sister's stash lives at my house and she's got a lot of linen. A LOT.

This isn't all of it. It's what I measured and refolded this morning in two hours. Each is about three yards, or a couple of Aina curtains (57" by 98" each).

I cannot believe I haven't written about this before (and if I did, I didn't tag it with Ikea). 
I mean, curtains are a costumer's best friend.
Yardage for days.

Bob Mackie's genius costume for Carol Burnett GWTW parody.

Yes, it lives at the Smithsonian

And if you want a little more on the original dress by Walter Plunkett, https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129177801

I am all about those Ikea curtains.

The tab material is very easy to remove. These used to have same fabric tabs, but this is less lumpy.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/aina-curtains-1-pair-blue-00328875/

The weight per yard of the curtains has gone up. The price has gone up as well, but 

each curtain is 2.72 yds,  or 5.44 yds for the pair. That's $11 a yard, but it's heavier linen now. 

Curtains come out to be 10.92oz per yard going by their package weight (divided by yardage).  Fabric is shown as 12oz because that's a meter (and I think that's the number they have from the manufacturer, vs the actual ship weight of a unit which will be more accurate). All this to say it's close enough and pretty hefty. They make great pants and jackets.

What they had on the by-the-yard fabric table was the lighter stuff (it comes out at 8oz per yard on my scale) from the previous season. Certainly just fine at $8.99. The 12oz would be a steal at that price.

But after all that folding and math, we didn't buy any more. Because my sister has all those colors already. Certainly enough to make all the pants she will need for the next five years, if not more.

BUT, Ms Smartypants, how do I fold my three and an half yard pieces?

It doesn't matter how you fold it, as long as you get 18" folds.
Another high quality illustration from ErnieKLabs

After I prewash and dry them, I fold them on the grain line (like they come off the bolt) and then fold them lengthwise into 18" folds. You can fold and refold any way it works for you as long as the end result is 18" wide. Fold that in half to fit 18" by (.25 of the width of 60" is 15"). They fit into that box, or on the shelf, and I can count how much yardage each has by counting the 18" folds and doubling that. 6 folds: 3 yards.
We are all about that math today.

Fold by 18s

And fold over, matching folds to selvage.

6 folds = 3 yards

Store in dry location with like-folded stash. Age to taste.

My shelves are 18" deep in this cabinet.

Okay, so not all the stash is as nicely folded, but I wanted to show how I break it up on boards and box lids to manage pulling stuff out without avalanches. The association groups change, but mostly by weight and use. And wool.

I do have to pull them out to check, but I like to handle the stash. This time I made a chart of the sister stash with those little swatches. Three different reds. Oy.

Paddy O'Furniture

I don't do furniture recovers. Or patio furniture.

That is, unless I have known you for decades and consider your children my children.

The iron was saved and we learned something about pressing temperatures.

And it helps if I get to buy a new toy for the job

It had so much plastic wrap around it, I had to try to save it.

And yes, I reused that plastic wrap on a concrete patch job (not featured here) that needed to be covered while it set. And it would have worked too, if the temperatures had not plummeted to a new seasonal low......

Our prototype works.

Let's do this.

Of course I made a template to mark the holes. 12 holes each on four seat corsets. Of course I'm making a template for that.

Yes, I bought the hole punch die, too. That outdoor fabric is tough.

Plastic grommets won't rust, but they will crack if I lean on the handle too hard

And they bend and pry out eventually

Baby Bulldog Does The Job!

Now my living room is full of patio chairs.