Thursday, October 31, 2013

Iced Blue Plaid

Well!  This isn't the blog post I thought I'd be writing, nor the post I would like to be writing.  But, I figure I might as well be open and honest with ya'll, and post my mess-ups as well as my successes.  This is, as I'm sure you have figured out by now, a mess up.  :O :P

Tomorrow (yes, we know, possible tornado warning, showers, wind, etc.) we are having a picnic.  Bascha and I have met this really neat girl online, via The Sewing Academy, and since she lives only a couple hours from us, we decided to meet up half way.  So we're having a Civil War picnic, and we're going to dress up, drink tea, make music and do other such lovely stuffs.

But back to my point.  Ann Marie, Caroline's best friend, is coming with us.  And...she hasn't got any clothes.  So, using some wonderful cotton plaid, I attempted to make her a dress.  I made 3 mock-ups, and when I thought I had it right, I cut it out.  It looked JUST LIKE THIS.  Down to the piping, the top-stitching, everything.  No kidding, but blue.
Victorian Civil War Girls Red & White Plaid Check Wool Hoop Skirt Dress
I just thought this dress was beautiful
And now for the bad news....it fit horrid.  Absolutely horrid.  (And yes, if I get really upset I say "hawrrid" with the proper southern accent.)  It actually like couldn't be put on at all.  So...I tried to fix what I thought was the problem, and apparently that created more problems.  So I ripped it up and tried to make a gathered part instead of pleated.  I thought I had it fixed, when yet again, it did not fit. :O  By then, you can imagine I was feeling pretty glum. :P

After talking with Ms. Rhonda (Bascha's mom), we thought maybe that the armholes were too small, because the sleeves were too small.   I added an insert of ribbon up the sleeve to widen that area.  The armholes were still too small, or high, or we're not sure. But it doesn't fit in that area.
Photo
ribbon insert
On top of the armhole issue, the back doesn't meet at the waist, and it buttons on a diagonal.  Yep. Didn't know that was possible, but it is.  So, the dress is unwearable.  Oh, and it chokes her at the neck. :P.  (she said her arms were choked as well.)

I found another curtain of this same fabric at VV yesterday, so I have enough to remake the bodice.  I don't have the time to do it before tomorrow, but I do plan on it someday.  Right now I'm sick of blue plaid!

There you have it!  I've had to eat my humble pie! :D  And I do mess up!
~Theresa

5 comments:

  1. AWWWW! so she can't come? Let her come anyway! poor Caroline! I feel so sorry for you, too! I've done stuff like that before! (before i had my blog so lucky for me... i didn't have to post it! :P) I am sooo sooo sorry! :*(

    Love and condolences! lol
    Ruth

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    1. Ann Marie is coming! She is wearing a blouse and skirt of Care's. You're too funny :P Neat is just the start of describing you! It gets better than that! lol:D
      ~Theresa

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  2. I mean! Poor ANN MARIE! lol and thanks for saying I'm neat! LOL You two are so sweet!

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  3. Hi Theresa and Bascha, nice blog! (I know, Theresa, I could have just asked you for the address of your blog but I stumbled upon it before I got around to asking . . . :)

    I've been blessed to meet Theresa (she's very sweet!) and perhaps some day I will get to meet you, Bascha (I've heard some about you, all good, of course :)! Maybe at Latta . . . I was just thinking how that would make a great homeschool field trip for our family, or maybe our church! A few years ago when our family went to Williamsburg/Jamestown/Yorktown I had a dream of being a volunteer there or somewhere similar one day. That is my favorite time period in history! It seems the Lord has other plans for me, at least for right now, though. But I can enjoy seeing what you girls are doing! :)

    Theresa - I hope you can get the blue plaid dress fixed. :( Maybe after you set it aside for a while it will look interesting again. :)

    I hope the weather will hold off for your picnic tomorrow! I'd be interested to hear what music you're going to do - I assume it will be period correct?

    (Theresa - please tell Caroline "Happy Birthday" for me!)

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    1. Wow! What a nice surprise to see a comment from you Anna! I meant to send you the link to this blog when I replied to your last email (which, I haven't sent yet! :O).
      Yes, Latta, like on a day when they are having a reenactment, is a great place to visit! I'm sure you would enjoy it, especially if any of ya'll like history :D. And we would like to see you :).
      We sang mainly Civil War songs, with a guitar and a recorder, and then hymns too, because we like them :D. The weather did not really hold off, but I'm going to write more detail in a post. We still had a wonderful time! Thanks so much for commenting! :D
      ~Theresa

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