Utena Revived

My apologies for not updating recently. Between Thanksgiving, Black Friday, relatives, and work schedules- well, you know the drill. After all, you have a life that's just as hectic...

As I write several yards of cream lace are boiling in my kitchen. These will eventually be pink, and will become the "skirt" like part of Utena's whole outfit. I am taking artistic license here, it is true. One can clearly see that the "skirt" is drawn as one layer of fabric, and somewhat sheer. I take issue with this in the real world, because one layer of sheer material is not firm enough to fan out as it ought to. Not to bash anyone's cosplays, many of which are positively outstanding, but I really would like to have a "skirt" that is more than a splash of color under my coat. To this end, I am creating more of a tutu, looking to have at least three layers, of pink lace and (hopefully) pearlized sheer. The pearlized sheer lends a fantastic look to the over all concoction, but it's also expensive, so I'm not sure I will be able to afford it at this point in time.

My big Black Friday score was a dress form! So excited! This was perfectly timed, because I seriously doubt that I would have been able to properly align the welt pockets while wearing the garment itself. There was a great deal of trial and error involved in this: situating and re-situating the positions of the buttons; determining the alignment of the "center"; trying to decide how wide and tall to make the flaps, and where, exactly, they should go. This was the first time I made welt pockets, and they were much easier than I had expected. This tutorial was a fantastic guide!

Determining the best positioning and sizing of the pockets

Making a pattern for the welt pockets	Deciding on the alignment for the breast pocket
Back of the breast pocket	Positioning the lower pockets

 I am waiting to have the tutu completed before I finally decide on the proper hem length. It would be ridiculous to end up hemming it too short- can you imagine? Of course, before I can do that, I need to combine the lining to the shell. Funny story about that: after my last post I was all ready to combine the two sides and I said to myself "All right, I'll put the lining and the shell together, then I can attach the pocke- wait a minute." Right. What kind of person would put the coat together, then try to make pockets? Hahaha...

So now I can combine the two, and I even have the bias tape ready! The last time I tried to make bias tape I burned the heck out of my fingers, so I must have been doing something wrong. This go round it took hardly any time at all to whip six yards out, and without any burns! If I had known it was going to be that easy, I might not have fussed to much about finding appropriate ribbon to line Julia with- but then again, I really love the way she turned out.

Drawing out the lines for the tape	Cutting out the strips	Stitching together the tape
Trimming and ironing the seams	Shaping and ironing the tape	Ironing the tape to make double-fold bias tape

When I have finished dying the lace I will be dying some shorts. While out shopping a few months ago, I found a pair of white shorts on clearance for about $7, and it seemed to me that I could hardly make them for that price. I will need to shorten them, though I'm taking artistic license here too. There is no way I'm going about wearing shorts as short as Utena is drawn in! The ones I have hit below the knee, which is ridiculous looking (they would be capris on people with normal length legs). I'll be adjusting them to just above my knee, which is a more respectable length.

Well the pot is off the stove and cooling now, so when the lace is rinsed out and ready to go, I'll be sure to post it here!