Graduation

I'm officially graduated!!

It was a looooonng day, but I'm glad I went to the convocation ceremony. Ok, mainly because I went out for a nice dinner afterwards, followed by antique shopping, but getting my diploma was good too. 

I wore my grandmothers dress to the ceremony. She originally wore this dress to my parents wedding. It is from the early 80's, but I love how it looks and it wasn't too heavy under the black gown. After receiving the diploma, everyone also had to wear a "hood", which was basically a ribbon. Can I just take a moment to say what a ripoff that was?! I paid $50 to rent the gown for the day, and had to return the hood afterwards as well. These things were poorly made out of a cheap polyester. I could have made a better one for less money than it cost me to rent it for a couple hours. 

My official photos will arrive in the mail sometime in the next few weeks, but here are some my mom snapped before the ceremony. 

In the convocation gown, before the ceremony

ALPACA!

I now have my Bachelors of Mathematics, with a major in Honours Statistics. Feels pretty good to be finally done. I should be looking for a job, but since we are moving it makes it difficult. Hard to apply for a job, when you may be living three hours away in a few weeks. I have been putting my time to good use though. I've started sewing some clothes with my new serger, which will be for sale before the end of the summer. I have yet to decide on a name for my clothing line, but it will be mainly casual wear inspired by the 1920's and the Victorian era. 

My serger! Isn't she pretty?!

That's All.

DIY Elastic Belt

I had a request for a tutorial for the belt I wore in my last post, so here you go:

You will need:
-piece of elastic the same size as your waist (when very slightly stretched)
-clasp

I used a 2" leopard print elastic. My local Fabricland had a few different types of printed elastic, and if you type in "wide elastic" into Etsy you should be able to find some other neat patterns (I saw polka dots and some cute stripes!). You could also use lace or a wide ribbon, but the belt won't hug your curves as well.

For a clasp, you will want something that comes apart into two pieces, and which has a space on either side to attach the elastic to. Make sure the space is the same or slightly larger than the width of your elastic. I used a larger version of this style of clasp. I also saw this cute vintage one on Etsy. Don't buy one that needs to be hand-sewed onto the elastic. Your belt will be less secure and more likely to break. Once again, there should be a selection of clasps at your local fabric store (look where they keep the belt buckles).

Instructions:
Step 1) Fold elastic over one side of the clasp so there is a 1/2" part folded onto the wrong side. Using a zig-zag stitch, sew the edge to the belt. Go over this stitch line a few times, until you are happy with the look.
Step 2) Making sure the elastic isn't twisted, repeat step 1 on the other side.

And that's it! It is really quite easy, and you can have a new belt in as little as five minutes. 

Colour Combinations and a New Belt

As a graduation gift, I'm getting a serger!!! I am very excited and can't wait to start playing around with it. I am hoping to eventually be able to maybe sell some of my pieces on Etsy. I have been reading vintage sewing books to get some inspiration for designs and came across this section in a sewing book from 1922. Often illustrations are in black and white, so getting an idea of what colour combinations were popular I found very interesting. Some certainly sound....uhh.... bold. 

Speaking of bold, check out my awesome new leopard print belt! I love it!  I actually made it myself  out of a printed elastic I picked up at the fabric store. I may post a tutorial if anyone is interested. 

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

That's All.

1930 Bathing Togs

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Pin Waves

Movy-Dolls (1919)

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Baby Shower

I attended my first ever baby shower today! I had a hard time deciding what to wear (especially with the sort of "in-between" weather we have been having lately). I finally decided on my mom's old skirt, worn as a dress, with a blouse over top. I accessorized with my favourite (me-made) belt and one of my headbands (the pattern is available in my Etsy shop). Wearing old maxi-skirts as dresses is a favourite trick of mine. My mom had a lot of old skirts that I have re-purposed this way. 

My cousin and his wife are expecting a baby boy, and I have been eagerly preparing gifts for it.  I knit a booties+sweater set and sewed teddy bear. The sweater set I started long before we knew if it was a boy or girl, so I made it unisex. It is loosely based on a 1950's pattern and the booties are from a 1945 pattern. The projects are on my Ravelry page if any knitters want more information or a link to the bootie pattern (it's a free pattern). The teddy bear was based off of this free pattern, although I used a soft felt nose/eyes. I used a matching felt on it's paws/feet.

That's All.

Summer Style Forecast (1929)

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With temperatures on the rise, I have begun planning my summer wardrobe. I came across this article while looking for inspiration. Anyone else working on a new summer wardrobe? Mine is almost non-existent, so my sewing machine and I will be very busy the next few weeks.

That's All.