#Includes Applique

[handweavers]

i've never actually made a traditional quilt like with quilt blocks and everything... i've quilted things and done patchwork but i haven't done the triangles and squares arranged into quilt blocks thing ywkim. i think i'm gonna do one of those finally, i have so much scrap fabric from past projects that i need to use up

[doctorbeth]

A cheerful lavender bear

Bearsy's person's original email included a brief bio of the cheerful lavender bear:

When I was 4 years old my mom bought me this bear that I have loved for the past 18 years. It has travelled to 3 different countries w/ me and I’ve slept with it every night of my life. Bearsy has seen better days. I’ve already sewn up the cheek seams, back of the neck, and back of the head. I’m now noticing more tears on the neck as well as some on her belly. She also has had all the paint on her eyes scratched off my 4 year old me. After years of being hugged her stuffing has deflated a lot. She has some bald patches and what remains of her fur I nuzzle my face on.

Here are the diagnosis photos she sent:

As you can see, Bearsy's applique and smile are very important parts of her, but her fur had worn to almost all backing, and her person was hoping to restore the original texture. So we agreed to recover Bearsy, transplanting the appliques onto the new fabric.

Her person also wanted her to enjoy a spa, and have her vision restored while she was here. It took a couple of months for Bearsy to work up the courage to fly all the way across the country to California, but she did, and she quite enjoyed her bubble bath on arrival:

While she was drying, I ordered special lavender fur for her, and we agreed on her new eyes. Soon, she was soft and fuzzy again with her new fur and ready to be restuffed and of course she got a heart with her original stuffing:

And here she is all better, with her transplanted smile and belly applique, all new fur, and 20/20 vision.

She flew home to Pennsylvania and her person wrote:

Bearsy is home!! Thank you so so much for taking care of her. I can't wait to have many more years of adventures and snuggles with her. Thank you for breathing life back into her.

[tricia868]

Sea turtle quilt!

The pieced/appliqued pattern is The Original Beach Crawl by Sweet Tea Girls.

All the quilting was my design, including the turtles visible on the back of the quilt and the starfish and sand dollars in the border. Free motion quilting is still my favorite part of this hobby, I love doodling with thread!

[kaluxsims]

Today I've got some @vulrien-sims mesh edits for you, so the layout is going to be a bit different from my usual posts. The downloads will be under each image instead of at the bottom of the post. Each one is a bit different, so be sure to read the bolded text.

First off, 4t2 Eco Lifestyle Tied Blouse. I made a whole bunch of changes here, so the textures are included. I don't think there are any recolors of this top, but if there are, they WILL NOT work with this edit.

Download 4t2EcoLifestyleTiedBlouse - SFS or MediaFire

Next up, @ice-creamforbreakfast Jolene dress. There are still some quirks with this one, but I fixed as much as I felt like fixing. The feet still detach when the sim is running, but the morphs match the EAxis shape now, and the drape of the fabric is more natural. That's what I set out to do.

This is MESH ONLY. Let my edit overwrite the original. Get the textures here.

Download JoleneDress - SFS or MediaFire

And last up, @happylifesims Blouse with H-Line Skirt. This time, I edited the morphs and added an EF version. I only did V1, the ones without the floral applique.

AF is MESH ONLY. Let my edit overwrite the original. Get AF textures here. EF includes textures and is available as standalone or repo'ed to AF. Repo and standalone are both included in the download. Pick one.

Download BlousewithHLineSkirt - SFS or MediaFire

Credits: @vulrien-sims for the 4t2 conversions, @ice-creamforbreakfast and @happylifesims for TS4 meshes and textures, bunhead/io/trapping/poppet for shoe-related contributions

[glitterabomination]

Full detail shots of my completed Alfira cosplay. Everything but the boots, jeans, and wig was made from scratch, including most of the patterns.

Jeans were dyed and I designed and hand cut an applique from HTV. Wig had tresses added and a little squirrel pin I sculpted. Boots were thrifted and needed no further weathering.

This was my first handmade cosplay. My previous cosplays had altered items or accessories made by hand, but nothing to this extent. It was also my first major sewing project.

[g5mlp]

My Little Pony 5-piece backpack set found on Target. 

This backpack set includes a 16-inch backpack, lunch box, squish stress ball dangle, gadget case, and carabiner. Each piece has a design that features ponies and cutie marks from generations 1, 4, and 5.  

It is available online only for $50.00 but is currently on sale for $42.99.

Description: "MLP is a toy line based several pony characters featuring colorful bodies, manes and a unique symbols on one or both sides of their flanks. Such symbols are referred as "cutie marks". The toys line was such a success that a series was created called My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic . The series follows a studious pony named Twilight Sparkle, her dragon assistant Spike, and her friends, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie. They go on adventures and help others around Equestria, solving problems with their friendships. This adorable 5-Piece backpack and lunch box set includes a backpack, lunch box, gadget case, carabiner, and cute detachable squish ball. It features a large PVC applique of Scootaloo, Fluttershy, and Twighlight Sparkle on both the backpack and the lunch box. The backpack set is made from dependable PVC plastic, 600 D polyester, and color change sequin material. The backpack has 2 side mesh pockets for extra storage and padded back & adjustable padded straps for extra comfort. The classic lunch box has a padded handle and is insulated to keep lunch and snacks fresh throughout the school day. Great for elementary school, travel, sleepovers, and camp, this kids backpack set will be used all year long."

[applesaucesims]

Fancy Dress for Ladies

A set of early twentieth century Halloween costumes for your fem sims! The costumes are short dresses with various patterns and appliques.

available for fem teen to elder

bgc

9 swatches

disabled for random

mesh by @gilded-ghosts (The Jazz Singer) included

DOWNLOAD [sfs]

other swatches:

inspo and cc recs under the cut

Additional cc used in previews:

veiled hat by @blahberry-pancake

card face paint by @sewerwolfx

witch hat by @dizzyrobinsims

wings + antennae by @pyxiidis

[salix-scribbles]

Nausicaä costume(s): Research

My favorite part of costuming from animation is imagining how the simple textures of animated cloth can be brought into real life. I take into account setting, especially if it’s a fantasy/historical/historical fantasy story, to determine what materials the characters would have access to before I decide what materials I will use. Certain concessions have to be made for cost/efficiency’s sake, but if something ends up taking more time in order to be cost-effective, I will usually take that route.

For Nausicaä, the princess of the Valley of the Wind, the cloth they have access to (in the logic set forth by Miyazaki in the manga) is wool woven from the hair of the goats and long-hair cattle raised in the Valley of the Wind, as well as a linen-like cloth woven from fibers raised in the valley. The manga confirms they raise these animals, and the film shows the many fields of agricultural plants.

Some observations I’ve made about outfits across kingdoms:

-There is a tank top-like foundation garment worn across kingdoms, and most outfits feature waist-fastening trousers. They fit loosely around the leg, but can be easily tucked into boots and have protective gaiters/greaves fastened over them. Materials could be different across kingdoms, but I speculate the tank/undershirt garment is linen and the trousers are undyed wool. In the photo below, the two women with Nausicaä are a Pejite citizen and the mother of the Pejite princess. Nausicaä wears the same undershirt and trouser combination as the Pejite citizen.

-The kingdom-specific variations seem to be in the cut/coloring/decoration of the tunics; neckline, pocket placement, gem embellishment, and applique/embroidery designs are examples of these variations. Below are images of Princess Kushana of Tolemekia, Princess Lastelle of Pejite, Princess Nausicaä disguised as a Pejite citizen, and finally Nausicaä in her most formal outfit we see. Headwear also varies across kingdoms; Tolemekia uses the most metal and Princess Kushana’s may show her high status as both military leader and royalty.

For the outfit I’m referring to as the “princess” outfit, or the most formal-appearing of the outfits featured in the movie, this is likely where the finest (meaning fineness of the spun thread and tightness of the weave) of the fabrics would be used. However, given that the people of the Valley of the Wind are very community-focused and their princess regularly engages directly with her people regardless of social standing, the “finest” fabric is probably available for community members to use and sew with, just dyed in different colors. Only Nausicaä wears the bright, sky-blue fabric, and her “finest” fabric version is a less-saturated hue of that sky-blue; I am going to assume this blue is reserved for members of the royal family, but not used to its full concentration/saturation capabilities since they are a fairly humble kingdom. The tunic also features pale purple trim around the neckline, sleeve cuffs, and the hemline of the skirt; a belt/sash in the same color is tied at the waist.

The trousers and boots seem to be the same as in other outfits (including the flight suit, further reinforcing my theory that these are base garments and the headwear and tunics are the variants), the same off-white of undyed wool and sturdy brown boots found across kingdoms.

In my mind’s eye, the headwear could be knit large in wool and then felted, with the gems sewn into the fabric after the fact. It could also be the same fabric as her tunic but lined/reinforced with a stiffened fabric to make it appear as a truly matching set.

Nausicaä’s flight tunic is a similar, slightly darker shade of blue than her formal tunic. It does not function as armor, but it is worn with protective gloves, protective gaiters/greaves, and a flexible head covering; the tunic itself is soft, pliable and features six cylindrical pockets for flares on its front. This flare-pocket style (in the animated film) is unique to the Valley of the Wind; Lord Yupa stores his flares in a similar manner, but that same storage is not featured on Asbel of Pejite’s tunic when he is shown in the Sea of Decay with his rifle. The neck fastening does not allow the collar (looks to me like a band collar) to close fully, but allows for it to be pulled over the head easily. I personally like the idea that this is a short length of spiral lacing (with the spiral facing towards the skin) with cord dyed to match the blue of her gloves, gaiters, and headwear.

The flight tunic is the shortest of the tunics in the movie, hitting her upper thigh. Nausicaä is proportioned like a classic shoujo heroine (in that her legs are long for her body), so some concessions may be made for people who are trying to balance screen accuracy with personal wearability. I personally will be going with personal wearability and, while my legs are long, my torso is not, so I will make adjustments in my own pattern.

Fabric-wise, wool seems most likely here (and is confirmed in a special insert to the Nausicaä manga to be specifically felted wool). The tunic skirt/flare is unlined. The whole tunic can be moved by wind, but not in a wispy way, which makes me think this is, within the logic of the manga and film, felted from a tightly-woven lightweight wool. For story accuracy, I could go with this -- but if I want to wear this tunic in daily life without looking very obviously costumed, I’ve never been a fan of felted wool on garments that aren’t coats. I plan to go with a woven wool fabric with a visible weave.

My first guess was that these gloves were wool and wet-felted directly onto a mold, but seeing the little finger seam gave me pause. The only soft, pliable material that still allows for some grip that the Valley of the Wind would have access to (that I can currently think of) would be hide/leather; blue leather dye seems hard to come by, though. The boots are also likely leather (maybe even the Valley breathing masks), though they could also be felted wool with leather/suede soles. If not made from leather, the gaiters/greaves, hat, and gloves are dyed blue would likely be felted wool.

Next is the prophecy tunic. This tunic is from the kingdom of Pejite; see one of the earlier images where the pink tunic is in the woman’s arms. It has a tall band collar that closes completely at the neck with a visible join and its most recognizable feature is the turtle-like design across the chest

It is originally pink but changes color when the blood of a baby Ohmu dyes it a dark blue. The blood also overdyes Nausicaä’s trousers a pale blue (the resulting shade is not unlike the blue of her princess outfit).

The skirt of the prophecy tunic falls below Nausicaä’s knees and is unlined. The sleeves flare somewhat over the wrist (they do not fit tightly) and a belt is worn at Nausicaä’s waist.

Based on what we know about Pejite from the manga, plus the similarities in how the center of this turtle-like design and various jewelries are shaded in the film, it is very likely that this design is beaded/beadwork and stitched/embroidered onto the garment. Given that the design is unaffected by the Ohmu’s blood when the fabric items are overdyed, they would need to be nonporous. I’m thinking carnelian and/or red jasper for the cabochon in the center (could also be made with smaller beads since finding a chunk of polished stone that size would be challenging, not to mention expensive and heavy to wear) and porcelain or white stoneware clay beads for the main portion of the design.

[myreitha]

Costume time!

Okay, you know what, I want to share this process and I've chosen y'all to suffer with me.

SO! A friend of mine doesn't have a spooky show to produce this year, and so is putting all his energy into a cool-ass halloween event (Fancy paper invites, puzzles to solve, challenges, games, seances, etc). The whole thing is themed around this fake secret society that we're all now part of, and the dress cose and we're being encouraged to come up with cool fancy clothes/outfits to match the theme to come in. Best description I can come up with for this theme is "Fancy witchy-vampire" (Like, think VtM, but witchier). THAT SAID. I'm still out of a job, so, I've got to be strategic. AND I've got the itch to make things. Even better. (More past the cut!)

I don't have photos for a lot of these earlier decisions and stages, sorry. BUT I go through my closet and costume tubs (the for-fun-or-cosplay costumes as well as the circus/performing ones) and have a nice closet-runway to figure out what I'm starting with and settle on this one burgundy satin wrap top with big-ass sleeves that I love. . .that unfortunately doesn't go with much that I have in my wardrobe that vibes with the theme. (There's like. . .one or two things it works with, but I want to be FANCIER). So I sketch around and come up with an idea based around this shirt (and a statement necklace collar I have that was some of the best $5 I've ever spent)

I have this old dress I'd bought at a flea market years ago and had altered to be an overskirt for a hoop skirt, and then it's been worn as a bustle with the bodice tucked away more times than it's felt hoops. It's a similar color as the top, so I figured I'd finally take the bodice off it, pull it in to be something I could walk in that wouldn't trail on teh ground, and I could set it under a corset in the center. Bing-bang-boom! Genius!

No. The skirt and the shirt were similar-but-different enough colors and textures that they clashed. Damnit. Well, I can ditch the skirt and figure out the rest! Some skinny moto pants. A decorative corset - I could embroider a corset (Myr no), or, ooh, use gold appliques (Okay, more realistic, proceed).

Next step was to mock things up as I'm trying to find what I want without purchasing a bunch of shit, which got me to this:

Okay okay okay. Cool, I've got a direction (that's not the shirt, but it's the closest I coudl find online to use, so I used it). Now for the endless internet and thrift store (No fingers, not thirst store, dear god) and internet thrift store searching to find me some cool-ass pants and a corset and some shoes that'll work with this. You'll notice, though that my statement necklace has been swapped out for cool-strappy-thing. Because statement necklace-collar is geometric and GOOD LUCK finding geometric applique. Harder than I expected. Took me a couple months to find things that weren't lots of money that I could afford. BUT I EVENTUALLY DID IT. This included buying multiple corsets with the intention of returning things. Benefits of modern shopping. The happy "lets try everything on" day was this weekend!

SO FAR SO GOOD. Took a poll from friends and the short corset is the winner. It's definitely the best constructed of the three, though the pants aren't QUITE high enough waist to be able to wear under it without some adjustments. But it'll do. The shoes turned out to be dark brown instead of black, so I need to see about making them black (and fixing them so the tongue doesn't decide to go deep diving towards my toes.) Other things to do: bring in the wrists of those sleeves some, they're a bit too big (Here they're clipped with bobby pins), decorate the corset, maybe add some gold detailing onto the pants? They've got that gold ridging along the thighs that you find on moto-pants, but that's absolutely invisible most of the time, so I think if I just brush some gold paint along the tops of those ridges, it'll make them pop in a good way. You'll note that none of these photos have the strappy-thingy, and instead we're back to the statement necklace-collar. Turns out the differece between the image I found on the internet and teh shirt I own is enough that you BARELY SEE the strappy. Also, I decided that instead of using applique, I'd buy some gold paint, make a design that'd work, and paint it on the corset. Only time will reveal whether this was a good or a bad idea.

Other thing this showed me is that this doesn't feel FANCY enough. So I'm coming back to that half-skirt idea. This time, though I'm thinking about something sheer - either a burgundy to match the top, or a black with gold accents (OR A FULL DESIGN?!?!?!).

Last night I got flat photos of the corset for figuring out the design, since the shape I was working with in my sketches doesn't match the chosen corset shape. Pls to enjoy some of the designs I was playing with:

Proooooobably going to see about adjusting the eye design. I think it fits the theme best.

Last night I started on the alternations by taking in the waist of the pants. Please have this photo that happened 30 seconds before my thread was attacked.

[tj-crochets]

Hey y'all! I didn't get many requests for particular pride flags or pride plushies this pride month, but I did get a few requests for an intersex pride something. The intersex pride flag (like a few other flags) is more difficult for me to make, because a symbol is harder to incorporate into an oddly-shaped plushie than just stripes, and the circle will have to be* appliqued by hand so I'd prefer to limit the number of circles. So far, I have three ideas: 1. one of my pride bees (a very round bee consisting of three stripes) that's yellow with a purple stripe in the middle. There wouldn't be a flat ring, but the stripe would kind of form a ring? 2. a yellow dog plushie with a purple ring around its eye like the dog from Little Rascals. Idk how well known that dog is anymore or if it would be recognizable, but it's a one-applique option? I could also include purple patches on the back that are not rings, like the dog's markings in the show (in the movie? to be honest, I just remember the ring around the dog's eye) 3. a blue ringed octopus but the rings are purple. I think this would be awesome but I don't want to applique that many rings by hand and haven't found a fabric with the rings at quite the right scale and density for this project, so this is probably a longer-term one but I do want to make it eventually Do y'all have opinions on any of these, or any other ideas? For intersex pride plushies or for other pride plushies, I've had some work and some family things come up this month that mean I have not gotten as much sewing done this month as I wanted to, and I do love making pride plushies and would love more suggestions *yes, there are a few other ways I could possibly do that, but functionally with the way I make things it'd be by hand

[phoenixyfriend]

I know I'm a nerd because the amount of time I've spent obsessing over the Vojvodina dress is. Way too much.

This dress doesn't actually have a name (probably), but it's from late 19th century Vojvodina, and I kind of obsessed over it when I was at the Serbian Ethnographic Museum in Belgrade (main site is available only in Serbian).

(Unfortunately, I'm trying to work within the tumblr image limit, but here's a google drive!)

BTW, if you enjoy this post, please consider leaving a tip! I spent more time than is reasonable putting this together.

Also, due to tumblr being Odd, you may want to open this in a new tab to avoid having the posts expand to full; the dashboard view only lets there be one image per line, for some reason. If you open in a new tab, they are much more neatly organized into sets, and quicker to scroll past.

Due to the fact that I can't really describe these photos in a way that means anything to readers unless they have a large technical vocabulary or background in Balkan fashion history, and there being so many pictures, I will not be including image descriptions. However, my commentary on those photos throughout the latter half of the post should hopefully give you a solid summary on what the photos contain, even if it's not going into details for most.

Here is the general shape of what you see in 19th century Serbia (incl. Kosovo), Montenegro, Bosnia&Herzegovina, and Croatia:

You can see a few throughlines, even with the variety from one region to the next. Certain types of fabric are more common, especially that heavy plain-weave white fiber (I think usually cotton, nowadays, but probably historically flax) with the small knots; my grandmother's apartment is still stocked with that as the default bed linen! You see it all through the exhibit, most frequently in the skirts, but often for blouses or chemises, too.

There are a lot of hand-woven fabrics, which you can see on display best with the aprons, and a very specific style of applique trimmings on the cropped vest. The arm's eyes and necklines have similar proportions. The lengths are similar. Most things are cut on the rectangular, or not cut at all. Hems are often tassled, for complex weaves, or simply folded under for the white base fabrics; plain, non-white fabrics tend to get a textured applique at the hems. Lace is usually eyelet.

There are exceptions, of course. I'd love to know more about that mint green cardigan(?) from Montenegro, with the gored pieces. I think it's made of doeskin (the tight wool weave, not the leather), and I wish I could get more information on the history. Most of the larger green dyes, not counting floral motifs or minor elements of a multicolored weave, are from the Bosnian section of the display (wide stripes along the collar, for instance), presumably due to Ottoman influence leaving a large Muslim population. And then there's this mint green cardigan from Montenegro made of a fabric I'm not seeing on any other garments? Tell me more, please.

(Also, in the close-ups, you can see that the hook and eye closure has released rust stains onto the blouse!)

There are so many more pictures, but unfortunately, I have a thirty-image max and really want to talk about this one specific dress:

The image description on the floor below describes this as:

Woman's festive dress with a zlatara cap, Banat, Vojvodina, late 19th century

(I have minimal commentary on the hat. It's a traditionally Serbian vestment, but there's nothing too unusual about it.)

So, here are a few things to note at first glance:

The arm's eye on the vest is wide. It dips further in towards the neck than most vests, and swoops further down towards the ribs. Most of the traditional vests have a much tighter arm's eye.

Relatedly, the straps are much thinner than most of the vests, maybe half as wide. This is partly the arm's eye, and partly the width of the neckline to start!

The vest comes down in a slightly pointed oval ending at the swell of the bust, rather than curving back up or being a rounded shape a few inches higher. It's also finished with these little satin triangles?

The vest is laced at front, rather than hook and eye closure.

The bottom edge has tabs!

The hems on those tabs are chain stitched in yellow, and then the hem is wrapped in a thin orange ribbon that I would hesitantly say is satin? Plus all the other yellow embroidery, which to my eye looks really different from the embroidery you see on various aprons, and also different from the metallic appliques you see on most vests!

That bottom edge also appears to be straight across (most of the vests curve up slightly at front), and is very tight to the body. While some of the vests are tight, those are generally the shorter ones. Longer vests are much looser than this one, which cuts off and cinches at the waist, right where it meets the skirt.

The fabric itself! I'll get back to this but it seems to be a satin jacquard??? A jacquard that matches (in thread, not in pattern) to the skirt? Insane.

[Disclaimer: Some of these deviations, such as the arm's eye size or the dropped shoulder hem, could be a matter of the mannequin being the wrong size for the clothing. Unfortunately, I don't have enough background information to be sure. It could be just the right size. It could be far too small. I only have these photos and the most basic of background information to go off of.]

Okay moving on to the blouse:

It's not completely unique to be sheer, but it's definitely uncommon!

The chest is not pintucked or a flat weave, but rather the sheer fabric has thin stripes of more opaque weave? I don't actually remember what that's called but it's definitely cool to see.

We also see a net lace at the cuffs, which is similarly uncommon; most of the fashions I saw had eyelet lace instead (which we can see at the collar of the blouse).

The dropped shoulder! The shoulder seam sits much higher on most of the pieces I saw (there are a few exceptions, but mostly from regions nearby). In fact, most of the examples had the shoulder seam hidden, between the higher seam and the width of the vest; it's both the dropped seam and the thin straps of the vest that let us see this here!

That metallic embroidery. Again, most of the embroidery we see on the other pieces is cross stitch or done with a much thicker thread; sometimes, you get lineart, but not filled in in this manner. This kind of thin-thread embroidery that fills the space between the lines isn't common in the other pieces!

I don't think I can actually say much about the sleeve length? I feel like most of the pieces have sleeves that are full or bracelet length, while this one is a three-quarter, but I'm not 100% on that actually being true. It's a bit hard to tell in some cases. Might just be summer clothes?

The skirt:

SATIN JACQUARD

BOX PLEATS

SLIGHT OVAL HEM

SATIN RIBBON TRIM

I'm gonna be honest this was a huge part of why I began to obsess over this dress let me just. Whoo!

This fabric is, as far as I can tell, a satin jacquard, very probably machine-woven. It is very different from basically every other fabric we see in this exhibit. This is not a plain weave, and it is not a hand-woven design. This is a meticulously, mechanically repetitive pattern done using satin-weave manipulation to adjust which sections have shine and which don't. Given the time period, it's probably silk. (Take a look at this portion of a video on silk by Nicole Rudolph to understand what I mean by jacquard. If you want to know more about satin weave, you can watch the full video.)

I'd guess that the vest is made of the same type of fabric, even the same threads, just in a different pattern.

The pleating! If you take a look at the other photos, the general pattern is 'put together some rectangles, gather at top, and you have a dress. Cover with a hand-woven apron in front and possibly in back.' There are, again, some exceptions, but this dress has both the box pleating and the satin jacquard. The structure of this skirt is completely different from 90% of this exhibit.

In conjunction with the pleating, the skirt had a very slight oval shape around the bottom. I didn't get a good photo of that part, but it's typical of 1890s dresses in Western Europe to have a sort of egg-shaped hem if you look at them from above, through use of pleating, strategic panel shapes, and bum pads or petticoats. In short, the dress is just slightly longer at back without being a full-on train. Most of the other pieces, due to the rectangles and gathers, are a much simpler circle shape around bottom.

Length! Part of why the egg-shaped hem is happening is because this dress actually brushes the floor. Ankle-length is the default across the exhibit, even for formal wear.

Simple satin ribbons for decorative trim, rather than something textured, shaped, or multicolor!

Then, the actual hem of the skirt: a center-pleated green ribbon. This is, again, really different from most of the hems. Most of the skirts don't reach the ground, and aren't made of a fancy fabric. Those white dresses/skirts that form the base of most looks are easily washed and have hems that don't drag on the ground. If they aren't left to just the selvage, they're very simply hemmed; I think what I saw most frequently was a double-folded hem. The pieces that have more decorative hems, like blouses and vests and aprons, aren't pieces that get the same form of wear. However, since this dress does reach the ground, it needs a centimeter or so of additional fabric to take some of that wear to protect the fancier skirt fabric, like hem braid, which the easily-replaced ribbon could conceal for this skirt since it's a festival item.

I think that might also be part of why there's a seam about twenty centimeters up from the bottom edge; it's a replaceable section in case it needs replacement, or the seam is for a protective layer inside. However, it could also be a seam used for a stiff inner lining meant to help the skirt flare out just a touch, like this.

Now, finally, why is all this even a thing, and why do I care?

Vojvodina, the region this outfit is from, was under Austro-Hungarian control during the latter half of the 19th century; whether it was officially Hungarian, Austrian, or both changed from one decade to the next, but it was definitely under that sphere of influence for a very long time. Despite this, it was and is culturally Serbian, and is majority Serbian in terms of population; it was even back then! However, the 19th century saw a large number of ethnic Hungarians and ethnic Germans in the region as well, and the cultural impact from Vienna was not to be underestimated.

This dress is a great example of how a culturally Serbian individual would have clothing that integrated those foreign influences. For most of the Balkans, the greatest influence was the Ottomans, due to five centuries of imperial rule, but this dress is a great contrast due to Hungarian occupation, and then Austrian. It contains elements of the culture that birthed it, yes, but the influence of the West is so very, very clear.

(I wish I could talk more about the Pannonian elements in general, but I'm still learning.)

I hope you enjoyed this rambling deep dive into a single outfit from the Serbian Ethnographic Museum. Visit it if you get a chance!

And if you've read this whole thing and feel like dropping a tip, you can do so on this blog, post, or over on ko-fi. You could even join my Patreon!

[emmebearpaw]

The Robin Fire Emblem Cosplay Construction Post

Hi! A fun fact probably only a handful of you guys know about me is that I cosplay, and make / modify all the costumes I cosplay in, and it's time to start the next one! I hope to compete in this one, so I am going to do my best to plan ahead and essentially diary what I do when, so that I won't forget anything for my build book. Most of the posts containing images will be made private, for my privacy's sake, but any pictures that don't include anyone in it will be posted along with the day's diary entry. Now for the more interesting stuff: What the hell am I doing? I am making (Female, who is canon in my heart) Robin from Fire Emblem Awakening

But uh, I'm not doing that design. No, I found a design that retains everything I think Robin needs to still be Robin, takes out design elements I'm not that big of a fan of and also will help me not melt because my con is in late May and I live in an oven. And so I present you with, one of @lordyunaaa 's many Robin designs!

Used with permission of course. Diary entries will be found under #cosplay construction tag . And the first one should be up soon! And so, a course is set. Tag is created for easy searching on my part in April. I hope I can entertain anyone who tags along for this journey because it's going to... be a few months. Hopefully I won't be in applique hell for 2 months like my Hu Tao cosplay.

[appledew]

This is Zero the Cccat! Made for X3NO42 on Twitter back around the end of 2023. :)

This plush is made entirely with custom dyed minky. Details on this plush were machine embroidered and appliqued. Unfortunately I do not recall the total length of the plush, but the base body was at least 24 inches long, including the tail was probably about 40+ inches. gradient on the body was hand dyed and touched up with dry brushing.

I will say it how it was-- this absolutely beautiful character and design broke me (and literally broke my sewing machine! Like, very literally knocked it off my work table and needed to buy a new one the next morning.🤣😭 ) I have so many mixed feelings about this little one, aggressively revolving around how proud I am of completing them and trying new techniques all the way to seeing that I don't feel like I did justice to them with some intense disappointment. I will let those be the only negative words on this gorgeous project and lay them to rest. ❤

The WHOLE body was custom dyed, save for the main pink color of the head and belly to chest ( creamy yellow). I split the body into a few pieces since different gradients were applied-- Tail, Back Legs, Torso/Trunk, Chest, and Arms and head(that didn't require dyeing). The underside of the tail was dyed as a long strip like the top side.

Just about every piece of this plush was embroidered or had embroidery details! I used some lovely pearlescent thread for the sparkles!

Nothing much else to add without rambling, but the two little orbs were refreshing to make after this sweetheart was completed! <3

Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/appledew

Trello queue: https://trello.com/b/FZKSnMo7/plushie-commission-to-do-list

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AppleDew_

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apple.dew

Tumblr: http://appledew.tumblr.com/

Furaffinity: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/appledew

deviantArt: https://www.deviantart.com/appledew

[threadtalk]

Pelisse, please! I admit, I'm a total sucker for Regency fashion... and I don't post about it enough. One of the reasons I love the era so much is because of the layering. The pelisse, and the sort here with Van Dyck appliqué (that's what you call those zigzags) just look so stunning. To say nothing of the color! It doesn't matter what century, I will always swoon for green.⁣ ⁣ The pelisse came from--as much of the fashion of the period--military influence. Women, surprisingly, started modeling much of their clothing after soldiers' styles. That's how you get the long lines and buttons you see here. This particular gown is from 1818, and you can already see the slight dropping of the waist as we edge our way toward the Romantic period and away from the Empire waist that was so pervasive during the Regency. ⁣ ⁣ From the Maryland Center for Culture and History's description: Green silk pelisse worn by Eliza Eichelberger Ridgely (1803-1867). Its distinguishing features include a silk braid cord with metal tassels, high collar, double-puffed sleeves, and silk appliqued "Vandyke"-style embellishments.⁣

[kaluxsims]

It's Wednesday again, so time for more baby stuff! Inspired by @spacecasesimmies smoothed out TS4 onesies (which I shared for TS2 last week), I smoothed the waffling out of the original textures, but kept the rest of the details.

They're set as BU Everyday and Sleepwear, all colors for both girls and boys. My edit of @skittlessims' converted mesh is included, but it'll work with her version too. (And they don't replace the waffled ones.) You'll need Chris Hatch's mod, if you don't have it already. The textures are 256x256, so the files are nice and tiny.

(swatch soon, but it's only the ones with appliques, numbered 1-8)

Download - SFS or MediaFire

Credits: Skittles for the 4t2 conversion

[pwlanier]

AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP ALBUM APPLIQUE AND PIECED TIED BED COVER

having 41 on-point pattern blocks featuring various designs in printed fabrics, many of the blocks with embroidered or ink-signed signatures/initials to the top or backing, some signatures with dates, printed fabric latticed sashing, front-over-back binding, three-paneled plain backing. Names include Jane Stafford, S.A. Hinckler with “Jan 20th 1850” date, Hannah J. Caldwell, Eliza Dunlap with “Jan 1849” date, Ann Jane Furguson with “6 Jan 1849” date, Elisabeth Austin with “NY Jany 1849” date, and Elizabeth King.

Jeffrey Evans