This week the theme for Project Run & Play is "Let's go to the Movies". And this post is about my failled attempt to join this week's challenge...
I wasn't going to enter any outfit for this week. I had nothing in mind and I was trying to focus on next week's theme (Repurposing) and KCW - Winter 2014 (also going on next week) -, until I found myself laying at the sofa and thinking "Humm... if I would enter the Let's Go to the Movies theme what movie would inspire me?..." Then I started to think of all those great kids movies and movies that I really love... And I kept thinking about Narnia!
When I was a kid I read several books of The Chronicles of Narnia (by C.S.Lewis, one of my favorite authors) while spending Summer holidays at my grandmother's countryside cottage. I remember vividly all the scenes I imagined in my mind, it was a magical world.
A Google search for Narnia followed my wonderings. And I found some great material! I even found a whole internet site about Narnia's characters costumes. Isn't that funny? I was thrilled! And it was a tough choice...
The "Lamp post Lucy's dress" with a beautiful smocking bodice would be great!
The decision and failure #1
I decided that I had to do it. Now!
I had only two days but that seemed doable.
The Play dress is made with a cotton fabric with small pink and lavander flowers. It is knee lenght and has a high waist, white peter pan collar, puffed short sleeves and gathered pockets. (As seen in the above pictures with zoom.)
The pattern and failure #2
I searched my sewing patterns and "The Caroline's Party Dress" by Welcome to The Mouse House was a good starting point. (The dress is gorgeous! I really love this pattern!)
I would have to make a (small) change to the bodice so I could add those scalloped pintucks with piping and I would have to add puffed sleeves and gathered pockets, and it seemed like it woudn't be that hard... Or would it?
I didn't had any pattern for the gathered sleeves or the puffed pockets... and it would take a bit of time to draft them. I could foresee a trial-error process and I just had not the time for that... So that was failure #2.
The fabric and failures #3 and #4
I went straight for my fabric stash and I was dispointed that I dind't have any fabric that looked like Lucy's dres... (I could have swor that I had...) And I had no time to go shopping for it... So that was failure #3...
I had to go for the only one that looked a bit like it - a thin corduroy with colored flowers on an off white background.
I drafted, I cut the fabric and the forth faillure happened: I didn't have enough fabric for all the pieces!...
I decided that I would still go for it. I wouldn't add either the sleeves or the pockets... So I started to sew the front bodice. First the piping in a scalloped shape, and this was faillure #5! The right side was way more "scalloped" than the other (which looked more of a straight piping).
I tried to fix it but it was even worse - now they both looked neither scalloped or straight... they look just really bad...
The end and Lessons learned
I was so frustrated by now that I decided to quit... I had not the time to correct it, finish it, photograph it and post about it... So that was it. A sewing fail.
What I have learned from this?
#1 Always plan ahead. Always lay at the sofa and wonder "what if" one or two weeks before...
#2 When you don't have much time nor the exact pattern, simplify! The idea was to be inspired by a movie, it was not mandatory to copy an exact costume.
#3 Again: plan ahead! Go through your stash ahead to allow time to go shopping if you have to.
#4 Do your math at least twice! And check your fabric yardage twice.
#5 Do things in a timely manner and if you don't have enough time don't risk a new and difficult technique. I have sewn piping before and it was great, but I have never sewn scalloped edge piping, and it is more difficult than I would expect (either that or I am a sewing dork...).
Professor Kirke: "I don't think you'll get back in that way... you see, I've already tried."Lucy: "Will I ever go back?"Professor Kirke: "I expect so. But it will happen when you're not looking for it. All the same, it's best to keep your eyes open."
So, maybe next time I'll go for the Lucy's Play dress... Or, maybe next week... I'll keep my eyes open, my hands at work and I won't give up.
Dedication at the beginning of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe"
Dear Lucy Barfield,
I wrote this story for you, but when I begin it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it's printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand a word you say, but I shall still be
Your affectionate Godfather,
C.S.Lewis
Images source.
