MLS Designs

Hello all, I'm finally back from Bath, and now we have no holidays planned till the end of October! I get to go back to normal at last :D
Anyway, in all the manic event sewing I've done lately I've been very remiss with posting, especially picture posting :( SO to make up for that, here are some pictures from the Victorian Festival in Wales. I was my usual useless self when it came to picture taking, so there are not exactly many to show for the 9 days, but the best of those I did take are ( under here... )

So now I just have to do the same for the photos form Bath, and we're up to date! I'm going to try to be better about posting more now, but we all know how well my resolutions last ;)

I finally finished the bloomin thing, and I'm very pleased with it! In theory it still needs flossing, but I'm not going to do it for the demos this weekend, in fact I may never get round to it, naughty girl that I am!! I must say I love the coutil, I may be a convert!! I have a feeling all my stays and corsets from now on will use it as a base :) I'm so pleased with the fit, my figure has changed so much over the last year that there's no way I could have carried on wearing the old one, and besides, this one is prettier :D
So now I'm all set for the demos, we have one on Saturday in the afternoon, and on Sunday all day, so tomorrow, before I go out for the English Department Christmas meal, I'm going to make some soup to feed hungry and cold Victorian dancers after the demos, and since Saturday morning will probably be rather busy as well, I get to bake tomorrow, YAY!!

Didn't get much done at all over the weekend, and I had work on Monday, but today I went into town to get top-stitching thread and matching ribbon for my new 1860s corset. I found a pretty pink and a blue, don't know which I'll decide on :) I also got some silk duchess satin, from the market of all places! I looked at the polly stuff and decided I'd rather just use coutil, even if its not as pretty, when he said 'I have a remnant of silk if you want, how much do you need though, there's only a little bit left'. There was 90cm left on the bolt, and he sold it to me for £9, bloody amazing price over here!! So now my new corset will be lovely and pretty :) I also wanted to get a heavy duty open-ended zip for fittings, and found a nice purple one! So after I got back I looked for the pattern for my old corset. It was no where to be found :'( So I spent AGES taking a pattern off my corset, then I cut the patterns up to add about 2" into the length between waist and underbust. My posture has changed so much that the bust gussets sit way bellow my bust once it's settled onto my hips. I also think I'll need to make the gussets a bit smaller and take some out of the hips, even before the gallstones it was a bit big in these areas, even more so now of course!!!
But then I got eaten by the TV so couldn't cut out my mockup, but instead of just sitting in front off the TV like a lump, I started hemming the skirt of my red challis, so I have done SOME useful stuff today :)
Mummy got me some disposable piping bags today, and some new nozzles, so now all I want to do tomorrow is bake cupcakes so I can decorate them all sillily :D

Today started out ok, I made a yummy apple and sultana steamed pudding for lunch, but after lunch I started to feel icky, really tired, tummy ache and cold, even though I was hot! I had a long nap, felt a bit better, drank some tea, felt worse, ate a cracker, felt better! I managed my supper fine, but about 2 hours ago I started to get my gallstone pains :( I've finally put a hot water bottle down the back of my top, and it's easing, I look like a moron though :D
Needless to say I've not done anything done! I better not let this nothing doing last too long though!
Ok, here's the list!
By 31st October, Fancy Dress Ball:
Fancy dress costume fro me, hopefully just add bits to an existing ball gown
Ditto fro Mummy

By 28th November, Playford Ball:
Hopefully nothing!

By end of November, Xmas market display:
Tomato red wool dress for me
Wool hood for Mummy
Wool coat for Mummy

By 13th February, Valentine's Ball (regency)
Nothing for Mummy
Maybe a new dress for me, probably not because of:

By March something, Georgian Ball, Bath
Stays for Mummy
Hoops for me
Fix my old hoops for Mummy
Red ribbed silk Anglaise and petticoat for Mummy
Yellow Francaise and petti for me
Wig for Mummy

And I have to try and fit making us both new corsets for 1860s in there somewhere, our figures are so much better with all this dancing that our corsets no longer fit! And if Clare can make any balls she might want something new as well, I really should get on, don't you think?!