Queen Regina's Purple Dress - Part 2

(Don't forget to read Part 1 first!)

One feature in certain costumes that I really love is the peplum. That is the little overskirt that hangs off a jacket or bodice and accentuates the hips and hides the waistband of the skirt if it's a separate affair.

As I mentioned in the first post, the fabric contracted a little bit under the embroidery, so I had to fiddle around with lining up those pointy, curved peplum pieces to the lining fabric.

Meanwhile, my embroidery machine was whirring away. Every time it finished a flower, I had to rehoop and prep for the next flower. It was kind of like having a two year old need something from you every fifteen minutes. Good practice for future mothering-while-sewing, I guess!

I transferred over the dart marks from the muslin pattern to the bodice pieces using tailor's wax. I prefer wax to chalk as it melts off under the iron, but it's always important to test the fabric as it can leave marks on certain types (particularly light colors).

However, once I'd sewn the darts, I realized it made the bust MUCH too pointy.

So I put the piece back on the form and created a full seam over the bust.

The curve was so extreme and so fussy that I basted the most acute portion of it before running the machine over it.

The lining puckered a bit, but the top fabric went on smoothly and it created a much nicer bustline!

Look at that fancy dress coming together!

Look at all those flowers!

The design was a really nice one that I didn't mind seeing over and over again - thankfully!

I love how the fabric changes in the different lights.

Here I'm drafting the paper pattern for the stiff collar. You'll see that come together in the next post.

Then the embellishments arrived and I had to sort those out on the sleeves. It was really fun to work with such rich beading!

SHINY.

Read more in Part 3!