Staying with the stays

Holy wow.  These stays have taken me so much longer than I thought they would.  But the binding is FINALLY all done (it does need pressing to help smooth out some crinkles here and there).  After a few practice eyelets, I just took the plunge and started poking holes.  I've done four of them so far, and I'm pretty happy with them!  With the wider boning channels, the eyelets are coming out fairly small, so unfortunately I don't think the awesome homespun/green ribbon I got will fit - or if it does, the ribbon will be all folded over itself and the sweet detail won't be visible.  I might just have to get a very narrow grosgrain or something.  Thankfully I can be more flexible with the color so it shouldn't be hard to find something I like (famous last words...)

If the stays have taught me anything, it's that I bit off a lot more than I could chew, so I put out an APB to sewing friends.  But as is so often the case with people who can actually sew, they have their plates full with their own projects for Halloween and other fall/winter costuming events, or they're costuming theater productions!  However, they have all been very generous with offering to lend me costume pieces and accessories, which lowers my sewing load,  and will help immensely with getting everything pulled together in time.  My friend Melissa (she of Dylan Fabrics) recommended a woman to make Ziva's "Nabby" dress, and it will be made from fabric gifted by another friend, who also resized a petticoat of her own for me to wear.  Costuming enthusiasts really look after each other!!

So now...pictures!

 Here's the cotton fabric for Ziva's "Nabby" gown, courtesy of my friend Agnes Gawne.  Isn't it so sweet??  There's blue in the fabric for my gown, so it goes nicely.

And here's the Larkin & Smith Gir's Gown pattern envelope.  The lady making it is going to have to size it down a bit, but she's comfortable doing that.  I delivered this pattern and fabric to her yesterday, and then tonight I discovered there's a Mill Farm pattern that starts at a smaller size.  The Larkin & Smith gets great reviews and came highly recommended, so rather than order that pattern and wait for it to arrive, I'll stick with the Larkin & Smith for this one, and maybe I will give the Mill Farm a try if I need another dress for Ziva in this period.  

Bottom binding done!  This is just one half but they're identical.  This was some fiddly stitching but I'm very proud of myself.

Center back eyelets marked out for spiral lacing.

Center front eyelets marked, also for spiral lacing.

Strap and bust peak eyelets marked (the strap comes over the shoulder and ties with the same ribbon as the front and back lacing).

First eyelet done. First of...62. Deep breaths.