This corset has been sitting waiting on my mannequin and I felt inspired to finish something so I went ahead and applied binding. Stripe binding no less. I think it is a fun, playful element that ties in with the black piping.

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My best friend Rene and I are getting ready to do our yearly project. This year it will be Regency dresses in a nice striped sheer white cotton. She had already made up this pattern in my previous work space. So we decided I’d make one too. Thank you Rene for helping trace and cut out the project!

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The girls are so precious and oh so prim and proper (most of the time). Just wait till you get to the cute outtakes. Yes the Princess Royal turns into a zombie nearing the end of the shoot.

I have to say, these two young ladies really impressed me. They did 3 hours including hair, make-up, costuming and a photo shoot. Then popped aprons over their dresses, ate dinner, and headed out with their Grandma to meet me as their mama at the ball Read the rest of this entry »

I took on a big task yesterday. Namely the garage and the embroidery station. Somehow the garage had become so impacted I could not walk through without stepping over things. The Dickens stuff was mostly put away but the rack from the PEERS ball was sitting in the way laughing at me. The cleaning done at New Years in the outdoor bathroom meant moving everything haphazardly into the garage. So not the way to do things.

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Two years after the fact Thank you Kaitlyn for coming down to my place and doing a shoot with my husband. We went through and picked our favorite shots and will be adding them to the portfolio but until there here is a teaster shot:

I still beam with happiness when I see this gown at Dickens fair.

This patterning is based off of the red & black lozenge under-bust with the torso lengthened from under-bust to the waist. I wanted to make a quick corset so I just popped on the mock-up from the other corset and adjusted like I would normally. This worked since my client has the same proportions to me but is shorter waisted.

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Allison decided to start developing a steampunk aesthetic to go along with her gray corset we finished a while back. The corset & cravat are made by me. Here is a teaser shot:

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For many years I’ve watched and admired the costumers who submit their projects to the Realm of Venus, a website dedicated to the fashion and style of Renaissance Italy. Each year Bella has viewers vote for their favorite top three entries. I finally got my butt in gear & made an Italian dress and with the help of my husband (my photographer) entered a dress into the showcase.

I feel honored to have been chosen to receive the Gold Rose award. Thank you to all those people who voted, especially for the kind comments. It is nice to know hard work does not go unnoticed.

Congrats to all the winners.