Painted Dapper Oxfords

I should dub this the summer of a million and one projects, because that's what it feels like I've done. However, it doesn't really seem like it, as I have yet to document any of them. So I'll begin with one of the projects I just finished: refurbishing my old oxford lace ups.

These shoes are definitely my most loved. They have been on two Disney trips, lived through two summers, and have even gone to New York. Sadly, my mom thought they were looking rather raggedy, but I just couldn't part from my beloved shoes. So I did what I do best, make them to what I want.

I had plenty of fabric paint and odds and ends left over from other craft projects. Armed with only a vague idea and some black and white paint, I decided to dapper up my out of shape oxfords. After a few coats of black paint, I could see the new life in the shoes. The white weaving, tongue, and dots helped to accent those areas. I used some black ribbon as the laces, using my heat embossing gun to make sure the ends don't fray. Finally, some matte paint sealer went over everything to ensure none of the paint rubs off on other things.

I really like the color choices, and I could see wearing them all the time once fall rolls around. Overall, I am pretty pleased that I get to hold on to my favorite shoes for a bit longer. Hopefully, they still have a few trips left in them!

Elsa from Frozen- Bodice

Like most people, I love the Disney movie Frozen. It has all the components to a great animated movie: intriguing storyline, significant themes, relatable characters, and beautiful costumes. The outfits Anna and Elsa wear are so adorable, I knew I would have to try to recreate them. Since my sister says I'm like Elsa, that's the costume I decided to sew first.
 
I searched a bit for the perfect fabric for Elsa's bodice. Nothing was really fitting the idea I had in my head, so I decided to make the fabric I wanted myself. I just wanted something to emulate the scale design of her bodice, have sparkle, and be around the same color. How hard could it be?

 I found the McCall's pattern M7000 so I didn't have to draft the whole costume from scratch. Knowing that I wanted to make a detachable bodice, I redrafted the pattern, making it a bit longer so as to cover the waistband of the skirt. I used a heavier cotton fabric with a little stretch that I had on hand to make the bodice. It was a good material, as it was heavy enough to hold the paint, yet flexible enough to bend a bit. After constructing the basic bodice, I put in some plastic boning, which allows the bodice to hold its shape on the body, acting more like a mock corset.  

Just painting, touching up, glittering, cutting, and gluing took forever and a day.
As you can probably tell, I'm not a professional photographer. Most of the time I barely remember to take pictures of my work, so I'd say this is a lot of photographs by my standards. 
 
 
 
 

 Well after many hours toiling, I finally finished it. I put scales on all of the panels and then added an extra layer of glitter. Personally, I'm pretty proud of it, as it took two full days to just paint and glue down the scales. Overall, I hope the rest of the costume will be easier, but I fear for the cape and its rhinestones....

 
 

A Beginning

I've never been the best about documenting my fashion design process, so that's why I am starting a blog. I hope having this will force me to get into the habit of taking pictures and writing out directions for my projects. Personally, I like to jump from one project to the next. This process should help me to slow down and analyze my work. Basically, I'm hoping it will act as a giant portfolio and archive of my sewing projects for any future references.

Apart from my sewing projects, I'm fairly sure there will be the occasional (fairly often) post about my many art projects, books, fandom loves, favorite band (The Beatles), and outfits that I am currently adoring. Being an English major, I love words, but I want to keep this short so I can get back to my latest project!