mala_14 | Not much to say

I just feel like posting to keep up the good habit of posting regularly. I finished the centre front seam of my Regency stays. I sewed three of the layers together (2 sateen, 1 broadcloth) using a back stitch and only catching the sateen in the first and last 1/2 inch. Then I turned in the other broadcloth layer's seam allowance and whipped that down to the already sewn in broadcloth. Since I don't have a busk, this allows me to have all the edges on the inside finished and leaves me with a divided centre so I can put boning on either side of CF. I also sewed one CB seam, just backstitching with the sateen and broadcloth layers right sides together.

I am not looking forward to the eyelets, which will be coming soon. I'm thinking I need to find out the least number of eyelets I can put in. I will also be spiral lacing these. I find it so much easier to put on than cross-laced when there's no front opening busk.

Silk thread is so much nicer to hand-sew with than cotton thread! It hardly ever knots. And it goes through the fabric so smoothly. I don't think I can ever go back.

I've also been spending WAY too much time scouring the internet for fabric that I might want to use for a GoT Mormont gown. I want something with a bit of shine, but not too much. And something of natural fibres so I can dye it. I am considering cotton sateen because I can get it for pretty cheap, it looks nice and drapes nicely, and it will dye fairly easily. However, it doesn't have the same look as the actual GoT gowns have, which appear to be made of silk. Dharma Trading has some low-priced dupioni that looks fairly slub-free, but it seems that silk is more difficult to dye dark colours and it would also be twice the price of the sateen (and even more than that with the cost of shipping to Canada). I wonder if any of the silks back at the fabric store would work. They were all under $15/metre but mostly they were very slubby duipionis. Such a difficult decision... *sigh* :p

But on the plus side: Look! New GoT userpic! :)

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I have never used silk thread before (shocker!) is it really so much better?

I'm curious about this, too! I HATE how cotton thread knots so easily. I must say, I'm using silk thread for the beading, and although I will get it twisted enough to knot, they come out pretty easily.

I get SO many knots when sewing with cotton thread by hand. But the silk hardly ever really knots. And it's much stronger. Also, it's the recommended thread for sewing stays in the Bernhardt book from 1811 and, for some reason, I seem to have the impression that historically it was linen and silk thread that were used for sewing. Both of which are probably significantly smoother than cotton.

I think there is a definite noticeable difference. It slides through fabric easier. It knots less frequently. And, when it does not, the knots are much easier to pull apart. Also, because I tend to use a long piece of thread, I find that cotton thread tends to break where it hits the eye of the needle after a while, but silk thread is much stronger so it doesn't. Give it a try!

I both love and hate fabric shopping for projects with such a specific inspiration. It's neat to problem solve out what will work and look at pretty fabrics, but sometimes frustrating when you can't find the right thing for a good price.

Yup! It's a great feeling when you find the right thing, but it can be a real hassle when you can't.

I remember when I made the switch to hand sewing with silk thread a few years ago. It was a magical moment and I wondered why I had been missing out on it my whole life. Dramatic but true. ;)

It really is magical! All of a sudden the hand-sewing became so much easier. I just had to share my discovery of it with the world. :)

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