Well, it took me all morning, but I finally managed to get the new pattern for the bodice right. I also managed to salvage all the lace from the first bodice, plus the straps, and everything is still useful. Huzzah! I was very displeased with the first bodice...it looked alright, except for the fact that it was REALLY short-waisted. I had to add 4" to each piece of the pattern to make it fit right. Ugh. Well, it fits correctly now, and it looks just fine. I'll probably sew everything together on Monday and Tuesday since I have those days off from work. I'll also be able to finish the skirt up on those days, so the entire dress -should- be finished by the end of next week. Huzzah! I'll take pictures of myself poncing around in it once it's finished, and then post them afterwards. Horray for quick dresses!
As far as my other projects go, I haven't been working on anything else since the Christmas dress popped up. I should really finish the purple JSK, since it's so nearly finished anyway, and Morgan's clothes, since most of them are just lacking buttons or buttonholes. (He's my men's wear model, so he gets to be my guinea pig.)

I talked to my manager at Dillard's, and it turns out that I -can- go part-time, starting after the Holidays. I am very excited! That means that I'll be able to finish up all my lingering projects and turn out some prototypes. Za! Most of what I have planned will go fairly quickly, so I'm pretty confident that I can get everything finished up by March. The men's wear will be done first, since I don't have very many designs, and Morgan needs shiny clothes. So, -possibly- some pics of aristocrat/men's wear in the coming months, but don't hold your breath.

Well, well, it's been quite a while since I posted anything new. I thought about just abandoning this account, but then I decided against it. I really wish I could just change my username.
Anyway, I've been working on allot of new things. My Lolita line is in the works again, after a long break from sewing due to burnout. But, things are going again, and I have three Lolis in the works right now, along with my Christmas dress, which is going to be a very frilly red and white Loli. I'm very much looking forward to making it, and if the response is good, I may make it part of my line.
I'm going to be going part-time at Dillard's soon (thank the gods) so I can work as much as possible on my line while still pulling in some cash for supplies and whatnot. I plan on having all my prototypes finished by March so I can have a photo shoot for the catalogue in April. My Aristocrat/Dandy clothes will actually be shot over spring break at the end of March, in New Orleans! Very exciting. ^^

Coming soon, pics of :
Purple floral tea dress and blouse
Alice 2.0 - the good version
Christmas Lolita

Huzzah! I *finally* finished Alice! I added the last bit of trim tonight, as well as the zipper and hook and eye. Whee! My first EGL dress! ~does a victory dance~ It's so cute! ~gushes~ I'm so very pleased with how the apron turned out! I made it a bit longer than originally planned, but I think it looks great. I'm going to press it tomorrow, and then take some pictures. Whee!

First Lolita dress, "Alice", is now underway! Basically, it's Alice in Wonderland gone gothic. I really like how the design turned out, and I thought it would be a good 'flagship' of sorts. So far, I have made the pattern for the front of the bodice (took about an hour to tweak it to perfection), and am nearly finished with the back piece. The skirt will take all of an hour to make. The thing that has me a bit worried is the apron...I've never made one before, and I'm not really sure how to construct the one I designed. But! I was lucky enough to find a video clip of Malice Mizer in concert, and Mana-sama was wearing an apron very similar to the one I came up with...and with all his spinning and poncing around, I was able to get a good idea of how it was all put together. Hopefully, I can get that done relatively quickly, as well!

In other news...wisdom teeth are coming in. Three of them. Going in to the dentist tomorrow to have them looked at. Hopefully, there's enough room for them, and I won't have to get them removed. It just hurts something fierce, since they're trying to break through the skin and all. So, yeah...losing an entire day tomorrow to the dentist.

Wow...so, I'm sitting with Dad while he's having lunch, and I start telling him about Gothic Lolita, possibly setting up a line of EGL clothes, setting up at conventions, etc. I showed him some pictures that I have on the computer, and just before he leaves he says "Figure out how much it would be to make 10 dresses, and we'll see where to go from there." That's exciting! So, I told him it would probably be best to just buy a bolt of black fabric and work with that, and he's considering it! This might start up sooner than I thought it would.
I've also thought up something for an EGL coat...I can get velvet really cheap over in Dallas ($4.45 a yard, as opposed to $16 a yard normally), and I can make some shoulder capes, coats, etc, out of that velvet. They have black, the staple, red, blue, green, etc, so I can offer all sorts of colours.
I can also use some regular calicos from places like Joann's for the dresses. There's allot of EGL stuff that's made of floral prints and the like, and fabric like that is around $4 at the local stores.
The first convention that I want to set up at is FenCon. Booths there are $75 for the entire weekend, and it's local, Plano, so I wouldn't have to drive far. I want to have allot of pre-made stuff ready before then - at least 10 different styles of dresses, blouses, and skirts, a box of crinolines that I can sell, headwear (bonnets, lace, etc), and some jewelry. I can make all of these on my own, so I won't have to order anything...I might break and buy the crinolines, if I can find them in bulk, or wholesale. Basic booth setup will be like this -
-Clothes racks with the dresses hanging and ready to be sold.
-At least two of the fancier dresses on display to draw people in
-A binder catalogue for people to flip through, with order forms in the back
-A table in the back with the jewelry, headwear on display
-A dressing curtain for people to try on the clothes

Now, there are still a few things that I need before I can launch the line -
-models for the catalogue...I might put up a notice on my websites and Project Journal looking for models in the local area. In exchange for their time, they would get the dress of their choice. I also have some men's clothes in the works, and will need male models. They will also get the item of their choice in exchange for their time. Of course, won't need them until I actually have...ya know...clothing.
-build up a website for it...not sure if I'll make it part of my business website, or set up a completely new site for the line
-more designs...anyone that wants to submit a design for the line will get full credit
-most importantly...a name...suggestions are more than welcome
-a logo for the line...a chibi-ish character (think Chibi Mana-sama) in EGL or something along those lines...it all depends on what the name of the line ends up being

Prototypes will be underway soon! Sketches will be posted in the scraps section, and photos of prototypes will be posted in the gallery!