So I’ve really wanted to make a cloak but haven’t had the $$ to buy the required 6 meters of fabric + lining.
But today when I was putting some fabric away I found 7 meters of non-shiny, non-stretch velvet that I’d purchased in December “just because it might come in use” when it was $2 a meter.
After a bit more digging, I found 6 meters of lining in a matching colour.
Cha-ching! I know how I’m spending Easter! One indigo cloak, coming up!
[quote=“amphigori”]So I’ve really wanted to make a cloak but haven’t had the $$ to buy the required 6 meters of fabric + lining.
But today when I was putting some fabric away I found 7 meters of non-shiny, non-stretch velvet that I’d purchased in December “just because it might come in use” when it was $2 a meter.
After a bit more digging, I found 6 meters of lining in a matching colour.
Cha-ching! I know how I’m spending Easter! One indigo cloak, coming up![/quote]
You got velvet for only $2/m. I bow to your superior scrounginess.
Eeeeee! fabulous! 
Can’t wait to see it.
[quote=“Stephanie”][quote=“amphigori”]So I’ve really wanted to make a cloak but haven’t had the $$ to buy the required 6 meters of fabric + lining.
But today when I was putting some fabric away I found 7 meters of non-shiny, non-stretch velvet that I’d purchased in December “just because it might come in use” when it was $2 a meter.
After a bit more digging, I found 6 meters of lining in a matching colour.
Cha-ching! I know how I’m spending Easter! One indigo cloak, coming up![/quote]
You got velvet for only $2/m. I bow to your superior scrounginess.[/quote]
Well, “velvet”. It’s almost suede-like. Regardless, whatever it is, it’s currently $16 a meter. I’d posted about Spotlight having an awesome clearance a while back - this is from that when they had lots of stuff at $1- $5 a meter. Good times.
I’m making this, minus the collar: images.patternreview.com/sewing/ … 8/4698.jpg
Just finished the hood. So roomy!
Sew jellies!
Am currently doing a ‘omg I found this fabric at the bottom of my stash’ project as well! Must be the weekend for it …
The light blue option in green wool that I’ve been eyeing up for the last 5 years, wondering what to do with!
Oh that’ll look really lovely in green wool!
Gah! Thanks to the excellent photo of that dress pattern, I’m now torn- I scored some wool suiting in the Fabric Warehouse closeout for $5 a metre, and I was planning on making a pair of high-waisted 40s-style trousers, but now I’m torn! I have enough fabric for the dress, too!
Also, Amphigori, I will now be stalking Diatribe in the hopes of more Spotlight-is-having-a-sale posts. Your cloak sounds like it will be fabulous. Will you be finding a reason to wear it at Chimera?
The dresses are ABSOLUTELY beautiful. I would recommend making it without the poofy sleeve bits because the instructions for them had me throwing scissors, and they’re awkward under anything else. The shape is otherwise absolutely immaculate, and the pleated skirt bit looks waaaaay better than you would imagine. Once I get the zip in mine, it’s going to be a wardrobe basic!
As with most Vogue stuff, it’s a small size. I’m normally around a 10, but the 12 fits like a glove.
[quote=“AhGoodTheSea”]Gah! Thanks to the excellent photo of that dress pattern, I’m now torn- I scored some wool suiting in the Fabric Warehouse closeout for $5 a metre, and I was planning on making a pair of high-waisted 40s-style trousers, but now I’m torn! I have enough fabric for the dress, too!
Also, Amphigori, I will now be stalking Diatribe in the hopes of more Spotlight-is-having-a-sale posts. Your cloak sounds like it will be fabulous. Will you be finding a reason to wear it at Chimera?[/quote]
That sale was awesome, eh? Here’s another tip: there’s a fabric store across the street from Gordon Harris. The store is painted bright orange. They’ve got a sale table with nothing over $5 a meter. I got some beautiful green fabric at $2 a meter last week and just picked up some gold at the same price. Together I’m making an under dress and overdress. Purdy.
As for the cloak - I’m not sure if I’ll have a chance to wear it at Chimera. The thing weighs a few kilos, so it takes up a lot of space and weight. When I take it up to Wolfgang’s next month I’m bringing it on the plane as my coat.
[quote=“Moo”]The dresses are ABSOLUTELY beautiful. I would recommend making it without the poofy sleeve bits because the instructions for them had me throwing scissors, and they’re awkward under anything else. The shape is otherwise absolutely immaculate, and the pleated skirt bit looks waaaaay better than you would imagine. Once I get the zip in mine, it’s going to be a wardrobe basic!
As with most Vogue stuff, it’s a small size. I’m normally around a 10, but the 12 fits like a glove.[/quote]
Looking forward to seeing it!
I didn’t get to go in personally- my friend went in and we texted each other furiously establishing what there was and what I wanted. I scored some grey satin with a purple sheen, too, which I think will be a Regency dress (I’m hoping to get in on ‘Betrothals and Betrayals’ at Chimera).
And thank you for the tip! And how convenient that I just happen to be in town after work today… I suspect I’ll have a few costumes to make for Chimera- I make them so I can use them again.
I had a look at both potential suit-fabric patterns and it’s entirely possible I might have enough for both. But as the dress is so recommended, I think it may be the winner if I have to choose. And Moo, I will take your advice about the puffy sleeves. I was thinking of doing the long-sleeved version without puffy bits.
Which I think you’ll have a lot more luck with than if you turned up toting rubber weaponry in your carry-on… I had to talk my husband out of buying a rubber flail from the LARP Hall at the Essen Spieltage in Germany for that very reason.
I bought that same satin! I have no plans for it yet. I just bought it because it was purdy and cheap. I’ll NOT make a regency dress out of it now!
Heh, yeah we put all of our larp weapons in a big ole box labeled ‘theatre props’ and put it on as checked bagage. We don’t want to end up in the paper accused of hijacking a plane with rubber weapons.
Well, actually, if you were in Betrothals and Betrayals too and our characters were related, we could probably get away with it, if that was what you had planned. There are a few sisters and mothers/daughters in the cast list…
If it helps, I’m making a coat in a different fabric (probably a pale mauve) to go with it, so it might not notice too much.
My husband thinks MI5 will come get me any day now, because I routinely take knitting needles on planes (they honestly don’t care on most internal flights, and they’re wooden needles), and, indeed, took them on the London Eye (they have security there too and said I could take the needles on there if I didn’t use them! What did they think I was going to do? Demand that they roll the wheel to Beirut? Honestly…) Hijacking a plane with LARP weaponry would be a lot more interesting. At least for the journalists. And now I have an image of you, Scott and Idiot in your Camelot gear, brandishing rubberised swords at the captain…
I just had to add, in the pack-rat spirit, that in preparing my costume for ‘Diamond Geezers’ this weekend, I have discovered to my horror that I have an ENTIRE OUTFIT that would work for my character. I just would never wear all the different bits together. All I’ve had to buy was trashy nail polish, and some $2 store jewellery (well classy, innit?).
Clearly, I should keep all the clothes I buy, even if they’re hideously unfashionable, because you just never know when you’ll need something for a LARP.
Exactly. Some day the clothes you’re wearing now will be “retro.”
