Sunday, July 6, 2014

My "Not actually Zebra patterned" coat.

I bought this fabric in a Globalthatwas customer sale for only $10m!! It is silk chiffon but mostly the fibres are metallic. I thought that a lovely gold zebra print was just perfect for Constance.
It was only this week I realised that a gold and brown zebra stripe was probably, umm, tiger? ;-)
Anyway with only 2m to play with, I had in mind a sort of thigh length kimono style top for Constance - a little bit Abbaesque.
Abba-Tribute-Band-Abba-Magic-05.jpg

NOT to be worn with thigh high boots, mind!
Anyway, I cut it out and it sat around for ages, until I realised I needed a couple of new costumes for Born Before '74, and the 1970s vibe of this one was going to be perfect.
So I ran it up super fast. With an old needle. Sewing lurex. Does anyone know where this is going? The needle keeps pushing the flat fibres of lurex down instead of going through them, resulting in puckering and tangling everywhere. Sigh. Still, a goodly pressing mostly sorted it out.
Then, I found it was just not right as a kimono. I'm hardly an hour glass, more a hot water cylinder. The belted look was awful! Too awful to show you poor things. The fabric is light and has no drape because of it, so it puffs and billows unflatteringly.
And thus my kimono became a duster jacket. And it was too normal. More like the kind of thing an in denial 60 year old bleach blonde would wear to the Petone Workingmen's Club on a Friday than Drag. So, sequins have been added. And stars.
Maybe it is even a bit Sneech? Except the stars are not on my belly!
I wore it out on Friday night to a party, with only some sequins sewn on in time, as above, on one shoulder, like a corsage. But that is the great thing about embellishment, it can be a work in progress and still be worn. MrC and I walked the length of Cuba St in Wellington with me in full Constance regalia and we got lots of delighted and positive comments, not one snarky one.
I love Wellington!

2 comments:

  1. That fabric is something else. Would have loved to have seen Constance walking the streets.

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  2. I would do the same thing, calling it golden zebra print.

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