My Middle Earth Adventure: Arwen Swimsuit, Part 3

WHENEVER you make ANY sort of sewing project, ALWAYS THINK THINGS COMPLETELY THROUGH FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!  I have learned this lesson the hard way.

I decided that, when ordering the new navy blue fabric, I would also buy a yard of grey fabric.  All in all it was not the wisest decision for my wallet, but if I am going to take the time to make this, I am going to make it perfect and right.  My mom always says before buying something, "Don't buy it if you're not going to like it."  We all know, if you don't like something, you won't end up wearing it!

Thus I have started returning the old grey fabric, which, after consideration, was just too blue-grey for me.  I am glad to finally have the fabric part of the plan all worked out, and I have started working on the next step; the pattern.

Ah, the pattern!

What I used to make my pattern:

• Wrapping paper
• A sharpie
• My sister's swimsuit (to base the pattern off of)
• My giant pillow pet dog (trust me, he helped!!! :))

I based it (for the most part) off of my sis's swim dress, with a few slight adjustments.

(Click on the pictures for a larger image)

For the skirt I traced a dotted line around the edge, making it slightly wider at the hips, then I traced it with a solid line, which is what I cut on.  I left a little under an inch for seam allowance, seeing that the fabric probably won't need to much detail when sewing together.

I had forgotten that I was lengthening the skirt a bit (I'm a good deal taller than my sis) and therefore, working with paper I had previously cut from for a different pattern, I didn't leave enough room when marking the bottom of the pattern to complete the cut out.  Fortunately, I also forgot that when making a symmetrical cut, you only need 1 full half of the pattern, which is what I now have.

For the bodice I did the same thing I did with the skirt, creating a dotted line, and then a solid line for seam allowance.  When I first traced the pattern (upper left) I made the bottom up against the edge of the paper, then realized I needed to leave room for the v-shaped waistline.  I retraced a new pattern, leaving plenty of room on the bottom for the v-shape since I'm not entirely sure how low I want the dip to be.  For the sleeves I'll use the pattern I already had from my Tauriel costume, but I won't cut the material to the full length since I'm adding the silver bracers.

I made a new tailored pattern that is more rounded and slightly longer.

The patterns I still have yet to make are for the neckline (or I might just guess at that when the dress is made) and the shorts.  Plus my deadline is the 20th, less than 2 weeks away!  Pray that I get it all done in time!

My Middle Earth Adventure: Arwen Swimsuit, Part 2

I have some good news, and some bad news.

The bad news is that when I opened my package containing the fabric I did NOT like the blue.  It was way too purple.  Plus what's more, when I unfolded the yellow liner, I found it to be quite stained, a corner was cut off, there was tape in it, and it had been cut down the middle and sown back together.  That was quite a disappointment.

The good news is that I found a different fabric on amazon that is a way better color.  I also really liked the grey.

So, I will be returning the blue and yellow, keeping the grey, and purchasing a navy blue.

What I am kicking myself for is not thinking of looking up the same type of fabric anywhere else before I ordered the wrong color of blue instead of just praying it wasn't as bright as the picture showed.

Anyway, while I wait for the fabric, I'll probably start making a pattern.  I found a really great tutorial for that here.  I did the same thing when I made my Tauriel costume.

Namárië!

My Middle Earth Adventure: Arwen Swimsuit

Hello all!

I have decided to be slightly adventurous and make my own swimsuit this year.  As I always try to keep modesty in mind by the pool, and I have this "little" thing with Middle Earth, it can be quite hard to find the PERFECT swimsuit.  Therefore, one does not simply compromise when a Tolkien fandom is involved. :)

I will be making a swim dress that is knee length with long shorts underneath.  My sister ordered one from a company online, Meant to be Modest, and I liked hers very much.  I would have ordered one from the same place, but as I wanted it to be more detailed with many adjustments, I knew it would be cheaper to make my own.  Plus it gives me a chance to expand my sewing skill. :) I have decided to make the swim dress based on Arwen's character.  I haven't seen the last two LotR movies, (oh, shock and disbelief!!!) but I am basing the swim dress more on her book character anyway.  Since she represents the evening, as Galadriel does the morning, (page 953 of The Return of the King) I will be using a dark blue and a grey fabric.

The blue I got Here, the grey I got Here, and the liner I got Here.

I am a little nervous about the blue, though, because, although I had wanted to get navy blue, they were out of it and the regular blue, so, I decided to go with what they call "Blueberry."
The package arrived yesterday, but I didn't realize I actually had to go open the door when the mailman rang the bell or else he would take the package with him and I would have to wait until the next morning to pick it up at the post office.  I now safely have the contents of my shipment but have not had the time to open the box yet.

For a liner, I had wanted to use white, but they were out of that too!!  I decided to go with a yellow instead, and pray for the best.  The one my sister has has a beige lining, and as it never really shows, I believe the yellow will be fine.  Once again, I am quite nervous!  Ok, VERY nervous!!

The grey will be used for the neckline and bracers, and the blue for everything else.  No, I'm not really making bracers for a swimsuit, (I do believe that would be slightly difficult when swimming) but I will only make the blue part of the sleeve half-length and finish the rest with grey.  I might add a little blue to the end of the sleeve to give it more of the bracer illusion.

I'll probably post pictures of the fabric once I get them out of the box, and hopefully they'll look as good as I'm praying they are. : /

Namárië!