How to cut your own hair straight!

Last time I cut my hair, I did a layered cut.  Tutorial here!

This time, I wanted a straight cut.  I want my hair to be like Sarah's in Labyrinth.  Here she is:

 See how nice and straight the cut is?  No layers in that cut.

Now my hair has layers quite high up, so I'll need to grow it out a bit before the whole thing can be straight.

Onto the tutorial!

Here I am before my haircut, all raggy daggy ends!

Brush it all out so that there are no tangles.  If you have curly hair it might be best to straighten it at this point.  Mine is straight enough so I don't need to.

Part your hair where you normally do so it won't be crooked when you part it later.

Put it in a ponytail at the nape of your neck, making sure there are no lumps.

Grasp the elastic and pull it downwards.  Not outwards!

Stop when you have a little ponytail at the end.  The elastic is your guide for cutting!

Snippy snip!  Straight across.

Repeat the whole process a few times to even it out.  

Here's what mine looked like when I finished!  Straight across the back.

At the front you can still see my higher layers, but eventually it'll be all grown out!  I'm going to keep cutting it like this so that I can have hair like Sarah's!

Refashioning a big t-shirt

I know there are heaps and heaps of tutorials on how to do this online... but I thought why not add to them!

As you know, I recently went to Sydney to see They Might Be Giants.  I bought a Flood t-shirt (a great album of theirs from 1990) but unfortunately they only had mens size large.  I am not a mens size large you guys!  I bought it with the intention of modifying it (or using it as a sleeping shirt).

It is even too big to sleep in!  I can imagine myself rolling around in it and getting all twisted.  See how huge it is on me?

Let the tutorial commence.

First find a t-shirt that you DO like the fit of.  Just make sure that it doesn't have raglan sleeves: that is, make sure the sleeves don't join to the neckline.  This will be important later.

Iron your shirts and fold them in half lengthways.  Put your little t-shirt on top and trace around it.  Fold the sleeves inwards and trace around the curve where your armhole is.

Take away your little t-shirt and pin your big t-shirt so it doesn't slip around.  Cut around where your drew the outline, through all 4 layers. Make sure you leave a 1.5cm seam allowance!!  Since my t-shirt was super long, I just extended the line to the bottom of the shirt - so it can be either a long shirt or a short dress.

Now open it out and pin up the sides, with the RIGHT SIDES FACING.  If you do it with the wrong sides facing you'll end up with an inside-out looking tshirt.  Sew up the side seams but don't sew up the armholes!

Try it on for size.  I was really happy with how this fit so I proceeded.  If you're not happy, take it in a little more.  If it's too small, you can still unpick and sew closer to the edges.

 Yay it fits!

Now sleeves.  Take your small t-shirt sleeve and lay it on top of your big one, matching the edges together.  Trace and cut (leaving a seam allowance).

 You should get something that looks like this.  Turn them inside out and sew up the shortest edge.

Here's the hardest bit.  Now turn your sleeve right-side out and your t-shirt inside out.  Put the sleeve INSIDE the t-shirt, matching the side seam of the shirt with the seam you just sewed on the sleeve.  The raw edges should match up.

 Pin it in place... it should look like this.  Complicated right?  It takes a few goes before you really understand what's going on!

Sew around your armholes!  It took me a while to make the sleeves actually fit into the armholes, they kept being too big or small!  I had to adjust the size of the sleeves quite a bit.  But finally it worked!

Yay a dress!  Or a nightie?  I'm not sure if I'll wear this out but I love it to bits!

Clothing's Sustainability and Environmental Impacts

Recently for my course I had to do an assignment called "Where do my clothes come from?".  It was essentially an investigation into the processes that brought my clothes to me.  The particular item of clothing I chose to investigate was a coat from Valleygirl which cost me $30.  It was a polyester cotton blended fabric which was made to look like wool felt.

Design
Valleygirl's website talks about how it's a fash fashion chain that strives to bring the latest cutting-edge fashions (from catwalks, magazines, etc.) to the masses quickly and cheaply.  So the design for my coat was probably not even originally Valleygirl, but some copy of a high-end brand's coat.

Fabric
The jacket was made from cotton/polyester.  Who knows where that was made!  Cotton is known for using a gargantuan amount of water (I'm sure you've heard the old factoid that it takes 2720 litres of water to produce one t-shirt) Actually, reading that article it's kind of horrifying how much water goes into cotton.  Because it's a crop, it also needs pesticides, and then it needs picking and processing, all of which takes a lot of power. 
Polyester is a man-made fibre created from fossil fuels, which are a finite resource. It also requires heavy chemicals and lots of power to create.  The one good thing about this fibre is that it can be recycled - but I wonder how much polyester fabric ends up in the recycling bin.

Construction
"Made in China" the label says.  As I wrote in my previous post about my dress comparisons, the wage for Chinese employees is quite low (depending on the province).  After reading "Overdressed", I no longer expect anyone to be paid any more than minimum wage.  Plus, the price was $30 - I don't even think it was marked down.  This is a jacket with a lining, collar, wrist bands, a back band, and a generally nice finish and fit.  

After all my research I was pretty upset with myself.  I don't want to support this kind of brand, even if they do sometimes have things I like.  What I do want to support are local designers, crafters, and sewers, who make their products out of sustainable fabrics.  I want to support higher-end brands that are Australian made and beautifully made, and whose prices reflect the workmanship and care that goes into their pieces.  I think that after this assignment, I'm going to watch what I spend my hard earned money on, and hope that we can keep the local fashion scene alive.

What do you think?  Do you worry about where your clothes come from?

I bought an Overlocker!

I swear I didn't go to Lincraft intending to buy an overlocker.  But then there was this Toyota "differential feeder" on mega-sale and I thought why not! Overlockers seem like super fun!

 Here's all the stuff that came in the box: three warranties, a manual, pedal, cover, and packet of some bits and bobs.

 It came threaded so of course I went ahead and did some overlocking!

 There's a threading diagram on the inside.  This is not nearly as difficult to thread as the ones at CIT (no tubes to thread through thank goodness).  However, I am having some issues with it.  A few times it would stop catching the bottom thread mid-seam and just sew nothing.  Each time I re-threaded it and it started again for a while.  I *think* I identified where I was threading it wrong, but if this keeps happening I'm going to have to call up the 1800 number.  

Each time I re-threaded this it took about 15 minutes... it's hard threading an overlocker!  You need long tweezers to get the thread where it needs to go.  I've already broken both needles, so at least I now know how to change them!  I am having fun but it hasn't been all smooth sailing... we're going to have to work at this relationship!

High-end vs. Low-end fashion

Recently I had to do an assignment for CIT where I compared two similar garments from a low end and a high end brand.  It so happened that I had two *very* similar dresses, one from Modcloth and one from Review.  I know, I'm predictable.  I almost bought another similar one recently!  Stopped myself just in time.

1. Fireside Glow dress from Modcloth.  Stock photo

Worn.

2. Dress from Review, stock photo.

 

Worn - sorry with a cardigan.

The point of the assignment was to look at construction and fabric of each dress.  Here's my results.

Modcloth Fireside Glow dress

Price: $49

Fabric: 96% polyester, 4% spandex

Made in: USA

Seams: Overlocked together, 4 sts per cm.

Hems: Folded over 1cm twice

Waist finishes: Bodice joined directly to skirt, pleats at top of skirt to add fullness.

Interfacing: Fusible web interfacing on collar only

Zip: 50cm invisible zip

Lining: No.

Details: Contrasting collar

Comments: Sleeve holes way too big, the whole thing is a bit floppy.

Review dress

Price: $182 (down from 259)

Fabric: Outer: 100% polyester.  Lining: 97% polyester, 3% elastine

Made in: China

Seams: Overlocked raw edges separately, pressed open.  5 sts per cm.

Hems: Enclosed in lining at sleeve, enclosed in contrast fabric at hem.

Waist finishes: Bodice joined directly to skirt

Interfacing: None.

Zip: 60cm invisible zip

Lining: Yes fully lined

Details: Contrasting collar, contrasting bottom band, side belt loops and detachable belt.  Button closure at collar.

Comments: The fabric snags and pulls easily.  Print is an Australian flora design.

So what is my extra $133 paying for in the Review dress?

- one more stitch per cm.

- a tiny belt

- lining

- contrasting fabric at border

- print

- button closure

But I'm still not getting a dress made from natural fibres (or at least a blend), made in Australia, which is what I'd expect from a "high end" Australian brand that charges that much.  I don't expect that the dressmakers in China are being paid much more than minimum wage, which depending on which province it's made in, can be very little indeed. Review dresses do generally have a lot of beautiful details (this dress is very plain compared to their other dresses), and probably have a much smaller run than the Modcloth dress.  So perhaps this exclusivity is part of why it costs more.

I'm not making a judgement - I love both of my dresses and I'd have bought them whether or not I knew this stuff at the time.  But it's worth thinking about in future when buying clothes.  

What do you think?  Are you surprised at the comparison between these dresses?

Fabric haul! Cambie dress progress!

Yesterday a friend from church emailed me saying she was going through her fabric and I should come over and take whatever I wanted!  It seems that she's had a lifetime of sewing and doesn't want to do it any more, and her children and grandchildren aren't interested in sewing.  Of course I rushed over to have a look and I ended up with quite a large pile:

So let's go through it!

Cotton - about 1 metre of this cute 70s print fabric.

Broderie anglaise

2 huge lengths of seersucker.  I really love the pattern on the left one - a pretty pale blue - and I love the deep forest green of the other.  What should I make with this?

These two bits of fabric were obviously bought at the same time with the intention of making some kind of contrasting garment.  Blue with green and white spots and green with blue and white spots!

Similar to above, these two also match - navy with white spots and white with navy spots!

I love this printed cotton - it's a bit stiff though.  I'd like to make some kind of top or even dress.  Is it too busy for that?

This is a very big yardage of a very soft cottony silk fabric.  I'd love to make a blouse of this, it reminds me of the kind of thing my mum wore in the 70s.

"Federated Fashion Fabrics" - sounds very Australian to me.

This is a jazzy dark green polyester with geometric shapes and lines!  I'd love to make a full on dress out of this, it'd be amazing!  ("jazzy" chrissy? you sound like your nana)

More broderie anglaise, with a cute cameo on it.  Pity there's only a tiny amount. 

This one still has the price tag so I guess it wasn't used.  Cotton dot fabric in a peachy tan colour.

And lastly this enormous length of a floral linen fabric.  It's huge!

There were a couple more that were too puny to show you.  What am I going to do with this??

 Also, here's the progress on my Cambie dress.  I bought this lovely fabric from Lincraft which is a cotton-elastine blend.  I adore the print but I'm worried it's a bit thick for this pattern. 

The shell of the dress is nearly done - I just need to sew in the zipper (which I suck at) and take it in a bit at the sides.

Isn't the fabric gorgeous?  Unfortunately it marks, so whenever I have to unpick something I can see the white elastine showing.  I'm a bit upset about that since this fabric was really expensive - $22 per metre!  I really need to find some good online places to buy fabric.

How not to be a makeup salesperson

Background to this post: I have extremely bad hereditary dark undereye circles. They sometimes have red-purple undertones and sometimes have blue-purple undertones, depending on how irritated my skin is.  Also, my face is shaped so there's shadow there all the time, no matter what colour the skin is.  I am on a quest to find the best concealer solution possible.

Currently, I use the Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque first to get rid of any purple-blue colours.  It is a peachy colour, which leaves me with more natural looking skin than if I'd just used a skin-coloured concealer.  Then on top of that, I use my Garnier Anti-Dark circles roll on in the shade Light, which is a slightly yellow-toned skin colour.  This helps to neutralise the peachy tones of the corrector.  Then if I am still not happy, or if my circle is particularly noticeable, I use the Innoxa concealer just on the edge of the circle (or the "bag"), to make it appear invisible.  I got this idea from Goss Makeup Artist in this YouTube video. I guess I conceal pretty well, but I'm always aware of it and I'm always trying to find something more effective.

Recently while I was in Melbourne, I thought I'd visit they Myer cosmetics counters to try and find a better undereye concealer.  I wanted to try a particular one that a friend had recommended, so I went to that counter and asked to try their corrector. The girl was made up (predictably) in very heavy thick makeup and was stunning.  She sat me down and got out the corrector and concealer (it was a combo one like Bobbi Brown's one, but slightly different colours and formulation).

Then she took off the concealer I was wearing and was visibly shocked by the colour under my eyes.  She told me that because I have red under my eyes as well as purple, she might need to use the green corrector to fix it. That made me feel like an alien.  She then went and got her colleague to examine me and ask for a second opinion.  The other girl suggested that instead of using a corrector, they just use their "very thick foundation".

So the messages I was getting from this were pretty much: your face is broken and we can't fix it with normal stuff.  We have to use the heavy-duty stuff because your face is just that wrong.  This is a brand that emphasises natural beauty and celebrating the you-ness in your face.  But apparently mine was all wrong.

Ok so she puts on the corrector on one side and the super thick foundation on the other side to compare.    When she showed it to me, I preferred the side with corrector because it looked more natural to me.  The foundation side screamed "I AM WEARING TOO MUCH MAKEUP HERE, THIS IS WHERE THE PROBLEM IS".  The salesgirl strongly preferred the foundation.

I touched my face with my fingertips to try to blend out the heavy foundation a little bit, and as soon as I touched it the whole thing immediately creased and cracked.  The girl was all "Oh no don't touch it!!  You'll ruin it!!"

Now I don't know about you, but I touch my face all day.  I live in my face and don't have time to do little fixes throughout the day. My other concealer doesn't crack and ruin when I brush my fingers under my eyes!  And here I was being treated like an idiot when the makeup failed to conceal properly.

Does anyone else think they're being made to feel like the ugliest person in the universe at makeup counters? Why are all makeup sales girls these immaculate beauties with no flaws to cover up?  Surely if they want to sell concealer, they'd have a girl with bad acne, or bad eye bags, or something that makes us consumers feel like there's a connection?  It's like watching youtube videos on "how to conceal bad under eye circles" when the presenter has perfectly normal under eyes with no trace of a bag.  I guess it's a deeper problem than just makeup counters.  In a perfect society I wouldn't feel like I need concealer to walk out the door!

This whole experience left me feeling really self-conscious and ugly and sad.  I wish I didn't have to continue my search for the perfect concealer... I wish I could feel perfect without it.