Epic and done

Well, I finished! This is how they looked together.

This is how the collar and pleated hem trim are attached to a separate vest. They have domes to hold the two layers securely together when worn. I may never wear the jacket without them, but you never know!

I'm having trouble getting my tablet to cooperate writing this, so I'm giving up for tonight! I may have to resort to the desktop computer tomorrow.

The WOW jacket saga continues

It feels like I have been at this forever. (Which I pretty much have.) This jacket has been an extremely time intensive project! I have to confess that it really makes me smile when I read other people's sewing blogs when they mention something that took many days being a major project. While they are right, that makes this one truly epic.

Most days I put in multiple hours on it. (And have done for many weeks) Today was four and a half hours, which I manage several times every week. Often more at the weekends.

I've got the fronts, collar pieces and sleeves beaded, stitched, snipped, sequined and ready for assembly. The backs have been beaded, stitched and snipped, but there is further beading and sequin applying to be done after The Gecko. The vest to which the collar will be attached has yet to be started, but is very simple and won't take long.

The CB seam is done...

And after waiting aaaaaaaages for it's release, I got Magical Jungle by Johanna Basford last Friday. For this guy.

He's been enlarged to 122% and mirrored with a photocopier. One foot needed to be moved slightly to avoid a beaded leaf.

Then traced onto press'n'seal and applied to the seamed jacket back. Now the ever so time consuming process of backstitching the whole thing.

I can't change the order of these photos on my tablet and I'm too tired to find a teenager to do it for me, so the last pic should have been earlier, the photocopy pinned to the jacket to determine placement.

Since I took these photos a few days ago I've got right around The Gecko's perimeter and I've just about completed all the tail.

As much as I am enjoying every aspect of this Most Epic project, I don't much like the sense that I must work on it in every available moment just to be certain of completing it. The fact that I am always wanting to work on it is so far dominating the attitude, but if obligation to meet a deadline overcomes desire, that would majorly suck. Not terribly likely!

The bug dress

Here it is. Complete (probably) apart from a meandering flight path to be added with bugle beads for the two bees.

Thanks to Ange at work for quickly snapping these between customers. My shoes are a perfect match for the jacket I'm feverishly working on, and one of those the-op-shop-gods-are-smiling-on-me! moments. A pair of Mi Piaci shoes with the $210 price tag still on the sole, look unworn, in my size, for $25 at the Hospice Shop a couple of doors down from work. I LOVE that place!

Can you guess what the back of my running top looks like?! I have sock tan lines too, which I really hate. At least I only see these tan lines if I see a photo of my back.

A few gratuitous detail shots.

Now I am anxiously awaiting the release of Johanna Basford's new colouring book, Magical Jungle. I saw her show it on Facebook, and there are at least two images which would look amazing on the back of my jacket! A jungle nymph and a gecko. I should have a month after the book is released to embroider one onto the jacket before WOW. No pressure....