Kawaii Background Slytherin 0.2 - Fin

At the beginning of the month I started making a lovely deep green JSK for a Harry Potter convention. It is now nearly the end of the month and I would like to share the progress since then and the final thing because after approx 2 weeks (sewing on/off on my days off) I have finally finished!

A quick refresh of the design and concept if you've just stumbled across this post! You can see how the project started here > Kawaii Background Slytherin 0.1

I forgot to take pictures while constructing the skirt, sewing the pocks and zip and making the waist ties but here's the ruffle! I trimmed it with with black bias binding to tie it in with the black lace on the bodice.

The main reason it took me so long to finish is because I just couldn't for the life of me find any silver braiding or trim to go on the ruffle! U__U 

In the end I settled for the full width of the lace I had used on the bodice.

 It wasn't the original plan but at least it all matches nicely and I've used up all of this black lace and I kind of like that it now has a darker look!

(please excuse the horrible lighting in this picture!)

IA lot of the silver buttons I saw were nautical or military themed and to me they weren't really 'Slytherin buttons'. Eventually I found these bad boys! To double check I wasn't just dying to get some buttons on, I asked the sales assistant "Does this strike you as a Slytherin button?"  

He said yes and agreed that they had some kind of Celtic serpent quality. That's good enough for me so here we are!

Lastly I made the bow (this will probably go on a 2 way clip so I can attach it to the beret like in the original design) using the green on the front and black on the back to *match the waist ties.

* I didn't have enough green, that's the real reason why the bow and waist ties are black on the reverse ^^'

And here it is! My 'Kawaii Background Slytherin' dress is complete and ready for DraigCon! FYI, DraigCon is near the end of July, I'm so on the ball with this that even I'm a bit shocked at myself! 

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Thanks for reading and I hope it's not been too painful following the work in progress of this dress haha - I learnt a lot from making this and I'm really proud! 

I'd love to know if you're ever made/ worn something Harry Potter inspired! 

Until next time!

- Part Time 小姐

Kawaii Background Slytherin 0.1

At the beginning of this year, I decided to go to DraigCon (an Harry Potter Con) with some friends in July. There will be guests including actors, hair/ make-up, etc as well as food other magical bits but ALSO! This is an A Grade opportunity to play dress up! 

Now, I could just go representing a regular student of my house but why do that when I can put together a Slytherin lolita co-ord right? 

While I feel I  possess the ambition, pride and resourcefulness of a Slytherin, I am also 200% a background Slytherin so this is going to be a kawaii background Slytherin look!

Slight change when working out a pattern. This is based on a pattern from Otome no Sewing #6 but the back is ore like the back on my 'Venice Cats' JSK because I wanted a shirred back and side zip. 

Here I've got: 

2.5m green cotton - the weave and texture of this makes me think of school uniforms!

1m green satin lining - this will make the process twice as long...lol!

Black polycotton - this is a leftover and will be used to make bias binding.

Elastic (40p bundle) - for shirring.

Black Lace - another leftover.

Zip

I will also need 4x silver buttons and some braided trim but I've yet to locate those. 

Sew together the bodice in both fabrics - make sure you know where the panel of shirring and zip will go.

TIP: make sure your pieces are the right way round! You will save time, unlike me!

Sew the casings for your elastic. I had 5 channels in the end. Thread elastic through and sew in place. 

I added some 'rouleau loops' for corset lacing (it's not on the design but I added a little too much seam allowance so this will allow me to make it a bit more fitted) using bias binding because alas, I have forgotten how to make them properly - oops!

I also added some black lace to the front for a bit of detail. 

This took me a LOT longer than it should have because of silly mistakes (so check your pieces before you sew) but all in all, I'm really pleased with the outcome and how neat it looks!

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Have you ever worn/ made a Harry Potter/ Hogwarts themed lolita co-ord?

- Part Time 小姐

Starting to feel a lot like Spring!

Uh-oh, really not all that good at keeping on the ball here but admittedly, I've been juggling a lot with sewing, work and Mandarin class but I've finished my exams now and I've ALSO finished making my first OP so let's talk about that!

Here are the initial designs! I wanted to keep the construction fairly simple since it's my first time making an OP so I went with the third design, partly because the lace on the bust makes me think of the Innocent World OP I bought but doesn't fit right U___U

And here she is! My first ever OP!

For this project, I bought 2m of gingham and used a pattern from Otome no Sewing 5. Since this doesn't have shirring, I added 1.5cm seam allowance - just in case. 

Close up of the bodice. The pattern I used has princess seams which I much prefer to sewing darts. It was a little plain with just the lace so I added lilac ribbon which can be tied in a bow. This also helped cover the raw edges of lace, making a cute scallop.

I'm really happy with how the sleeves turned out! I think I've conquered my fear and will now be happy to make dresses with sleeves! I ran out of tulle lace so used a cotton lace to trim the sleeves. I also used this for the hem.

I also made bias binding for the first time to make a casing for the elastic because I forgot to buy some (duh) but it was actually quite easy (I used the hack with the pins) and good for using up leftover fabric. Another proud moment! :)

I made good use of my ruffle foot for the waist and lace on the hem. The hem is approx 220cm and is really nice and full! 

Here is it lads! I put a zip in a dress for the first time in a VERY long time and it wasn't traumatic! I used to avoid sewing zips if I could because of some very traumatic experiences T__T another sewing fear conquered! :D

I also lined the bodice! I've not slip stitched a lining since my placement in bridal and it too me a lot longer than I remembered. It's not perfect but I did it! 

And MOST importantly, pockets!!! There are two pockets in the skirt!!!

And finally, a worn photo with a petticoat, showing the accurate colour! The bodice is a little big so I will maybe add either a ribbon belt or detachable waist ties and I will reduce the size a little for my next project!

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Overall it took 4 weeks on/off from the design to the finished dress but I'm V pleased with how this turned out and that I conquered all these sewing fears! I can't wait to make another OP! Does anyone else have sewing fears? What do you try to avoid when sewing?

- Part Time 小姐

These Bloomers are Ridiculous!

So I didn't partake in the February Sewalong, nor did I make anything for the March Sewalong (let's be honest, I was too busy sorting my life out for Love From the North) but now I'm back on it so let's get this fabric stash thinned out!

Today's fabric is a FANTASTIC polycotton penguin print that I got from B&M Fabrics at Leeds Market last winter. It was £2 a metre so I bought 2m - you know... just in case ^__~

The only thing I could think of making with this A Grade fabric is bloomers so here we go!!! 

I used an old pattern (size M drafted from Otome no Sewing) but I wanted puffier bloomers so I widened the pattern.

Overlock the edges to prevent fraying. My overlocker is still in it's box upstairs (oops!) so I just used a zigzag stitch. 

Pockets are a must for me so boop! Let's get two in there!

 

These bloomers are going to be both ridiculous and extra so let's get a lace trim on there! I gathered some cotton lace because apparently I like to make extra work for myself (!)  I used a ruffle foot, ruffling every 6 stitches. 

I decided to make the elastic casing using bias binding for the first time! My elastic insertion was a bit iffy, I don't think I thought through the opening properly ^^'

Look at that V extra ruffly trim! I also did a much better job of the pockets than I expected  - yay!

Ta-da!!! The most ridiculous penguin bloomers are done!!!

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I usually like to wear my bloomers out as shorts but these are really quite ridiculous ^^' I'm not sure where or when else I'd wear them except as actual bloomers under dresses - even my Mum think's they're daft! I feel like these would make cute pyjamas though! 

What do you think?

- Part Time 小姐

Love From the North - Food Report!

For a bit of background info, 'Love From the North' aka 'The Great Northern Tea Party' was a Lolita event in Manchester on 10th March. This is about the food I ate over the weekend rather than the event itself but I know y'all more interested in what I ate than what I wore so let's crack on! ^__~

In order to not suffer on Saturday morning, I went to Manchester on Friday and met up with Sophie and Hana before hitting up China Town - it's just the thing to do in Manchester! I've been to Wasabi  for dessert but we were really hungry so decided to check out their food menu first. 

I ordered a cream soda bubble tea (I really needed the sugar) and after much debate over the various things I wanted to eat, I ordered the unagi fried rice and Sophie got us some Takoyaki to share <3 

First things first, how radioactive does this bubble tea look??? I feel like I should come back in Whipped Magic and order it again because it would 200% go with my coord xD

Can confirm you can definitely taste the sugar!

They also crammed a LOT of rice into that bowl - it was really filling but I was determined to finish the whole thing! Rice is life after all and while growing up I was told that you've got to make sure you eat all your rice if not your significant other will be ugly - doing my best to keep you pretty Mr Rachel! ^___~

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Verdict

Cream Soda Bubble Tea (£3) - 8/10 would drink again!

V sweet but also V mesmerizing to look at! It's a bit more than I'd usually pay for bubble tea though so I'd only drink it again if I'm wearing Whipped Magic. 

Unagi Fried Rice (£9.95) - 8.5/10 would eat again!

A little bit salty in parts but rice is life (especially fried rice!) and I really like eel so I would definitely get this again but maybe ask for the salt to be toned down a little? The diced up veggies were a nice touch and made it look V colourful!

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SATURDAY 

I will do a proper blog post about the event and the food there at a slightly later date!

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On the Sunday we went on a lunch date for three at Dazzling Cafe, a Taiwanese chain, and I was V dazzled alright! In fact, I was so dazzled and excited that I forgot to take pictures of the actual place (oops) so here are some from their Instagram!

The menu

 

Everything looks SO good! The food photography here really is on point and I really do want to eat/ drink everything! Maybe I'll come back and make my way through the menu xD

I decided to get the Rose Lychee Soda, Truffle Mushroom Spaghetti and then we got the Hazelnut and Choco Honey Toast between us!

Look at how pretty this drink is! The lychee was pretty potent in this, we reckoned it might be from concentrate mixed with syrup. 

This spaghetti was SO good and creamy! The truffle was subtle, the mushroom was very fragrant and there were lovely notes of garlic and onion. I would definitely eat this again and again!

And this was the star of the show!!! We were undecided for a while but I helped us pick this one because not only was it the one I wanted to eat the most, it was also the one I wanted to photograph the most because aesthetics!

Once deconstructed a little, it was revealed that it was in three layers which made it easy to split between the three of us. This was really yummy and I didn't find it sickly. I  think I could definitely take down the whole myself - maybe I'll find out next time!

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Verdict 

Rose Lychee Soda (£4) - 10/10 would drink again!

While it's kind of expensive, it was super pretty and the flavour was great. If there is a percentage of lychee juice from concentrate, I would definitely get it again!

Truffle Mushroom Spaghetti  (£9.50) - 10/10 would eat again and again!

The flavours were great and it was just so beautifully creamy and fragrant without being sickly or too heavy. If I was only allowed one main from this place from now on I would definitely be more than happy to eat this one!

Hazelnut Chocolate Honey Toast (£10) - 10/10 would eat again and again and again!

I feel you had to see my face, I don't think words can even express how I felt and continue to feel about this dessert. I look forward to taking down the whole thing on my next visit!

Final Thoughts

Decor: 10/10 - I'm so dazzled!!!

Atmosphere: 10/10 - Bright and lively. Makes me think of dessert cafes in HK.

Food & Drink: 10/10 - I think I've made it pretty clear how I feel about the food ^^'

Service: 10/10 - very sweet and attentive waitress.

Price: 7.5/10 - not going to lie, it's a bit on the expensive side for me but fine for a treat!

Verdict: 9.5/10 - I would 200% go back and eat / drink more things!!! Would you like to go with me?

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So here we go! These are the things I ate on the Friday and Sunday of  my Love From the North weekend! I enjoyed all the things I ate (as you can tell!) and look forward to eating more things from both places, if only I had a sponsor hahahaha! 

- Part Time 小姐

Like a Circus, Like a Circus

This is a very late post but on 17th February I went to a meet to see a circus exhibition and eat crepes! Unfortunately, there was a double booking at the library (there was a convention on instead) so the exhibition wasn't on which was a bit disappointing but fortunately, the art gallery was right next door. I still had a great day out with lovely friends, met some new frilly faces and had an A Grade crepe at Crepe Affair!

I forget what this was called but it was V peanut buttery and V chocolatey - 10/10 would eat again!

So let's talk a little about my co-ord and aesthetics for this meet!

Since we were going to see a circus exhibition, I decided it was time to take one of my dream dresses out for a spin! 

It's not a circus print but I felt Venice Cat's (AATP Starlight Carnevale) fit the mood!

Here come my take on Venice Carnival aesthetics! I really, really love this print! It's so fabulous! On the bottom right are carnival cats! I need to find a way to wear this more!

A bit of self plugging with my Plague Doctor necklace there and I decided to wear BJD tights because I thought it went with the aesthetic? Well, regardless, I do know that they kept sliding so it looking like my knees were in a funny place haha! 

Fun Fact: it's because of these guys I call this dress Venice Cats.

JSK - Alice and the Pirates 

Blouse - Pumpkin Cat

BLD Tights - Lockshop

Socks - Primark

Shoes - Ebay

Accessories -  AATP( Headbow), Taobao (Black bow) & After Midnight (Necklace) 

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This is totally one of my dream dresses so i want to wear it a lot more. I wonder if I can find a really casual way of wearing it...

- Part Time 小姐