Straw Boater to 18th Century Bergere

I know I've been quiet for a while. Blog posts take a long time to write and I've been busy busy busy. Anyway....I thought I'd do a sorta tutorial. I say sorta because its not that indepth. lol!

It started with a hat, not just any hat, a straw boater in a sale. Ignore the price, I got it even cheaper because it was broken. Hence my erm...cunning plan.

I got out the seam ripper and began to unravel it from the outside edge. Originally intending a 'missy'/mary poppins sort of hat.

Hence why I kept a lot of the height. Started sewing then changed my mind as I realised I could get a bergere out of it. Ooops, now I had to unstitch where I'd got to sewing it. :(

So now the crown was shallower but I kept its shape and width.

I used steam from the iron to help shape the first few 'rounds' into a flat brim. And set the rest of the straw to make it easier to sew. (It really hurts your fingers sewing by hand.)

I got 90% of the brim done before my hands were cramping up and I couldn't hand sew the rest, thus I resorted to using the machine. I found this trickier as you have less control.

 Ta Da! Finished hat....well nearly finished. I pinned a few ribbons to see how it sat. (When flat it reminds me of this painting of Miss Constable 1787)

But I still need to line it - as the straw messes up my hair and makes me itch - and trim it.

Miscellanious Creations

So I thought I'd gather together all the things I've made recently into one easy to read post as each one is a small project.
1. Mouse ears

These were made using craft foam and craft felt. Very simple and quick to make I glued the felt and doam layer together, then folded in half and glued the bottom of the ear together. Then glued on a hair clip.
2. Steampunk-ish trinket box

Made from the remains of a pringles container I cut up for....
3. Time ring (ok its more of a bangle but its called a time ring in doctor who)

I had the stick on gems in my stash. It was very easy to make. If a little tedious letting each layer of paint dry.

Bonnets and Bags -upcycled

I've been busying myself with some little projects while waiting to get some fabric to start my dress.

First off I did some upcycling. Turned a pocket, shirt tail and scraps from a sheet into a bonnet.

Its not quite finished as I need to quilt it. Have only wadded the brim edge so far.

Second item from scraps of a sheet and left over embroidery thread was...a reticule (Regency purse/bag).

Kept it simple

Still got to finish off. Sew two pieces together and add the ribbon handle.

Edit: Decided to do 2 more panels after my finger slipped and I accidentally ordered 72 skiens of embroidery thread. lol! Should keep me occupied for a while. Afterwards...got in mind a beret with some embroidery on the crown.