MelodyMae.co.uk

7th August 2017

{ Style } Strawberry Sundae With Florence Carousel Photography

My last post was showcasing the amazing photos Florence Carousel Photography took of me in September. I’d mentioned we managed to squeeze two shoots into one evening, and this was the first of the two. It was also my favourite. I can’t even explain just how much I absolutely adore these images.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Florence is such a talented photographer. You need to check out her main website and her other site, The Street Style Carousel to see just how wonderful she is at capturing style and beauty.

This outfit is possibly one of my absolute bests because it’s so matchymatchy and delicious.

This skirt is another dirndl that was made around the same time as the All Hail The Gingham Queen Skirt. just my favourite cotton gingham from Rolls and Rems in Holloway pleated onto a waistband. This one is lined in white cotton, has a centre-back zipper and gigantic patch pockets with ricrac trim.

It may be a simple skirt, but its effective!

Teamed with my original 60’s cross-stitch bag with strawberries and strawberry accents on my Miss L Fire Sundae shoes (from 2013) and a handmade strawberry necklace – I will happily say I’m horrendously matchy-matchy, but god, doesn’t it just WORK?

Hair Flowers: Lady Lucks Boutique
Earrings: Bow and Crossbones
Necklace: Handmade
Brooch: Luxulite
Top: Collectif
Skirt: Handmade

Bangles: Splendette and vintage
Bag: Vintage
Shoes: Miss L Fire

All photos are taken by and belong to Florence Carousel.

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7th August 2017

{ Sewing } Tartan Puns are Hard

I don’t get to make stuff as much as I used to these days, I’ve been spending so much time doing that whole traveling to China and Japan thing, and trying to fit normal life in between has been hard enough! But I digress, as I’ve gone and made this adorable tartan circle skirt!

I picked it up the fabric from my favourite bargain bin at Rolls and Rems in Holloway. Probably about two years ago now I had the idea of a pinafore in mind as I was buying it, and into the stash it went.

And in true Melody fashion, I didn’t. I finished it in February. Typical, haha!

The construction is incredibly simple, It’s a circle skirt (as always, I use the By Hand London Circle Skirt App) with ginormous pockets that could fit a small human with a literal square of fabric for a bib and strips for straps. I stupidly didn’t take a photo, but the straps cross over the back.

BUT THAT’S NOT ALL!

The bib of the pinafore is REMOVABLE.

You heard me, I only went ahead and made something cute and functional. AND I can do a Clarke Kent style transformation from pinafore to skirt in seconds!

The bib attaches to the front of the waistband with four buttons and at the back with one button for each strap. An incredibly simple idea, but it’s proved to be a goodun’ for me, since I like a bit of choice.

There was a few hiccups with this skirt, though. Using cottons for most of my sewing life, I have never experienced an uneven hem that was particularly noticeable on a circle skirt, I’m guessing because it didn’t have the weight to it that this does. So it’s a bit longer at the sides than the front and back, and although it’s not horribly noticeable it ever so slightly grates on my nerves.

You might be able to guess from the above photo – I aligned the pockets to the pattern instead of the shape! Which means as a semi-circle the skirt sits wonderfully, but they slope when being worn. An easy fix, since they’re just patch pockets – but you guys know I’m so lazy I will never bother!

Scarf: Vintage
Top: Primark
Earrings: Bow and Crossbones
Necklace: Handmade
Brooch: Second hand, god knows what brand!
Belt: Primark

Bangles: Splendette
Shoes: Miss L Fire
Bag: Vintage

2nd August 2017

{ Style } All My Royal Subjects With Florence Carousel Photography

Back in September I was lucky enough to do a little shoot with the wonderful Florence Carousel Photography! On a warm day after work I posed for her in Hyde Park. I wanted to take a moment to show you the photos, because they are AMAZING.

I technically haven’t finished the dress I’m wearing. Currently it’s strapless, since I need to put the straps on and I also need to add pockets in. I’ve been dreaming of a bright green sundress for a while now, and it worked with the tropical theme!

I’d been given vouchers for Fabric.com for my birthday (thanks again, Kristina!) which is where the fabric is from. It’s a nice lightweight cotton – nothing too exciting, but the plan for finishing it will have many more pom poms!

The pattern is the No Cock Nor Tails bodice and a pleated dirndl, of which there’s really no more to say than the other dresses featuring the same components, because I have this habit of making the same two dresses.

I’m not very natural at modelling as I can’t take myself seriously enough to not pull faces between every shot! However, Florence knew what she wanted and made me very comfortable She literally has so much talent at portraiture and I love every photo!

Plus she chose a perfect background, this is the fountain outside Buckingham Palace, of which many jokes about me looking over my royal subjects/peasants ensued – because I’m basically The Queen. Right? RIGHT?

Hair flowers: Lady Lucks Boutique and handmade
Earrings: Bow and Crossbones
Brooch: Luxulite
Bolero and Belt: Collectif
Bangles: Splendette and Lady Lucks Boutique
Shoes: Miss L Fire

All photos are taken by and belong to Florence Carousel.

2nd August 2017

{ Sewing } All Hail The Gingham Queen!

I’ve said before and I’ll say it again – I bloody love gingham. And this time, I’ve made a gingham midi skirt that I’m head over heels for!

This is the second in three items I’ve made recently in gingham, and yes, it’s exactly the same gingham from Rolls and Rems in Holloway as every other bloody gingham item on this blog.

But hell, when something works for you, it works for you, right?

Guess what idiot had her bag the wrong way around? THIS IDIOT!

I’ve got a bit of a gap in my wardrobe for skirts, which have become my favourite thing. I especially have gaps for items that dress up slightly more casual outfits. So I pleated up a length of gingham and made a skirt!

There’s so little to say about this skirt, it’s fully lined and has gigantic pockets I keep trying to fit the dog in – with a bit of tiny pompom trim across to make it a little bit more exciting than it really is. It’s a simple dirndl skirt, with three-inch box pleats instead of the traditional gathering.

It just so happens that the day I planned to shoot this skirt, the amazing Katy from Luxulite sent me the most amazing brooch and earring set – IT’S BLOODY GINGHAM. Can you think of any accessory better suited to my severe obsession than this? They’re absolutely gorgeous, and I can’t recommend Luxulite any higher than I already do.

Hair Flowers; Lady Luck’s Boutique
Necklace; Vintage
Brooch and Earrings; Luxulite
Top; Boohoo
Bag; Vendula London
Bangles; Splendette and Vintage

27th July 2017

{ Sewing } Sunshine Through The Clouds

This yellow gingham 50s dress was the last thing I made in my last house before I moved. It gives me a little bit of an emotional attachment to it. It’s also pretty lucky that it’s my best project to date, and quickly becoming a favourite dress!

So I’ve gone a bit colour-crazy! I got myself down to Rolls and Rems to scout out my trusty 1-inch cotton gingham (you can see everything I’ve made with it under the gingham tag) in a slightly offensively bright shade of yellow.

The pattern to this dress is another variation on the No Cock Nor Tails pattern I drafted a good few years back – with the baggy nipples of the Big Ol’ Black dress rectified somewhat unsuccessfully as it’s still just a touch tight on the bust.

With a pleated dirndl skirt, it’s basically a copy of the Check, Please dress in yellow instead of red. But once I like a pattern I really do stick to it!

To keep a bit of a differentiate between the Check, Please dress and this one I added my new favourite trim in the world – POM POMS! from Frumble Fabrics onto the neckline, hem and pockets. I always find it amusing how such a small amount of trim can really make a garment pop – and I find people seem to go a little nuts for pom pom trim.

Other than the fitting issues of the failed FBA adjustment from my last version from this dress, I think this self-drafted pattern is really teaching me about my body – how my shoulders slope and why the straps don’t stay in one place, where my waist actually sits and the way thing such as belts sit on them, and how the top of my back slopes and why I always have a gape in the back of my dresses.

However, my hair looks pretty amazing though, so we can focus on that instead of fit issues, right? Thanks to my wide back, it’s so difficult to get the back of dresses to fit correctly. In the photo above it looks fine, but once I move I could probably fit a small dog in it! I love small dogs, but that’s not exactly my preferred method of doggy transport.

But I love this dress! It’ll be perfect once the sun actually decides to shine in this crappy excuse for a summer!

Hair Flowers; Lady Lucks Boutique
Necklace; Handmade
Brooch; Luxulite
Bangles; Splendette
Bag; Vendula London
Shoes; Miss L Fire

11th July 2017

{ Sewing } Big Ol’ Black Dress

The Little Black Dress (LBD) has been considered a wardrobe staple for every woman since the days of Coco Chanel – chances are, if you wear dresses, you’ve got a LBD hanging in a wardrobe right this moment. Especially a black 50s dress.

I, however, don’t really do little. Go big or go home, right?

In comes the Big Ol’ Black Dress (BOBD is much more amusing than LBD).

I wear black dresses a lot. And since I’m running out of variety in my BOBD wardrobe, I thought I’d knock this Big Ol’ lady out with just some plain cotton (possibly a pique) that I got from my friends over at Rolls And Rems on Holloway Road.

It’s a really lovely quality cotton, but the issue I have with anything 100% cotton is that it just absolutely has to crease at every bloody opportunity it can. Infuriating but so lovely to work with.

The pattern used is my self-drafted No Cock Nor Tails pattern, but with an added full bust adjustment because the original didn’t really accommodate my larger-than-I-think-it-is bust.

However my first ever FBA didn’t go so well, and I ended up with some weird bagging right on the bust apex. AKA baggy nipples. No one wants baggy nipples. Plus, some extra fabric in the arm scythe. The former isn’t that noticeable, but you can definitely see where it doesn’t fit right in the arm holes in this picture;

So this dress has inseam pockets in the box pleated dirndl skirt, a lined bodice, and a centre back zip. I screwed up with the insertion so there’s a gap in the top, as you can see in the photo below. I’d say I’ll put in a hook and eye, but since becoming single, there’s no way I can undo that sort of fiddly thing myself.

But you know what? It looks pretty good, it feels pretty good, and it’s a great BOBD.

Now. I’m going to stop talking about the dress and take a moment out to TALK ABOUT MY HANDBAG.

This is The George pub bag from Vendula London and it’s quite frankly the greatest handbag ever.

One, it’s a fucking pub. Two, you can take the handle off and use the long strap to wear it as a cross body bag. Two handbags in one, yes please! Three – THE LITTLE SIGN OPENS UP.

If you’re in London, pop into our shop to see this beauteous thing in the flesh, because it is just so amazing.

Hair Flowers; Lady Luck’s Boutique
Earrings; Bow and Crossbones
Brooch; Luxulite
Shoes; Miss L Fire
Bag; Vendula London

11th July 2017

{ Sewing } P-P-P-Polkadots!

I’ve spoken about Rolls and Rem’s remnant table before, right? This is yet another great find. Similar fabric to the Striped skirt I made, this is a stiff canvas-like cotton which just behaves beautifully through a machine. This Polkadot 50s dress was the perfect style for it!

The pattern I used for this dress was an altered version of the No Cock Nor Tails dress I made several years ago – the difference being that I added a ruched bustline by taking the bust of the pattern, slashing and spreading, and gathering it. It looks pretty adorable with the ric rac trim though, right?

I actually made before I went on a night out a year ago! I’d had a real problem with overestimating the ease and the finished garment ended up massive. So I threw it in the wash and it was set aside in my ever-mounting pile of alterations for another day.

Then after a re-discovery, I threw it through my machines and thought that was that.

But readers. This is me, and I am not a lucky person. The bloody thing shrunk in the wash without me realising, so the dress is preeeeeetty damn tight now. And I even had to cut out the bust of the original pattern which at this point pretty much served as a lining for the ruching. That was just to make sure I wasn’t giving myself pancake boobs!

However. The damn thing juuuust about fits, and quite frankly I love it. I’m still a bit of a sucker for a polka dot every now and then, and the off-white polkadots are a really welcome addition to my black obsession recently!

So! Lets get down to the nitty-gritty, yes? The dress is unlined as the fabric is thick enough without it, with facing on the entire neckline/arm scythe. I finished the hem with bias tape as I find it’s really just the easiest way to hem a full circle skirt without any weird puckering.

And you’ll be shocked to hear this, but there are NO POCKETS in this dress. I’d originally planned on patch pockets with ric rac trim, but honestly it looked pretty stupid and I’ve never really gotten around to popping in some in-seam ones – it might happen one day when I get too frustrated with keeping my phone in my bra, though.

Earrings: Bow and Crossbones and Luxulite
Necklace: Vintage
Brooch: Luxulite
Bangles: Vintage and Splendette
Handbag: Accessorize
Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens

10th July 2017

{ Sewing } When Life Gives You Lemons…

A while back when I was checking my local fabric shop I came across this cotton. It’s black and off-white striped and near enough to a canvas but without the crazy stiffness. I loved it. I loved it more when I realised there was a few meters on the remnant table! So what did I need? A striped circle skirt!

It was sat in my stash for possibly about a year without much thought. I’d wanted to create a cute/spooky sort of vibe with it for a while, but it didn’t happen. Until I had the flu and finally just sat the hell down and got on with it!

Now, you might ask why I thought it was necessary to mention I was ill when I was making this skirt. My dears, in my flu-high, I managed to cut the thing arse about face! I ended up with a centre back seam that was… well… a little fucked up. I dashed back to Rolls and Rems to source more fabric, but I was unsuccessful. In the end, I decided to take my scissors to my pattern pieces in a desperate attempt to salvage the project.

And damn, if that doesn’t look like a purposely-decided design feature, I don’t know what does!

So I should possibly explain. Since my skirt has side seam pockets and a centre back zip, I had a half-circle for the front and two quarter-circles for the back. 3/4ths of this skirt was perfect and matchy-matchy. Then that last quarter panel was pretty much an exact copy of the other, instead of a mirror. Boo.

So with a little bit of brainstorming and some help from Rosie, I decided to split by back panels into eighths and take off an eighth either side of the front panel and mix it all up so that the panels’ mixed directions look a little less like a mistake! My visual help looked like this, if you were somewhat confused.

Whew. That was wordy. Anyway. It worked out pretty nicely, I’d say! Even if I did mess up for a second time and accidentally switched around two panels (Points go to anyone who can spot my mistake ;D).

Literally the only other thing I dislike about this skirt is I made the holes to the pockets just a tad too small. That’s it!

Necklace&Brooch: Vintage
Top: Primark
Belt: Collectif
Bangles: Splendette
Bag: Sun Jellies
Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens

10th July 2017

{ Sewing } Twilight Tartan

Often when I’m roping friends into taking photos for me for the blog, we get a little carried away with shopping and eating burgers. We then have to run about to find the last bit of light so I can get a photo. That’s exactly what happened with this tartan 50s dress – taken in twilight!

You can tell already – it’s the trusty B5880 all over again! My versions of this dress has undergone some real changes from the original pattern. This time, I’ve ditched the neckline notches and done away with the sarong skirt in favour of a pleated dirndl skirt. I used box pleats for this skirt style, similar to my A Check-Ah, A Check-Ow dress but used a much longer length that other versions.

This tartan version sees the return of the original concealed side zip which makes it easier to get in and out of without help! The seams are overlocked, the neckline and arms are bias-bound. It also features possibly the biggest pockets on a dress to date – it fits an A4 magazine with a bit of room! If you love pockets as much as I do, I’m sure you’re going to appreciate that!

The fabric itself is a lovely mid-weight wool blend Stewart tartan. Is a great fabric with nice texture, snuggly warmth and is light enough to hang well, but stiff enough to keep shape, which is my perfect sort of fabric!

We’re heading into spring now, and I’m going to be so sad to stop wearing this dress. Although I love my ginghams, I adore this dress too much to say goodbye right now!

Earrings; Bow and Crossbones
Necklace&Belt; Vintage
Brooch; Luxulite
Bangles; Vintage and Splendette
Bag; Sun Jellies
Shoes; Primark

10th July 2017

{ Sewing } Planten Un Blomen

I made this Japanese inspired dress the day before I was flying to Germany. I’d decided I had absolutely nothing to wear for the wedding we were going to. This really isn’t the case, but they don’t call me Last-Minute-Melody for nothing!

I needed a tried-and-tested pattern to make this as quickly as possible. Without even thinking, I grabbed my trusty B5880 pattern and got to business with my fabric.

This fabric is a great medium-weight cotton in navy blue with a non-specific Oriental theme. I like to think it’s a Japanese print, but you can correct me if I’m wrong! I’ve had this fabric sitting around since my last trip to Goldhawk Road – and I won’t do that again in a hurry. Does anyone else come out of every shop getting nearer and nearer to panic attacks, or is that just me?

As always (you can check out my other B5880’s here.), my B5880 is now very different to the original, without the neckline notches, an altered neckline and this version has a circle skirt instead of the original sarong-style.

The alterations on each dress seems to change with every new version, regardless of how big or small. This dress is the same, with the side zip moved to the centre back and some neckline differences. Seams are all finished with the trusty overlocker, but the hem and arm holes are bias-bound and catch-stitched.

Since time was not on my side (my own fault!) I didn’t line this dress. Luckily the fabric itself is not see-through, so lining wasn’t so important – no worries of flashing here! The saddest point – I didn’t have time to put in pockets! The shaaaaaame!

Now I won’t lie – I don’t actually like this dress. I loved it in my head, I loved it once it was off the machine but once I wore it? Really wasn’t a fan. And I haven’t worn it since – do you ever get like that?

Hair Flower; Lady Luck’s Boutique
Earrings; Bow and Crossbones
Brooch: Luxulite
Necklace; Vintage
Bangles; Vintage
Shoes; Miss L Fire

{ Style } Strawberry Sundae With Florence Carousel Photography

{ Sewing } Tartan Puns are Hard

{ Style } All My Royal Subjects With Florence Carousel Photography

{ Sewing } All Hail The Gingham Queen!

{ Sewing } Sunshine Through The Clouds

{ Sewing } Big Ol’ Black Dress

{ Sewing } P-P-P-Polkadots!

{ Sewing } When Life Gives You Lemons…

{ Sewing } Twilight Tartan

{ Sewing } Planten Un Blomen

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