craftgrrl | Scrap leather belt, reclaimed bead necklace, leftover wool skirt, and camisole remodel.....go!

I'll start with the oldest first.
Skirt scarf.

I like short jackets, I like tightish pants (who doesn't right?) I also take public trans, and walk around campus which makes my bum and hips cold, and ache.
So I knit myself a scarf skirt that I can easily take on and off.
Loosely based off a vintage knitted skirt pattern. I knit it like a regular scarf, K for several rows, then P for several rows, so when it was turned on it's side it would look pleated. Unfortunately I changed my plan towards the end and didn't think to K/P a smaller rib up at the top where the elastic waistband is. Which resulted in it being rather bulky.
But, it works well, and looks pretty cute on as well.
Plus it keeps my bum cozy.
I used a variety of leftover balls of yarn from other projects since I thought this would be a good use for them.

Next up, reclaimed bits necklace.
The chain is adjustable a bit so I can wear it with different height necklines.
Large chain necklace that I wasn't using for anything else, bone tube beads, reclaimed clay 'turquoise' beads, buri nut beads, kukui nut beads, and a few cedar nut beads.
I've already worn this. I felt filled with awesome.

Next a little silk camisole.
Purchased at a resale shoppe for a couple bucks.
Got it home to find it looked awful on.
Seriously, added on about 15 lbs. My thoughts on clothes are: if clothing can't be flattering to your shape, it doesn't deserve to be in your closet.
But it was silk....so I tried to salvage it by treating it like I would be tie dying it, but instead bleached it.
Which didn't do much to the silk bits (they do have a bit of a tragic graveyard goth fading not really evident in the pic) but it did turn the other gauzy bits into this odd mossy green. Which looks much better with my coloring than the 'Rit black' it was (it came this way, but seriously I've dyed synthetic blends with Rit black before and it came out this exact color).
But it still looked awful on.
The main problems were: the back was stretched out and gapped.
And the gathered belt pooched out at the center lacking anything to hold it in.
So, taking an applique that actually had been dyed with Rit black (so hence matched far better than it looks like it does in the photo) I sewed that onto the center to keep the pleats in.
And that then pooched out a bit in a few areas, so I remedied that by doing some hand beading onto the applique with various grey and iridescent purple seed beads.

But it still bagged and sagged in the back.
So I tried something I had only seen on PBS. I redid the elastic ruching in the back using my sewing machine.
Now mind you, I have an industrial machine, and don't know if my home machines would handle this process. But I'll tell you what I did anyway.
Simply take some thin elastic thread (the type on spools) in a coordinating color and wrap it by hand onto a bobbin. Then thread that into your bobbin shuttle on your machine like you would normal thread.
Thread the top with regular sewing thread.
And then, flattening out your fabric, making sure you're sewing on the top side of your fabric,you just sew across in rows.
And voila!
I was so thrilled I wanted to find more stuff to add elastic ruching to.....

And finally, finished yesterday, a leather piece belt with an old thrifstore belt buckle I got who knows how long ago, I think for a costume. It was kinda neat, so I kept it for later use.
The leather scraps are from years of leatherwork. And well, waste not want not. Especially for leather.
I laid everything out first, then sewed it together.
Cut it down to a uniform length (I waffled a bit about this. Should I leave natural edges? But since some of the pieces were very square, obviously cut shapes, I opted to just cut them all on the straight) Then I added more stability by riveting multiple layers together so they didn't gap.

The buckle doesn't have a hook, just two metal loops. So I riveted the buckle on either side to the belt.

~This fits in the natural bend of my waist, I however am not as little as my display mannequin. Damn her. ;P ~

Making a snap closure at the back (this is on the second row of snaps it can go larger
if need be)

I then added the bit of chain on the side because I felt it needed it.
I like it.
It has a 'Waterworld' meets 'Ice pirates' thing going for it.

And there you have it!
TTFN!