May I top up your glass, Captain?

source: party-spezial.de

 Partying on a Friday night. I bet that is something many of you enjoy - and hey, why not? I like that, too. I love being with my friends, having funa great time and just relax with them. It's always so much fun. But someday every party will become routine. Sadly. Partying is no longer something special, it becomes dull and goes according to a certain sequence. Somehow you began to wonder: "Is that all? Is there nothing more?" There are no surprises any longer.

But why should you accept those circumstances? Why shoul you not try to turn a party into something special? According to my blog's topic... there are costume parties. Maybe that sounds awkward and childish at first, but it's very much fun. Besides, are we really that grown-up? Carnival or Halloween is no different. So why not rummaging around in an old trunk for clothes you can modify? When you're open to that, I'm convinced a costume party can be very amusing - even it is to laugh at the very bad costumes of some of your guests ;)

Well, an accurate and fitting atmosphere is essential for a costume party. But creating the atmosphere of a costume party is way than at a normal party. Honestly: who decorates a usual party? There will be two or three paper streamers on the table - but only in case it's a birthday party. That's it. Perhaps it's the fear of appearing too childish, I don't know. Nevertheless most of the guests don't even pay attention to that. They know the paper streamers, they know the usual decorations. And they are used to that. That is the reason you have to surprise your guests. Have you ever been partying in a jungle? With palm tree leafs, lots of plants, colourful cocktails and snacks served on wooden plates? Or have you ever been partying in a Stone Age's cave, where you sit on fur instead of a sofa? No? Me neither - but I really would love to!

Adding a theme to a party, for example 'dead celebrities' oder 'superheroes', can help to make it a perfect evening. On the one side you can arrange decoration, snacks, beverages accroding to the theme, on the other side adding a theme creates a thrilling expectations. Who will choose what costume? How s/he will look like? Maybe you can meet up earlier in groups to brainstorm for a costume - or work together on a costume for that very evening. Announcing a costume contest on the invitation might be a good idea to motivate your guests for good-looking costumes.

A couple of days ago I had a talk with a dear friend of mine about costume parties. And somehow we both thought of it as very entertaining and fascinating. Now the idea of throwing a costume party is not that far away... Most probably the theme will be 'Romans'. The guests will have to wear a toga ;) I'm very looking forward to it!


Have you ever been to a costume party? Or thrown one yourself? Tell me! :)

Love,
J.

Famous Frocks

Today I would like to introduce you a certain book, I bought a few weeks ago. Judging from the topic of my blog and the stuff I told you earlier, you already know that I'm into sewing. At the beginning of this year I spent a week in Berlin, together with a friend. We visited the Tanz der Vampire musical (you can read something about it here) and did some shopping. On our last day we decided to check out the Urban Outfitters store at Kurfurstendamm. I really liked the clothing a lot, but somehow a book they sold, caught my attention beforehand:

 

Famous Frocks - patterns and instructions for recreating fabulous iconic dresses

by Sara Alm & Hannah McDevitt

Illustrations by Kerrie Hess

"Audrey Hepburn, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Marilyn Monroe...

These gorgeous women wore gorgeous dresses that still make us swoon today. Famous Frocks provides everything you need to make these classic dresses on your own - Audrey's Little Black Dress, Marylin's poster-classic white halter, Farrah's sexy wrap dress, and more. [...]" excerpt from the jacket text.

I love Breakfast at Tifanny's and all of those vintage style movies. Audrey Hepburn, Madonna and Marylin Monroe are simply beautiful and were divas, ikons, a long time ago - for some people they still are. They embody the style of a classical, timeless beauty and so their dresses do. I leafed through the pages and found some very intersting illustrations. As I could from the first glance at it, the patterns and instructions were easy to understand. And since I love the classic chic, I could not help myself. I had to buy it.

Here are some photos I took of the 'Marylin Chapter', my favourite one. Unfortunately it seems the storage battery of my DSLR is defect, so I had to take all photos with my old and shabby camera. That's the reason I only took a few. I really hate this camera. I'm very sorry for that.

 

The book features dresses of Bette Davis, Rita Hayworth, Marylin Monroe, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Audrey Hepburn, Twiggy, Diana Ross, Farrah Fawcett, Stevie Nicks and Madonna. I like the illustrations of the dresses a lot and the layout of the book is great. I placed it on a shelf in my room, so I can see the cover the whole time. I think a book like this is worth to be seen rather to be kept in a bookcase. Aside from the original, the book also contains a modern variation of the dress, which is quite interesting I think. In my next semester break (which will be quite soon - yeah!) I will definitely make one or two of those dresses. It will be one of Stevie Nick's dresses and the classic Marylin dress (I would love to dress up as Marylin for carnival or something like that! ♥), I guess.

Do you know some nice and inspiring sewing books? It would be lovely to share your experiences with me :)

Love,

J.

Spoilt for Choice

Spoilt for Choice - Which fabric to use?

source: kurzwarenland.de

German carnival is approaching and there are only a few weeks left. Instead of suggesting costume ideas I would like to give you some helpful information concerning the right fabric choice this time. As you can imagine nice fabrics are essential for the look of an outfit. There is a huge difference whether you use cotton, satin or velvet. The structure is completely different and so the overall appearance. Different types of fabric match different costumes - you have to keep that in mind, when choosing a costume. Imagine a pirat - have you ever seen one with a satin blouse? I guess not.

When choosing a costume it is the best to look for references first using google or another search engine. The more pictures you see, the more you develop a sense of what looks authentic and convincing. In case you want to make a costume yourself learning a bit about fabrics is pretty useful.  But even when you buy a costume on Ebay it's good to know what 'polyester' or 'panne samt' is and how it looks like on an unphotoshopped picture.

Here is some very basic knowledge:

source: cdn.activecommerce.net

Cotton
You can use cotton in various ways, i.e for skirts, aprons, trousers and many more. There is light and heavy cotton, depending on what you need. Careful: 100% cotton is non-stretchy. So using it for a bodysuit is a very, very bad idea. On the other hand side cotton is very easy to work with. Though you have to serge the edges so that it won't frazzle. There are no problems when you iron the fabric (only if the iron is extremely hot and you forget it on your fabric...), but cotton wrinkles quite fast. The prices are about 5-10+ Euro a meter.

source: stoffkontor.eu

Taffeta
Taffeta is a smooth and shiny fabric. In most cases it is used to line clothing or for making underskirts (the smooth character of taffeta will prevent your skirt from riding up). This quality of taffeta is very cheap, it is about 3-5+ Euro. But there is also higher quality taffeta which can be used for making dresses, of course this fabric quality is more expensive.

source: csimg.shopwahl.de

Velvet
In my opinion velvet is a bit tricky. Real velvet looks beautiful, but it is really, really expensive. So many people use panne velvet instead. Panne velvet costs about 2-5+ Euro a meter, so it's pretty cheap. BUT it is also cheap looking. Many stores use it in their displays and showrooms and as long as there is some distance to look at it, it's okay. But worn by a person it looks really horrible, if you don't know how to use it the right way. And only few people know that. So, if there is any way to avoid panne samt - please do it.

source: img1.etsystatic.com

Lycra/Spandex
Lycra and spandex are stretchy materials. They are perfect for bodysuit costumes, such as Catwoman and other super hero clothing. They are tricky to work with, because they are wobbly and not every sewing machine can transport them well. Plus you need some extra needles for it. But when you wear a costume made of lycra/spandex it's comfy and you can move in it pretty well.

source: bikudo.com

Polyester
In my opinion polyester is a mixed blessing. It's rather cheap and costs 3-5 Euro a meter and is very crease-resistant. Polyester is a synthetic material and it won't frazzle that much, so you can bream the edges very easily. But since it is a synthetic material it is very heat-sensitive. It can burn very easily, when your iron is too hot. Plus (for me) polyester has a cheesy look. But you have to decide for yourself, whether to use it or not.


Sure, there are many different types of fabrics I did not mention, but I think those are some good basics. I hope this short summary was helpful to you.

Love,
J.

Total Eclipse of the Heart

Today I want to tell you about my absolute favourite musical: Tanz der Vampire. I have seen it four times now. Twice in Oberhausen, NRW, and twice in Berlin. Somehow I really hope to see it one last time, because in Summer 2013, the musical will pause in Germany for a while.

Dance of the Vampires (or Tanz der Vampire as the original German language version is named) is a musical adaption of a 1967 Roman Polanski film. Polanski also directed the original German production of this musical. Music was composed by Jim Steinman and orchestrated by Steve Margoshes, and original German book and lyrics were written by Michael Kunze.

Von Krolock is about to bite Sarah during the song 'Total Eclipse of the Heart'/'Totale Finsternis'
source: unitednetworker.com

The musical is about professor Abronsius and his student Alfred who went to research vampires in Transylvania. After a snow storm, they strand at an inn where they met Sarah, the beautiful daughter of the inn keeper. Sarah is stubborn and yearns to be treated as a woman. After von Krolock invites her to a ball - of course her father refuses to let her go, since the count is a man and vampire - she runs away from home. Professor Abronsius and Alfred follow her. In brief this is the plot of the musical. Tanz der Vampire is a gloomy and funny musical dealing with growing up, giving into needs and bloodthirst. Tanz der Vampire has everything good musical needs:
- great music (the songs are so catchy!)
- outstanding costumes (especially those of the vampires. They look more noble compared to those of the citizens. They also look worn out, some of them are defect on purpose - just like to clothes of zombies you know from movies)
- slapstick (Herbert - the gay vampire is just hilarious for instance!)
- effects (as you know, vampires don't have a reflection - but what happens when they dance in front of a mirror with a human? Right, the human has a reflection, the vampire not. They also used a transparent curtain in some scenes and project images on it to create a 3D scenery.)
- awesome stage setting (hello? They have a house on stage that can rotate! And lots of massive coffins, a giant spiral staircase, a cemetry and lots of scary yet impressing pillars and gates. It's just: wow!)

So, this musical is definitely worth seeing!

Here are some more impressions:

Alfred's dream in 'Carpe Noctem'
source: pflichtlektuere.com

The vampires wake up and are on their way to the ball.
source: musicalfreunde.de

In front of Chagal's inn.
source: buehnenfotos.de

Well, since Tanz der Vampire is a rather old musical, it includes a lot of singing. More than in newer musicals like Lion King or Tarzan. But for me this is one of the reasons why that's my favourite musical. Plus I always liked vampires and other horror creatures. The obscure setting is the exactly right thing for me. When I was in Berlin I bought the photo booklet. You can see some of the photos I liked above in there, printed on very high quality paper. I love to look at those pictures again and again, because they keep my memory alive :)

Love,
J.

The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz

Whew! Christmas time, university stuff and work kept me really busy the last days and weeks. Unfortunately I did not have the time I wanted to have for posting, so I hope you are not that mad with me. But there are still some thoughts in my head that I want to write down. Earlier I wrote an entry dealing with the Elizabeth musical. I already stated that I adore musicals. I really adore them. So I want to use the following two entries to pay attention to two of my favourites: Wicked and Tanz der Vampire (I refer to its original German title, because it was adapted later to the English Broadway version). For now, I'd like to start with Wicked :)

source: vegassolo.com

Wicked: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz

 

Wicked (full title: Wicked: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz) is a musical based on the novel by Gregory Maguire (Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West),the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The musical is told from the perspective of the witches of the Land of Oz; its plot begins before and continues after Dorothy's arrival in Oz from Kansas. Wicked tells the story of two unlikely friends, Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda (the Good Witch of the North), who struggle through opposing personalities and viewpoints, rivalry over the same love-interest and the reactions to the Wizard's corrupt government. No matter what Elphaba strifes for, everything ends up in a pretty bad way.

 

Wicked is the musical I have seen the most often. When it was in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia, I guess I watched it like... five times. And I never grew tired of it. I just love the songs (and I am still singing them on long car trips with a friend of mine - she sings Elphaba's parts, I do Glinda's) no matter how often I listen to them. One of my favourite songs is "Heißgeliebt" (Popular). It's a rather funny song, that shows the first superficial friendship between Elphaba und Glinda growing deeper. If you are interested, you should definitely also check out "Gutes Tun" (No good deed) and "Frei und schwerelos" (Defying gravity). There are so many emotional and simply wonderful songs that are definitely worth listening to.  

 

 

What I like about this muscial, too, are the costumes. Glinda wears really nice and fairylike dresses, always full of glitter and glimmer - while Elphaba's clothes are plain and black. Elphaba is the complete opposite of Glinda in every way, nevertheless they become best friends - overcoming a grave conflict. One day - in case I have too much money and too much free time - I want to make one of her dresses. For sure. Even though I have not the slightest clue, when I should wear a dress like this...

Glina in the opening scene, appearing on stage surrounded by bubbles.
source: images.fanpop.com

Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West.
source: cdn.londonandpartners.com

Glinda and Elphaba on their trip to the emerald city.
source: 4.bp.blogspot.com

Have anyone of you seen Wicked? What do you think about it? Let me know! =)

 

Love,

J.

Review: F.A.C.T.S. 2012 in Ghent

Hello everyone! =)

Today I want to take a short break from Christmas. I bet you all are quite annoyed by it, right? No escape of Christmas songs, cookies, and so on. And buying all presents, of course. So I just want to skip the Christmas thing for now and tell you about my stay at F.A.C.T.S. a couple of weeks ago.

First some basic information: The F.A.C.T.S. is an annual convention in Ghent, Belgium, dealing with comics, sci-fi, fantasy and japanese cartoons. A dear friend of mine - using the pen name Calssara - was invited as a Guest of Honour and she asked me whether I would like to accompany her. And well, what should I say? Of course I said yes, because I just love travelling and I love seeing different places. And I was a bit curious about the other guests. I studied the website of F.A.C.T.S. and found a list of invited actors, writers, etc. Maybe you know Norman Reedus, Sean Patrick Flanery, Lauren Cohan or Charles Dance - just to name some. To sum up the guests where people related to The Walking Dead, Vampire Diaries, Game of Thrones and many more. I tried to get an autograph for a friend, but the queue was just too long. So after a short time I lost interest and moved on to he food station. Since we were in Belgium we had to try the waffles - and wow, Belgium waffles are the best I ever ate. They were even served warm. Paradise! ♥
All in all you could compare F.A.C.T.S. to the RingCon in Bonn, Germany. I guess. I have never been there, but friends of mine. And they told me.

source: Calssara's FB page

Now I want to tell why my friend Calssara was invited. As you may have noticed she is neiher a movie star nor a novel writer. She is a costume artist. She makes all of those costumes herself and with some she participates in international contests. She was chosen twice as a German represantative for the World Costume Play Summit in Nagoya, Japan, and once for the European Costume Play Gathering in France, where she won the first price. This is the link to her website. I think you should pay a visit, because seeing her in her beautiful costumes is always better than just read about it. At the F.A.C.T.S. she was one of the three judges for the costume contest.







The pictures below show some of the participants and winners. Do recognize any character? =)
Have you ever thought about dressing up as one of those characters? For carnival or another event? Come on, guys, tell me - don't be shy! ;)

source: Calssara's FB page

source: Calssara's FB page

Love,
J.


EDIT:
I was asked to upload some more pictures - well, here they are! :)
All photos were taken by Calssara.

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to: Christmas Stocking

Hello everyone! =)

Just as promised: here's my little "How to make a Christmas stocking" tutorial. I made a very plain stocking, the basic version or so you might say. Of course you can add further decoration or accessories :) Instead of a long speech I want to show you the pictures I took while sewing.

Christmas Stocking Tutorial

 What you will need:

• sweets! Lots of. And maybe some healthy stuff ;) Your stocking has to be filled afterwards
• fabrics (I recommend using felt. It's very easy to sew plus you don't need to cast the edges, because it does not fray. But you can also use jute or something similar)
• scissors
• fixing pins
• needle and thread
• glue (better use the white adhesive for handicraft work. It will become transparent when dried. Other glue might leave stains on the fabric)
• pencil or marker
• decoration

Draw the shape of a stocking unto the fabric. I used red felt. You can get felt (and jute) in every fabric shop as cut goods and sometimes in craft shops in form of a small sheet. I bought my felt in a local craft shop for 0,40 EUR a sheet.

Try to use as much space of your sheet/fabric as possible. Note: when you sew them together and turn it over afterwards the capacity of the stocking will shrink.

Fix the one side of the cut stocking with pins on the fabric and cut the second part.

Now we need the typical white edge of the stocking. Put the red felt part on the white fabric (you can also use fake fur to make the stocking extra fluffy) and mark the edges. You will need two white trimmings - one for each side of the stocking.

Glue or sew the trimming onto the outside of your stocking. As recommended earlier use handicraft adhesive to prevent stains on material.

If you want to hang your stocking apply a pull strap. Just sew it in the back of your stocking.

Once you applied both trimmings, put both sides on top of each other. Make sure the trimming is inside, this is very important. Otherwise you will have the wrong side on the outside.

Fix both sides with pins and sew them together. I used my sewing machine, because I am a bit lazy. Sewing by hand is also okay, it will just need a little bit more time. Leave a span of roundabout 0.5-1.0 centimeters to make sure you sew both sides. Of course this span can be shorter, if you worked more careful beforehand.

Afterwards cut back the seam allowance and turn the inside out. Then iron your stocking.

After you are finished with ironing your stocking is supposed to look like this. Now it is time to apply all the decoration! Better put a paperboard inside, if you want to glue. This way the stocking can't stick together by accident ;)

Et voilà: your Christmas stocking is finished! Now fill it with the stuff you like the most.

In case you made your stocking bigger, you can use it as a cute packing for Christmas presents, too. A good book, jewelry or a perfume might fit inside as well ;)

I hope this tutorial was useful for you. How do you like it? Was it easy to understand? Or maybe it motivated you to make a Christmas stocking yourself? Please give me feedback so I can improve.

I wish you a happy and pleasant St Nicholas' Day! <3

Love,
J.