Week 7: Remnant Rumble Part 2: Mardi Gras
Happy Mardi Gras, y'all.
As a New Orleans native, I am blood oath obligated to wear obscene amounts of purple, green, and gold on Mardi Gras.
The Orlando swing crowd is trying to get regular dances going in Disney Springs at The Edison, a really swanky industrial steampunk themed restaurant that sort of turns into a club after 10. We tried Saturday nights, but that proved way too crowded for a bunch of dancers in a brand new joint on the busiest night of the week, so we're giving Tuesday nights a shot. The Edison has excellent theatrical lighting for their own cabaret floor show, so I like taking advantage of it and wearing exceptionally sparkly things.
The dance was promoted as a Valentine's Day themed dance, and everyone going was encouraged to wear red, but when I found out it was Mardi Gras, that was way more important. I started wandering through JoAnn's for inspiration, as I do, and I found a small cut of the same paillette fabric I used last week, but instead of pink, it was holographic gold. I went ahead and bought it, because obviously, I needed it. I had no idea exactly how I was going to use it, but I knew I needed something spectacularly tacky to wear, so I went digging through my fabric stash once again.
Whenever I find 4-way stretch spandex in remnants, no matter what, I buy it. I tell myself that it's because I'm going to make my own leotards one day, but I've been telling myself that for about 2 years now. That's how I wound up with a cut of shiny metallic gold spandex. Alright, I had my gold.
For the purple and green, I found a piece of beautiful green to purple shift 4-way stretch spandex that I got as a remnant after Halloween last year. I had exactly one yard of it, so I figured that would be my best bet. I also had some green stretch crushed velvet leftover from a costume from a show a few years ago, so I had that as a backup if something went wrong.
So when I go dancing, I usually try to be a little cute, more wholesome, and twirly. However, I like to get a little more, slinky if you will, when I go dancing at the Edison. Mostly because the venue is more of a club feel, but also because the dance floor isn't very big, so I don't want to take up too much of it with a huge skirt.
Here's a making-of video from this week and last week:
The top was a 9 inch remnant of a metallic gold 4-way stretch spandex. Basically, I folded it right sides together, sewed along the selvage, then turned it right side out, folded it in half again and sewed. I was hoping for a tube top tight enough that I wouldn't have to worry about properly fitting it, and it worked out perfectly for me. I've been playing around with a remnant of gold paillette fabric as a neckline for the past few days, so I pinned it to the tube top while I was wearing it, then secured it down with individually knotted cross stitches about every inch or so, so I wouldn't affect the stretch. The very last thing I did was to fold under the top and bottom edge of the tube top, then stitch it down to give it a more finished look. The fabric will not fray, but since I wasn't able to properly finish the skirt, it looked bad to have both the top and the skirt unfinished, so I made the decision to finish the top.
The skirt pattern was one I got as a free download from Itch to Stitch Designs via Craftsy here. If you use this pattern, definitely double check the sizing to your measurements, because on a S/M/L system, I usually fall somewhere between a M and a L, but with this pattern, the measurements told me I fall pretty perfectly at a S. The pattern wound up being a little bigger than I'd like at that size, even with taking it in slightly, but it still made a beautiful skirt that was great to dance in. The fabric I used was a one yard remnant of a 4-way stretch Cosplay by Yaya Han fabric that had a purple to green shift.
Aside from my sewing machine throwing a temper tantrum, I really like how this project turned out. I feel like a Mardi Gras mermaid, and I hope it stands the test of time because I intend to wear it again if I find myself back in New Orleans during that time of year.
Money part:
What I had:
Remnants: Gold spandex, oil slick spandex
Thread
What I bought:
Remnant: Gold Paillette - 0.167 Yards @ $24.99/yd = $4.17, 50% off Remnants = $2.08
(Here's the link since I wound up searching for it to double check off of my receipt this is the one I bought since I misplaced the original remnant tag.)
 |
| When else are you going to get to wear feathers and purple highlighter? |
As a New Orleans native, I am blood oath obligated to wear obscene amounts of purple, green, and gold on Mardi Gras.
The Orlando swing crowd is trying to get regular dances going in Disney Springs at The Edison, a really swanky industrial steampunk themed restaurant that sort of turns into a club after 10. We tried Saturday nights, but that proved way too crowded for a bunch of dancers in a brand new joint on the busiest night of the week, so we're giving Tuesday nights a shot. The Edison has excellent theatrical lighting for their own cabaret floor show, so I like taking advantage of it and wearing exceptionally sparkly things.
 |
| "I was dancing and I looked up and saw the glitter. It was like a spotlight turned on." -Our favorite lead, about me. |
The dance was promoted as a Valentine's Day themed dance, and everyone going was encouraged to wear red, but when I found out it was Mardi Gras, that was way more important. I started wandering through JoAnn's for inspiration, as I do, and I found a small cut of the same paillette fabric I used last week, but instead of pink, it was holographic gold. I went ahead and bought it, because obviously, I needed it. I had no idea exactly how I was going to use it, but I knew I needed something spectacular
Whenever I find 4-way stretch spandex in remnants, no matter what, I buy it. I tell myself that it's because I'm going to make my own leotards one day, but I've been telling myself that for about 2 years now. That's how I wound up with a cut of shiny metallic gold spandex. Alright, I had my gold.
For the purple and green, I found a piece of beautiful green to purple shift 4-way stretch spandex that I got as a remnant after Halloween last year. I had exactly one yard of it, so I figured that would be my best bet. I also had some green stretch crushed velvet leftover from a costume from a show a few years ago, so I had that as a backup if something went wrong.
 |
| The clock at The Edison makes a great photo background, but then everyone knows you're getting to the club at 9:40 on a Tuesday night. |
The top was a 9 inch remnant of a metallic gold 4-way stretch spandex. Basically, I folded it right sides together, sewed along the selvage, then turned it right side out, folded it in half again and sewed. I was hoping for a tube top tight enough that I wouldn't have to worry about properly fitting it, and it worked out perfectly for me. I've been playing around with a remnant of gold paillette fabric as a neckline for the past few days, so I pinned it to the tube top while I was wearing it, then secured it down with individually knotted cross stitches about every inch or so, so I wouldn't affect the stretch. The very last thing I did was to fold under the top and bottom edge of the tube top, then stitch it down to give it a more finished look. The fabric will not fray, but since I wasn't able to properly finish the skirt, it looked bad to have both the top and the skirt unfinished, so I made the decision to finish the top.
 |
| I don't have any close-up shots of this, so here's a selfie where you can see the neckline. |
The skirt pattern was one I got as a free download from Itch to Stitch Designs via Craftsy here. If you use this pattern, definitely double check the sizing to your measurements, because on a S/M/L system, I usually fall somewhere between a M and a L, but with this pattern, the measurements told me I fall pretty perfectly at a S. The pattern wound up being a little bigger than I'd like at that size, even with taking it in slightly, but it still made a beautiful skirt that was great to dance in. The fabric I used was a one yard remnant of a 4-way stretch Cosplay by Yaya Han fabric that had a purple to green shift.
Aside from my sewing machine throwing a temper tantrum, I really like how this project turned out. I feel like a Mardi Gras mermaid, and I hope it stands the test of time because I intend to wear it again if I find myself back in New Orleans during that time of year.
Money part:
What I had:
Remnants: Gold spandex, oil slick spandex
Thread
What I bought:
Remnant: Gold Paillette - 0.167 Yards @ $24.99/yd = $4.17, 50% off Remnants = $2.08
(Here's the link since I wound up searching for it to double check off of my receipt this is the one I bought since I misplaced the original remnant tag.)
Week 7 budget: $1.92
Week 7 spent: $2.08
Week 7 leftover: -$0.16
February budget: $6.09
February spent: $4.38
February leftover: $1.71
Year budget: $100
Year spent: $14.95
Year left: $85.05
So I'm surprisingly still ahead for February, and if I do what I'm anticipating over the next week, I might still keep that lead. I'm pleasantly surprised I made it this far. Go me.
So I'm surprisingly still ahead for February, and if I do what I'm anticipating over the next week, I might still keep that lead. I'm pleasantly surprised I made it this far. Go me.
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