Sewing is for Super Heroes

Hey y'all,

How are we?  Hope everyone is wrapping up against the chill that is welcoming lady autumn in.  As is the way at the House of Demeanour there's lots been going on but a slight delay in documenting.  Though this time it was because I had to wait for my latest makes to hit the headlines :)

I was lucky enough to be asked by Breast Cancer Campaign to rustle up some ideas to publicise their Wear It Pink day that takes place on 25th October 2013 to raise vital funds for breast cancer research.  The work they do is amazing and so important because 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.  We decided to go with the idea of super heroes doing everyday things because those that are living with and fighting breast cancer are definitely heroes in their own right.  I whipped up the creative juices at the HQ and came up with the idea for outfits in the vein of Wonder Woman and She-Ra the princess of power who are both equally kick ass in my book.

Sisters who are definitely doing it for themselves!

Once I knew what we wanted I set about looking for a base pattern for the costumes and hit upon Kwik Sew 3272, which offers a choice of leotards.  

Kwik Sew 3272 + 5m of electric pink spandex = Super hero

I was not kidding when I said electric pink :)

So as we all know the thing that makes any outfit go from pretty good to powerful are some serious accessories and super heroes are no different.  I mean where would Wonder Woman be without her bejewelled headband and gold lassoo?  I decided that silver cuffs and a crown were the ticket and went about fashioning a set from silver PVC and heavy duty interfacing.  

If you fancy yourself as a super hero here's what you'll need to make your own crown and cuffs.

You will need:

• Scrap paper
• Scissors
• A ruler
• A tape measure
• Pins
• Fabric glue
• Sewing machine (optional if you want to sew instead of glue)
• 0.25m of silver PVC or any other metallic looking fabric you want to use
• 0.25m of heavy duty interfacing
• 1m ribbon
• 0.5 m of stick on velcro

First of all you will want to make a paper pattern for your accessories.  You do this by measuring round your head to find out the length you require for your crown and and then measuring your wrist and then again at the point of your fore arm that you want the cuff to finish.  It's up to you how big or small you make them but I think if you're going to be super then the bolder the better :)

Here are the templates I created for my crown and cuffs. Add an extra 1 - 2 cm to your cuff measurement to allow for a seam.

Once you've used the template to cut out the heavy duty interfacing then you can use that to cut out your metallic fabric. You'll need to cut two pieces and if you see from the picture above I've cut one slightly bigger than the interfacing so you can fold it down and glue it for a clean edge.

Glue the larger piece of silver piece PVC to the crown.  Cut into the corners for a clean finish and fold down the edges then glue the smaller silver crown piece to the back. Then when it's dry you can either sew or stick a length of ribbon to the back to tie it round your head.

For the cuffs you'll need to cut 4 pieces of your metallic fabric and either glue the wrong sides together or if you want to sew them up use a 1cm seam allowance and then turn out the right way.

Then stick on a length of velcro either side so you can fasten them around your wrists.

From seamstress to super hero in seconds boom!

Finally, here are Sam and Billie from TOWIE in the costumes I created and looking super even if I do say so myself :)

So there you go that's my latest make for a super cause.  I'm off to jump into a phone box and get my pink on for Wear It Pink day on Friday 25th October.  Hope to see a heap of you looking pink and super and raising money for such a great charity.

Love Miss D

xxx