Everyone needs a little sparkle in their life right?
Frocktails last year was in late spring so there was a chance it was going to be warm, particularly in a room full of people. I was going to have to travel to and from the venue by public transport so I needed something for over my shoulders, I didn’t want anything too heavy or cumbersome but at the same time I wanted adequate coverage. I am paranoid about getting a chill in my shoulders and back, I don’t know why I just am. I don’t like air conditioning so even if it is really hot outside I need to have something to put over my shoulders if I go inside. I’m the strange person you see carrying a jacket in a heatwave.
In October The Remnant Warehouse had a sale. In the days before sale started I was “researching” their website just to see what fabrics they had. In the last couple of years I’ve hardly brought any fabric as I have been trying to sew my existing stash first. I saw they had a black cotton voile crepe fabric which had glitter sparkles on it. I instantly wanted this fabric, I needed glitter sparkles in my life. Even though I have been sewing for over 10 years I don’t have a lot of experience with different fabrics. I know what some fabrics feel like such as quilting cottons, corduroy, lycra knits, rayon and denim, but apart from that I have no concept just from the fabric name of what fabrics feel like. I knew what cotton voile felt like and I had an idea of what crepe felt like but I didn’t know what a combination of the two would be like. I have sensory issues to some fabrics but as it was cotton voile I thought I could have it against my skin. I ordered 2m of it during the sale and hoped for the best. When the fabric arrived it looked even better than in the picture. The sparkles were fantastic creating just a little bit of interest to the black background. The best way to describe the fabric is it has more texture to it than a regular cotton voile, like a crisp feel. The fabric drapes nicely but still holds it shape.
Burda 7313 view D is the simplest cape you will ever make. It is a one piece pattern with no seams. One end of the fabric is cut up the centre to create the front sections and neckline. The only sewing is the hem around all the edges. Your fabric is the star in this cape. I had made it twice before, the first was a previous Frocktails cape, the other as a Barber’s cape for our home haircuts. If you make it in a lightweight fabric you can scrunch up and put it in your handbag if you don’t need to wear it.
You do need to hem this cape across the back, the front and around the neckline. I did a rolled hem on the sewing machine. I haven’t done a lot of rolled hems in my time as the few times I had tried them I failed. This time I was determined to learn how to do it. I’m very happy with the result, I will do a blog post about them at some point.
For this cape it was the perfect fabric. Even though it was a lightweight fabric it was still dense enough to provide coverage over my shoulders without it feeling too hot. The sparkles lifted the fabric from plain black voile to something special.
The cape is an item that I won’t get a lot of wear out of, I don’t go to a lot of events let alone ones which need sparkles. I’m still going to keep it in my wardrobe. If I make it to Frocktails next year I might wear it again as it is useful, I don’t mind repeating an item of clothing at the different events.
Cassiy