Little Mo's Rose Handbag Craft Design
I don't usually do blogs so close together but since I am in a lot of pain and confined to the sofa I thought I might as well do this short one. The last blog was about a cover for a basket to match my Lammas Costume.
This was primarily done to use in our fabulous 'The Outrageous Mother Goose Pantomime.' I was playing the part of somebody called 'Little Mo'. She is a villager who is 'Quite Particular' with airs and graces above her station. Early on one of the boys A.K.A 'Demon Decay' came up with the idea that 'Little Mo' should have different costumes.
He designated my Lammas costume for the Opening Number and Finale. I had a posh dress which had been originally bought for a wedding which he decided should be my transformation (I had a beauty treatment in the show) outfit and also a gypsy look for other scenes.
I took this information on board and with a the help of a couple of wigs and accessories I had practically a different look each time I went on stage. Indeed I think in the end I had more changes than the Dame. I think next year I shall be known as the woman of a thousand scarves.
This blog is a quick guide to how I made a matching handbag for the gypsy outfit. The outfit was a pink skirt and a cream top with ribbons and rosebuds on.
First take a piece of cloth. My piece was roughly the size of an A4 sheet of paper. Fortunately the top section was already hemmed.
I do wherever possible try to recycle material from old clothes and other items. This material was the lining of a pair of curtains from which I had used the top layer for a costume in a previous pantomime. Pin and tack around the rest of the three sides. If you notice I have made the hem around the other 3 sides smaller than the top. This is deliberate as you will see later.
Pinned A4 Cloth Tacked A4 Cloth
Folded and Pinned Cloth
.JPG)
Obviously by hemming the cloth it will now be smaller than A4. The next point is to fold the cloth. As you can see in the photograph I have not folded the cloth directly in half. Find the top hem which is larger than the others.
Take the bottom of the cloth and fold to just under the large hem. You should have at least an inch of extra cloth left.
Blanket Stitched Cloth
You can tack along the edge but if you want to make it stronger I suggest you Blanket Stitch it as I have. This makes it far less likely to come undone especially if you intend to use it rather than just for decoration. You have been working on the inside of the bag so now turn it the right way.
Next you need to turn your attention to the top hem or Flap as I will now refer to it. Before you start make sure that the longest piece of material is underneath so you can fold it forward over the top piece. Fold the two corners of the Flap downwards so it
makes a diagonal edge and pin.
Hemmed Flap
When you are happy with the pinning and have checked you can still fold the Flap easily tack the material. As you can see in the photograph the shape should now resemble an envelope.
Ribbon Handle
I next took a piece of Pink Ribbon. I measured it so it was long enough to go along two sides of the bag and also comfortably over my shoulder.
I hemmed the Ribbon so it wouldn't fray then folded it over the edge of the bag. I must admit I did have trouble with this due to the thinness of the Ribbon I used. You might want to use a slightly thicker Ribbon for ease.
Once I had finished one side I repeated the process with the other side. Take my tip and don't do this when you're half asleep at 2.30 in the morning. You can't tell in the photograph but I managed to get the ribbon twisted and didn't find out until I had finished the darn thing. Grrrrr.
Green Ribbon Edge
Next I added the decoration. I used the leftover pieces from the top I had jazzed up to match the pink skirt. I added a Green Ribbon along the Flap. For the final touches I added some Rose Buds to the handbag.
http://duchessplayers.weebly.com/
https://www.facebook.com/DuchessPlayers?fref=ts
http://www.duchess-theatre.com/
I don't usually do blogs so close together but since I am in a lot of pain and confined to the sofa I thought I might as well do this short one. The last blog was about a cover for a basket to match my Lammas Costume.
This was primarily done to use in our fabulous 'The Outrageous Mother Goose Pantomime.' I was playing the part of somebody called 'Little Mo'. She is a villager who is 'Quite Particular' with airs and graces above her station. Early on one of the boys A.K.A 'Demon Decay' came up with the idea that 'Little Mo' should have different costumes.
He designated my Lammas costume for the Opening Number and Finale. I had a posh dress which had been originally bought for a wedding which he decided should be my transformation (I had a beauty treatment in the show) outfit and also a gypsy look for other scenes.
I took this information on board and with a the help of a couple of wigs and accessories I had practically a different look each time I went on stage. Indeed I think in the end I had more changes than the Dame. I think next year I shall be known as the woman of a thousand scarves.
This blog is a quick guide to how I made a matching handbag for the gypsy outfit. The outfit was a pink skirt and a cream top with ribbons and rosebuds on.
First take a piece of cloth. My piece was roughly the size of an A4 sheet of paper. Fortunately the top section was already hemmed.
I do wherever possible try to recycle material from old clothes and other items. This material was the lining of a pair of curtains from which I had used the top layer for a costume in a previous pantomime. Pin and tack around the rest of the three sides. If you notice I have made the hem around the other 3 sides smaller than the top. This is deliberate as you will see later.
Pinned A4 Cloth Tacked A4 Cloth
Folded and Pinned Cloth
Take the bottom of the cloth and fold to just under the large hem. You should have at least an inch of extra cloth left.
Blanket Stitched Cloth
You can tack along the edge but if you want to make it stronger I suggest you Blanket Stitch it as I have. This makes it far less likely to come undone especially if you intend to use it rather than just for decoration. You have been working on the inside of the bag so now turn it the right way.
Pinned Flap
Next you need to turn your attention to the top hem or Flap as I will now refer to it. Before you start make sure that the longest piece of material is underneath so you can fold it forward over the top piece. Fold the two corners of the Flap downwards so itmakes a diagonal edge and pin.
Hemmed Flap
When you are happy with the pinning and have checked you can still fold the Flap easily tack the material. As you can see in the photograph the shape should now resemble an envelope.Ribbon Handle
I next took a piece of Pink Ribbon. I measured it so it was long enough to go along two sides of the bag and also comfortably over my shoulder.I hemmed the Ribbon so it wouldn't fray then folded it over the edge of the bag. I must admit I did have trouble with this due to the thinness of the Ribbon I used. You might want to use a slightly thicker Ribbon for ease.
Once I had finished one side I repeated the process with the other side. Take my tip and don't do this when you're half asleep at 2.30 in the morning. You can't tell in the photograph but I managed to get the ribbon twisted and didn't find out until I had finished the darn thing. Grrrrr.
Green Ribbon Edge
Next I added the decoration. I used the leftover pieces from the top I had jazzed up to match the pink skirt. I added a Green Ribbon along the Flap. For the final touches I added some Rose Buds to the handbag.
Rose Buds
With this now done the handbag was ready for use. Here I am with it on stage.
If you like amateur dramatics and live in the area we are always looking for new members. Here are some links you might find useful.
https://www.facebook.com/DuchessPlayers?fref=ts
http://www.duchess-theatre.com/
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