In a previous post, I listed two sets of Japanese fashion items on Etsy/Ko-fi for anyone interested, just so my shop can truly be called an atelier. The beige/white lolita skirt and bonnet set was actually sewn quite a few years ago and meant for a variety of sizes, but I never pulled off that modeling/runway project so it’s off to be sold with the gyaru set. Recently I decided to stop procrastinating and start using up all the cute print fabrics languishing in my fabric hoard to practice my sewing skills, hence the Sanrio heart purse and two quilted tote bags and two strawberry jam pouches made last month. Once I felt warmed up, I moved onto this Joann’s cotton print fabric (meant for craft decor rather than apparel) that I bought for 50% off. I already used this fabric to make a new ironing board cover and some scrunchies two years ago, but still had about a yard and a half left. I successfully used almost the entire remnant to make this cute strawberry set!
Then I used the irregularly shaped leftovers to make a lace/ribbon rectangle headdress partly based on an oval headdress design in Otome no Sewing volume 16, as well as a large lace-trimmed bow that was my own design but resembles many headbows in the Gothic Lolita Bible, just in case one is more of a Alice bow lolita than a headdress lolita, you can switch. I had just narrow scraps left so I made scrunchies/wrist bands trimmed with more lace and ribbon bows, inspired by Misako Aoki’s sewing book but found in another Otome no Sewing volume. I was able to use a thin cotton floral lace on both headdresses and the skirt, and then a fine mesh lace on the rectangle headdress and scrunchies to visually tie the trims on all of the pieces together. I also safety-pinned a few satin ribbon bows to the skirt, but not sure how I feel about them, or adding any other charms or decorations like fabric strawberries or more lace, the print is so busy that any further additions would be lost. Ideally, I would make a red headband to slide the bow onto, but the only headband bases I have are too thick or too narrow, and I’m trying to avoid buying more stuff until I make good headway into my stash, so no headband base, only a clip for now. Perhaps the only other criticism would be the mesh lace on the headdress not floppy enough around the corners, I haven’t made a rectangle headdress in a while and didn’t think about how much the trims need to be ruffled for ultimate fluffiness. I decided to finish all of the inside seams as best as I can with rarer techniques (aka not using a overlock or zig zag stitch because that still looks messy to me) but my main help in this aspect is retaining the selvedges of the original fabric that had “original Joann’s design” printed on it, so anyone can see for themselves this is the rare out-of-print stuff!
I think this set looks adorable with a white blouse and white apron, maybe adding a red strawberry purse and bright red flats or heels with lacy short socks for a perfect spring or summer coord. I do have a pattern for a cute strawberry purse in Misako’s sewing book, which is also found in another Otome no Sewing volume, but such a purse would be so obviously based off an existing pattern and thus can’t be sold for profit (not that I sell my creations for much profit anyway, but as an artist, I don’t want to be seen even slightly infringing on another creator’s copyright, I need to hold some morals in this godless society.)
Cool stuff I learned – how to make a “clean finish” seam, and using bias binding to finish a ruffled seam and pockets, all to avoid using a bulky French seam that I quickly learned has been a pain to sew over. I also learned how to use the gathering foot on my Bernette 79 and the narrow hem foot. Both feets are amazingly effective and make quick and relatively neat work of a frustrating and time-consuming part of lolita sewing… unless your bobbin runs out partway through and you have to spend time hand-sewing to fix it. Note that the gathering foot gathers at 1.5 times max, so you do have to pull it even tighter if you’re doing 2 times ruffles, which is what I did here.
I listed this set at an outrageous price on my shops (Ko-fi link here), and I hope no one buys it, because I did make it to fit me and kinda want to wear it lol. Let me know what you think!