Eowyn collar pattern

Just finished working on the collar. I finally have it to a point where I'm happy. It's not 100% accurate but it's close enough for me. You won't think to look at it but the collar has been the biggest challenge. I have lost track of how many toiles I've gone through for it. At least five. Whew!


Ignore the left collar half in the pics. I tried too different variations at the same time. The finial pattern is on the right. Onto silk dying and fabric cutting..."

silk math

Okay, I've figured out exactly how much silk I need to dye. (I love making these do it yourself layout guides.) I also decided on a pattern for the underskirt, Sim 9246. I think it might be out of print now. Not sure.

According to my calculations, for I need 11½ yards. Yep, real glad I bought the bolt. That is for the underskirt, front lining, front gore lining and sleeves, the rest will be lined in polish cotton. I want to dye the silk tomorrow so, naturally, the doubts are rising and I'm fighting freaking out. Ahh!

I just finished figuring out how much my fabric weighs. I have to know in order to determine how much dye I need. My mom's suggestion was to take the fabric to the grocery store and weight it in a fruit basket. Ah huh. I did some math instead. I know my silk is 12mm (momme) and with the help of ( http://www.fabrics.net/outlet/momme.asp ) I figured that to be 1.5oz a yard for a total of 1lb, 1.25oz. If my math is wrong I don't want to know. Ignorance is bliss right?

I have a question for you talented fabric dyeing people. Am I really stupid to not pre-wash the silk? Theoretically silks from Dharma are ready to dye as is but they do recommend pre-washing. Like the idiot I am, I forgot to order Dharma's silk soap so I'm also wondering what to wash it with (if washing is a must).