Lilacs & Lace

Stripes, Chevrons, and Crinolines, oh my!

2012-01-28T16:21:00.000-08:00

As soon as I saw this lovely vintage dress, I just had tohave my own. And thanks to “Make this Look” via The Sew Weekly, now I do!

And does anyone else remember this dress? I did not think of the connection until afterI completed my dress, but clearly, it was in my memory banks.

The lovely Solanah of Vixen Vintage

I wanted to copy the rainbow stripe look of the original,but with less than a week, I was stuck with whatever fabric I could find atJoAnn Fabrics.

I started with the clearance section, but nothing wassuitable. Next, I headed to the quiltingcottons. While I would have preferred acrisp silk taffeta, I realize that was next to impossible. Besides, I needed seven yards of 45” fabricto ensure that stripe matching was possible, and silk taffeta is a little tooexpensive for a project that I am not sure will work out!

After pulling every striped fabric off the shelves that wasnot completely hideous, I decided on this one.

The stripes are directional because of the thin navy line runningthrough each stripe, which made my cutting layout a bit of a bother. But I stuck with it.

To keep myself from going crazy, I marked theturquoise stripes in chalk on each pattern piece for a frame of reference when cutting the second piece.

Well, I was so careful with my stripe matching, I forgot toflip one skirt piece over while cutting out my duplicate piece. Whoops! It’s been awhile since I made that mistake! Good thing I purchased a little extra fabric!

The original inspiration uses a lengthwise stripe and agathered dirndl skirt. When I purchased Vogue 1172, I did not look very closely at the line drawing, and assumed that it wasa basic circle skirt. However, the widehem is created by inserting four godets between front, back, and side skirtpieces. So, the question was, do I gofor an easy rectangle, basic circle, or hope for the best and go for thegodets?

Before cutting, I drew some very rough sketches of the dresswith crazy grainlines going every which way. Most girls are told to avoid horizontal stripes at all costs, and Iwould normally fall into this category. However, when multiple crinolines are involved, anything goes.

And since I was messing with grainline, I decided thatlining the bodice with pieces cut on the suggested grain was a good idea. Being in a colorful mindset, I went with abit of color-blocking. Actually, thenavy colored cotton was out of stock, or at least, not to be found, and since I couldnot decide between the two colors, I went ahead and used both.

On my fabric searching expedition, I wandered up the buttonaisle, and found this lovely button. Itwas the last of its kind, and I decided to rescue it. I decided I would make a little brooch for mydress, which I had planned to place at the center front v-neck. But it just did not look right with my redbuckle (pulled from the stash) which worked to break up the stripes a bit. That, and it was easier than using a kit tomake a self-fabric one.

I cannot decide if I look like lawn chair furniture, or 1950s does nautical . . . but whatever it may be, I am very pleased with theoutcome.

And for your twirling pleasure – this is what seven yards offabric looks like!

Dress: Made by me,Vogue 1172

Sweater: Made by me,Lipstick Cabled Cardi

Shoes: Seychelles “Babydoll”in Off White

Fishnets: Hue

Crinolines: Made byme + tea length crinoline purchased on ebay

Earrings: Rummagesale. (I really loves these earrings,but they have proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that clip-ons are EVIL. One of these days I will get around toswapping out the devil’s clip with a post.)

Ring: Gift from mom,my Grandfather’s class ring
Purse: Harveys Seatbelt Bag "Bow Tide Blue"

New Vogue Patterns for Spring 2012!

2012-01-26T23:18:00.000-08:00

While looking for a pattern number this evening on the Vogue website, I squealed aloud! I have been eagerly anticipating the Spring Collection, and it is finally here.

After taking a quick look, here are a few of my favorites:

Vogue 1281, Donna Karan

I am really going to have to attempt some knits this year –I am completely in love with these Donna Karan/DKNY designs. (For those days when my vintage self must be incognito.)

Vogue 1280, Donna Karan

This DKNY reminds me of a Donna Karan from last year (Vogue 1220 - one of my favoritecontemporary projects to date).

Vogue 1287, DKNY

And take a look at this! One of the new Vintage Vogue looks even more likethis vintage dress I just knocked-off!

LOVE thestyling. I think I am going to have tostart carrying around a straw basket filled with flowers!

Vogue 8789

Here is the other vintage selection, which is very similarin design to a Retro Butterick pattern.

Vogue 8788

If only the McCall Pattern Company would pull out those supercomplicated Vogue Special Couturier Designs for re-release . . . hint, hint!

Sew Weekly Spotlight: January 25, 2012

2012-01-25T19:50:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I was thrilled to find that my latest creation is featured as today’s Sew Weekly Spotlight!

I will have more pictures and information about theconstruction of this dress, just as soon as I recover from my excitement.

Thank you, Mena!

Out for a Stroll

2012-01-23T22:45:00.000-08:00

Last week’s Sew Weekly Challenge was all aboutbuttonholes.

It is rather ridiculous, but buttonholes still scareme. I abhor the idea of finishing agarment completely and then sticking it under a machine and hoping for thebest. Have you ever tried to unpick amachine made buttonhole? And I havenever been able to get my machine to make a perfectly balanced buttonhole, sounless they are invisible on the finished product, I avoid them at all costs.

Besides, vintage-loving me has always preferred boundbuttonholes. However, each and everyproject that involves buttons always slows me way down because I would ratherbe doing just about anything else! Iknow I am not alone in my fear, and somehow that helps. Perhaps that was the idea behind Mena’schallenge this week.

Here is yet another Vintage Vogue reproduction. Hope you aren’t getting bored with thembecause there will be many more to come!

Vogue 2444 was released in 2000, before I was consistentlystalking the Vogue website for each and every new Vintage Vogue. Luckily I found this one over on etsy lastyear. I love the style lines!

I actually had my fabrics picked out and ready to go overthe Christmas holiday, but I lost my sewing motivation for a couple ofweeks. This was somewhat concerning,seeing as I just signed up for The Sew Weekly! Thankfully, I have returned to the sewing room with a bunch of new ideas– hopefully a few of them will get created this year!

As soon as I saw that this week’s challenge involvedbuttonholes, I was motivated to get back to the project.

Thankfully, I had some Zeus lining in my stash in navy – itwould seem that JoAnn Fabrics is no longer carrying it. Aargh! Every time I find a fabric in their stock that I actually like, theydiscontinue it. Why?! So I guess I am going to have to startrationing what remains in my stash.

I used some cotton for my sew-in interfacing.

For this particular pattern, because the fabric was a bit onthe thick side, I used Gertie’s bound buttonhole tutorial. And it worked beautifully. I still have a bit of leftover silk organzafrom this project, and it really works great to create a bound buttonholewhen the fabric is on the thick side.

The pattern was quite quick to sew up. The swing jacket is not a silhouette Igenerally am drawn to, but the sleeves alone made the suit worth a try! And I love the pockets (although they are notvery utilitarian).

And, of course, my seams are bound with my favorite rayonbinding. The skirt seams are all covered,but because the swing jacket has plenty of ease built in, I did not feel thatit was necessary to bind each and every one.

I also decided to line the skirt, so I made a duplicate in my liningfabric, dropped it into the skirt, basted the waist edge, and then applied thefacing (cut from my lining fabric to keep the thickness to a minimum) andinvisibly sewed it to the lining.

My hat was made using Vogue 7657.

I really must remember to look in my hatboxes more often – I have a tendency to forget about them – out of sight, outof mind, right?! The hat was completedyears ago, but I believe this is only the second time it has ventured beyondthe walls of my apartment. Accessoriesreally do make a difference!

Suit: Made by me,Vogue 2444

Blouse: Banana Republic

Hat: Made by me,Vogue 7657

Shoes: Colin Stuartfor Victoria’sSecret

Gloves: Vintage

Silk Scarf: Originallya belt, borrowed from a Gap dress

Earrings: Gift

“Contemporary” Style

2012-01-19T23:06:00.000-08:00

This is one of my favorite “holiday” outfits. Since the winter holidays are over, and theacceptable time for wearing velveteen will soon be at an end, I decided to pullthe dress and jacket out of the closet.

One of my favorite things about the dress is thelining. Teal and purple is probably myfavorite color combination. And whilethe purple is not visible to others, knowing it is there makes me happy!

Neither the jacket nor the dress is a vintage pattern, butit still manages to have a very old-fashioned vibe. I cannot decide if this is the fault of mystyling, or I picked the patterns because of the vintage style lines – probablya bit of both!

Here is the dress pattern.

See – it really is a contemporary pattern. As is the jacket.

Oh well, I guess this is further proof that I am still stuck in the past . . . thingscould be a lot worse!

Dress: Made by me, Vogue 9668

Jacket: Made by me,McCalls 4928

Necklace & Ring: Banana Republic

Shoes: Nine West“Vedna”

Purse: Harveys Seatbelt Bag "Lola"

Vintage + 1 Cute Chihuahua = True Love

2012-01-16T17:03:00.000-08:00

While I adore vintage, I own very few vintage pieces. What I generally find is too small, or is sodelicate I would be afraid to wear it out of the house, or the price isjust too high. Not to mention the drycleaning bills. To get around this problem,I just make my own!

This is one of the exceptions.

This dress and matching jacket were given to me by my mom. Her aunt gave her the outfit years ago thinkingthey were hers. However, the outfitwould have been huge on her super slim teenage frame. So, to be honest, I have absolutely no ideaof the origin - but I like to think that someone in the family wore the outfitat some point.

The colors and print are not something that I would havepicked out for myself, but they have grown on me. And it is made of a mid-weight cotton, so itis an easy hand-washable garment. Infact, it gets more wear than quite a few of my self-made clothes!

I have a feeling the original dress probably had a belt, butit disappeared at some point over the years. To help break up the linear design of the fabric, I just threw on a lengthof grosgrain ribbon tied into a bow.

The tag has seen quite a few washings, but it is clearly aJerry Gilden design.

I am not findingthat much information about the label online except for a few lovely frocks listed on etsy, and a couple of examples over on Couture Allure. I would guess that this particular dress wasmade in the mid 1950s, mostly because of the fabric, but I could be wrong, so don't quote me on that!

And here is a few pictures of my little guy – he is supercamera shy, and does his best to turn away the very moment the picture issnapped!

Dress and Jacket: Vintage, gift from mom.

Coat: Banana Republic

Fishnets: Hue

Earrings: Kate Spade

Shoes: BananaRepublic, “Patti” in Brown Comb

I'm a Sew Weekly Contributor for 2012!

2012-01-11T22:37:00.000-08:00

When Mena’s call for 2012 contributors went out, it was withsome trepidation that I threw my name in the proverbial hat. Don’t get me wrong, I adore what she has donefor the sewing community. However, I donot know if I could ever handle the pressure of completing an entire outfitfrom scratch in one week. How on earthdoes she do it?

Well, guess what, this year the pressure it somewhatalleviated. Instead of five womanshouldering the burden, there are quite a few of us who will be contributingthis year.

I am sure that most of you are already aware of The Sew Weekly. If not, make sure you stop onby. But beware, it is an addictivehabit, and you will be back for more!

I would like to say that, because the pressure has beenrelieved, I will complete every single weekly challenge, however, I havealready missed this week. But I am notgoing to kick myself – I am too busy sewing! I finally got my sewing motivation back!

Turquoise Silk Perfection

2012-01-10T23:24:00.000-08:00

After my article was posted in a local paper, a few locals contacted me with congratulations, mending requests, and memories of formaldresses past. One of these lovely peopleactually owned a Ceil Chapman original, and generously offered to let me seeit, in person. Yes, please!

Well, yesterday was the day. And here she is. Yummy silk? Check. Stunning draping? Check. The perfect 1950s cocktail dress? Check. It must be a Ceil Chapman. Andhere is the proof.

The pictures are not the best, but they will remind me of mybrush with greatness. And I thought someof you might appreciate a look inside a vintage gown. No museum exhibit has ever let me handle andexamine one of their pieces and here was a once in a lifetime opportunity(well, to be honest, I hope there will be more opportunities and dresses to ogle).

The current owner was not the first, and since she nevermade any changes to the garment, it is hard to be sure what is original, and what may havebeen altered. She only had a few opportunities to wear thedress, but her daughter wore it on her sweet sixteen, so it has a lovelyhistory and will hopefully be passed on to the next generation. She even allowed her daughter’sfriends to try the dress on for a few glamorous minutes. I only hope they appreciated thegesture. Do you think they remember theday they wore a Ceil Chapman original? Isure hope so!

The dress was obviously altered at the center back to fit anexceptionally teeny tiny waist. And thedress was extremely small to begin with!

The bodice is underlined with a purple acetate.

And the skirt is underlined with a stiff interfacing. Surprisingly enough, this is the one part ofthe dress that has not aged well. Theinterfacing looks discolored and feels a bit brittle.

To help make the upper hip area stand away from the body, some stiff gathered fabric (I think it is some kind of treated cotton) isattached. It looks like a little hidden peplum. I will have to remember this trick!

The skirt has quite a bit of body, and I imagine that itwould need very little in the way of a crinoline or petticoat to help the gownhold its shape.

The gown has a metal zipper with a centered application.

Boning covers the bodice darts. They are attached to the acetateunderlining. If you push aside the pinked stripof fabric that covers them, you can see that the bones themselves arecovered in the interfacing used on the skirt pieces. I was surprised to see that the bodice is not morestructured.

The beautiful cross drape on the front of the bust continuesaround to the back and hooks to thread eyes at the center back.

I was very interested to see that the waist stay is made ofself-fabric. I have never seen anythinglike it!

And look, the hem is finished with rayon seam binding! The back edges along the zipper are as well. I would assume that the binding originally wassewn down the length of the back edges, but when the waist was taken in, thesewer continued the alterations down to the hem.

Isn’t she beautiful? And in remarkable shape for someone who must be over 50 years old!

Pink Rayon & Silk Satin

2012-01-07T22:29:00.000-08:00

With all of the online talk of estate sales and major Goodwillscores, I had to see what all the fuss was about. I will admit that I was hoping to haveincredible beginner’s luck and find scores of vintage 1940s sewing patternstucked away at my local Goodwill, along with pretty pastel slips from the 1950s. Whatever was I thinking? Most of what I found on the racks were 1980sand 90s polyester monstrosities that I felt were overpriced, and no sewing patterns whatsoever.

And although I feel a bit let down by the experience, I didcome away with quite a few things – just not exactly what I was expecting/hopingfor. And there, I think, is thelesson. Go into a thrift store expectingto find a Chanel suit, you will be disappointed. On the other hand, if you go in with an openmind, who knows what treasures are there for the taking!

I did find a few garments. Exactly what I need, right! It seems rather silly purchasing something Ican make. What I was hoping for were some cuteshoes (but nothing I was interested in fit) and those elusive Vogue CouturierPatterns – a girl can dream, right?! There was one especially lovely navy wool pleated skirt. Alas, it was too small. But how fun to be in a store entirely filledwith one of a kind items instead of racks and racks of the same darn thing.

This silk skirt was one of my finds, and it reminded me of asweater that I finally finished a couple of months ago, which had yet to makeits debut.

The sweater was living in pieces (a couple of which wereincomplete) in a bag, the victim of a move to a new apartment a couple of yearsago. However, the new volume of A Stitch in Time motivated me to finish a few of the WIPs waiting patiently for myattention.

And yes, there are still more unfinished sweaters needingattention, however, they will not be wearable until the change of seasons, so Iam going to ignore them for a few months. Besides, I have already cast on for my next sweater. There is also a suit sitting in pieces on the table waiting toget sewn together, but for some reason, the knitting needles keep calling myname.

Sweater: Made by me,“This One for Parties” from A Stitch in Time, Volume 1

Skirt: BananaRepublic via Goodwill

Shoes: BananaRepublic “Gracie” in Beet

Earrings: Thrift Store

Ring: VictoriaTownsend

Spiced Pumpkin with a Cranberry Garnish

2012-01-03T23:24:00.000-08:00

Here is my very first finished project from A Stitch in Time, Volume 2. And you can be sure thatthere will be many more to come!

One of the things I especially love about both volumes of this book isthat the original patterns are printed next to “updated” versions. Usingcontemporary yarns with easy to understand and expanded sizing options andtension information, the updated instructions save a lot of research time and allows a knitter to get right to the fun stuff - the knitting!

9 ounces of Patons Beehive Fingering, 2-ply yarn – whatexactly does that look like? Case inpoint: I have abandoned this sweaterbecause, having finished the back piece, I am quite certain that I do not haveenough of my Colourmart turquoise cashmere. Woe is me! I am still not readyto frog the many hours of work I have already put into the sweater, so it is onhold for the moment until I figure out what to do.

I generally like to use the original patterns for the mostauthentic look possible. However, thistime around, I decided to live on the edge and go for the updated version. It wasn’t nearly as painful as I anticipated!

And after seeing the lovely styling from the updated photosof Theodora, I decided that the sweater needed a brooch on the collar. However, nothing in the jewelry box lookedright, so I decided to make my own.

On my birthday trip to a local thrift store, I found alittle jar of mismatched buttons for 25 cents. Paired with a bit of felt wool from the stash, and backed with a pin,here is my new accessory.

The orange color may not be in my palette, but it makes mehappy, so I am going to wear it anyway!

Sweater: Made by me,“Simple – But So Attractive” from A Stitch in Time, Volume 2

Skirt: Marshalls

Shoes: Banana Republic“Patti” in Brown Comb

Tights: BananaRepublic

Coat: Banana Republic

Brooch: Made by me

Earrings: Kate Spade

Bracelet: Gift

The Soul of the Rose

2011-12-31T00:50:00.000-08:00

"The Soul of the Rose" by John William Waterhouse
Image from jwwaterhouse.com

In high school I was absolutely obsessed with Pre-Raphaeliteart. And while it is not all pretty ladiesand knights in shining armor, I will admit, the beautiful ladies and theirfabulous titian hair and long flowing gowns are what originally caught myattention.

So it is not surprising that when I was able to choose myown pattern and fabric, this is the dress that I came up with. I can clearly remember that the beautifulrayon fabric was the most expensive yardage I had ever purchased, but once itcaught my eye, I had to have it! And I think Waterhouse would have approved!

Although the dress is no longer my favored style, it sureis fun to pull out early projects. Backthen, if it covered the ankles and wrists, it was okay with me. The more old fashioned, the better.

The only thing that can account for this bout of nostalgia ismy recent birthday (and the reason this dress was pulled out of the closet). Silly, right? The more things change, the more they staythe same . . .

"April Love" by Arthur Hughes

Dress: Made by me,McCalls 9107

Shoes: Nine West “Burg”in Medium Pink

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-25T00:30:00.000-08:00

I have loved The J. Peterman Company ever since I firstbecame aware of the catalogue from Elaine Benes of Seinfeld fame. Urban Sombrero,anyone? Well, not today.

Instead, here is a little inspiration for the perfectChristmas frock. Sure, they are a bitover the top, and probably not the most practical outfits in the world, bututterly fantastic, don’t you think? Without a doubt, my favorite holiday catalogue covers ever!

And if you are looking for a good laugh, each item in the cataloguehas a wonderfully descriptive narrative for each item.

Take a quick peak – wouldn’t this make the perfect New Yearsdress?

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

1944 Was a Good Year for Suits

2011-12-24T18:26:00.000-08:00

I fell in love with this suit design as soon as I saw it in Vogue’spattern catalogue back in 2005. So much,in fact, that I copied the dark green color choice of the sketch illustrator –now I just need one of those fabulous tilt hats to complete the look!

This suit was pulled out of the closet for a specialoccasion: my Emerald Green Gown wasfeatured in an article on December 18^th by a local paper.

So when a photographer came to my apartment totake some photos for the article, I had to find something special to wear.

Now that I remember how much I love the skirt, you can betthat the pattern is going to be pulled out when I find some suitable fabric.

And although it is now out of print, the pattern is still availablefrom Vogue.

Now if only I would hear some news about that Bernina sewingmachine . . .

Suit: Made by me,Vogue 2885

Fishnets: Hue

Shoes: Via Spiga“Unit” in Black suede

Earrings: Liz Palacios

Ring: Macys

A Taste of Peppermint for the Holidays

2011-12-21T22:43:00.000-08:00

Guess what this yummy yarn color is called? . . . peppermint! I found the merino wool over at colourmart.com a couple of yearsago. The cabled pattern was fun, and Ifinished the cardigan in late 2009, at which point it took up residence in mybureau.

The sweater turned out a bit larger than expected, and Inever seemed to find the right dress or skirt to complete the ensemble – yes,it’s another one of those projects.

Abelt, of course, is a quick solution for the fit problems. And most of the vintage style dresses in my closet have self-fabricbelts that I have made to match, yet I usually manage to forget that they existuntil I pull the corresponding dress out of the closet to wear. Silly, right?

So this belt was borrowed for the day – little miss 1955 is just goingto have to deal with being separated from her baby belt for a bit.

And while the color suggests more of a wintergreen, I am nowchristening this my Peppermint Holiday Jumper (in deference to the colourwayand my long standing tradition of attending Christmas dinner with a lovely Britishfamily, complete with Christmas pudding!). Can “jumper” refer to acardigan or just a pullover? Anyway . .. Happy Christmas to you!

Jumper: Made by me,Symphony Cardigan by Martin Storey

Skirt: BananaRepublic

Shoes: Nine West“Health”

Earrings: Genevieve& Grace Sterling Silver Earrings from Macys

Fascinator: Made byme

Nude Coloured Fishnets: Simply Verafrom Kohls

Belt: Made by me,borrowed from this dress

The Perfect Weather for Wool

2011-12-16T23:16:00.000-08:00

This is one of my favorite creations. The pattern is Butterick 5556, another vintagereproduction - big surprise, right?!

Thewool was a fantastic find from Fashion Fabrics Club (and makes up for some ofthe less than wonderful cuts I have received in the past).

It is hard to tell from the pictures, but the wool is purplewith navy and fuchsia running throughout a tiny diamond pattern. More information about the constructionprocess may be found over at PatternReview.

I often hesitate to wear brooches because I am afraid thatthe pin will permanently mar the fabric. With a woven wool, this becomes less of an issue. Accessories can be so much fun. And they do look so pretty!

And although I would love to complain about the chillyweather, it is a great excuse to wear my wooly outfits.

And look, more twirling – it really is addictive.

Dress: Made by me, Butterick 5556

Petticoat: Made by me

Shoes: BananaRepublic “Nelda” in Elephant

Hat: Made by me

Gloves: Vintage from mom

Brooch: Antique Storein Sonora, CA

Earrings: Macys

Bracelet: Gift

Stockings: Hue

Purse: Harveys Seatbelt Bag “Flutterfly” Large Tote

A New Wool Coat, Part 3

2011-12-15T22:04:00.000-08:00

Thank you to everyone for your lovely comments on my new coat. And in case you were curious how she looks on a real person, here we go!

My new wool coat.

I had grand ideas about making a new fuchsia blouse to looksuper snazzy with the open neckline, but I did not have time this weekend, andI did not want to put off wearing the finished product! So I made do with a bright pink scarfinstead.

I pulled out one of my favorite wool pencil skirts (madeearly this year out of leftover yardage from this dress).

I love when I can squeeze two projects out ofone length of wool! I try to convincemyself that the skirt cost nothing. Sure, I needed a zipper, and some lining, but the skirt was basicallymade from scraps, right?

And I will leave you with a few superfluous twirls – I dareyou to be in a bad mood after spinning around in a full skirted dress or coat. Try it, you’ll like it!

Coat: Made by me,Vogue 8211

Skirt: Made by me,Simplicity 4047

Blouse: BananaRepublic

Shoes: Ann Klein “Foxy”in Black Patent

Stockings: BananaRepublic

Purse: Harveys Seatbelt Bag “Lola” in Emerald

Scarf: Ross

Necklace: Shadows

Earrings: Kohls

A New Wool Coat, Part 2

2011-12-14T00:42:00.000-08:00

Here is a sneak peek of my new coat!

There were a few moments at the sewing machine when I waslamenting the thickness of my wool, but I persevered and am extremely pleased with finishedproduct. It may not be the mostpractical garment I have ever made, but I have a feeling I am going to get alot of wear out of it despite the fact that my new winter coat has a wide openneckline. Scarf time!

The most tedious part of the construction wascatch-stitching all those seam edges to the flannel underlining. But I got into a rhythm and ended up enjoyingthe process. Where it was necessary topress both seams in the same direction I made sure to trim and graduate thecovered seam, and then catch-stitch the top seam to my flannel. Don’t get me wrong, there is still a bit ofbulk there, but it is much more manageable.

Thankfully, the edges of the wool did not fray terribly. My rayon satin, however, was not quite as easyto work with. I was concerned that theseams that get more stress than others might continue to fray, so I coveredthem with Hug Snug rayon seam binding (yes, I really am obsessed with thisstuff).

I trimmed the armhole seams and covered them, along with the horizontal seams above and below thewaistline. The seam binding also came inhandy for my sleeve facing – instead of having to fold the wool and addingthickness, I just bound the raw edge.

I realized early on that gathering wool coating underlinedwith cotton flannel was going to be almost impossible – silk thread or not,this fabric is too thick for a simple basted stitch! To avoid tears andfrustration, I used a technique that I came across many years ago. I believe I first saw the tip on a patterninstruction sheet. They suggested usingdental floss!? to gather thick or unruly material.

Well, the idea of dental floss living inside my garment freaked me out a bit, however, I always have crochet thread on hand and I thought it would make anexcellent substitute. Turns out it does.

Thetrick is to zig-zag over the crochet thread/floss without catching it. The crochet thread is then pulled up and,unlike sewing thread, will not break under pressure. It works beautifully!

(And I will let you in on a little secret –if you happen to catch your crochet thread up in the zig-zag stiches, just usea seam ripper to remove the offending stitch – unless you have to remove quitea few bits of the stitching in a concentrated area it will not affect thegathering at all.)

This coat uses snaps as a fastening. And while it is somewhat thrilling to start aproject that requires no buttonholes or zippers of any kind, I was notconvinced that snaps could close such a heavy coat. Off to my local JoAnn Fabrics I went, andpurchased some size 10 snaps which are just a skosh under 1” in diameter. A larger size was available, but they looked ridiculously large and scary - like once you get them snapped you can never get them apart, so I decided that the size 10's would have to be sufficient.

I am happy to report that three of thesebabies easily keep the coat shut. Iended up covering my snaps with some bemberg scraps that I had on hand usingthis Threads tutorial because the black paint was already chipping away after unsnapping them from the card they came on. The rayon is probably too delicate for thistask and may not hold up very well, but for now, it works just fine.

The buttons I decided on have a bit of a shank, and I probably shouldhave used something that was a bit more flat because they are sitting on top ofthe coat instead of sliding through a buttonhole and holding fabric in place. Live and learn, right? And I can always swap them out for somethingdifferent if I find something that will work better!

I ended up adding cuffs to my coat. Because the cuffs were drafted with thethree-quarter length in mind, I had to take about 1” out of the width of thepattern piece.

I underlined the cuffs withcotton to substitute as interfacing. Asit was, the two layers of wool, plus flannel, plus cotton, plus lining, plussmall wrist circumference was a bit of a bother to get under the sewingmachine, but I prevailed. Hand bastingis miraculous!

The lining was bagged. The directions suggested finishing the lining separate from the coat but I think sewing the lining to the coat gives a much nicer finish - and it is an excuse for more hand sewing with silk thread!

And now my arms need a good rest from hoisting this thing uponto the sewing table and to the ironing board, and back to the sewing machine,and back to the couch for some hand sewing. It doesn’t feel heavy when being worn, but boy was it obvious duringconstruction. I have some pink woolyardage that I hope to make into a coat before the cold season ends this year,but I think I am going to take a break from thick wool for the moment!

So that about covers the construction of this thing. And as soon as I sort through them, I willpost pictures of the finished product on a body!

Don’t I know you from somewhere?

2011-12-12T23:28:00.000-08:00

The last few days have been busy!

First off, I have to say a great big THANK YOU!! to Mr.Lappin of Male Pattern Boldness for my brush with fame. Not onlydid he graciously mention my little fledgling blog (it took me a few minutes tofigure out where all of those new followers came from!), but he says I remind him of a moviestar – well, thank you darling (don’t worry, your check is in the mail).

Then, I finished my coat just in time for the BurdaStyle Sewing Handbook Launch Party in San Francisco. I caught a quick mention on their blog theother day, Mena of The Sew Weekly mentioned it on her blog (got to meet her atthe party!), and Amy commented here to ask if I would be attending. Because the idea kept nagging at me, Idecided to go, even as the dread of SF parking was ever present.

Turns out I am very glad I decided to go. How fantastic to be in a room full of creativepeople. And how great to meet fellow bloggersin person.

Amy of Sew Well and Meg of Made by Meg – it was fantasticmeeting you both! See you around theblogosphere, and hopefully for a sewing party/outing sometime soon!

Vintage Knitting Inspiration

2011-12-10T16:55:00.001-08:00

Yesterday evening I arrived home after a long and exhaustingweek at work, and what did my eyes behold, but a nondescript cardboard parcelsitting next to my front door. Could it be? Yes it could!

A Stitch in Time, Volume 2 has arrived in California! The discussion boards on Ravelry have been full of satisfied customersall over the world boasting about their beautiful new books, and I will admitthat I was getting very jealous.

While I have not had enough time to fully digest all of theincredible information included in this book, I did pick up on one fun fact:“cardigans and jackets were restricted to 3 buttons during war time Britain.” I was aware of the limitations imposedby rationing on fabrics, but I had never thought about fastenings! I took a quick look at my 1940s sewingpatterns and sure enough, one or two buttons are used to fasten thosejackets. And it never occurred to me!

I am determined to stay focused on my coat for themoment, but you can be sure there willbe lots of knitting in my future!

Valentino Archives

2011-12-08T23:57:00.001-08:00

Valentino, Fall 2006 Couture Collection
Image from style.com

I am sure that many couture enthusiasts are already aware ofthis, but I thought I would share the news: the Valentino Virtual Museum is open for yourviewing pleasure.

I had a quick peek, and it is stunning. Certainly not as nice as seeing the creationsin person, or owning your own couture piece (I can dream, can't I?), but there are no museum security guards hovering as you lean in to figure out what kind of constructionwas used or how the garment fastens!

Onething that is missing for me is the option of looking inside the dresses – I wantto see each amazing stitch!

If we are lucky, more designers will follow suit.

A New Wool Coat, Part 1

2011-12-07T21:16:00.001-08:00

First of all, I want to thank everyone for their lovely comments about my good news - the support and good will from the online sewing community is truly amazing!

And lest you think that I am resting on my laurels, here is my latest project.

Although I certainly do not NEED a new coat, I had ahankering to cut into some lovely wool coating last week, so I did.

I have been trying to find the right fabric for this patternfor years.

I originally wanted to make this into a coat dress withan emerald green damask fabric. (Once again, I dreamedup a fabric that does not exist, or at least, one I could not find.)

Of course, as soon as I cut into the wool fabric, I wanted my newcoat. Does this happen to anyoneelse? I have so many different ideas forso many projects that I will never have enough time to finish them all, whichmakes me impatient to finish whatever I am working on. Once I have my pattern and fabric, I want towear my new creation!

But I took a deep breath, stepped back, and decided that Iwas going to make this coat the right way. After all, I waited five years for the right fabric, and it deserves thefew extra hours it will take to make the coat last a lifetime.

I am underlining the wool coating with cotton flannel. Because of the added bulk, once I press openthe seams, I am catch-stitching them to the flannel underlining. Turns out, this makes it so much easier tomatch seams! The collar and facingpieces are getting underlined with plain black cotton. I may add cuffs to the long sleeved version, but I am not sure about that yet.

The coat instructions use purchased shoulder pads. I prefer to make my own, and thanks to mycollection of Vintage Vogue reproductions, I have plenty of pattern pieces tochoose from! I ended up borrowing theshoulder pad pattern pieces from this dress.

I was not sure about a lining fabric, until I realized thatmy pink satin was the only suitable yardage in my stash that was three yardslong. I believe that I am going to bevery happy with my color choice – the pale pink and black work greattogether. Hmm . . . maybe I need to makea black dress with pink accents to match . . .

I would like to thank . . .

2011-12-06T20:27:00.001-08:00

the academy, my agent - wait, that’s not right.

The winner of the Threads Ultimate Sewing Challenge was announced today – and it’s me!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who voted! Someday soon I will be the proud owner of anew Bernina sewing machine. And just intime, too! I am not sure how age ismeasured in sewing machines, but if mine were an automobile, it would probablyhave over 150,000 miles on it.

I also want to specifically thank my mom for reminding allof her friends to vote, and to everyone at the office for supporting my sewingobsession.

So, once again, thank you for all of your votes – they sureadded up to something amazing!

How to Apply Seam Binding: A Tutorial

2011-12-04T19:52:00.001-08:00

I often get questions about the rayon seam binding finishthat I love to use. So when Jeanettesuggested a tutorial, I figured the timing was perfect!

First, you will need to make sure you have the rightmaterials. I use Hug Snug Rayon SeamBinding, but any rayon binding will do. This is not twill tape,polyester hem tape, or single/double fold bias tape. I highly recommend getting your hands on somerayon binding - it makes a real difference.

Whenever possible, I like to sew my seams before applying thehem tape to the raw edges of my fabric. This way, if any stretch occurs, your piecing will not be affected.

There are a few different techniques I have used to applythe seam binding, and I am sure there are more that I am not aware of, but Iwill start with my favorite.

*Double-Seamed Method*

1. Pin and sew yourseam as you normally would.

2. Iron your seamflat.

3. Go back to yoursewing machine. Push all of the fabricto the left of the needle except for one raw edge (you should have the wrongside of your fabric facing you). I liketo keep a spool of seam binding at my feet and unwind it as needed.

For my first seam, I do not use pins, but you certainly could. Theseam binding is a bit sheer and very delicate, so you should be able tosee/feel where the edge of your material is. I like to place the binding so a bit more than half of the binding hangsover the edge (if your fabric if thick, you may want to have even more hangover the edge to accommodate the thickness). Stitch this is place and continue unwinding from the spool at your feetuntil you reach the end of the fabric.

4. Cut the bindingabout an inch from the edge of your fabric just in case it unravels at the cutend before you finish your garment.

5. Back at theironing board, fold the remaining half of the binding so that it encases the raw edge. At this point, depending on the length of theseam, you may want to use a few pins to hold the folded over edge inplace. You may not need to, however, because this stuff irons beautifully!

6. Now you need to goback to the sewing machine and stitch that seam in place. I usually complete these first steps on all ofmy lengthwise seams at once before heading to the ironing board, iron a bunchof them down, and then head back to the machine to be more efficient.

This method obviously uses up a lot of thread, but Ifind that I get the best results. I donot have to struggle with a narrow folded piece of drapey rayon and I do nothave to pre-cut lengths of binding, so in the end, I feel like it saves timeand frustration.

But that’s just me!

*Pre-Fold Method*

For this method, lengths of seam binding are cut to thelength of each raw edge that needs to be covered. If I go this route, I like to use pinkingshears to cut the binding. (While theedges are woven and will never ravel, the cut ends have a tendency to fray.)

1. Pin and sew yourseam as you normally would.

2. Iron your seamflat.

3. Cut your pieces ofseam binding a bit longer than your seam (to account for any measurement mistakes– you will not want to unpick your stitches once you have completed a long seam,and it is always better to have a little too much than not enough, right?).

4. Go to the ironingboard and fold the lengths of seam binding so that the edges are not quite even. This will ensurethat your single line of stitching catches both the front and back sides of thebinding.

5. ~~Here comes theirritating part (at least for me)~~. ForgetI said that – it may end up being you favorite part and I would not want toinfluence you! This time you should work with the right side of the fabric facing you. Encase the raw edge ofyour fabric with the thinner edge on the top and pin in place.

6. Go back to the sewing machine and stitch asclose to the edge as possible. When youturn your seam to the wrong side, you should have easily caught the back sideof the binding because it is wider than the front fold.

If your stitches look a bit wavy or the binding looksruffled, go back to the ironing board and press your seam flat with a bit ofsteam. Presto, you have a beautifullyfinished seam edge!

*Pre-Fold Hand Stitched Method*

This method is the same as the pre-fold method except thatyou will be hand stitching the seam binding.

I have found that with a piled fabric like velvet or somethicker wools, the folded rayon does not like to stay in place with thePre-fold method and then you have to fight your machine, the stitching line isno longer straight, and frustration ensues.

I should also confess that I find hand sewing to be incredibly relaxing(unless you are on a deadline!) and easier to keep things from shifting. I use a combination of a running stitch witha few backstitches every few inches to make sure that the running stitch doesnot gather my seam.

A quick steam press, and you have a lovely finished seam – nothing is ever goingto unravel!

*A few more things to keep in mind*

This is obviously a rather time consuming technique tofinish raw edges, but I believe the end result is worth the extra trouble. The light weight rayon will not add bulk toyour seams, it gives a very vintage feel to the insides of your garments, and it really is pretty!

If you have perpendicular seams, make sure to finish all of the seams traveling in the same direction before sewing up any cross seams. For instance, each lengthwise skirt seamshould be bound before the skirt gets stitched to the bodice along the waistseam.

This will catch all of the ends ofthe seam binding in that waist seam, which, eventually, gets finished with thebinding.

And look, you now have another completed seam that needs to be finished! Time to get to work!

I have never pre-washed the rayon binding, and have neverhad an issue with shrinkage. That beingsaid, I normally drip dry all of my hand made clothing, so I am not sure whattoo much dryer time might do to the binding. I would imagine that if your fabric is pre-shrunk there should not be anyissue.

Rayon seam binding also works great as hem tape!

*Suppliers*

If you don’t think you will have a use for 100 yards of thisstuff, I would suggest Mattiecakes’ etsy shop. She sells very reasonably priced lengths in stunning colors.

If your local sewing shops do notcarry rayon seam binding, I would suggest trying some Hug Snug from fabric.com. The mass retailers like JoAnn Fabricsdo not carry the rayon binding, and I would suggest avoiding the polyester hemtape that looks similar at all costs – it is stiff (even though it calls itself “soft &easy”) and will not iron nearly as well – I would imagine it would melt if youriron gets too hot!

And I promise you willget a lot of use out of this stuff – it is fabulous!

Contrasting colors can look very pretty, so don’t worryif you cannot find an exact match to your fabric.

If you have any other suggestions for places to purchaserayon seam binding, please let everyone know!

Sorry for the length of this entry and the poor picturequality – the sun was not very bright in the sewing room today! I have a new found respect for all of thebloggers out there that are always doing new tutorials – it is reallychallenging and time consuming not to mention difficult to take pictures with one hand! So please let me know if I was unclear or need to fill in any missing steps.

Thanks for reading!

An Evening of Pure Fantasy

2011-12-01T00:19:00.001-08:00

Last night I indulged in one of my guilty pleasures – watchingthe yearly Victoria’sSecret Fashion Show. And while thegarments are certainly not of the same excellence, the deconstructed quality ofthe outfits (underwear worn as outerwear) remind me of Dior’s Fall 2009Couture Collection.

Images from Style.com

Quite a few pieces in the collection have alwaysreminded me of Eliza Doolittle at the Ascot Races gone wild.

And while Victoria’sSecret lingerie is by no means couture, the designs are tremendousand each is a pure flight of fancy.

Angels Aquatic from the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

This look was one of my favorites, and with a bit of an underlining for added modesty, one of the few looks of the evening that could actually be worn in real life without getting arrested for indecent exposure.

Angels Aquatic from the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

I can picture Veronica Lake wearing it, or any other starlet from the Golden Age of Hollywood.

It actually looks like a cross between Marlene Dietrich’s beaded cabaret gown designed by Jean Louis and Ginger Roger’s feathered confection.

Or how about Marilyn in Some Like it Hot?

And that crystal crown would be perfect for Esther Williams, the Million Dollar Mermaid.

While I have a real problem with 15 year old girls gettingpaid to wear nothing more than their skivvies in front of the entire world, thefashion design and work put into this event is incredible. The creativity is truly astounding. And entire articles devoted to the fact that Adriana does not eat solid food for days and does not drink water for 12 hours prior towalking down the runway – gross – well, I choose to look beyond that (as I hopeevery young girl does, yeah right) and enjoy the clothing itself, not thebizarre bodies of the models! And didyou notice the shots of the men in the audience ogling the basically nakedwomen – a bit off-putting, don’t you think? So let’s ignore the models and their bodies and their strange dietaryidiosyncrasies and the rest of it and focus on the clothes/fashion.

Some of the outfits are totally ridiculous, but the corsets,beading, bows, spangles, not to mention the creative talent would be right athome on the stage of The Ziegfeld Follies.

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

Instead of fantastic headdresses(don’t get me started on the awful messy hair) the girls wear wings.

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011, Ballet Collection

While researching a role a few years back, I read thatZiegfeld required that his girls’ hip measurement be 2” larger than theirbust. Now, I would hazard a guess thatnot a single Victoria’sSecret Angel fits those requirements, but 100 years later we are still watchingscantily clad women parade about on stage. Go figure, right?

And don’t think that I was sitting at the television theentire time. Each commercial break Iwould run to the sewing room to cut into my new wool coating. There is nothing like a bit of creative inspirationto motivate me.

And now I believe I will go and eat a big bowl ofpasta on behalf of those deprived models – because I can!

Voting for the Threads Ultimate Sewing Challenge Ends Tomorrow!

2011-11-29T20:33:00.001-08:00

This will be the last time I pester everyone about thiscontest – I promise! After all, voting endstomorrow, November 30th at 11:59 p.m. EST. The last time I checked I was in first place, so thank you to everyonefor voting, because it is working!!! But Icould still use all the votes I can get . . .

Thanks again for all of your support!

Printed Silk Twill

2011-11-28T22:07:00.001-08:00

Does this fabric remind anyone else of a man’s necktie? The silk twill was one of those cuts fromFashion Fabrics Club that was nothing like what I expected. But the price was incredibly good, and so Itucked it away.

Butterick 5707, Retro 1958

And when I saw thispattern in the new Butterick catalogue, I immediately thought of the yardage –that must mean something, right?

So here is yet another vintage reproduction from Butterick.

And if I was not obsessed with finishing off every seam withmy Hug Snug rayon seam binding, this dress would have been a super quick andeasy project. I am especially proud ofmatching the pattern on the center back seam. In fact, figuring out how to cut a diagonal print for a pattern thatsays it is "unsuitable for obvious diagonals" is what took the most time!

I like to bind my raw edges after I have sewn the seam sothat if the edge stretches it is after that part of the garment has been assembled. And I have always struggled with the zipperseam because it never crossed my mind to encase the zipper tape itself alongwith the fabric seam allowance. Thisrequires the use of a zipper foot, and some care that the dress itself does notget trapped under the needle, but it really works like a charm.

The cutout is not exactly what I expected (for some reason Iimagined that the tie must be an extension of the yoke) and the upper bodiceedge is not as low as the fashion illustration would suggest, but I love how itturned out, even if I do look like a oversized necktie.

And for a little less than $20 I have a brand new silkdress!

Dress: Made by me, Butterick 5707

Shoes: Nine West“Zann” in Pewter from 6pm.com

Tights: Kohls

Pearl Studs: Kohls

Bracelet: Meier &Frank

Hair Ornament: Madeby me

P.S. Voting in theThreads Ultimate Sewing Challenge ends on Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. EST! And remember, every time you vote you areentered to win a Threads prize package! Thank you to everyone who is voting for my Emerald Green Gown!

My very first blog award!

2011-11-27T23:17:00.001-08:00

I was thrilled to find out that Nabby of This Old Life hasbestowed a Duchie Award upon my little blog. If you are not familiar with Nabby and her fantastic 1930s stylewardrobe, you must take a peek – I promise it will make you wish you wereliving inside a Thin Man movie (if only for the fabulous fashion).

So here are the rules:

“When you receive a Duchie Award, post on your blog (in anyorder):

* Five things you love about historical costuming/wearingvintage clothing

* Three (or more) blogs to pass the Duchie Award onto

* A link back to the blog who awarded you the Duchie”

And here are five things I love about wearing vintage (or vintage styled clothing!):

* There is no need to worry about being “in style” or ontrend – vintage is so old it is new again. And even if it is considered passe, I just don't care!

* You will never show up to an event wearing the same outfit as someone else. I think I am rebelling against the many, many years I spent in a schooluniform. Now that I can make my own clothingdecisions, there is no way I am going to choose to dress like everyoneelse!

* There are so many extra special details found in vintageclothing and vintage patterns.

* Unless you are willing/able to spend $300 or more for ablouse, the quality of ready to wear clothing is seriously lacking these days,in my opinion. Everything is made to bedisposed of in a couple of seasons. Itamazes me that a cotton day dress from 1950 with pinked seams that obviouslygot quite a bit a wear is still around. I highly doubt that many of the cotton dresses made today will last 50 or 60years and still be in wearable condition. Which begs the question – will vintage clothing even exist in 100 years?

* Color! One of thereasons I love sewing is that I can choose my own fabrics and color palettes (althoughfinding something that I have pictured in my mind is not always possible andsometimes frustrating). These days weare at the whim of a few people at the top of the fashion ladder that decide ona palette of two or three colors for a season, and should you wish to purchasea new sweater in any other color, well, good luck with that! I love discovering old catalogue images from the 1940s and 1950s offabric swatches in a rainbow of colors, not to mention those beautiful printsand plaids.

I would like to pass this award on to the following blogs:

The Call of the Jitterbug Doll

Amanda Lee is a picture perfect pin-up. And if you enjoy film noir, you must watch“The Naughty Lady” short with her starring as a Gilda-inspired character. Love it!

Pretty Little Pictures

Jen always looks absolutely adorable in her 1950s fullskirted frocks and cardis.

Molly-Made, Chronicles of a Vintage Sewist

Molly sews her own wonderful vintage style dresses and takesincredibly cute photos.

If you are curious about where this award originated, checkout American Duchess.

And a great big thank you to Nabby! My first blog award – this is so very exciting! I feel absolutely honored.

Colourmart Cashmere

2011-11-26T20:19:00.001-08:00

I blame the weather on my recent obsession with knitting. And it may also have something to do with myimpatience to receive A Stitch in Time, Volume 2 in the mail (darn holiday delivery schedule!). This may be a good thing, because I have finished a couple of projects.

But I felt the need to start something new, so here is my progress on a sweater generously posted by Liz of zilredloh.com from a vintage Stitchcraftmagazine.

I have been avoiding the Colourmart yarns I have tucked awaybecause the coned cashmere requires a bit of work to be needle ready. Using their yarn tends to slow my processdown, because I cannot jump right in with my knitting needles.

I know that there are conflicting ideas about how to knitwith coned fibers. Because I am hand-knittingwith them, I prefer to have washed, non-oiled, fluffy yarn to work with. As much as anything, this is to avoid havingto make multiple swatches to figure how much shrinkage is going to occur in thefinished garment.

Because I do not have a fancy swift, I have figured out acheap and quick substitute. I use abinder to wrap my yarn off the cone lengthwise at the ringed end. Once I have sufficient yardage wrapped, Isecure the hank with a few lengths of cotton crochet thread (you could easilyuse the yarn itself, but I sometimes have a hard time finding the ends once theyarn has fluffed up) and pull the yarn off the binder. Then it gets a hot bath in some soapy water, rinse and repeat. I squeezethe excess water out in a towel and then throw wet skeins in the dryer.

It really is amazing how much the yarn blooms. What starts out as a thin and rough strandbecomes a lovely soft bit of cashmere.

And now I must get back to my cup of tea and knittingneedles.

P.S. I could stilluse everyone’s votes in the Threads Ultimate Sewing Challenge! And remember, every time you vote you areentered to win a Threads prize package!

Coffee Bean Day Dress

2011-11-25T22:07:00.001-08:00

These pictures were taken a couple of weeks ago, before theweather got really cold (well, cold for Marin County!).

Vintage Vogue 2876

This is one of those patterns that I initially had some misgivings about. I had it in my stash for years before finding asuitable fabric, and while constructing the garment, decided that I was nothappy with my choice and perhaps the pattern itself. But I went ahead and finished it anyway.

Silly me - this dress probably gets the most wear of all ofmy self-made garments. It is incredibly comfortable and easy to wear. Proof positivethat first impressions are not always correct!

Dress: Made by me,Vogue 2876

Shoes: Nine West“Jacamou”

Earrings: Kate Spade

P.S. I am sure everyone is sick of hearing about this from me, but I could stilluse votes in the Threads Ultimate Sewing Challenge (voting ends November 30th)! And remember, every time you vote you areentered to win a Threads prize package!

Pink Martini

2011-11-21T21:03:00.001-08:00

I finally finished this ensemble! And guess what – it is another Vintage Vogue– I know, you are super surprised, right?

Vogue 1136

I purchased the pattern and the fabric years ago – I justnever got around to the sewing. I meantto finish it for the Mahler symphony concert, but decided I did not want torush my bound buttonholes and all those tucks, so I put it away.

And instead of working on it over theweekend, I waited until Tuesday and Wednesday evening to finish it just in timefor the Pink Martini concert I attended last Thursday.

The fabric was a lucky find from Fashion Fabrics Club. For me, the company is hit and miss. I have found some fantastic yardage, but thecolors posted online are often nothing like what shows up at my doorstep – I donot believe it is my monitor because I never have the issue with other onlineretailers. They do have some fantasticdeals, though, so the less than ideal stuff gets used for wearable muslins or patternsthat I am not quite sure about.

This fabric was billed as faille, which it isnot! However, I love the diamond texturecreated with the net background. BecauseI was worried that the net might be a bit itchy, and I knew it would stick to hosiery,I underlined the entire dress by hand with silk thread.

If you look close, you can see that some of my bastingstitches are still visible from the wrong side of the garment – I finished theoutfit, but did not have a chance to pull out all of those extra stitches!

And by the way, this group is absolutely fantastic. I was not familiar with their music, but itis truly phenomenal - if you ever get the opportunity, do yourself a favor and see one of their concerts!

Dress & Jacket: Made by me, Vogue 1136

Coat: Made by me,Simplicity 4403, a review of the pattern may be found on Pattern Review

Slip: Made by me,Vintage Pattern Lending Library T1136

Shoes: Metro 7“Justin”

Earrings: Marcasitefrom Macys

Necklace: Judith Jack

Fishnets: Hue

Clutch: BananaRepublic

P.S. Voting for theThreads Ultimate Sewing Challenge is still open! I am currently in second place, so thank youfor all of your votes – please keep it up!

“Ombra mai fu . . .”

2011-11-19T15:49:00.000-08:00

I thought this dress (originally made for the 2009 Marin Symphony Gala) deserved another night out on the town, and the perfect opportunity presented itself this past Wednesday, when I attended San Francisco Opera’s production of Xerxes.

I am embarrassed to admit that I am not very familiar withthis Handel opera. Although, lovers ofthe BBC's “Pride and Prejudice,” me included, will recognize the first aria as Mary’s clumsy attempt to gain recognition for her musical “talent.” It drives me crazy when I cannot place amusical reference from a film, but this one only took me a few moments. It is by far, the most recognizable aria ofthe entire opera. Who knew a kingsinging about a tree could become so popular?!

The opera was quite good. It was extremely campy and over the top, but it worked. It has been quite a while since I saw a fulllength opera, and I forgot how melodramatic it can get. Sing a few bars, head upstage to exit . . .pause, wait for a musical interlude, turn, sing, cross left, sing a bit more . . . and finally exit. It often feels like the only motivation thecharacters have to stay on stage is the fact that they are not donesinging. But, of course, it is not aboutthe acting, but the music, which was beautiful. And the production was visually stunning –look at that set!

SF Opera's 2011 production of Xerxes

And guess what the lead soprano was wearing?

Lisette Oropesa as Romilda in SF Opera's 2011 production of Xerxes

I promise I did not do this on purpose, but Iwas wearing a 1940s version of Romilda’s ensemble! Blue, long-sleeved, full length gown withpeplum – check! I must admit I am veryjealous about the yardage on those skirts and the petticoats. How wonderful to flounce around on stage withyard upon yard of fabric. I love whenthey drop to the ground and the skirt billows out around them in a picture perfecttableau. Am I the only one who wants towork in an opera costume shop? The wigs,the costumes, and all that beautiful fabric to play with.

My pattern was purchased from Eva Dress. It is a reproduction of Vogue 6111,originally designed in 1947. And look at the price - I know, I know, inflation changes things, but don't you wish you could go back in time with some of today's currency and buy up ten pairs of incredible 1940s shoes priced at 4 or 5 dollars? And stacks and stacks of Vogue Couturier patterns, and fabric yardage . . .

Image from Vintage Pattern Wikia

You may recognize the fabric – I had enough left over for askirt (which gets a lot more wear then this dress!). I absolutely love when I can squeeze two projects out of one length of fabric!

The only thing that I was not happy with was the fabric knotthat holds the neckline together. Therayon jacquard is quite thick, and the knot looked a bit awkward. So, I decided to do a little surgery. Tuesday evening, I took a seam ripper to theknotted section and cut out as much excess as possible and folded the crosssections into themselves - dangerous, yes, but everything turned out for the best. More information about the construction may be found over at Pattern Review.

Because the buttons are pronged rhinestones (from Britex), Iuse small squares of tissue to cover them while hanging in the closet to keep themfrom snagging on other garments. Andback in the closet she goes . . .

Dress: Made by me,Eva Dress 6111

Coat: Banana Republic

Shoes: Seychelles “Little Owl” inNavy Suede

Earrings: Made by me(buttons from Britex with earring posts attached)

Envelope Clutch: Madeby me, Envelope Bag, free pattern from lionbrand.com

Fishnets: Marshalls

P.S. And I would like to remind everyone that you can vote every day until November 30th for the Threads Ultimate Sewing Challenge - my Emerald Green Gown is one of ten finalists! If you previously voted, it will only take a few clicks of your mouse! Thanks for voting!

I am this week’s BurdaStyle Featured Member!

2011-11-18T20:01:00.001-08:00

It has been a crazy week. Not only am I a finalist in the Threads Ultimate SewingChallenge (please vote if you are willing and able!), I am also the featuredmember on the BurdaStyle website this week!

You can read my interview here. And I would like to say a big thank you to BurdaStyle for the opportunity!

I am a finalist in the Threads Ultimate Sewing Challenge!

2011-11-15T15:04:00.001-08:00

The finalists for the Threads Ultimate SewingChallenge were just announced, and my Emerald Green Gown made it in the top 10!

Voting ends November 30th

And I could use a bit of help towin the fabulous sewing machine that is up for grabs - I really could use it – my poor littleWhite has been plugging away for over 10 years!

Voting runs until November 30th. It is one of those contests that allow you tovote every day, so I apologize in advance, because I am going to keep remindingeveryone to vote. There are some wonerful entires, so the competition will be stiff!

There is something inthis for you – by voting in the sweepstakes you will be entered to win a Threadsprize package worth over $100. And ifthat does not interest you, I would still appreciate the votes!

Thanks!

1940s Cocktail Dress in Blue

2011-11-14T23:29:00.001-08:00

I am quite sure that I will be sick and tired of the cold weather soonenough, but for now, it is an excuse to pull out all of the dresses that havebeen patiently waiting for the temperature to drop!

I sewed this dress using a reproduction pattern from the Vintage Pattern Lending Library (the original pattern was Hollywood 1449). I highly recommend the company as a wonderfulresource for vintage reproduction patterns. The patterns are printed on sturdy bond paper,and seam allowances are clearly marked, as are all notches and darts necessaryto construct the garment. So there areno more excuses for anyone that might be overwhelmed by the thought of anunprinted vintage pattern – VPLL has done the work for you. More information about the actual construction may be found over at Pattern Review.

There are so many lovely little details to be found in thispattern. I have plans to make the peplumversion in a bright colored print one of these days, but the short sleeveversion is also calling out to me! Oh,whatever shall I do? Perhaps I should stop daydreaming and finish the jacket that is currently in pieces, waiting for a few boundbuttonholes.

I have so many visions of fantastic frocks (who needs sugarplum faeries when you have velvet and lace?!), but not enough time to sew them.

Dress: Made by me, VPLL F1149.

Hair Ornament: Madeby me.

Earrings: Antique fan earrings from Shadows

Shoes: Seychelles “Little Owl” inNavy Suede

Fishnets: Mervyns

New Vintage Reproductions from Butterick!

2011-11-11T15:40:00.001-08:00

There are not one, not two, but three new vintagereproductions in the Butterick Winter/Holiday 2011 collection. How very exciting!

So let’s take a look, shall we . . .

Butterick 5708

I am a bit unsure how the fit will work with this one whenthere are so many shoulder tie options, but I love the look. Maybe some boning added along the side seams? And maybe a bit of interfacing on the lowerbodice pieces?

Butterick 5716

The swing jacket is super cute, but I have a couple of coatsplanned for this season and I must not let this distract me.

Butterick 5707

My favorite is this lovely shift. How fabulous is the cutout and bow tie. Love it!

My only gripe is that I would like to see more complexvintage styles reproduced. When willVogue bring back all of the Couturier designs?

I cannot wait until the next sale at JoAnn Fabrics. And I will have to go through the stash tofind the perfect fabric for 5707.

And, of course, there are quite a few new contemporary patterns for those of us not completely obsessed with the past.

Film Noir Vixen

2011-11-10T01:23:00.000-08:00

I attended the Marin Symphony’s Mahler program thisTuesday. Guess what that means . . . timeto play dress up!

After a couple ofhours attempting to finish Vogue 1136 Monday evening, I took a deep breathand realized that I have a closet full of clothes that are suitable for anevening at the symphony. Not to mention,I enjoy the sewing process, and rushing through something when it is not absolutely necessary is just silly! Instead ofdoing a shoddy job, I put the pins and fabric away and looked in thecloset.

This suit is one of the first vintage reproductions I everattempted, and certainly the first structured suit I ever sewed. The fabric is from the upholstery section atJoAnn Fabrics and is therefore quite stiff and heavy. There are a few fitting issues. The bound buttonholes are a bit embarrassing. And I probably should have padded out or usedan interfacing with more body for the jacket hips – I may not have used anyinterfacing at all – bad, bad seamstress. I did manage to match stripes at the shoulders, though.

I actually love this suit because it is a clearrepresentation of how far my sewing has come in six years. (I know that I finished the suit in 2005because I am a complete dork and keep a diary of pattern numbers, start andfinish dates, along with swatches and notations of any alterations made for allthe sewing and knitting I do.)

At work, someone told me that I remind him of a film noircharacter! Rita Hayworth, Barbara Stanwick,and Lana Turner, oh my! I willdefinitely take that as a compliment. Itis so much better than the response I got from my boss, D: “what are youwearing?” After ten years, he certainlyknows what to expect with regards to my wardrobe, so I have to assume he is doing itjust to irritate me.

And yes, the Symphony was fantastic!

Suit: Made by me,Vintage Vogue 2339, Original 1948 Design.

Fishnets: Simply Vera by Vera Wang for Kohls.

Hat: Made by me.

Shoes: Via Spiga “Unit”in Black Suede.

Necklace: Made by me.

Ring: My grandfather’shigh school ring.

Earrings: Gift.

Vintage Knit Lace

2011-11-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

I finally finished this sweater - and it only took two years! And now that it is finally complete, I can say that this is one of myfavorite hand knit pieces.

It is amazing how a lack of finishing notions stops me in mytracks – in this case it was buttons. Because I knew that I would be unable to finish the sweater withoutthem, I tucked it away over a year ago. Last weekend, I noticed the unfinished project mocking me from the bureaudrawer and decided to do something about it. The only finishing details it needed was to be sewn together, the edgesof the sleeves crocheted, and those darn buttons.

Thank you again, Burda Style, for your blog post about Dorset Buttons. Now instead of being disappointed when I cannot find the right buttons,I just make my own.

Because I see things much better as a visual representation,I made myself a knitting chart for the lace pattern. I am forever losing my place when the instructionsare written in prose, and this really helps me visualize what the pattern is supposed to look like.

The yarn is a cashmere/merino blend from Colourmart. This is the softest yarn I have every workedwith. And I love the color! I have quite a bit of yardage left, so I may be able to squeeze out another sweater at some point.

One work in progress finished, so many more to complete.

Sweater: Made by me.(Gleam Sweater - from freevintageknitting.com)

Skirt: Made by me.(Simplicity 4044)

Earrings: Antique fanearrings from Shadows

Snood: Made by me.

Shoes:

Seychelles

“Little Owl” in Navy Suede

“Somewhere Over the Rainbow”

2011-11-01T01:54:00.000-07:00

So, I was a bit lazy this year - I did not make my costume. This is, in fact, my Dorothy costume from aneighth grade production of The Wizard of Oz, pulled out of retirement because Iabsolutely have to wear a costume on Halloween.

Image from The Wizard of Oz (1939)

My mom also wore the costume on Friday and Saturday evening for a couple ofHalloween parties, so it has been making the rounds this year.

Aaahh, memories - children's theatre in a multi-purpose room.
Let's see how many children can be packed onto one "stage."

I clearly remember being horrified that the yellow ginghamapron pulled out of the costume closet was going to be my Dorothy costume. Evidently, I did enough whining andcomplaining, and my mom agreed to make my costume.

This was before Simplicity had come out withan adult Dorothy Gale costume. Mom did take home economics inhigh school (the fact that the class was not offered at my high school still irks me) and made a few garments - I have proof in the form of a very cutedress currently residing in my closet. However, her Singer sewing machine had been gathering dust for many, manyyears, and drafting a pattern was a bit overwhelming. My piano teacher came over and helped draftthe bodice pieces on paper grocery bags. Isn't it funny the things we remember?

That's not Toto! - R.I.P. Buddy.

There were some stressful moments, as I recall, but thecostume turned out beautifully. And itis still getting some use, so I feel totally justified in my demands. After all, if I was going to be Dorothy, Ihad to have my blue gingham and ruby slippers.

Turns out, this is one of two garments that my mom sewedfor me. The other was also a costume - a gypsy/harem girl for Halloween which won a prize at school. So she many not have been prolific, but she did a great jobwhen properly motivated!

And she relinquished that Singer sewing machine to me a few years later when I had the urge to startsewing my own clothing. Eventually oneof the plastic gears broke, and the machine was retired. At that point, I could not live without, so Ipurchased a White 979, which is the machine I have been using for at least 10years. I wonder how many hours of usethat translates to – quite a few, I expect!

And if I was going as Dorothy, I needed a Wizard of Oz themed costume for mylittle guy.

Toto was way too obvious(and Valentino does not have dark or long fur), a flying monkey was too scary, he would have nothing to do with a Glinda costume, well, you get the idea.

In the story,Scarecrow is Dorothy’s best friend – perfect!

Protecting the fields of corn - look out for those crows!

And look how adorable he is! Hewas extremely patient with the whole experience, and loved all the attention hereceived, not to mention the treats!

Time to go to the office to be admired!

"Can I take these silly clothes off yet?"

Pinafore: Made bymom.

Blouse: I don’tremember – it was probably thrifted.

Shoes: Nine West “Vishnu” from 6pm.com

Scarecrow Costume: Madeby me. (Modified Simplicity 3939 and Simplicity 2740)

“Whistle While you Work . . .”

2011-10-30T17:17:00.000-07:00

Today I am busy making Tino’s Halloween costume.

Tomorrow is fast approaching, but I need a break fromtiny sleeves and armholes, so I though I would share a costume from a few yearsago.

This is Snow White with her trusty side-kick, Happy.

With the help of Simplicity 2813, Icame up with a decent version of Disney’s Snow White.

My research started with the 1937 animated film. From there, Idid a few internet searches to find still images. There are quite a fewvariations out there, but I wanted to take most of my ideas from the film.

The one thing I really did not like about the pattern was the cheap lookingsleeve treatment. The pattern advises you to fuse sections of one fabric toanother with raw edges - ick! It took abit more time, but I cut an inner and outer sleeve. I created a template for my cutouts a bit moretear-drop shaped than the pattern, cut those templates with seam allowances,sewed right side to right side on my outersleeve, clipped the seams, and turnedto the inside before invisibly stitching the facings down. The inside sleevewas then basted to the outer sleeve, right side to wrong side and treated as asingle piece for gathering and setting in.

More information about the construction may be found over onPattern Review.

For Happy, I used Simplicity 3939 as a basic pattern base to help with sleeve placement.

His beard was a happy mistake. I knew that a bit of elastic was going to benecessary to keep any kind of hat on his head, but I really did not want it toshow. Lucky me, most of the dwarfs havelittle beards, and a small chunk of fiberfill folded over the elastic and seweddown took care of disguising the elastic. In the end, I think the beard really made the costume!

And now I really must get back to his costume, for tomorrow is Halloween!

Dress, Cape and Collar: Made by Me. (Simplicity 2813)
Petticoat: Made by Me. (Simplicity 5006)
Wig: "Bettie Page" wig from Party City
Shoes: from Lacis

Vintage Inspired Beaded Sweater

2011-10-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

This is my very first beaded knitting project, finishedback in 2005.

I have only worn this sweater once before, mostly because Ihave a hard time finding something to wear with it (yes, it is one of thoseprojects).

The pattern is from Vintage Knits, a book I first discoveredat my local library, in their somewhat dismal crafts section. While I would have preferred the actual vintagepattern with the keyhole opening and the beaded collar and cuffs, the patternshave been reworked for a more modern look.

With a few more years of knitting experience under my belt, I wouldprobably have added beads to the ribbed arm and neck openings, but I am verypleased with the result.

The most challenging part of the process was getting thedarn seed beads on the yarn. Once that wasaccomplished, with the help of a bit of thread and a needle, the knitting wasvery straight forward.

Because the front and back pieces are identical, I added asmall piece of yarn tied in a bow to create a “tag” – this way I always cantell the front from the back.

Now I just have to find another skirt to wear withit. Perhaps that is my cue to pull outsome fabric . . .

Sweater: Made by me.

Skirt: Made by me.(McCalls 3315)

Shoes: Nine West“Zann” in Pewter from 6pm.com

Vintage Embroidered Silk – Pure Luxury

2011-10-25T00:11:00.000-07:00

I am ashamed to say that it took a last minute rush to finda vintage hat (which I did not end up needing) for me to explore a local antiqueshop. And boy am I glad that I did. Look at the treasure I found!

There is no tag or label to help identify the piece, so I amnot sure of the year, but I would guess that this was constructed sometime duringthe 1940s.

It makes me wonder what contemporaryclothing will be around in sixty orseventy years – perhaps some polyester fleece sweatshirts and a few pairs ofdenim jeans? – yuck! Instead of wearing fabricsthat are synthesized from plastic bottles, imagine wearing silk next to yourskin everyday.

This slip is stunning. The workmanship is exquisite. Itdoes have a few stains and a couple of small holes, but it still looksbeautiful.

And I simply could not bear the thought of someone using itas a Courtney Love Halloween costume and disposing of it the following day, or,at the very least, not appreciating the craftsmanship.

The hand stitches are worthy of a couture piece. Someone obviously put a lot of work into thisslip. The side seams are the narrowestFrench seams I have ever come across.

They are then tacked down from the right side of the garment with thetiniest prick stitches so that the seams lay perfectly flat.

The lace must have been worked separately from the slip andapplied. The only raw edges are thehorizontal seams which are whip stitched as is done in couture pieces.

Pure heaven! Lingerie this beautiful just has to be shared!

Polka Dots!

2011-10-23T22:35:00.000-07:00

I abandoned this sweater a few months back because I momentarily lost myinterest in knitting. And although theweather is still Summer warm, my creative process has decided that it is timefor Fall knitting. By the time Ifinish this springy green polka dot sweater, the season may render itridiculous. Is November too Fall/Winterfor polka dots? And do I really care?

Bud by Martin Storey

This is my very first Fair Isleknitting project. Now, I probably shouldhave started with something a bit more simple, like stripes, or a small portionof intarsia at the cuffs or neckline. But no, I decided polka dots from cuff to collar was the way to go.

Granted, it is easy to see if I am goingwrong, but I keep forgetting to change the color pattern on the wrong side of mywork until I get almost all the way across the row and have to work backwards –frustration! And I am not looking forward to weaving in all of the yarn ends. But so far, I am pleased with my progress.

So that is what I am up to. And I have a new Vintage Vogue dress on the sewing table, but I amfinding my knitting needles a bit more interesting these days . . . I wonder which I will finish first?

Autumnal Color Palette

2011-10-21T00:17:00.000-07:00

Even though it is late October, the weather is decidedly warmduring the day. And although a pastelcotton sundress would work with the temperature, it just feels wrong. So out came a summer weight cotton seersuckerdress with a definite fall color palette – perfect!

The pattern is McCalls 6758, a vintage pattern I purchasedon ebay.

The finished dress looks quite different from the originalpattern because I did not have enough seersucker fabric to complete the entiredress. It turns out, I prefer thecontrasting collar and cuffs to solid stripes - I just love when mistakes turn out for the best! The length is also a departure from the pattern, but the dressjust did not look right with a longer skirt.

A more in-depth review of my sewing process may be foundover at Pattern Review.

I love seersucker – no ironing needed. Well, except for the solid colored cottonportions. This is the ideal dress forthe strange between-seasons weather we are experiencing!

Dress: McCalls 6758

Shoes: Aerosoles“Guava Plush” in Orange Combo from 6pm.com

Earrings: Gift

Eyelet Cardigan & Purple Gingham

2011-10-17T00:10:00.000-07:00

I always have the same issues with my knit pieces. By the time I finish the project, I am a bittired of the darn thing, or the season has changed and there is no need for asweater, or I cannot find the right buttons. Often, I end up with a finished project that doesnot match any other clothing I own – seriously, it has happened quite a fewtimes, and I still cannot understand how I manage it.

I finished my Jenny Cardigan from Rowan Knitting Magazine 37in early July but never got around to wearing it. The yarn is a cotton/rayon blend and thesummer has not been especially hot, so I have no excuse (other than the factthat I could not find anything I wanted to wear with it).

The pattern calls for a ribbon to be woven through theneckband eyelets and tie in the front, but I like the option of wearing a cardi open or closed. Because I did notwant untied ribbon ends hanging when the sweater was unbuttoned, I changed itup and cut two pieces of ribbon and tied them at the center back.

I very rarely find buttons that match a finished project. I have the same problem with fabric – I tendto choose colors that are impossible to find matching thread, zippers, andbuttons. But I have found a solution, at least for the buttons. BurdaStylerecently posted a blog entry about Dorset Buttons. I am able to cover plastic rings with theyarn that I used for my sweater, ensuring that they will be a perfect match!

The dress is an oldie. I happened to come across it hiding in the closet, and thought it wouldhelp get the cardigan out of the dresser drawer.

The pattern is Vogue 9668, now out of print,but it looks like it is still available on the Vogue website.

I have made two versions of thesleeveless/straight skirted view that I have not worn in a while . . . perhapsI will have to do something about that.

Dress: Vogue 9668

Cardigan: “Jenny” from Rowan 37 by SarahDallas

Earrings: RalphLauren

Shoes: Colin Stuartfor Victoria’sSecret

Leopard Print + Contemporary Pattern = Something “New” for Me

2011-10-14T21:50:00.000-07:00

After my Ceil Chapman adventure in dressmaking, I knew thatI needed a quick and easy project, if only to assure myself that I do not needan entire month to sew one dress!

This dress was an exploration in going against type. The fabric is a stylized leopard print, andthe pattern is contemporary - what in the world was I thinking?! I blame patternreview.com. I would never have thought to purchase Vogue1228 had I not seen all of the cute finished projects posted to the site.

I am quite pleased with the finished product. The dress is very easy to wear (I added 1" to the length for a bit more coverage), and while itmight not be the most flattering of styles on my body, I don’t care. I am just going to pretend it is a costume inthe style of 2011 – how about that!

It was super easy to make, and has restored my faith in thequick weekend project, so all in all, I would say the dress is a success.

Dress: Vogue 1228, Vena Cava, Vogue Patterns American Designer

Earrings: Morning Glory Designs

Necklace: RafaelJewelers

Shoes: Brass Plum “Empire-Lea” in Gold

Watercolor Printed Poppies

2011-10-11T22:17:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to attend the Picasso Exhibition at theDe Young Museum in San Franciscolast week. And while he is certainly notmy favorite artist, to see even a small portion of his work is incredibly humbling. His mastery of varied mediums and movementsis stunning.

The galleries wereextremely crowded, so it was a good thing that I had my crinoline on to givemyself a little extra personal space! “Excuseme, pardon me, crazy lady who thinks it is 1957 coming through.”

The dress I pulled out of the closet for my day in San Francisco is Vogue 2903.

I adore this reproduction. The yoke construction is ingenious. The shoulder pieces are finished off and thenthe sleeves and yoke, which are constructed as one piece, get set into thefinished garment. For a more formal look, the yoke section could easily be removed from the pattern altogether. I am surprised that the pattern does not include this as an alternate suggestion.

This is one of thereasons I adore vintage patterns and reproductions – there are so many morespecial touches to be found than with their contemporary counterparts.

The only downside with the dress is that the pleats can be abit of a pain to iron. I made themistake of basting them with a bright red color, and every time I iron thedress, I find more basting thread bits that I missed (at least they blend in with thecotton!).

The fabric was a lucky find from JoAnn Fabrics. These are not the colors I would normally bedrawn to, but I could not resist the large scale watercolor print on crispcotton.

I just noticed the Wizard of Oz connection - mydress is a poppy field – I hope the pictures are not making everyone sleepy!

Image from fanpop.com

Dress: Vogue 2903

Coat: McCalls 5480

Shoes: Alfani“Daphna” in Pale Yellow

Hair Flower: Made byme

Necklace: BananaRepublic

Ring: Macy’s

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Finishing Touches

2011-10-09T21:38:00.000-07:00

In my rush to finish the gown in time for the gala, Istopped posting specific construction details. There have been a few questions, soI will do my best to answer those! And thankyou all for your lovely comments - I feel so lucky to be part of a communitythat appreciates all the work and love that went into my gown!

The lapped zipper was hand picked. The more I use this technique, the morepleased I become – I think all of the invisible zippers in my stash may have tobe abandoned for the moment.

My original plan was to embellish the visible portion of thefront under bodice with encrusted beads. Well, I could not find the exact beads I was looking for, and to beperfectly honest, I have never done that much beadwork, so I felt it might be abit overwhelming to do with a limited time-table. I also wanted to “sprinkle" beads along theleft side skirt hem but as time was running out, I realized this was out of thequestion.

The embellishments I decided to use are a combination ofleaves constructed from satin ribbon and silk dupioni, and flowers made out ofsilk dupioni and topped with beads. For the leaves, I was inspired by a recentblog posting from Eva Dress. As for theflowers, I sort of make it up as I go along. I have used the same idea for a hat and improved on it by adding a smallscrap of fleece to the inside of the gathered square of silk to add extra dimension. I use beads and a fewrandomly placed stitches to make the puffy circle look like a flower.

The hem is finished with 6” horsehair braid using Gertie's tutorial. I had never used the braid asa finishing technique, but rather, always encased it in a hem or covered itwith a facing. However, I am very pleased with the way it turned out. If there is no petticoatbetween your skin and the braid, I would imagine it could be a bit rough on thelegs, but it sure does do a great job of giving body to a hem, and you could always cover the braid with a fabric facing after turning it to the inside of the garment.

I first hand basted the braid to the rightside of the skirt, then sewed the permanent seam with the machine. The excess fabric was trimmed, the braid turned to the inside and using theupper thread running through the horsehair to shorten that edge, I hand stitched it down, being careful to catch only the silk organzaunderlining.

About a week before the gala, I remembered I was going toneed a belt for my dress. I like tofinish all of the “extras” required for a dress ahead of time because theyalways take a lot longer to finish than I expect them to. I had a funky old plastic circular bucklethat was originally one of those awful t-shirt buckles from the 1990s, and a few rectangular Maxant buckle kits on hand.

Because of the round scallop motif, I thougha circular shape would work better. Tocover the plastic, I wrapped folded bias strips of my silk, underlined with cotton forstability, around the buckle.

The beltitself was made of a simple rectangular cut of silk underlined with heavycotton. Because the dress had a bonedunder-corselette, I did not feel that the belt needed to be super stiff.

I used a Threads Magazine tutorial to add ribbon hangers tothe dress. Because all of the weight isin the bodice, and I do not want the sleeves and upper-back to stretch out, Iused the strapless version of the tutorial. The little thread bars at the back and front bodice really work to keepthe dress from hanging open. I willdefinitely be using the technique again.

This is what I came up with as a last minute hair ornament. The original idea was to make more of a 1950sstyled cocktail hat. I found a buckram form hat at a local antique shopthat was dingy enough that I would not have felt bad about re-covering withmy emerald silk, but, in the end, it was not quite what I was looking for, andit would have taken too much time.

To make a base for the leaves and flower (the sameembellishment used on my purse and dress) I used a circle of wool felt that wasin the stash, cut a length of jewelry wire, taped the ends together in theshape of a circle, and hand sewed the felt around the wire circle. Luckily, I had a bit of green millinery veiling from Britex stashed away to add a bit of whimsy to the finished product. I secured the veiling to the back of the woolfelt in a figure eight pattern. To secure theornament to my hair, I hand sewed a barrette to the back of the felt.

And there you have it. The dress is now safely tucked away in the closet and my sewing room hasjust about recovered from the project (although I do keep finding small piecesof silk here and there).

Fabric & Notions Used

Dress:

*Emerald Silk Dupioni from fabric.com

*Lavendar Silk Dupioni from Britex

*Mauve Silk Dupioni from Joann Fabrics

*Mint Silk Dupioni from Discount Fabrics in Berkeley, CA

*Silk Organza from Dharma Trading Company

*Cotton muslin used as a non-fusible interfacing

*6” wide horsehair braid from Vogue Fabrics

*Gutterman silk thread for hand basting

*RIT dye (used on cotton ticking and organza)

*Hug Snug rayon seam binding from fabric.com

*Beads for flower embellishments

Corselette:

*Spiral Steel Boning from lacis.com

*Cotton down proof ticking (coutil substitute) from VogueFabrics

*Needled Cotton Batting from JoAnn Fabrics

*Grosgrain ribbon for waist stay

Purse:

*Plastic canvas

*Fleece (substituted for fusible interfacing)

*Rattail for drawstring closure

Hair Ornament:

*Wool felt

*Jewelry wire from JoAnn Fabrics

*Millinery Veiling from Britex

*Hair barrette

Tchaikovsky Times Two!

2011-10-07T20:25:00.000-07:00

Because I was volunteering at the Gala on Sunday, I was unableto hear the second half of the concert, so I went back for the finalperformance on Tuesday. Now, there wasno way that I could compete with my Ceil Chapman gown, however, I was not goingto show up in any old thing, either!

The weather has turned wet and cold in Marin County, and inan effort to wear all of my cotton garments one more time before putting themaway for the season, I pulled out this dress, which has been feeling neglected.

The pattern I used is Butterick 5032, a vintage reproduction dated1952. I previously used the capelet pattern as an accessory for this dress.

My original thought was to accessorizethe dress with the cummerbund from the pattern, however, when I lined thefabric (because the reverse side of the cotton did not look great), it madeknotting the waist extremely bulky and awkward looking.

Because I was not thrilled with the fit of the skirt back atthe upper hip, I wanted something to cover it. At that point, I had cut into the majority of my floral cotton, and didnot have enough to make the overskirt. My solution was to use a wine colored cotton sateen as a contrasting fabric. Because the cotton was not sheer, I decidedto leave the skirt front open so the straight skirt was not completely hidden. With my leftover floral cotton I made a beltand added a bit of bias trim the skirt hem.

To keep the open skirt front pulled down, I tucked a fabricwrapped nickel into the hem on both sides which works perfectly as a dress weight. I also added little cap sleeves to make the dress morewearable, and edged them in the wine sateen to use the contrast fabric a bitmore.

The weather will probably not let me wear this garment untilnext year, but I hope to get a lot more wear out of it then.

By the way, the symphony was absolutely fantastic!

Dress: Butterick 5032

Shoes: Hillard &Hanson “Elisa”

Earrings: Shadows

Floral Hairpiece: Made by me.

Fishnets: Kohl's; Simply Vera, Vera Wang Fishnets

A Potted Purse

2011-10-05T21:50:00.000-07:00

I have been waiting for an opportunity to make up Simplicity4159, and my green silk gown was the perfect backdrop. I love the flowerpot idea, but thought theidea could be improved by the addition of some foliage.

Because the dupioni is rather lightweight, I used some blackcotton in my stash to underline it. ThenI used fleece (also in the stash) in place of the suggested “double sided stifffusible interfacing” and hand basted it in place. I am not even sure where I would look forsomething like that.

The pattern consists of four trapezoidal pieces. The padding is sandwiched between two piecesof the self fabric, sewn together, and then attached to a circular bottom. For added stability, I inserted pieces ofplastic canvas between the two layers. Iwas concerned that the piece would end up very floppy. I wanted the finished purse to have enoughbody to look solid and a few pieces of plastic needlepoint canvas did the trick.

I really did not use the directions very much. With the addition of my plastic canvas, itwas necessary to rework the order of construction.

I also added a lining to the interior of thebag. That would be my biggest problemwith the pattern – the inside of the bag is completely unlined as drafted andleaves raw edges everywhere! And thelast thing I want in a purse is to reach in to pull something out and get ahandful of fabric from shredded edges.

Because I just could not deal with the mess inside, Icreated my own lining. To let the handle(which is sewn to the bottom of the purse) come through, I cut two pieces of thecircular bottom from my lining fabric, drew a circle in the center (thank youspool of thread), stitched that circle, cut the center out, and flipped rightside out so I had a finished hole.

The top of the purse with the drawstring was underlined insilk organza for ease in attaching the flowers and leaves.

I used the tutorial over at Eva Dress to make myleaves – the only difference was that I used my silk dupioni and therefore hadto finish the raw edges, which I did with a simple hand-rolled hem.

The flowers are small squares of silk that Ibasted in a circular shape and gathered to create a little pillow which I secured on the finished bag. I added beads to theprick-stitches that help shape the flower.

The fun part was adding the flora to the flower pot.

Yes, it is definitely matchy-matchy with mydress, but it was too much fun to pass up. Actually, I was working on the bag prior to finishing the dress and washighly influenced by how the flowers and leaves worked in the silk dupioni anddecided to go for the same look with the dress.

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress Unveiling

2011-10-04T01:05:00.000-07:00

Well, here she is! Iwas adding silk petals and flowers and beads right up until the end – a tickingclock is a great motivator. And while Iwish I had had more time with the embellishments (the fun part!), and it wasnot exactly my original vision, it works! In truth, I am thrilled with the finished product.

I felt like the belle of the ball! Everyone was extremely complimentary aboutthe dress. Many people told me how much they loved the dress, and their eyes widened at the notion that I madethe garment myself.

I have a love/hate relationship with people approaching meand immediately asking if I made my dress – does that mean it looks likesomething from a home economics class!? So it is extremely gratifying to have people amazed and a bit skeptical that thegown is home made!

I like to christen all of my extra special creations. And because of the green and purple color palette,I keep thinking of A Midsummer Night’sDream. So I am going with “Titania.” If the queen of the faeries partnered withDior to create a gown, I imagine this would be the end result.

My homage to Dovima!

My Persian lamb wrap (don't worry, it's synthetic!) was a gift several years ago from alovely lady, and it was the perfect addition to my outfit. As the temperature dropped, I was glad tohave a little extra warmth!

I have a lot more construction specifics, but for now, Icould not wait to share the finished product. More pictures may be found over on my flickr account.

Dress: Spadea 1149 by Ceil Chapman

Necklace: Shadows(high school graduation gift from mom)

Earrings, Ring, & Bracelet: Macy's

Hairpiece: My own creation; Russian veiling from Britex.

Shoes: Colin Stuartfor Victoria’sSecret

Purse: Simplicity4159 (I will share more of the specifics later)

Wrap: Vintage(courtesy of Sandy)

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Sneak Peek

2011-10-03T00:10:00.000-07:00

The Marin Symphony Opening Gala Celebration wasfantastic. The music of Tchaikovsky was absolutelyglorious - and if you happen to be in the Bay Area this week, the program willbe repeated this Tuesday, October 4, 2011. I would highly recommend the experience.

I amexhausted, but had to share a sneak peek of the dress that I finished justhours before I had to leave the house - those finishing touches always takelonger than expected!

Therewill be many more pictures to come, but for the moment, I will leave you with thislittle hint . . .

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 7

2011-10-01T01:39:00.000-07:00

Working with silk just makes me happy. Don’t get me wrong, it can be a bitchallenging, but the finished product is well with any extra aggravation.

Because I am a finishing freak, I am binding all my edgeswith Hug Snug rayon seam binding. I justlove the vintage feel it gives to my sewing. And if I bind off seams as I work, I do not have to worry about massiveamounts of fraying (which the dupioni and organza has a tendency to do). I also ended up finishing off all of the facing edges.

I have spent a lot of time hand basting with this project,and I have come to the conclusion that couturiers really know what they aredoing – I have so much more control over fabrics (especially when basting twodifferent textures together) if I avoid the sewing machine. Also, silk thread really does make adifference and is worth the extra money.

I am curious as to the original fabric suggestions. It is hard to tell from the sketch, but thedress is, for all intents and purposes, a strapless garment – the shouldersreally do not hold anything up. Boy am Iglad I made that corselette! My dupioni,even when underlined with organza, would not have been sturdy enough to stay upwithout boning of some kind (which the instructions do not suggest).

There is an under-bodice (the pattern calls this bodicefront/side front and bodice back, etc.). The under-bodice front is constructed separate from the back, and thebodice (called waist front and back) is laid on top and then basted togetherbefore the side seams are sewn up.

The “wings” on the back bodice pieces actually pull forwardwhen attached to the sleeve and open out while the upper back folds down withthe help of the upper back darts. I also decided that the facings needed a bit more body, and underlined them with some cotton.

I am very surprised that the instructions do not suggestreinforcing corners before clipping them to set in the sleeves. Was this just understood, or did a seamstressin the 1950s not concern herself with that sort of technique? What would keep the clipping from continuingto tear into the garment?

Those sleeves gave me quite a bit of attitude, but they arenow set in.

Because my corselette is only going to be attached to thefront bodice, I finished the back upper edge with my emerald silk. It obviously will not show, but I like theway it looks.

I have more work to do, but the end is in sight. I cannot wait for the Gala on Sunday!

New Vintage Vogue Patterns!

2011-09-30T17:36:00.000-07:00

This morning I received an email announcing Vogue's newWinter/Holiday 2011 Collection. Lo andbehold, they did not let me down – there are two “new” Vintage Vogue lovelies totempt me!

Vogue 8768

Vogue 8767

I love, love, love both of these! And that jacket is perfection!

As the new Butterick and Vogue pattern catalogues come out,the first thing I look for are the Retro and Vintage lines (big surprise,right!). If there are none, I am a bit peeved. To be fair, most seamstresses are probablyannoyed that two of the patterns are vintage inspired and taking up space inthe catalogue. But not me – so thank youVogue!

I will have to take a closer look at the line drawings ofthe other patterns to see if any interest me, but for now, it is back to thesewing room, where another vintage reproduction requires my immediateattention! No more distractions for me .. .

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 6

2011-09-29T01:35:00.000-07:00

To make sure that the bodice of this dress fits properly, Imocked up a muslin version. I went aheadand added ¾” to the torso length because I figured it would be necessary (and Iwas right).

Attaching the sleeves to the bodice turned out to be themost frustrating part of the process so far. But I am glad that I went through the irritation with muslin first, anddid not shred my dupioni with each new attempt to make the darn thing fit togetherproperly.

The reproduction pattern (from The Vintage Fashion Library)is missing quite a few markings. Thiswas originally an unprinted pattern full of different sized perforations andnotches that are used to help match up all of the pieces. Unfortunately, about 70% of the perforationsare missing from the reproduction. Notall of them are completely necessary, but there are some fold-lines and matchups that I am having to guess, and have added quite a bit of difficulty. This is especially problematic on the sleeveinsertion. The only thing that I canfigure is that a step is missing in the instructions that would gather the frontsection of the upper sleeve with the dart. The more I fiddle with it, the more I am convinced that something wasdrafted incorrectly, most likely the sleeve.

I did not end up with any pictures of my muslin - not surehow that happened. It is now in pieces,having used one entire half of it to cut out my silk.

A big thank you goes out to my mom for helping me fix thefit on the back of the bodice. Patternsare not drafted for people with good posture!

Here’s hoping that in a couple of days, I have a finishedproduct that looks something like this.

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 5

2011-09-28T17:26:00.000-07:00

The past couple of days I have been feeling a bitoverwhelmed by this process and needed a project that I could complete quickly. There is nothing like being able to checksomething off a list to instill a sense of accomplishment!

Because I did not want the added stress of having to fashionmyself a black petticoat for my Ceil Chapman cocktail dress, I recentlypurchased a Malco Modes tea length petticoat on ebay. I know, I am being incredibly lazy, but timeconstraints sometimes get in the way, and I would rather spend my time andenergy working on the dress. Wanting thefluffiest one I could find, I ordered an extra-large because each size getsincrementally longer as they move from small to large. This was probably wishful thinking, because Iimagine the easiest way to produce them is to alter the yoke of the petticoat,and not the netting, but just in case, I got the longest one I could find. I was not worried about waist size (which waseven bigger than expected) because I planned on altering the waistband formyself. I cannot stand an elastic waistbecause it never feels secure to me and constantly rotates on the body.

I made a simple waistband from some black cotton that I had. The top elastic was cut off, and the cottonband sewn on to encase the raw edge I had created. The back is fastened with a simple hook andeye closure. Instead of using a zipper,I just cut an opening in the center back yoke and rolled a mini hem so I canget in and out of the petticoat now that the waist is no longer stretchy.

And now that one portion of my outfit is complete, Iam feeling a lot more relaxed and ready to tackle those silly sleeves that havebeen giving me so much trouble!

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 4

2011-09-25T18:37:00.000-07:00

I usually construct a dress for a special occasion, only torealize a few days before the event that I do not have the proper undergarments. A frantic search begins, and once again, the long-line bras of todaylet me down - they just do not create the proper look for a 1950s silhouette.

Thanks to Gertie (her Blog for Better Sewing was one of thefirst sewing blogs I happened upon), I had the idea of attaching a corseletteto the dress itself.

Instead of stressing about finding the proper pattern to usefor the corselette, I decided to restrict myself to my own pattern stash. The Victorian corset patterns were notexactly the look I was going for – I did not want to flatten my bustline. I ended up choosing Vogue 7698, which wasdesigned as formal outerwear but had the basic silhouette I was looking for.

As with most patterns, I had to add a bit of length to thetorso. Thankfully, that was the onlyreal alteration that was necessary.

There is nothing worse than having something dig in at the waistline,especially when seated. I love the factthat this pattern extends beyond the waist, even though this dress obviouslydoes not need any shaping through the hips.

The cotton down proof ticking I am using as a coutilsubstitute is from Vogue Fabrics (now a steely shade of blue thanks to a secondbath in RIT dye). I am very pleased withhow the fabric is working. It has anincredibly tight weave that makes pinning a bit more challenging than normal,but the corselette feels very sturdy without being bulky.

The few long line bras I already own all use plasticboning. And after wearing them for acouple of hours, the plastic warms up and bends to the curves of the body. So if I have been sitting and then stand up,part of the boning sticks out at funny angles. In an effort to avoid this, I decided to try spiral steel boning.

I purchased 12’ from lacis.com along withboning tips so I could cut lengths as needed. Unfortunately, my little jewelry wire cutters were not up the task ofcutting the stuff. However, I was ableto borrow a more heavy duty wire cutter from my boss that worked great. A tutorial over at Sew Curvy Corsetry wasvery helpful for securing the boning tips to the ends of my cut pieces. I love how my jewelry pliers have now becomea useful sewing tool!

I used a bit of leftover yardage to create the boningchannels. I cut 1” wide strips on thegrain for all of the boning except the underwires, which were cut on the bias.

An old stretched out bra donated theunderwires (I knew there was a reason I was keeping it!). By the way, have you ever dissected one ofyour bras? These things are evillooking. Because of the multi-layered channels,I assumed that the wires were thick and plastic, and maybe they are in somecases. These, however, are thin, wire,and scary looking.

Using the tutorial from Tasia over at sewaholic.net I added bust pads to the corselette.

The same pattern pieces were used to create a duplicatecorset for the lining. I sewed thebottom edge, right sides together with a 3/8” seam, and then turned it right side out with a finished loweredge.

The side seams were bastedtogether, and the edges finished off with Hug Snug seam binding. If you are not familiar with this product,you should be! The rayon seam bindingallows a beautifully finished seam edge without adding any bulk and I amabsolutely obsessed with it.

I purchased an 18” zipper. This is obviously quite a few inches longer than the corselette,however, it is necessary to have more length so it will open wide enough to goover my head and shoulders. The zipperwill end up being a bit longer than the zipper opening on the dress. The zipper was hand picked with silk thread.

The raw upper edges will be basted to the front bodice andtreated as one piece.

With one week to go, time is running out . . . my bodice muslin fitting is up next!

Previous posts about this project may be found here:

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 1

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 2

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 3

2011-09-24T16:13:00.000-07:00

There is something so satisfying about cutting intobeautiful silk yardage. And whilemocking up the muslin and making a corselette is definite progress on my dress,until I am working with my real fabric, it does not feel like I have started on the dress.

So instead of working on the fit of the bodice, I went aheadand started on the skirt. It does notrequire any real fitting except the waist, but that is easily altered withinthe tucks should there be any problems later on.

The first step was to hand baste my newly dyed organza tothe underside of the dupioni. Thepattern calls for skirt “lining” but the instructions treat it more like anunderlining.

My first impression was that the skirt was two separate layers- an underskirt and a half-circle overskirt with scalloped edges. Upon inspecting the pattern pieces, however,it was clear that there was no underskirt.

I was concerned that the half circle skirt and the scallopedhalf would allow a crinoline to show with any movement or a gust of wind. However, Ceil Chapman was smarter thanthat. Reading the directions carefully,it is clear what a brilliant designer she really was. The scalloped edges are faced withself-fabric, trimmed, clipped, and turned right sides out. The facings are then sewn to the other halfof the skirt (a bit more than a half-circle) and the facing gets folded backunder and stitched at the waistband creating a six inch scalloped flap alongthe length of the skirt front and back.

I adore this manipulation of the skirt pieces. When I get a chance, I would love to use themto make a skirt.

That being said, cutting the massive pieces out was not theeasiest thing to do. I am thankful thatI was working with muslin and not paper or tissue – that helped quite a bit.

I love how different lighting makes this iridescent fabric change colors!

Next up is my corselette.

The Perfect Afternoon for a Mint Julep

2011-09-22T22:06:00.000-07:00

Now that Fall is almost here, Summer weather has finallyarrived in Marin County. This means that I am pulling out all my summer dresses before the heatdecides to disappear again!

This dress is yet another vintage reproduction from mycloset. I used Butterick 5209, a patternoriginally printed in 1947.

I was first attracted to the halter version,but decided that the cap sleeved look would be much more wearable. And I am so glad I made the decision – thesleeves are one of my favorite parts of the garment.

The fabulous fabric is from Bella Notte. The 44% silk/56% cotton blend floral jacquardis called Deluxe Marie in the colorway “ocean” and is one of my favoritefabrics. It drapes beautifully and worksperfectly with the style of the dress – crisp enough to keep the dress summery,but with enough drape due to the silk content to keep it from looking too stiff.

I was surprised by the amount of yardage required. I assumed this was a wartime styled dress(silly me, since the pattern envelope clearly says 1947). However, the dress requires almost 3.5 yardsof 45" fabric – the designer must have been thrilled that wartime rationingwas over – it is certainly not a “New Look” amount of fabric, but quite a bitmore than I was expecting. This may haveto do with the fact that the bodice and midriff are lined with the fashionfabric. I wonder if the original was lined–I have never come across a day dress pattern from the 1940s that was finishedlike this. So if you think you may nothave enough yardage, an easy fix would be to use a lining fabric instead ofcutting double of the bodice and midriff pieces.

I substituted an invisible zipper, although if I was to makethis up again, I would probably choose a lapped zipper with a hand picked seam. I was fully converted to hand stitched zipperswhen I saw a few Balenciaga creations up close and personal at the de YoungMuseum in San Francisco earlier this year – if they are good enough for acouturier, they are good enough for me! I also live for hand stitching, so any extra excuse works for me!

Dress: Butterick 5209

Earrings: Macy's

Shoes: Banana Republic "Tina" in Ivory

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 2

2011-09-21T00:06:00.000-07:00

I did not want to waste much time searching for the coutiland silk organza needed for my project. I was already ordering horsehair braid from Vogue Fabrics, and a searchfor coutil turned up cotton down-proof ticking with a notation that it is an“excellent substitute for coutil.” Itdoes not come in black, but since the price was right, I figured I could dyeit.

I know next to nothing about dying textiles. I have used Kool-Aid to dye some super washmerino wool and know that it drinks up dye like there is no tomorrow. And I have used RIT on a couple of cottondresses and tops that needed a pick me up. While using RIT, I have discovered that I prefer liquid dye topowder. In one instance, the green powderdye left yellow and blue spots on the fabric (yellow and blue do make green,but this was not the look I was going for!) – I suppose I did not do a goodenough job dissolving the powder, but I have never had this issue with the liquidversion.

Luckily, I had a bit of dark green liquid RIT dye left overfrom another project. It does not matchthe emerald green silk, but I figured that it would do the job.

I remembered that Dharma Trading Company sells silk at agreat price. However, their silkorganza only comes in white – another fabric length to dye!

The silk took the dye quite well, although there are a fewinconsistencies – but since it is going to be used as an underlining, it willwork perfectly.

The cotton ticking is a different story, although to befair, it is probably user error. BecauseI did not want to stand over the sink and agitate the dye water for 30 minutes,I immersed the fabric and used a couple of plates to make sure the fabricstayed under the water. The white fabricturned a lighter green than I expected and was very splotchy.

I decided the fabric was too light for the dress (eventhough no one will see it but me!) so I over dyed with the only two colors ofRIT dye left in my cupboard: purple and navy blue. The fabric came out quite a bit more evenbecause I stood at the sink and kept agitating the fabric. There must have been a leak in my rubberglove because my thumbnail is now colored a purple blue color. Lovely, right? Thankfully, my event is over a week away, andI am sure my nail will have returned to a normal shade by then!

In the future, textile dying is something that I would loveto explore a bit more in depth.

Next up will be a bit of work on the skirt, and I think I shouldget going on my corselette so I can fit my bodice muslin.

With less than two weeks to go, I believe I am on track!

Knitted Lace and Crocheted Roses

2011-09-18T01:35:00.000-07:00

About this time of year I begin to crave nubbly sweaters andscarves. Of course, the weather is notexactly cooperating. After wearing mysweater this past Thursday, the weather decided to turn hot. Still, I am starting to feel drawn to sweatersand cannot wait until it is cool enough to pull out wool skirts anddresses. This means my knitting needleswill start to get more of a workout, and I will hopefully complete a few of theprojects that have been stashed away on needles for quite some time.

There is something very relaxing about the repetitive natureof knitting. Add a warm cup of tea and alittle Chihuahuasnuggled up next to me, and I have the perfect tranquil evening at home.

If you love vintage looks, you will love A Stitch in Time.

This book is filled with knitting projectsfrom the 1920s through the 1940s. Copiesof the original patterns are included along with updated versions with extendedsizes.

I am absolutely in love withevery project in Volume 1 of Susan Crawford’s reprinting of the original book,and I am sure that Volume 2 (out any day now) will be just as beautiful. And if you are looking for a little vintageinspiration, the photography is stunning.

I finished this sweater back in January, but never gotaround to wearing it - mostly because I could not find a skirt to wear with it. Then the weather got too warm, and it wastucked away. I had an urge to wear thesweater last week, and after doing a quick closet search, I rediscovered thissilk skirt hiding in the back, so my Rose Jumper makes her debut.

The stitch pattern is very easy to remember, which makes fora quick knit. I especially love theaddition of the crocheted roses.

The sleeves are not exactly what I expected, but I am verypleased with the finished result. Theyare knitted from neck to wrist. Beforeribbing the lower portion of the sleeve, some of the center stitches are castoff. This creates a little hole that loopsout to create the nice little lower sleeve puff. I thought that it looked a bit strange when leftopen, so I ended up gathering that portion and tacking it down to the upperedge of the ribbing.

When I look back atthe line diagrams in the pattern, this detail is noted, it was just not clearto me when I chose the pattern.

This is one of the reasons I love vintage – there are somany interesting details.

Sweater: Rose Jumperfrom A Stitch in Time, Volume 1

Skirt: BananaRepublic

Shoes: Colin Stuartfor Victoria’sSecret

Earrings: Shadows

Ceil Chapman Cocktail Dress, Part 1

2011-09-17T12:56:00.000-07:00

I thought I would document the progress I am making with mycocktail dress. Forgive my rambling –this is mostly for my own benefit, but I thought it might be interesting orhelpful to someone else, so here it goes . . .

The pattern is a multi-size reproduction that I purchasedfrom The Vintage Fashion Library. It hasbeen copied onto white paper and includes 9 separate sizes ranging from a 32”bust all the way up to a 48” bust by 2” increments. From the dark line that indicates a 34” bust,I would assume that this was the original pattern size. However, it is interesting to note that the originalinstruction sheet is marked a size 12 with a bust measurement of 35.5” a waist of 25" hips at 36" and anotation that reads “this pattern is cut to the designer’s own measurements . .. not standard pattern measurements.” Unfortunately, there is no differentiation between sizes (other than theone bold line out of 9) which makes following the lines a bit tricky in somespots. To make sure I was following thecorrect line, I used colored pencil to make my chosen size stand out on thepaper.

The envelope includes two pages of instruction sheets andthree huge pieces of paper with the printed pattern pieces.

Quite a few of the individual pattern piecesare separated between the three different papers - it would have been helpfulto add marks for matching them together properly. It took my entire living room floor tounfold and layout the pattern and figure out which piece lays next to the other,and then tape and cut them apart!

Not all the vintage pattern marks are included. And instead of the notches and different sizedcircles on the original, a small line is used to identify notches and darts aredrawn in as with modern patterns. I wouldexpect that the darts will need to be adjusted as you move up in size – itdoes not seem to me that a size 34 bust should use the same size dart as someonewith a 48” bust.

There are a couple of pattern pieces that are printedup-side-down or look a bit different than the identification chart.

1. The bodice front(A) is drafted as a full piece, but the original was to be cut on the fold (thisconfused me for a second – I thought I was missing a piece).

2. The Waist FacingBack (H) is printed up-side-down.

3. The Waist FacingFront (G) is printed up-side-down and the grainline is misdrawn.

4. The Waist Front (E)grainline is misdrawn.

I always like to iron the paper on a low heat setting inorder to get the major wrinkles out, and this also tends to make the paper alittle less stiff. However, I made themistake of ironing one of the pattern pieces with the printed side up. Theprinting came up and stuck to the faceplate of my new iron – aargh! I did manage to get it off without any damageto the iron, but that is a mistake I will never make again.

The pattern pieces are labeled with the company’s name andtheir pattern identification as well as the letter and description of thepiece. The writing, however, has nothingto do with the directionality of the pattern piece according to theidentification chart. I kept thinkingthat I did not have all the pieces because the shapes were facing in the wrongdirection or up-side-down! Note to self: do not try tomatch up funny shapes when tired.

Using a tracing wheel and some tracing paper, I havetransferred all of the pieces to muslin along with their markings. It feels positively wicked to write on fabric- but now there is no need to deal with stiff paper pieces!

And now I must get back to the sewing room!