SWAP 2008

Garment #10 - Black Trousers

Even if one doesn't wear them very often, everyone needs a pair of black trousers in their wardrobe. I have added a second, lightened photo to below to actually show the details of the trousers. Details on black garments are hard to photograph. The trousers do not have the weird twists or wrinkles as seen below. The wrinkles are a result of the dressform; it really is not smaller enough to properly show the trousers. They are pulled higher so that the front zipper and button could close for the photograph.

I had originally planned on making a pair of black denim trousers, but when I found out that the jeans pattern I had originally picked wasn't going to work without major alterations, I started looking for other patterns. In the meantime, I found out that Patrones trousers seem to work well for my body type. These trousers are another Patrones model, which are a pair my husband actually picked out as something he liked. He actually goes through all the patterns magazines I get and tells me what he likes. It is very interesting to see his perspective on some of the garments and how they are styled.

I made my trousers out of lightweight stretch wool with a nice drape to get the same effect as the magazine photo:

The trousers actually fit me very well with very little alteration. I was confident enough of the fit not to make a muslin. I did baste the major seams after installing the zipper and tried on the trousers to check the fit. The only change besides the leg length was to take in the waist a bit at center back.

These trousers are a great wardrobe addition. In my climate, the lightweight wool is wearable all year except for the hottest weeks of summer and the coldest weeks of winter.

Next week, I'll show you the last item: the denim shorts!

Parting Shot: Airplane Model. My sons loves to make things. Below he is working on painting his latest airplane model. He received many kits and models for his birthday and we're still working on putting them together.

Forget Me Knot - Dress - Part II

Some Details and a Detailed Plan

Now that Midnight Garden is out to a show, I need to turn my attention back to Forget Me Knot and get it ready for a show in mid-April.

Let's look at the dress first, I don't think I've ever shown it. It is not terribly exciting by itself, but works very well with the vest. I did try the ensemble on before I shipped it out to the previous show and it really is very pretty.

The bodice overlay is the same as the vest's peplum:

The dress is fully boned, and includes an inner waist belt. You can see the boning and belt tacked into place below right before the lining was stitched into place.

Finished, the belt looks like this, with the ends coming through large buttonholes in the lining:

The dress has a side zipper, which is hidden by overlapping flowers:

I also put dress hangers in the dress which are attached at the waist. They are passed through thread loops for hanging and when the dress is worn the ribbon is pulled out of the loops and hang down inside the skirt.

Now, let me tell you about the detailed plan. While this ensemble is wearable as is, it is not yet finished to my satisfaction. (Carolyn, I think you know what I mean!). During the next week or so, I will be doing a few things to improve and finish the ensemble to my satisfaction.

The vest only needs prick stitching around the neck edges and armholes. This is a bus project. I also need to replace a few missing rhinestones.

The dress needs more work. First, I need to add the net ruffle to the lining to add fullness to the skirt. The skirt is a full circle skirt and looks a little flat without any petticoats. I will, of course, be wearing an extra petticoat in addition to the net ruffle sewn to the lining when I'm on the runway in April. Second, I'm unhappy with the white invisible zipper. I'm going to order some orchid colored zippers from Zipper Stop next week and get that fixed. I am going to keep the invisible zipper because I want the look of the invisible zipper, especially below the waistline. Third, I need do all the prick stitching around the top edge. Lastly, I just need to go over the overlay carefully making sure everything is tacked down properly and all the rhinestones are in place.

I also need to get all the accessories together! I'll show you those once I get them or get them done.

Parting Shot: My Sewing Friend. Kiwi is trying to get my attention while I'm trying to take pictures of something else. She definitely is becoming domesticated! She will visit me often when I'm working in the studio and demand attention. She still a bit shy of my husband and children, but she's getting better.

Midnight Garden - Blouse - Part IV

The Redo

Surprise! I bet you weren't expecting Midnight Garden to show up in the title! Why am I working on MG again? Let me tell you, the blouse was not quite right. There were some strange wrinkles in the armhole area, like the sleeve wasn't set in or pressed quite right. Then there was something wrong with the hem - the fashion fabric was longer than the lining and that led to some strange folds at the bottom. So what did I do this week, as soon as I got it back from the most recent charity fashion show?

I took out the sleeves, made new ones and put them in. I wanted to make sure that the sleeves were cut accurately for the armholes and I wanted to set the sleeves in differently. First, I stitched the sleeves right sides together at the hem, then turned and pressed. I then had a sleeve unit which I stitched into the armhole. I stitched the sleeve unit to the fashion fabric armhole only. Once the seam was pressed toward the body of the blouse, I turned under and slip stitched the lining over the seam to finish the inside of the blouse. Once all that was done, I prick stitched the hem and put the beads back on. You can see the new sleeve in the photo below:

I also took out the bottom hem completely, pressed the garment well, trimmed the excess fashion fabric and restitched the hem, including the prick stitching.

This is not want I wanted to do this week. Sometimes you do what needs to be done, not what you want to be done. The first version of the blouse was not my best work - it was hurried work - and it showed if you inspected it closely. In pictures and on a person the blouse wasn't that bad and I'm sure that people who don't sew might not even notice. I wasn't happy with it and knew it needed some work, so I fixed it. This time, I took my time and am much happier with this second version.

It still needs a good pressing on the side with the button opening in the photo below, but with the pressing it looks like the other side. Believe me, I've done the pressing and the blouse in the box, ready to send with the suit to Paducah, KY for the AQS show in April and looks much better.

The next time I see this garment will be in four weeks and I'll be wearing it in the fashion show!

Parting Shot: It's Back. Yes, that's fresh snow. We're supposed to get another 4 to 8" today. Just when the snow was starting to melt and we could actually see a bit of the front yard, there's more.

Inside the Envelope

Vogue Special Design: S - 4415


This Vogue pattern is from 1953, and while it isn't a rare gown pattern or anything as equally exotic, there are some interesting features I thought I'd show you. I bought this pattern for several reasons. I really like the interesting collar detail at the front neck, I also liked the gored skirt that is attached to a skirt yoke. This reduces the bulk at the waist found in many gathered or pleated skirts from the same era.

This pattern is an "unprinted" pattern, meaning that there is no printing on the pattern pieces, just a series of punched out holes of varying sizes and shapes to denote grain lines, darts, match points, seam lines, etc. You can see this on the pattern instruction sheet below. Also notice that there is an underarm gusset. This allows for freedom of movement in short tighter sleeves, such as the kimono sleeves of this dress. The bodice is shaped through darts, a French dart on the front and a regular dart on the back.

The collar decoration includes buttons and buttonholes. The buttonholes are bound buttonholes which was common for the era. Since there are only two, it wouldn't be that hard to do, and would add a couture touch to the dress.

On the inside, the seam that attaches the collar to the bodice is finished with bias tape, this is less bulky than a facing and a nicer finish than just zigzagging or serging the edge.

When the buttons are sewn to the bodice, they are backed by a small piece of fabric for strength and stability, even though the buttons are mainly decorative. This is done many times today with a smaller button behind a larger button for garments such as coats.

The sleeves are finished nicely with a band.

The skirt yoke is interfaced, which is something I'd do if I were making the dress regardless of the instructions. This keeps the skirt yoke smooth and from bunching up much like interfacing midriff sections.

The dress also includes and inside belt to keep the dress from twisting around or riding up the wearer's body.

There are pattern pieces and instructions for making a matching belt. Also included are instructions for hanging and trimming the skirt. Since the skirt is a partial circle, some of the hem will be on the bias. Those portions have a tendency to stretch, so the skirt or dress is hung for 24 hours and then is trimmed evenly. The instructions below remind me that you could also use the hem marking equipment Paco showed on his blog last week if you don't have someone to help you mark the hem.

Will I ever make this pattern? I'm not sure. I've got a list of at least 8 to 10 items I'd like to make for myself over the spring and summer, plus my daughter has put in a request for some things she'd like to have from Patrones and needs a new fall wardrobe for school. Add to that a new art garment project or two and I think I'll be busy all spring and summer! (Yes, do look for a new large project starting next week!)

Tomorrow, I'll show you one of the projects I've been working on this week. Not what I wanted to do, but what had to be done.

Parting Shot: Serious/Silly. This time it is my daughter being silly, and my husband behind the camera.

Tutorial, By Request

Overlays and Invisible Zippers

Thank you all for your compliments on our Easter outfits! I enjoy doing special garments, and these were no exception.

I did have a question regarding how I actually did the invisible zipper, but kept the skirt overlay free. With a regular center application zipper, the edges of the overlay are finished first and attached with the skirt to the bodice. The zipper can then be inserted keeping the finished edges of the overlay out of the way.

You could do this with an invisible zipper, but then the point of actually using an invisible zipper is lost - you can tell where there is a break in the fabric for the zipper! Here's how I include the overlay in the zipper portion of the invisible zipper seam, but keep the overlay free below it. This does take a little care, time and concentration, but it can be done successfully.

1. Temporarily pin the zipper to the overlay only. Mark the position of the bottom zipper stop on the overlay seam allowance. I've used a pin placed perpendicular to the fabric edge as a marker, below. Unpin the zipper and stay stitch on the seam line 1.5" above and below the marked zipper stop position on both fabric pieces.

2. Insert the invisible zipper as you normally would, including both the skirt and overlay fabrics when stitching the zipper to the fabric. Do not finish stitching the seam from the zipper to the hem, only stitch the zipper to each side of the fabric.

3. Here's where you will need extra care (as if you're not carefully putting in the zipper already!). Find the end point of the stitching holding the zipper in place. Clip only the overlay fabric to the stay stitched line at the stopping point of the stitching on both sides. You can see that I've placed a pin perpendicular to the seam line to mark where to clip, and that I've already clipped this side.

4. Holding the overlay out of the way, now finish stitching the seam below the zipper as you normally would, making sure to include the skirt only and not the overlay. The first photo shows everything pinned together, the second photo shows the overlay out of the way, and the third shows the finished seam.

5. Stitch the remainder of the overlay seam below the zipper. I like to use French seams especially on sheers. Always stitch this seam (whether regular or French seams) from the hem to the zipper. This will make it easier to maneuver the sewing machine foot close to the zipper seam at the end of the seam. You can see in the first photo below that I'm stitching toward the white fabric, or the skirt fabric. The second photo shows the two seams finished and independent of one another below the zipper.

Final Result:

Q/A: Vicki spied my black cardigan in the family photos and asked if I wore that just at home. No, I wore it at church, too. With the temperature around freezing, I had to wear it. For the photos of the dress without the sweater, I was pretty cold! Maybe this summer I'll be able to get away without the sweater.

Parting Shot: Serious/Silly. I'm glad you all are enjoying this series! We realized afterwards that we didn't have too many serious ones. In the end, my husband and I decided that it was fine that way, as we'd remember the fun we had taking the pictures. Today's pictures were taken by my daughter. The first one is almost too serious, but I like it because it is a good face study between mother, father and son.

Easter Dress Finale

First my daughter, front and back:

She didn't want to wear tights, but it was pretty cold (below freezing) so she decided to wear them anyway. When it is warmer, she will just wear the sandals. She did not want petticoats, so the skirt isn't as full looking as pictured on the pattern. We were also able to make her a necklace from some beads left to us by her great-grandmother, so that was a nice little finishing touch.

Second, me, front and back:
I chose to wear the red sash, but not wear red shoes or jewelry. I do have red patent leather shoes, but wanted to keep the whole look very simple. I also made my necklace out of Grammie's beads. My husband thought the red sash was, "a bold choice", but I have to consider that he said that after being up for over 24 hours because of a red eye flight back from California on Saturday. I really love the whole outfit. I was a bit unsure when making it as I don't usually wear a lot of prints. At one point I got that, "What am I thinking? I'll look like wallpaper!" feeling. I ignored it and continued sewing and I'm glad I did now!

Parting Shot: Serious/Silly. Dad and the children. This one almost didn't make the serious requirement, but Dad wasn't being too silly and everyone is smiling!

SWAP 2008

Garment #9 - Red and White Knit Blouse

This is knit wrap top from BWOF 1/08 #116 made with fabric from Spandex House.

This was very easy to make, and with the shorter sleeves will be able to worn throughout the spring and summer with additional layers if necessary to keep warm. Other than making the sleeves short sleeves, the only other change I made was to raise the neckline. Like many of my SWAP items, it can be dressed up or down depending on the skirt or trousers and accessories worn with it.

I only have two garments left to make: the black trousers and the denim shorts. Look for the black trousers next week!

Parting Shots. Serious/Silly. We had quite a time taking Easter family pictures on Sunday. The majority of them were just candids of various family members doing silly things, but there were a few nice ones, too. This week, I'll present some of the photos in pairs; one serious, one silly. Today's shots are of my husband and me. I don't think I've actually shown a decent photo of him on the blog. This is the only one you'll get, he's actually a camera ham.