OOTDs: 13 on the 13th and a Stunned Sewer.

Before I start the ootds post, I wanted to let you know there is a reason I am a "stunned sewer."  Turns out that I *won* the Fabric Mart Fashion Challenge.  Woah!  I honestly thought I was going to come in third, *maybe* second if I was really lucky, but nope, first!  I wrote this all over the place this morning, but I was really glad that I was sitting when I received the news since I had to compose myself, so weird, right?  :-)  I guess I was a tiny bit excited!

Nakisha came in second with her gorgeous interpretation of minimalism architecture, and Sue's amazing, yellow trench coat inspired by Pop Art came in third.  It was a true honor to be in the last challenge with them.  

I have a lot of thoughts about the competition, what I learned, what I experienced, and how the whole thing went, but I will save that for another time (I do want to dissect it, though, since the progress was pretty significant overall--more so than I expected it to be).  I do really want to say thank you to Fabric Mart for hosting the competition, the judges for all their thoughts and words about the garments I sewed up, and to my fellow sewing friends in the contest with me, it was wonderful to be part of such a cool thing with such gracious, generous, and gifted sewers.  And of course, I *know* so many of you voted for me, or left incredibly kind comments here or at my FB page, so thank you for that.  I had many moments where comments were what I needed to keep my head up high, since there were points in the challenge where I wondered if I should keep on keeping on...

Okay, onto the outfits...both featuring dresses I sewed up in the competition (there's the connection, lol).

Day: Monday, October 13, 2014.

Where:  To celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary, Mr. Dina took me to America Eats, which has moved from its downtown DC location (featured at this post and here at this post) to the Ritz Carlton Tysons (ooh, fancy!).

Ease of Wear: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  I made this dress for me (read more on that here), but it is still a fancy dress worn with heels.  It won't be the most comfortable dress ever, but considering that normally dresses feel too tight in my hips, it was a nice change of pace to feel not restricted there, for once.  :-)

Cool Factor: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  I love it.  I think I looked really nice, and I always, ALWAYS want my hair to look that good *why can't it always behave--WHIIIIINE!*. 

Anecdote from the day:  Driving to Tysons it was SUPER FOGGY out.  We have a few tall buildings in our neighborhood and there are really tall buildings (well, by DC standards anyhow) in Tysons, and the tops of the buildings were completely hidden behind the wall of fog.  I love fog, so I was really into it, but Mr. Dina was freaked out.

Yeah, we've been married for 13 years and it was awesome that it was on the 13th.  Wish it had been a Friday, too, that would have been even better.

Day: Saturday, October 18, 2014.

Where:  International Fair at the school.

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  Yeah, this dress is so comfortable.  I am really glad I spent all those hours patterning out the original and sewing up a gazillion gathers (wrote the process up here).  Worth all the effort.  Such a breezy, lovely dress. 

Cool Factor: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Very pretty and presentable outfit, and perfection for the weather we had here today (umm, gorgeous, with a slight breeze).

Anecdote from the day:  We have been a house of sick lately.  I was sick with the flu for a week and then both CW and I came down with laryngitis.  Unfortunately Mr. Dina and Angus now have it, too, and they are struggling.  Only Rex seems immune.  I bet he scares the germs away.  :-)  We had a good time at the International Fair, though.  One of my favorite families from the school are Ethiopian and they remembered how much Rex likes the yellow pea dish, so they made that special so Rex would be able to enjoy his favorite.  Isn't that so sweet?  What a nice and generous gesture. 

Okay, that's all for now.  Still pinching myself over the win, cannot wait to give another sewing project a go, and now that I have a bit more time, I think I will be tackling a coat or jacket, which I have always wanted to sew up. 

Have a great night!

Made by Me File: Splatter Abstraction Simplicity 1590. Thank You, Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner.

UPDATE (10/18/14): I just found out the news, and I won the final week, which means I won the challenge!  Wow!  I was not expecting that result, to say that I am stunned is a bit of an understatement.  I am so excited, though, of course.  :-)  It was a great time, I learned so much during these six weeks, and my competition were truly amazing sewers and I am glad to say I have gained so many friends through this process.  Thank you to Fabric Mart for hosting the challenge, and thank you to all the judges for taking their time to look at our pieces.  Their feedback was so helpful for my sewing!

This is the last entry for the Fabric Mart Fashion Challenge!  I made it to the finals.  I really hoped to go far, but honestly, because I started as the "lowest" level sewer (advanced beginner--there were a lot more seasoned sewers in the competition--churning out amazing things every week), I expected to be auf'd sooner than not.  So to be here, right now, is very exciting!  :-)  I want to thank all of you who have so supportive of my creative endeavors of late, having your sweet words and nice comments definitely helped in all those moments when I was so tired I could barely keep my eyes open after a long day of sewing.

I haven't won one of the weeks, yet somehow still here, so I guess I was *just good enough* all those weeks to keep on keeping on, lol.  The final three do receive a prize, so yay!  I'll take bronze if that is what I end up being.  I'm cool!  :-)  (But wouldn't say no to a silver or gold, of course...)

Anyhow, here is my final entry, and because I want to go out with a bang (and take a big risk), I chose to create a blouse inspired by the art of Jackson Pollock, his wife Lee Krasner, and the era in which they both created their visions, the 40s and 50s. 

Before I start, the first five photos are done like I am in a magazine, but we were asked specifically to do so by the challenge (stage your outfit in a setting that will go with your vision...think of yourself as a model in a fashion spread), so understand that is why my mid-century Eames rolling chair (mine is the real deal that I was able to save from being trashed!) is perched at the edge of my driveway with the vista of the forest in the background.

Chicken Wings were so a *thing* in the 1940s.

I was asked four questions by Julie, and since my answers pretty much cover everything I would have said here anyhow, I will copy and paste those here.  :-)

Tell us what artwork, movement, etc. you chose and why you chose it. 

After reading what the last challenge was going to be, my brain *immediately* went to Jackson Pollock. I own some Liberty tana lawn called Melly that is very reminiscent of his famous "splatter" paint technique and thought I would use that at first to create a design from one of my Japanese dress books. But after doing some research on Jackson Pollock and reminding myself that the National Gallery of Art here in DC has one of his most famous works (that I also happen to LOVE) Number 1 Lavender Mist, I knew that I wanted to try painting my fabric myself, in colors I love, just like he did with his work. To see how he did his splatter paint technique, check out this link. I explain how I created my vision of his work in my fabric in the next questions below.

But he alone did not inspire me in my creation. I also read up on his wife, Lee Krasner, who also was a very successful, if less well known artist, in her own right. She was overshadowed by her husband, but her works also inspired me, as she, too, created works using a similar technique to Jackson Pollock.

The garment I decided to make is from the era of both of these artists and based on the portraits I saw of Lee Krasner, I could easily have seen her in a similar piece.

Bringing the blouse to 2014...

Then also tell us about your garment, why you created what you did and how you can use it in your life. 

I chose Simplicity 1590 which is a reprint of a blouse pattern from the 1940s.  It features a scoop neck, fitted waist, and a peplum hem. There is also a five button closure. I chose this pattern, as I mentioned above, because it looks to me like something a woman like Lee Krasner would have worn, and since I wanted to keep her as part of my inspiration, I was specifically looking for something from that era.

I also felt like the painting method used by Pollock would look good on a garment like this. I saw that other designers (recently, in fact) have used Pollock for inspiration in their collections (Dolce and Gabbana 2008, amongst others--AND Sportmax 2014--Rosario Dawson is wearing one of the dresses here).  Armed with the knowledge that I wasn't alone in my love of his unique art, I forged ahead, willing to take the risk.

I loved the idea of something so prim and ladylike being paired with something so messy and not prim. The disconnect makes this garment exciting to me.

I find it very wearable, but do look forward to washing it. You have to wait at least 72 hours before doing so, but based on how long it took to dry, I think I will wait a week and carefully handwash mine and line dry it.

I will be wearing it with jeans since it looks so cute that way, but maybe for a night out I will wear it as I did in my "editorial/magazine" photos.

Explain what fabrics you chose and why.

I chose handkerchief linen because I know linen is perfection for accepting paints and colors, so it was a no-brainer choice. I had *just* enough to make my garment with a little left over for experimenting on before I began the big painting job. After deciding on how I wanted to apply the paints--yellow, green, and turquoise were all applied in drips and gentle waves, while navy blue was applied more aggressively, I proceeded and when pleased with the results, I left the pieces to dry. It says four hours on the Tulip soft paint, but it took nearly twenty-four hours to get mine to dry fully.

(I need to point out that I needed to add water to the Tulip soft paint to get it to the correct viscosity for applying the paint the way Pollock did, in its regular form it is far too thick.)

I found that once dry, the pieces were easy to sew together, but the pressing process was very interesting and took me a long time since I didn't want to ruin all my hard work. :)

Include a photo of the inspiration too. 

I was inspired by this quote by Pollock, which allowed me to fully release and let go during the process of painting my fabric: “When I am in my painting, I’m not aware of what I’m doing. It is only after a sort of ‘get acquainted’ period that I see what I have been about. I have no fear of making changes, destroying the image, etc., because the painting has a life of its own. I try to let it come through. It is only when I lose contact with the painting that the result is a mess. Otherwise there is pure harmony, an easy give and take, and the painting comes out well.”

Jackson Pollock Art: Number 1 Lavender Mist (more amazing in real life, btw); Untitled 1951; Convergence

Lee Krasner Art: Shellflower--(an article, btw, which has a lot of info on Lee Krasner); Shattered Color

Okay, that's it for now.  Again, I am so grateful for all the support.  I am definitely worn out, but feeling great that I stayed the course and kept on keeping on.  :-)

Voting will be open tomorrow and I will update this post with a link if you feel *inspired* to vote for me.  ;-)  For now, here is a direct link to the Fabric Mart blog.

Made by Me Files: Preppy Roar! Fabric Mart Bundle Challenge (McCall's 6711 and Butterick 5922).

Before I begin this "made by me" file, Boden is continuing their mid-season sale (post I wrote was here), and from what I can see, the sale seems to be successful.  Neither of the items I am watching are sold out, so I may or may not participate.  They also started a "up to 30% off EXTRA off clearance items" this week, but because I have been so hyper-focused on getting better from my bout with the flu, sewing this project up, and the mid-season sale, I didn't even notice.  The extra 30% off prices are good, but only some items received that full percentage off.

Okay onto this week's Fabric Mart Fashion Challenge Sewing Competition entry, the Bundle Challenge.  A couple weeks ago I received a ten yard bundle from Fabric Mart (LOVE THEIR FABRIC BUNDLES, btw), and in the hyper-focus of trying to finish the challenge of that week (I believe it was the fit challenge with the sheath dress), I didn't even open it until I started the next challenge.  (Which was still too early, but I did abstain at least a week, normally those bundles are like candy for me--ooh, what pretty fabric has come my way this time that I get to play with and make something from?)

I received two amazing pieces of wool yardage, a white wool and a light tan/blue plaid.  I also received two pieces of knit fabric, a maroon horizontal rib knit and a "funky" crinkle animal print knit with a solid black nylon reverse.  In the package was also a piece of iridescent mint green poly, or possibly silk, can't tell from just looking at it (didn't have the time to fully investigate it since I knew it wouldn't play well with the others).  So I knew when Julie said to use four fabrics, I had my four ready to go.

When she mentioned a TWO-PIECE GARMENT, I was sort of "huh?"  I looked back at the bundle challenge from last year and the contestants in general made a two-piece outfit from their fabrics (coat/dress; top/skirt, etc.) but one made a three-piece outfit, and three made two-pieces that needed an additional garment from their own closet to fully create a look.  So I just went with what I think was the safest route and created a two-piece outfit with my four fabrics, using three for the top I created, and one for the pants.

The top is made from Butterick 5922, view A, with a collar, and with view B's long sleeves.

The pants are from McCall's 6711, which I chose specifically because they had pockets, a back zip, a waistband facing instead of a waistband, and would be easy enough to fully line in a blue cotton I had in my stash.

The top was sewn up in a size 10 at the neck, bust, and waist, with a *slight* grade out to a size 12 at the hips (only the very bottom couple of inches are the 12).  This shirt is shorter than a lot of sewing patterns out there, so for once I didn't have to shorten the top for my short torso self.  Yeah!  (Bear that in mind if you are a petite sewer!)

The pants were sewn in the size 14, whose crotch curve looked almost exactly like a pair of Burda shorts that I sewed up last summer.  These pants are meant to be more fitted, like a classic pair of cigarette trousers.  The model's are quite baggy on her, which I think is a combo of them being unlined, the fabric they used, and the fact that she is very thin and that the sample size they sewed up (probably a size 10, if what I have read of the big sewing companies is true) was too big on her.  Normally a 14 wouldn't work on me, but McCall's does run big, so I wasn't surprised, either.

Throughout this competition, no matter what Julie has given us, I knew that I would only want to sew up something I would wear again.  I have three little children, I sub in a school, and so my time is very limited for sewing.  I didn't *not* think I could make a look for me from the four fabrics, I just felt initially that it may not turn out enough like "me" to be wearable again by me.  I knew the pants would be fine, because plaid straight pants on a preppy person, well, lol, yeah, but the top, even with the cute collar?  Mmm.  That animal print had me worried.

Which is why although the above photo shows straight preppy...

The side starts to hint at something else less preppy...

And the back gives it to you straight up...

Yes, it is preppy with a roar.  Get it?  I know, I'll stop.  It looks fine.  Kind of a party in the back, business in front...I can dig it...and wear it again!

I didn't show you this picture so you all could stare at my butt.  Seriously!  I tucked the shirt in so you could see HOW PERFECTLY I lined up the plaid on the seams there.  It isn't that easy, really.  This fabric required me to spend TWO FULL hours cutting it out to ensure that all the seam notches and lines would match up (add to that the wool was a bit off grain in a few places, UGH double UGH).  I also spent a LONG time at the sewing machine after pinning the seams up very carefully (checking and rechecking that all the plaid lines were matching perfectly).  I used a walking foot, which ensured that my plaids did come out even, but I knew that if I put in the back invisible zip and the plaid didn't match up, my biggest asset (hardeehar) would look ridiculous in these pants.

And because I know how hard it is for me to find a pair of pants that actually and properly shows off my bottom, I am beyond stoked that I accomplished a pair of fitted pants, in a plaid wool, fully lined, just after getting over the flu.  Hallelujah! 

I do have plans to increase the thigh circumference on my next pair, since though 95% of the pants fit very well, the straight, horizontal lines there on the back (below the butt) signify a need for some extra room.  I have athletic thighs and slight saddlebags, so this doesn't surprise me.  From what I read, this is not a difficult thing to change on the pattern pieces.  Those lines, though, don't mean the pants don't feel great, they feel awesome on, and when sitting don't pinch, bind, or jab.  YAY!

*BTW, I am not going to be tucking tops into this pair of pants unless I am wearing a long suit jacket.  I specifically made these so I could wear tops untucked, which is why I specified I wanted a pair with no waistband so the waistband wouldn't irritate me when sitting down in them (my belly button is unnaturally high!).  I just HAD to show you all the awesome plaid matching, yeah!

**GREAT TUTORIAL ON PLAID MATCHING HERE.  

Pockets!  They are useable for me for my hands, but really too small for anything else.  If I make these again (probably, 'cause holla, they feel so good), I will likely make them a bit deeper and wider.

Fabrics all at once!

Front of the top is the horizontal rib knit.

Collar of the top is the white wool.

Back of the top is the crinkle animal print knit.

Sleeves of the top are the reverse black nylon from the animal print knit.

Pants are from the so soft gorgeous plaid wool (still at Fabric Mart--well at least it looks like the same fabric!).

I smile because I did it!  I felt so good and accomplished after getting it all done.  :-D

The top is very "Boden."  They have a ton of Peter Pan collar type tops and dresses, and have even done some colorblocked versions in the past, so after completing it, the smile was also because I had duplicated my favorite retailer so well!

Collar detail with button.

I know that if you want a pair of pants to last a long time, you make sure they are lined.  I chose to fully make this lining (waist to hem) and added it right before the waist facing was attached.  I hand sewed the lining to the zip for precision, and also hand sewed the facing to the zip.  It would be more "tidy" on the machine, but less precise.  I also hand tacked the facing to the lining in a few spots to keep it from flipping up (though the facing is properly understitched, etc.).

Front Detail of the facing and lining.

The lining is also very soft against my skin and during the winter will add an extra layer of warmth.  I could have used a poly lining, but there is something kind of luxurious to me about using a cotton with wool.  Normally I prefer silky linings in dresses and skirts (like a poly would provide), but I don't have to wear these pants with tights, so the "slippy" feel was unnecessary.  I just wanted comfort and softness.  They will also extend the life of the wool, which is important to me as I don't really want to make another pair of plaid pants for a long while.  ;-)

That's all for now. 

This is the second to last competition.  The only way I will make it is with your votes!  So PLEASE, with loads of yummy sugar on top *and a preppy ROOAARR*, would you all mind throwing me some votes your way if you are so inclined? 

Talk soon!  I should be back tomorrow with the Boden Spring 2015 preview picks post, so if you have a few items you just love from the preview, make sure you comment in tomorrow's post!

Made by Me File: Garnet Hill Knit Tiered Sundress...COPIED!

UPDATE (9/24/14): You can now vote for my creation, if you so desire, here at this blog post by Fabric Mart!  :-)  Thank you!!!

In June 2013 I decided to finance a Bernina machine from my local fabric store.  Eventually I decided on which machine would be my "forever" machine (it dang well better be!) and when I went to the stores to sign the papers, I was wearing one of my most favorite summer sundresses, the Garnet Hill Knit Tiered Sundress (which you can see on me here in this post--second to last photo).  As I was walking around waiting to get the paperwork in order, one of the managers there looked at my dress and said, "well, now I guess you can make yourself a version of that pretty dress with your new machine."  I just kind of chuckled, thinking he was putting WAY too much stock in my abilities as a sewer. 

Little did I know that eventually he would be right, but it took Fabric Mart's Fashion Challenge competition (third week, woo!) to make this dream a reality.  Because he was right, I *did* want another version of this dress since Garnet Hill no longer made them, and to get my hands on another version would mean my hands would actually have to do the work to construct it!

Here are the rules as stipulated by the competition:

Carrying out the Challenge - Did you successfully create a new garment using your favorite RTW garment as a pattern/guide? Don't forget to show us the original RTW garment!

Process Explanation - Did you explain to the viewers how you went about copying the RTW garment and making a brand-new handmade garment? You will need to create a post on your blog. (I will link your post up with our blog.)

Craftsmanship - Did you put a lot of care into the construction? Top-stitching straight, careful overall construction, etc.

Presentation - While we totally understand not everyone has a professional camera and the perfect backdrop for photographing their creations, (Me included!!) you are in front of a world of other sewers! Make yourself look presentable. Submit a photo of the front, back and side view of the garment, as well as a "presentation photo" (this should be the best photo!) Detail photos are also requested so we can be better judges. So if you do some embellishing or a specific technique, zoom in and share with us!

And here it is--my dupe of the Garnet Hill Knit Tiered Sundress!

I had not thought that I would actually physically make a copy of this dress from the actual dress I owned, but instead I had planned to use Butterick 5757 and Butterick 5653 to fake it.

It turns out there are a gazillion tutorials on how to make tiered skirts and dresses on the internet, but barring a few, most are for little children, which while adorable, will definitely not work for me in my current body shape.  ;-)

But in the end, and after (I think) 16 hours of work on this project, I am far happier with this result, since I suspect actually copying from the garment you love will yield a far better duplicate.

Now I own a nice paper copy of this pattern and can remake this one whenever I feel like I need another casual dressy summer sundress in my closet (and if you know anything about me, you know I LOVE a great sundress).

The one place I was most worried about as far as fit and construction were concerned was in the bodice.  I knew that I had patterned it according to all the various instructional videos/sites/tutorials I had seen out there, and I knew I had applied the binding to the neck as precisely as I could, but you never know until you actually get the garment on you completely finished.

The fit is really good.  If I have more time to fiddle with the serger next go round (I did this dress completely on the sewing machine), I think that could make for an even easier/more flexible fit, especially since the seams will be super-stretchy instead of "just stretchy enough."  I will still have to apply the neckline and strap binding on the machine, since I don't own a coverstitch machine, but that's okay.

I decided not to fiddle with the serger for this dress simply because I had already put nearly eight hours of work into patterning and cutting (I work slowly and very carefully, agh!), I knew I didn't really have the option of spending another hour trying out samples of this knit (a very lightweight knit from Fabric Mart called "Fuschia/Cherry/Multi Abstract Paint Daubs Burnout Knit") to get the right tension on the needles and loopers.

So speaking of this fabric, I am really glad I picked up nearly five yards of it from Fabric Mart when they had it on sale for $1.99 a yard.  I love this print and think its coloring suits me more than the original print in my original Garnet Hill sundress.  So for a grand total of eight hours sewing time (those gathered tiers take SO much time to sew) and $4 in fabric, I have a beautiful sundress that I (shh, don't tell Garnet Hill) love more than my original.

In order to make this garment, I needed to take a look on the inside of the original and make notes of what I saw so I could make the dress as close to the original as possible.  I didn't need to make alterations (though I did make mine a touch longer), so I did an exact copy from the original.

If you open up this photo in a new tab, you will see my notes on construction order and on the tier measurements.  My stepmom was the person who clued me into how to construct the actual tiers.  I knew that *most* tiered dresses and skirts are just a set of rectangles, but this dress had a very large difference between the top of the tier and the bottom of the tier, I just kind of figured the shape was more trapezoidal than rectangular.  My stepmom just showed me how very gathered each TOP of the tier was (to match the bottom of the tier/bodice above it) and that was why it seemed the bottom of each tier was so much wider than the top.  Aha!  Lightbulb.  After that I knew I could construct the garment, but I also had a *tiny* inkling of how much work it would be, since I don't have an industrial elastic gathering machine sitting in my house.  LOL.

Armed with HOW the tiers are rectangles, I set out to measure how wide each rectangle would be by using my flexible measuring tape on the bottom of each tier.  The top tier (below the bodice) on both sides was 9" long by 25" wide.  The top of that tier needed to be gathered to 17" to fit the bodice bottom.  The second tier (below the first tier) on both sides was 9" long by 36" wide.  The top of that tier would need to be gathered to 25" to fit the bottom of the first tier.  The last tier (below the second tier) on both sides was 9" long by (A WHOPPING) 60" wide.  The top of the last tier would have to be gathered to 36" to fit the bottom of the second tier. 

Yes, if you are doing the math, I had to gather over 240" of material.  Sigh.  That was when I decided traditional gathering was for the birds and decided I would at least try elastic gathering before I gave up and resorted to traditional gathering.  (Yes, the elastic gathering worked, thank goodness.)

I spent the majority of my patterning time on the bodice since this fit is so crucial.  You can kind of fudge the tiers a bit since there is so much material in all of those, but you can tell if a fitted bodice doesn't, you know, *fit.*

I was unsure if I was going to use my needle point tracing wheel (purchased when I was doing a pants patterning class last year) or if I was going to do the method Steffani Lincecum showed off in her Pattern Drafting from Ready to Wear class (involves a lot of pins).  I knew I didn't simply want to fold the bodice in half and trace around it, since I would personally worry that I would trace it too big, and one of the reasons I sew is so I can get garments that properly fit my very bony/narrow chest and neckline.  And since the neckline/chest area is one of the hardest to alter, I knew I couldn't afford that mistake.

I found using the needle point tracing wheel very accurate and very easy to use.  So while I plan on taking away *how* to pattern draft from RTW from Steffani Lincecum's class, I think the needle point tracing wheel will be how I actually get the proper shape to each pattern piece.

Do note that I did end up drafting the bodice pieces so they would be cut on the fold so I could have symmetry.  I also added a 1/2 inch seam allowance (just like that amount for me, and since it is my pattern for me, I get to call the shots).

BTW, that gridded paper plus the gridded cutting cardboard surface is amazing for getting exceedingly accurate measurements.  If you have any interest in patterning yourself, buy both, trust me.   (I got mine at G Street.  They have an amazing notions area, I feel fortunate they are just down the street.  If I had to rely solely on Joann's for notions, I would probably sob. Or get proactive and hunt down the best notions supplier on the internet.)

Like all bindings, these were made from rectangles, so I just took the measurement, added a half inch to either end for seam allowances and doubled the width measurement.  (I wanted a 22 inch piece for the shoulder straps with a 1 inch total shown binding.  1/2" is shown on the outside of the garment, the other 1/2" is on the interior of the garment.  The other 1 inch is folded under for stability--almost acts like a facing for the part of the binding shown on both the inside and outside.)  Since this was a knit garment, I did not cut these on the bias, instead choosing to cut on the cross grain, as is per usual when making bindings from knits.

After the long process of getting the pattern pieces ready (and checked for accuracy against the original garment), I was ready to lay out the pieces on the fabric.  The fabric was a little bit of a bear to lay out since it is so lightweight, but eventually I told it who was boss and it behaved.  (It involved a lot of pinning on my part.)

I then set to begin the stupidly long process of gathering each tier's top with elastic.  It isn't simply a matter of taking the elastic and putting it on the fabric and sewing it on with a zig-zag stitch.  Nope, it involves marking the elastic in equal bits and then matching those equal bits to the equal bits marked out on the tier itself.  And then the process of gently, yet firmly, ugh, tugging on the elastic while sewing it on the machine with the zigzag stitch.  Anyone out there who has a tutorial for this and is all, "ooh so easy you all" is a LIAR.  LOL.  Or maybe they had less gathering to do and didn't start cursing their choice after the first 200" of gathering.

But having said that, it was worth it since the elastic gathering made for very even results and did help give the dresses seams some stretch, even though I wasn't using the serger.  And since the fabric is so light, it gives the dress some heft where it needs it.

I wanted to ensure the binding was going to lie as flat as possible against my skin, so definitely pressed it until I was fairly certain that it would lie flat.  I also made sure to press the gathered seams up (I guess they could be pressed down but seemed to want to be pressed up, so that's what I did).

BTW, I like this tutorial by ikat bag and this tutorial by pattern scissors cloth for knitwear neckline binding.  They helped me better visualize what I needed to do on my dress to succeed.

By the time I tried the dress on Triple D (Dressmaker Dummy Dina), I was fairly sure I had a winner.  But I needed to get it on me and take photos of it and the original to be sure I had successfully accomplished my goal.

And here it is.  And I would say it does look an awful lot like the original.  Barring the extra length, the silhouette is the same, especially in the bodice *YEAH!*.  It is harder to see the gathered tiers in the darker print, but up close, the gathering is very obvious (you can look at it in the third photo from the top again, if you so choose).

What makes me kind of chuckle, though, is how my poses are nearly identical, too.  You must have a "set" place you like being, and I guess I am proof of that in these photos here.

Anyhow, that's all for tonight.  :-)  I am slowly winding down after a crazy weekend!  (Quick rundown--in-laws in town for my daughter's sixth birthday party; finishing the Elsa costume for my daughter for that same birthday party; going to one of my son's baseball games, and of course working on my duplicate dress for this contest.  I will sleep well tonight!)

P.S. Tomorrow I am hosting a pretty big giveaway, which is being done in conjunction with a review/ootd.  If you are a fan of Boden, definitely make sure you stop by.  ;-)

Made by Me File: Burda 7137. Again. Focused on Fit.

So last week after receiving the news that I had made it through to challenge #2 in the Fabric Mart Fashion Challenge sewing competition, I was all at once excited and a little nervous.  As you saw from yesterday's post I was in Cleveland from Saturday to Monday, which also coincided with most of the time I had to sew up the item for challenge #2.  Yikes. 

Well to combat some of that, I decided to do a WHOLE lot of sewing on Friday to get ready for the weekend, bring a lot of supplies, extra fabric, and my sewing machine to Cleveland so I could sew more on Sunday, and then on Monday I hand-sewed quite a bit of the project on our way home.  It is surprising how quickly a drive can go when hand-sewing, by the way.  I highly recommend it to stave off some of the boredom of long drives.  On Tuesday (so yesterday), I finished off the minor details and the hemming.  And then I took a gazillion photos of the project. 

I chose Burda 7137 because I knew that even though it had been a winner the last time I made it up, I wanted to challenge myself to make it look as good in a non-printed fabric that was also non-stretch.  One of the parts of this challenge is to make a garment in a solid since solid fabrics more easily show fit issues (in the form of drag lines, wrinkles, etc.).  So even though the version I made back in March looks like it fits very well, I had to see for myself in a proper solid fabric.  And guess what?  It did need some extra finagling with the pattern to make it fit well, even though I had made a lot of changes to the pattern in March!  Guess I know now that printed stretch fabrics can hide things better than I originally thought.

And here it is...my entry this week for the "fit" challenge.

I may be smiling in that first photo, but oh man, there were a few times this weekend where I was like, "why in the H-E-Double Hockey Sticks am I doing this to myself?"  :-)  It is mainly because of the fabric I chose, which is a very pretty wool gabardine in a pine green shade with a lovely hand.  Although the end result is awesome, pressing* and working with this fabric on the sewing machine was a bit of a bear.  Turns out that wool gabardine is notorious for being difficult to work with, and it takes a lot of patience to get good results.  Good thing I had all that time this weekend. Ha. 

*The smell of wool after being pressed reminded me of my grandmother's clothing, they must have used a lot of wool in clothing back then.  Although wool is used a lot nowadays, it is not as common, and is usually a blend.  Hmm.  All that said, I loved the smell!!!

But I perservered, set in those danged sleeves as carefully as I could (that is the #1 complaint about wool gabardine, just how hard setting sleeves in with it is) and now have a dress that is just perfection for a multitude of occasions. 

Wool gabardine also shows wrinkles and drag lines easier than other fabrics, too.  Although I do have a few minor fit wrinkles and lines (also in the next photo), those are very easy tweaks that I can implement on my third Burda 7137 (let's give a few months, though, lol).

On the bodice, I need to make a small bust adjustment since the fit is a bit big through there on me. 

Having said that, the rest of the bodice fits perfectly, especially through the neckline and the waist.  To make sure the neckline fit well, though, I deepened the back neckline darts since on my first version it was fairly apparent it was too big back there for me.  It made a huge difference on how the neckline fit, and I am glad I did that to this one.

On the back, I do need to make a *slight* and I mean tiny sway back adjustment. 

Above you see one thing I did to give this dress a bit of "bling."  I added some vintage-looking buttons to the top of the sleeve vent.  I think it was just the right amount of *something something* that this very classic sheath dress design needs.  I found them at G Street fabrics on Friday, it took nearly twenty minutes to decide which ones I wanted, but these eventually came home with me.  And for $3, too!

To make sure that my non-woven fabric and my very curvy hips got along, I adjusted (my already adjusted) pattern to include an additional 1/2 inch at the side seams, making sure to properly grade out from the waist to keep the proper curve of the dress skirt. 

I now have two versions of this pattern--the one that can be used with stretchier wovens, and this new one that can be used with non-stretch fabrics.  Woo! 

Here are my favorite "hidden" details of this dress. 

I didn't have my Bernina feet with me on my trip (way too heavy of a machine to travel with), but I did have my older Brother, and while it has no specific feet for edgestitching, I was still able to get very nice top-stitching at the neckline.  I just had to go slowly and carefully. 

The button is a similar color, but it is hard to tell in that photo since the light was a bit bad there.  The button is very pretty, though, and the cool design is sparkly, which you can see a bit off from far away.  The button detail definitely gives this already retro-looking dress even more of that vintage feel. 

The lined interior was machine-stitched to the fabric, but the lining was hand-stitched to the zip by me in the car on the ride home.  I think it took an hour!  Phew.

For the people who read this blog for the "personal style" stuff, you will appreciate how good this dress is for all those accessories that need a more plain foil as a base. The plain fabric and slender silhouette really let the necklace and belt and shoes shine.

I didn't set out to make an office appropriate outfit, but this dress is very "conservative" office-friendly.  Heck, with nylons (yeah, I know!) I could have worn this very dress all those years ago when I worked on Capitol Hill. 

It is also perfection for subbing at the Catholic school I sub at (and my kids go to) since their dress code is very modest. 

But my original intent in making this dress?  Something I could wear to Christmas festivities, since the pine green is a classic Christmas color! 

Okay, that's all for now.  Of course I know that all of you REALLY want to vote for me, so here is the place you can do that.  ;-) 

I do want to give a big old shout-out to the ladies in the competition!  You all really brought it this week.  I love seeing what everyone did--from the casual basics to the dressy and formal to the solidly classic (I think my dress falls in that category). 

Boden Weekly Review Roundup: Pewter Low Heeled Loafer Times Two Outfits.

Okay, hope all is well for everyone out there!  :-)  As you know by now, Boden started their "diminishing" discount sale on Sunday, which this season is for 20% off (which will start after you have more than $50 in your basket, though) for four days, followed by the current/normal 15% off on Thursday.  So, basically, buy now, lol.  I wrote more on the sale here at this blog post.

Some of you all are probably curious as to what I made up for the first challenge of the Fabric Mart Fashion Challenge, and while I am not ready to write up the full blog post, I am ready to show off what I made as part of the outfits that include the low heeled loafers, which are my "main" review this review roundup.  So I guess this is a sneak peek.

Alrighty, let's get onto the roundup!

Regular Boden:

Low Heeled Loafer.  Size 41.  I was so sure (especially with my bad luck with Boden shoe sizing) that I would have to send this back for the size 40.  But after receiving them and trying them on, I found that although they were a touch wide and long, the size 40 would have been too short on my foot, so I was pleased that the sizing gods had smiled down upon me with this purchase.

I have already written up one review of these, back here at this roundup, but you haven't seen them in action yet, of course.

I was thrilled that they worked so nicely with my "outfits" for the Fashion Challenge sewing competition that I photographed yesterday.  I needed something dressy, but not *too* dressy, something closed toe, and whose heel was low enough to work with leggings.  Yeah!  These are exactly right!  The "tee" in the above photo is actually a tunic made from a pattern that all of us competitors received and were expected to alter, embellish, and change to suit our needs, but also be something unexpected.  Nothing about the above is earth-shattering, but it is a tunic tucked into a skirt, so it ends up looking like a tee.  :)  There's more below in the next photos.

Back view.  You can see here that the shoes are not high at all, maybe 1.5" in total.  Very comfortable.  Since the construction is all leather (barring a manmade bit on the sole for traction), they feel lovely on the feet.  Boden's all leather shoes have done me in...now I don't even bother with anything but leather, now that I know the difference.  I wish I had known more what to wear on my feet when I was younger!

The back view of the tunic is the biggest surprise of the changed "tee."  I added a working henley button placket to the back of the tunic for visual interest on a very solid looking back.  The fabric on the back is actually a pinstripe but reads light grey from far away, so the visual interest helps break it up.  The sleeves are also from the front fabric for the same reason.  I could have just made a faux placket, but I wanted to learn how to do the henley placket, so I just gave myself some extra caffeine, and got on with making the real deal.

The pewter color of the shoes are exactly the right amount of shine for me.  Too shiny and I won't wear it, but a bit burnished-looking and I will.  The color of this on-line is not very accurate.  It only looks that bright and shiny in direct bright light and with a bright white background.  It reminds me more of this kind of pewter used in drinking vessels of the 18th-century in colonial Virginia.

The Grainline scout "tee" pattern was a lot of fun to work on over the past few days (and I used all the time I had to make it work exactly right for me and for the competition), and voting on it starts tomorrow over here at the Fabric Mart blog.  I will make sure to write up the process in a special "made by me" blog post tomorrow, so if this sort of thing interests you, make sure to check it out.  And hey, the tunic does look very "Boden," right?  :-D


Low Heeled Loafer.  Lots of women are feeling the love for these shoes.  Many sizes are on deep backorder.  20% off is a decent price for what you receive.  Like always, every loafer purchase I have made from them has been perfect, and they are all still in my closet, worn often throughout the year.


Must Have Tunic.  In addition to announcing the Diminishing Discount sale on Sunday, I made sure to include a quickie written review (and one photo) of this tunic there.


Cambridge Skirt.  Lou reviewed this lovely skirt for us here.  She also wore it as part of a really cute dressy casual outfit here.


Breton Top.  Avril wears hers under the most fabulous coral coat.  Yum, love that coat!!!  But, yes, the Breton is lovely, too, lol.  ;-)  *The photo link goes to the summer version.  I can't find the winter version at the affiliate program.  Grr.*

Hartland Dress.  Though this is not yet available (it is a winter item--set to roll out the end of this month), Anna wrote up a review of the one she received.  (I received my Sophia dress early, too, so this is not unprecedented, just kinda weird, lol.)

My Hartland Dress arrived. I love it, or rather I will after some minor revisions. I'm 5'5 and ordered it in long since so many dresses were running too short for my taste last year, but it ended up being too long just below the knee looking a bit dowdy, so I may end up exchanging or just shortening it myself. Overall the dress runs a bit large, though I'm very much in between sizes right now so maybe that's the issue. I ordered my usual size and will keep it, but a size smaller may have worked too. Finally, I may exchange for a different color, I got "green" which is khaki with brown and yellow details, very nice in general and would be cute for fall with browns and blacks, but I haven't decided if I like it on me or not. Unfortunately I can't find any pictures of the dress online anymore, it was part of the winter preview and seems gone from the internet. If anybody knows where to find stock pictures of this dress in different colors please let me know! But overall I really like it, it has a figure skimming relaxed fit, nice patch pockets, is made of soft mid-weight corduroy with lining, and the squirrels are so fun. I'll longingly wait for Boden to re-release this dress on their website so I can decide whether to exchange for a different color, a shorter version, or just hang on to the one I have and just shorten it myself. This dress makes me look forward to fall!

Clearance Boden:

Lovely Linen Dress.  Wore this out to church a while ago, and included it in a blog post here.


Santorini Sundress.  Wore this out with my daughter to get our haircuts.  Blog post is here.


Summer Sandals.  Keilexandra wrote up a review for us at the Boden Reviews tab:

I ordered the Summer Sandals (Johnnie B) because I loved the color and they came in my size (Boden, why no women's shoes in size 35?!). The color was as described, but unfortunately the fit was very narrow (I often have trouble with Euro size 35 fitting too wide, but this felt like a narrow-ish US size 5) and the sole was completely flat. I also didn't have much confidence in the very thin suede back strap holding up to repeated use, since there's no buckle and you just have to stretch it.

Thanks, as always, to my awesome blog friends for their great reviews!

Okay, all, that's it for today.  Hope everyone has a wonderful Tuesday.  Happy (sale) shopping!