Good Spread...and Colette Crepe Update!

Firstly...peanut buttery goodness.  This cause is near and dear to my heart as you well know, and I love ingenuity and creativity, as you also well know.

In a nutshell (hehe, peanut butter humor), these two reasonably handsome fellas have developed a peanut butter recipe that sounds amazing but more importantly is part of a much grander scheme to fight acute malnutrition with the help of MANA Nutrition.  If they can get their factory up and running next week, they'll be in a position to donate a packet of MANA nutrition for every Good Spread peanut butter sold.

Go. Donate. Spread. Eat. 

The Colette Crepe is coming along...the bodice is together (waiting on ties, I'm still digging through supplies looking for that blasted stripey ribbon) and I think I can finish it today. I hope so! It's going to be too cold to wear it if I don't get my tail in gear!

(I need a new steam iron. Ugh.)

I also have a stack of projects lined up behind this one and I'm itching to get crackin on a couple of them.

Like trying out these Juniper trousers also from Colette:

 

 

Or the super sweet and very retro Anise jacket:

And to quote the indomitable Tim Gunn...Carry on.

Saturday Projects...

Favorite pin this morning:

source

It's vintage, long sold (via Etsy) AND it's suede, not one of my faves to wear.  BUT...can't you see it in linen with self-fabric bias trim instead of the "macrame" stitching??

Idea file, people!!  This is going in the "to make" pile.  Because...it's awesome.

But not today. Today I'm going to be blasphemously cutting into a vintage baby slip that has beautiful eyelet trimmings and the tiniest handstitched tucks you've ever seen, and is of the softest white cotton ever. 

 

The "fancy band" portion of the skirt is gorgeous.  All of that beautiful work, tucked away in a trunk or closet, never to be seen again seems rather pointless and sad.  So I'm going to make something new out of it. 

All of you vintage clothing purists out there should probably avert your eyes. If it makes you feel any better I only gave about seven bucks for it at a flea market years ago.  

I have another vintage piece that I'm trying to figure out how to use too, a beautiful lace and batiste slip.  It's frothy and awesome.  The waist measurement is approximately the same as my right thigh.  So, skirt refashion isn't in the cards.  

But possibly a top of some sort?  Or use the elaborate pieces of insertion and tucking and batiste in a new garment?  There are repairs to be made if I intend to use it "as-is".  Nothing for my bottom half would work, even if my waist suddenly shrunk to the size of my right thigh, we're talking about a 100 year old piece of fabric and lace...it would never withhold sitting and friction.  But a top...that might work.  

If I never, ever wash and dry it.  ha.  Handwashing. Dry flat. Forever.  

But first...baby slip cutting-up-ness needs to commence.   Wish me luck.

New project: Shorts

Time for a new project!  Since it's summer (90s this week!  Ouch.) I thought a pair of cute, well fitting shorts were in order.  I have a couple Simplicity patterns I'd like to try:

Simplicity 2654

Simplicity 2896

And I also have the new Colette Iris pattern.  This yellow version on the Colette website is so cute with the button trim!

I'll be using some cute black & white 1/8 gingham in the stash:

I had thought I would get to a muslin today but instead I painted the living room trim.  All day.  I'm too tired to muslin shorts now, (and I still have 2 window sills to go!)

Tomorrow I'm going to repaint the living room this pretty "Stormy Cove" blue grey:

It probably seems backward to do the trim first, huh?  I hate painting trim.  I don't mind the walls so much, but TRIM.  Ugh.  So I got it out of the way first, that way I can't back out. ;)

SUMMER.  Loverly Summer.

Simplicity 1800: Pt 2

I've made progress on my dress from Simplicity 1800:

But I'm stuck at a really silly point...finishing the neckline and hems.  The neckline is very pretty though.
 

My quandry is, the front bodice is supposed to be LINED.  Just the bodice, not the sleeve portion, and that lining finishes the upper edge.  But then there are front and back facing pieces also (to finish the arms/shoulder and the back neck).

The pattern pieces aren't marked to cut a lining, and I didn't decipher that from the cutting layout either.  Which means, I didn't cut a lining and now I don't have enough fabric to do one.  Not to mention the dress is put together WAY past the point of where I should have lined the front bodice.  Hmpho, as Beangirl would say.

Here's what happened.   I'm noodling along, sewing up this dress at a fine pace, it's looking like it will fit, it's sunny, the winds are calm, all is smooth sailing (which should have been my FIRST CLUE) and then WHAMMO.  I'm ready to sew the facings on.  And the "front facing" clearly ISN'T MATCHING.  I was pretty baffled, because I had cut out the silly thing very carefully (also not normal) and marked every dot and cut every notch (ditto).

I dug through the directions, looking for my goof.  Twice. FINALLY I ran across it, where a brief statement mentions lining the bodice.  Granted, I didn't sew step by step with the directions because they're all split apart into varying sections (depending on what view you're making) and I find those sort of directions really disjointed and confusing.

But I did gaze at them and flip through them for anything major before I started.

Rats.

At this point I'm not sure how to finish the neck.  I'm considering drafting my own facing.  I don't have anything suitable to line with and I don't really want to anyway.  Not the whole bodice and sleeves.  Bias binding?  Facing?  Anyone?

Moving on to the skirt...I didn't pleat the skirt (the maternity comment scared me on the last progress post), I chose instead to do a small amount of gathering between the notches for the pleats.  I really like how it turned out:

That pin sticking out of the bodice is where i need to take up the princess seam just a bit, about 1/4 inch at the fullest part.  I probably could have gone down a pattern cup size.

On that note...I used my high bust measurement and regular bra cup size for the front, and then a larger size for the back (because I have the dreaded broad back. Ugh. Shut it, Beangirl.)  It fit right out of the box, no alterations except for that tiny bit that *could* be removed.  In a different fabric, one that's thicker or weightier (like a ponte) I don't think I would remove any at all.  In this drapey rayon, I think it will lie better if I stitch it a little closer. 

Count me a fan of the multi-cup size patterns now!  The side seams could also be taken up about an inch on each side, but that's because I didn't realize there were 1" seam allowances built in.  And I cut about 1/4 outside of that for "insurance"!  That's another time it would have paid to read the directions, huh?

So it's just going to be a bit baggy and comfortable.  Not a fitted, Va-Va-voom dress.  Not that I was going for that.  Ahem.

Anywho. As soon as I figure out a solution to this neckline dilemma, I'll have a cute new summer dress to wear.  One that is more "comfort" than "style" but I think I can adjust the pattern to be a bit more fitted and flattering on the next one, so all is not lost!

If I change anything, it will be to lower the bodice to more "at the waist" (it is definitely an empire waist) and raise the neckline about an inch.

Oh!  There is also a goof in the directions.  At one point it tells you to sew the two-piece sleeves (I think it was the sleeves) Wrong Sides together.  Oops, Simplicity! 

Simplicity 1800: In Progress

I'm pretty enamored with this pattern right now:

I love the multi-cup sizing (need to lay it out over my "sloper" and see what the differences are) and I LOVE the neckline.  So cute! 

I love the deep pockets and the cute skirt and the sleeve options...(cough*Kristine*cough  SLEEVES.)

It seems no one on the internets has made this one up yet.  Guess I'll go in blind!

I have several cotton lawns and shirtings stashed. I'm guessing the lawns are too light.  I have this rayon burnout-y blend too:

It was a steal at $1/yard several years ago.  It's probably appropriately aged now.

Of course all of this is probably moot until the weekend, when I have a nice stretch of time to get started.  But a girl can dream.

That's a Lotto Pleats

Well, rats.  No winning here.  Not that I expected there to be (since I forgot to stop and buy a ticket after work).  But there was one in Baltimore county, MD!   Which has me humming along to this all morning...





(And there was a winner in Illinois, but they don't have a catchy retro tune.  Do they?)

Well, maybe the winner is a follower and will buy me that beach house anyway.  ahem.

Meanwhile, it's Saturday!  I have buttonholes to sew and a new project to cut out.  I pinned this dress this week and it is fantastic:

 source

The color is gorgeous.  LOVE the tiny pleats on the skirt and the tailored sleeve.  Looks a LOT like this doesn't it?

Which is my favorite Chuck dress of all time!  This collar/neckline is better suited to me (I might be too old for peter pan collars? Nahhhh.)

I have had this pattern (vintage Simplicity 3039) in my stash for a while now:

 And I still have that bold royal blue dotted swiss too:

That combo would be like....

And bonus, if I get the dress all nicely fitted (should be easy since I've been playing around with a "sloper" I made from another project bodice) then I can use that hot pink Imperial broadcloth I bought last year to make Chuck's dress too.

Good plan, right?

The Muppets Dress: Vogue 9668

So I've spent the past 2 days working on my Amy Adams-inspired Muppets dress.  And....here's where I'm leaving off on this one for a while.  Complete with crappy early morning indoor photo:

Looks great pinned on the dressform, even before sleeves and lining, right?  And it looks beautiful IF I don't zip it up all the way.  It's too tight!  Ack. 

I ended up using this Vogue 9668 pattern, as I mentioned before:

I cut my high bust measurement and added a 1" FBA and it fit REALLY well through the front.  And that neckline!  So flattering.

This seersucker fabric is beautiful! (The fabric for this project was provided by Online Fabric Store).  It has a lovely drape and is lightweight and perfect for summer.  I love the color too... a deep brown and white stripe.  I'll definitely be purchasing more of this, in some of the other colors.

Back to my too-tight dress.  I did do a tissue fit, which seemed perfect.  I tried sewing smaller side seams but it I needed MORE ROOM.  I have no idea what happened.  Unless, as Kristine mentioned yesterday when I was whining, I made a cutting error.

Too late now!  Well...not entirely too late.  If you look closely in the bodice photo, I tried adding a horizontal striped "gusset" (a'la this helpful article on Threads).  I decided to do a full-length strip, because I was hoping it would look like a design element.

Meh.  Right now it looks like the dress was too tight and I added a couple of contrasting strips of fabric.

But maybe I'm too close. In any case, I'm setting this project aside while I mull it over and gain some distance.  (Good news...the invisible zipper was PERFECT.  Of course.)

Moving on to a new project...which I haven't picked out yet!  I'll keep you posted!

In Progress: The Muppets Dress Pt 3

What a lovely, lazy weekend!  It rained mostly, so I stayed in and did warm snuggly crafty things.  And napped.  I might have napped.

First up, dress progress:  I played with pattern adjustments, worried about losing the entire vintage pattern in the process, and realized something super obvious:  I already have a pattern EXTREMELY close to the inspiration dress in my stash!  In the words of Homer, Doh.

Inspiration Dress:

And...Vogue  9668:

Here's the line drawing:

And the sleeves from Vogue 8554 are also a perfect tulip match (the dress is cute too):

So at this point, I'm trying to decide whether I want to do more tweaks to my New York pattern tissue, or start from scratch with the Vogue.  I'm leaning toward trying the Vogue.  I love the neckline and the midriff band, and the circle skirt is already present.  And the sleeves!  I'll use those sleeves regardless.

I did pre-wash my seersucker fabric though!  In case you're just joining me, I have the stripe in Espresso:

Now it's Monday again and back to work!  But I have Spring Break next week, so my plan is to make real progress.

I leave you with the cutest pincushion ever:

Isn't it awesome in it's tiny bird basket glory?  And my flower head pins look so happy here.  I got it from Beth's Bagz on etsy.  It was REALLY hard to pick just one, but I love birds, and the little basket won (over a poodle who was seriously calling my name). 

Happy  monday!

In Progress: The Muppets Dress Pt 2

Quick update on my vintage seersucker dress!

This weekend I was able to grade up my pattern piece and muslin the bodice.   I started out with a pattern size of 34" but I need a 38" bust (with a 1-1/2" FBA).

I usually use the pivot/slide method of grading, but since I needed to add more than 2 inches to the full bust, I did this in increments. I added a 1" pivot/slide adjustment and then used that pattern piece to add another 1" pivot slide.  This isn't technically the correct way...and an incremental slash/spread would probably be better.

The pivot/slide is pretty quick, and that quickness seduced me. 

Long story short...after grading up 2", I decided to go ahead and do an FBA to add a bust dart.  I decided not to rotate this into the front bust gathers, because I usually get a much better fit with a bust dart.

And here's what we end up with...

 

Can't see much, huh??  Well, you could click the photo and see it larger.  It's not huge, but you can definitely see more detail.  I guess I should have chosen a solid for my muslin fabric, huh??  The darts ARE on the outside.  I typically sew them on the "right side" so I can see changes better, when I do a muslin.

Here's a closeup of the midriff band:

That's a crease in the center of the midriff, not a seam.  I didn't bother pressing anything at this point.

And here's my goof, the neckline/center front ruching:

That's a fairly high neckline, huh?  I was confused at first.  Here's the pattern envelope again:

Being a 1940s pattern, the tissue is unmarked.  I've used lots of unmarked vintage patterns before; once you get the hang of "reading" the dots and perforations, it's pretty simply.  Where I goofed was not realizing some of those dots on the bodice piece were placement dots to cut the square neckline.  Whoops.

Once I figured that out, it looks pretty good though.  The neckline is higher than I expected, even considering I was doing the more "modest" view. 

As for fit...it's close.  The back is a smidge too tight, so I'll be doing a broad back adjustment (sigh).  The bust, armscye and back neck all need lowering by about 3/4".  Pivoting/Sliding doesn't change the shoulder height of a pattern, so before I lower anything or add to the bottom anywhere, I'm going to add 1/2 to 3/4" to the shoulder and re-do a quick muslin.  That may solve all my fit issues right there! (And had I graded it "correctly" to begin with, I would have added that height anyway). 

Obviously I'm cheating again by just adding in that one place (lazy!) BUT in my defense, since I typically petite bodices anyway, I will probably find success just adding to the shoulder seam.  If I added that incrementally throughout the bodice, I would likely end up with too much length in some places.

A parting shot...still terribly hard to see anything.  Muslin Two to come later this week! 

In Progress: The Muppets Seersucker Dress

A few weeks ago the very sweet Lisa from Online Fabric Shop emailed and asked if I might be interested in doing a blog project with them.  Of course any time someone wants to send me pretty fabric (with a hefty dose of blogflattery) I'm in!

I was asked to choose a piece from the new Robert Kaufman seersucker fabric line (which you can view here).  I chose this one, the Espresso stripe:

Probably not what you expected from me, huh?  I'm branching out.  Ha.  I love seersucker, especially in warm weather.  And as much as I love bright, summery colors, I thought the deep brown and white of the Espresso colorway was a little more sophisticated than the bright turquoise or lime that originally caught my eye.

Although I reserve the right to use bright turquoise or lime or hot pink seersucker in the near future.

The fabric arrived about 10 days ago and since then I've been poring over my vintage patterns and Modcloth and Etsy and Flickr and Pinterest... well, you get the picture.

My criteria was...

• I want to make a dress
• Vintage pattern or vintage styled
• Fitted bodice, fuller skirt (i.e. not pencil, but gathered, a-line or circle are all fine)
• Plays well with Stripes
• Interesting detail.  Vague, no?  Usually a vintage pattern has some amazing detail that "makes" a basic dress pattern special.  Pleats, tucks, trim, rick-rack, flounce, embroidery, tabs, button detailing, interesting gathered treatment...  

Ok.  So...  These four dresses were favorited and gazed at enough to save the images:

Modcloth

Erin, Dress a Day

Anthro?

Stop Staring

 And that last one.  Wowza.  It has all the features I'm looking for...striped seersucker inspiration already in place for visualizing the finished product (heh), fabulous "interesting detail" in the form of gorgeous bodice, piping, buttons.  Bonus features: V-neckline, good for busty folk, AND midriff band, good for those of us who need the illusion of a smaller midsection.

The slim skirt, while adorable and ooh-la-la was not for this particular project, so I envisioned it with an a-line or circle skirt.  And immediately remembered this:

Oh dear vintagey Muppets wardrobe, how could I forget you??  This dress has been in my mind's "to-do" list since last spring when I first spotted pictures of it online!  And it's simply perfect.  I spent a great deal of time last summer trying to find a pattern to knock it off too.

I never did find a pattern that has ALL the features of this gorgeous dress, but New Look 6886 has a similar feel in View A, gathered front bodice, cap sleeve (the original has a tulip sleeve), and circle skirt:

 Not crazy about the angle of the cap sleeve though, I can see bra-strap issues.

`Then I found this vintage New York 662 on ebay (terrible photo, but apparently it's NOWHERE online):

 The bodice is correct, and I even get the addition of my flattering midriff band.  I like the square neckline, but a "sweetheart" modification would be easy to alter too, like the original Muppets dress.  The sleeve would be easy to adjust to tulip.  And the skirt could be swapped out for a circle skirt (from the NL pattern!)  I think we have a winner!

Downside is grading the vintage pattern to fit, but that's just boring "work", not an impossible task.

So that's where we are today...grading up this vintage New York pattern bodice, and slamming together a quick muslin.  I'm not very excited about the grading part, but I'm excited about everything else!

Stay tuned. :)

Sunday Shenanigans

We had a long weekend (no school on Friday!) and I did a whole lotta not much.  Well besides laundry, vacuuming and general house tidying.  And watching a dozen episodes of this:

And muslin-ing!  I stitched up the bodice of Colette Crepe (after altering for an FBA):

The muslin looks fairly perfect, so now I need to cut it out of real fabric.  My plan is to have one of this dark royal blue dotted swiss:

And then I really want another one to knock off this sweet dress that Amy Adams wore in the final scenes of "Leap Year":

I think her's is a lightweight chambray, but I picked out this lavender-grey lightweight shirting from Fashion Fabrics Club:

Both fabrics are prewashed and dried and ready for cutting (my least favorite part).  I do need to pick up a stripe ribbon for the Amy Adams knockoff dress though.  Too many stripes?  Nah. Surely not (that's what I really love about that dress anyway, the boldly striped ribbon belt).  Mine will wrap in back like the Crepe, rather than the front like the AA dress.   I guess I'm really just knocking off that stripey belt, huh?

I discovered something interesting about the Crepe bodice front...I think it's basically identical to the bodice of the Pastille dress in the Colette Sewing Handbook:

The pattern pieces appear to be the same in the important areas (darts, cap sleeve). This is cool for a couple of reasons...for one, it saves me work muslining the book bodice!  Second, I can swap out skirts and bodice back from the book with the sweet necklines of the Crepe.  More dresses in one!

And now I leave you with the fruits of my free day Friday: Polyvore sets aplenty.  Sadly...no new OUAT tonight.  More Polyvore to pass the time?

Emerald Isle

Sun & Sky

Eastern Influence

Lunch at Coral Gables

Wisteria

Aqua Sunrise

Once Upon a Time: Ruby