Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Baby steps ...

The flannel was cut out but I haven't gotten any further yet. Have to get going on that as the temps went below zero last night for the second night in a row. I have too many things on the go. I need to paint, I need to sew, I need to clean my house ... Today, I sew the flannel and see how it fits. Maybe even get the thermal layer cut out if the flannel is OK.

I am using a lining windlboc fleece from Malden Mills that I bought from wazoodle. This is a nice compact liner that will help keep me warm until it gets really cold! I am going to overlap the seams as opposed to using the regular seaming techinique. This was recommended in Threads. I may even try to flatlock on my serger with some scraps. Will have to see ...

The absentee husband called last night with details about his grad weekend in June. Garden Party followed by formal dinner. I have the garden party dress already planned, but am stumped by the formal. I am unhappy with the fit of the present fromals in the closet and want a new one. I am thinking of the Hot Patterns Bollywood Dress. I am trying to think if this would suit my figure ... I am trying to channel Nick and Stacy, here but they are silent today.

Here is my thought process ... the bodice would be great due to the neckline. The underbust gathers I think would be OK, but am not sure of the waistline gathers. Definitely no tulle underskirt! I also think I would need to lengthen the skirt to fit my height. The fullness should balance my bustline, right? But those gathers worry me under the waistband. I don't want another dress that looks OK, I want a great dress to WOW him after being away for a year!

The garden party will be one of two dresses. As it will be end June/early July and humid, I am thinking a lightweight silk. I have a nice floral silk chiffon and a nice rayon lining for comfort. The most probable dress will be this dress if I have enough fabric for the bias skirt layout:
New Look 6244

The other option is this Marfy.
Marfy 9450
It has some beautiful dart work at the waist that I think would be a challenge for me to sew but the results would be lovely! The only thing is that I think a print would hide the detailing. This would require me to shop for fabric ... not a bad thing, in itself! The challenge would be finding the right fabric in the right weight for this. It sure is fun thinking about summer dresses when the temps are falling outside!

2 comments:

  1. OK that Marfy I have been drooling over for too long so it gets my nod but the other presents fewer technical fitting issues. I don't think you and I are built for Bollywood at this point in our lives but you better than I, should it come to that. What fun! A party dress!!

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  2. I wasn't sure about the Bollywood dress when I saw Mickeyfan's review of it. She is so tiny and I am so NOT! I spent some time talking to Trudy, though and after seeing me in the Patchoulli dress, she thinks that the Bollywood would be OK with some mods. She actually initially said that it was not a good one for me based purely on my measurements. But once she saw me in the Patchoulli photo, she changed her mind.

    Like in the Patchoulli, the bodice "mount"/lining is quite fitted with darts rather than the gathers. She recommended that I do the same with the Bollywood, use the mount rather than the actual bodice pieces. I would also have to lengthen the skirt as anything above my knees is not advised for public consumption! As for the lunging back, I would change that a bit to allow for my bra. I have a really good strapless for evening wear, so the girls will be happy.

    I think that if I choose the fabric correctly so that the skrt drapes nicely in the gathers, that I can pull it off. Of course, I will make many muslins to get that right before I even buy the fabric! And I will give myself lots of time to change my mind and make soemthing els! That is why I am looking around now ...

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