Challenge complete ... Almost

Last night I managed to get the skirt to the point of only needing hemming and the zipper put into the CB seam. The zip goes up into the waistband, so that had to go on last night. As I am using an invisible zip, I left the CB seam open in order to be able to put it in on the flat. Much easier, IMO. The contrast flounce and waistband looks really sharp. I am really glad that I went with the contrast there.

The contrast tweed is really nice to work with, but is a looser weave than I thought it was. Hindsight says that maybe I should have interfaced it in the waistband. When I make the jacket, I will have to interface the body and stabilize ... a perfect opportunity to open up my Palmer Pletsch Jackets for Real People book and use it, start to finish! I plan on making the matching jacket from the HP Sportive Suit in a brown Ottoman that I have in the stash, maybe with some accents from the tweed. For a dressier look I will go for the now OOP HP pattern, the Moneypenny Kensington Jacket. It is a tailored jacket with soft shaping that will be perfect for this tweed. Once those are complete, I will actually have the basis for a SWAP capsule, I think. I will have a pair of pants (already in the Closet, made in the same green wool as the skirt), 2 jackets and the skirt. If I make another pair of pants and maybe half a dozen tops, then I am done, if I have the concept right.

For fun last night, I pinned out the back of the Chilled Out Sweatsuit pants. I pinned out a horizontal dart of about 3/4" above the crotch curve and them pesky wrinkles went away. I may baste it in and take a pic to make sure I am right. I'll add the note to my review for next time. The next pair of pants will be another HP pattern. I have the Razor Sharp Pant that could be up next, I think. I have a nice narrow wale brown cord in a tweed pattern that will be great for those ... or maybe another pair of HP Skinny Jeans.

The next up in line will be a dual track project. School starts soon and Hamster Boy needs/wants jeans. Good thing is the weather will still be warm and he can wear his shorts for at least another few weeks. So, I have 2 lengths of stretch denim in the stash, one goes for jeans, the other for his jean jacket. That will be my evenings. Days will be this dress. A dear friend has a wedding to attend in the fall and needs a dress. She is a Registered Massage Therapist and we have worked out a swap of skills. Gotta love a full body massage ...

Last minute changes

I did some re-thinking of the skirt last night in bed. I realized that I really liked those pleats I added to the CB panels and did not want to shorten them by adding a yoke and facings. So, I decided to go back to the original idea of bias side panels. I think that this will add some nice shaping to the sides, and be anchored nicely by the flounces. So, I laid out, cut and hand basted (on the table) the bias panels together and then pinned them to Mindy for overnight hanging. I cut them with an extra 1" s.a. and then basted on 5/8", so I should have enough room for this to work out. I hope ... this is one of my first independant forays into the bias. In my basting, I used long stitches and broke the thread every couple of inches. That was a tip I picked up from the Roberta Carr book.

One thing I was not sure of, is when to attach the flounces. I am assuming that since the hem would be done after hanging, then anything stitched to the hem (like a flounce) would also be done after. Was I right? We'll see tomorrow ...

The other change I made was to increase the depth of the flounce. I added an extra 2" to it. Yardage restrictions gave me the opportunity to use the wool tweed that coords with the solid green for the flounce. I also used it for the waist bands. Should the bias panels not work out, I may just use the tweed for the side panels (on grain) and have the CF/CB panels and waist as the solid green and the rest in the tweed. I have options. Either way, this will be a nice touch for the jacket when it is made up. It will show them as a pair, while still leaving the skirt to stand on it's own.

So, the sides of the skirt are hanging and the flounces are stitched together (using French seams) and awaiting tomorrow's race to the finish. I may lose Wed afternoon to mini golf with the kids, so I have to get at it tomorrow as soon as I get back from the gym.

I must say that I like how easy this skirt is to work with so far, even with all the changes I made to it.

Pleating Pleasures

Well, I have done it! I took a wild chance at the CB pleated panel and, with some effort, it worked. To make the panel piece, I taped the existing kick pleat panel to the CB panel and extended it up to the waist. This is when I started having some teeth gnashing. The pleats weren't lying right, but that was because I has gotten to this point without a plan. There was no fixed idea of how many pleats or how deep or the spacing ... nothing! So, what did I do? I stitched it onto the skirt anyway, thinking that I could figure it out when I could see it on Mindy. Didn't work. At all.

Next step? Take the panel off of Mindy and work the pleats on the ironing board. After a few attempts at a variety of widths, nothing seemed to work. I couldn't seem to get the pleats straight all the way down ... so I grabbed my metal yard stick and used that as a straight edge. Then I had a light bulb moment ... there is a line in the middle of the yardstick. All the way down ... Next attempt, I used the yard stick as a spacer and used the mid line as the depth marker. Easy! Perfect sizing of the pleats to get the back panel down to the correct size. I stitched the pleats flat for about 9" from the waist and then stitched the panels to the skirt and tried it on. MWA! I almost kissed my reflection! I need a smidge more room around the hips (surprise, surprise there!), but that is doable. Tomorrow I draft the facings from the pattern and then refine the width of the flounce. Then I can cut the skirt out tomorrow night as well. I am living this project!

Skirt Challenge - Stage 2

Well, the muslin is put together. The circular flounce came out nicely although I still have to fine tune the inside measurement of the circle a bit better. I like the way it looks right now (a 4" flounce) which means I have to make it longer to allow for the needed narrow hem. The problem right now is the pleated CB panel. I had envisioned a panel that was pleated from waist to hem, stitched flat over the seat, but I guessed at the amount, figuring I could just pin the pleats in. Silly me. So, my bedtime reading tonight is going to be a back issue article from Threads (thanks Diva Els!) and Armstrong on pleats. Then I can get back at it tomorrow afternoon.

I am still debating whether or not to add the yoke to the skirt. The prototype is sewn in the panels as per the pattern, so I can just add a facing to it and leave it as is. The plan was to get the flounce and the pleats sorted out and then trace off the shape of the yoke and then go cut it off and recut the yoke and facings in 3 pieces vice the 4 I have now (allowing for a CB zip). But that would ruin the strong vertical element I am trying to out in with the pleating. I am going to have to play a bit, I think. If I can play tomorrow, then by tomorrow night I can redo the patterns as per the changes and then sew it on Monday and Tuesday.

I must say thanks to Maria for loaning me the Roberta Carr book and for Els for sending me the scanned shots of the flounce pages. It really is great to have such resources at hand for projects like this. What a great place the sewing world is ...

On a family note, Hamster Boy came home from camp this afternoon. He went away to Cub Camp for the past 7 days. This is the longest he has been away from us so far. He spent 4 days at his aunt's when I went to bring the Pilot home, but that was with family, so it was a bit different. And he had Monkey Girl with him then. This time he was only with his fellow Cubs Scouts. He had loads of fun and is exhausted, but he missed us at bedtime. He is a boy who hates being away from his own bed, even if we are with him. He likes being home at bedtime. Sleepovers with friends are OK, but home is best. I sense a new aura of self confidence in him, though. My little boy is taller and seems to be a bit older now. I am glad he went, it was worth the expense. But I am so glad he is home!

School starts here in 3 weeks. This is a big thing for me this year as Monkey Girl will be going for full days this year. That means that I can go back to work! It has been requested by the kids that whatever job I get, can I be home when they get home from school. They don't like the idea of a babysitter. I think that the job I am looking at will make that possible. Remember that position at the gym from the spring? They are hiring again ... I applied for a different position, but have been told that they want to talk to me about a couple of positions, so I may be gainfully employed come Labour Day. Seeing as I really would love new kitchen cupboards, this will be a great thing for us if I get the job. Stay tuned for news next week ...

Summer camps!

This morning I was at the gym listening to music on my "bot (what I call my MP3 player) and reading the subtitles to a news channel. One of the "news" headlines caught my eye and then my ire. Turns out in Halifax, Nova Scotia (where I spent a lot of my childhood) the city is putting on some day camps for boys and girls. Turns out that a little girl (about 10-12 y.o. age range I guess) wanted to sign up for the boys only camp as she was not interested in the girls camp. This is where my blood pressure started to rise, I am afraid. I have been blessed with both a son and a daughter. I teach both of them that gender is not an issue and that they both are able to do the same things as the other. In fact, both children are in Scouts together. Monkey Girl is not interested in Girl Guides or Brownies. So, she entered Scouts. Now, I realize that her access into Scouts is only due to the lawsuits of the past. So, I feel for the little girl in her quest for a camp that interested her, whether it is Coed or not. You see, the only other option to this camp was a "Glamour Day" camp. This did not appeal to her sense of fun at all.

Now, I have to be honest here. I do believe that there is a huge gender double standard out there. Us women have been suing for access to all programs on the grounds of gender discrimination, but we have no qualms in denying access to males who want to enter our domains on the grounds of needing our own space. My question, when do men get their own space? So, my problem with this whole incident is that there was no middle ground option for camp. You were either in the boy camp or the girl one. Easy solution? Offer the program in a coed option or a male only option. That way there is pure choice.

Still on the subject of camps, I came across this little story in the National Post, a newspaper up here. It is a design camp, only without all the PR drama. The kids get to design, sew and then show their creations at a fashion show at the end of the session.

Think Canada's Next Top Model Meets Camp. This is a week-long fashion camp, hosted by the Design Exchange, an organization devoted to promoting Canadian design

One of the 12 year old campers has this to say:

"That's another [thing] with people who are buying clothes," she sighs. "They don't realize all the hard work that goes into them."She doesn't get a chance to finish. The day is winding down and cleanup is beginning. As the girls clean the scraps off the table, Cate reflects on her experiences at the camp.
"I'd rather be here than anywhere else in the summer," she says. "This is funner because you get to do your passion."

What a great camp idea ... I wonder if it is Coed?

Design Options ...

As I was sketching belowstairs, I have come up with some design options for the skirt. I have decided to forgoe the bias side panels. I am still using the panelled skirt, but am adding a deep shaped yoke ending at around the hip level. As I am eliminating the back kick pleat, I need to add walking ease. I would love to incorporate some pleating in this skirt somehow but I also think that a nice flounce would be very flirty as well.

The idea for the pleating came from this discontinued Folkwear pattern that I have in the stash. This pattern has the pleating at the sides going all the way to the waist. This pleating would be great on the side panels and if I only pleat below the yoke, then I would not have to worry about adding bulk at the hips. There would be no need for the flounce in this option, but I would still be one element short for The Challenge requirements.

If I pleated the CB panel only, that would still give me the walking room I need and I could still have the flounce on the bottom 4" or so of the side panels. That would allow some of the visual interest to carry around to the front. I would leave the CF panel on grain as per the pattern. This option would also give me the three elements I need.

What do you think?

Why Google is my friend ...

I have cut the HP pattern out for the basis of the skirt for The Challenge. I have decided to eliminate the existing waistband and go for a faced waist instead. I am going to add a circular ruffle and place the side panels on the bias. Since I am going for the solid green wool that means I don't have to worry about any pattern matching. I am also adding a circular ruffle to the hemline. The third element is still a mystery. There already is a box pleat in the back of the skirt, but since I am adding the ruffle, I am going to leave that out.

There was a little stall in my process, however, in that I had no source material in my reference collection (limited as it is) to calculate how many circles I would need for this skirt. The instructions in Armstrong deal with how to make a circle, half or quarter circle skirt, but not what I wanted (if I am worng somebody PLEASE tell me what page to use ... I have the latest edition!). Diva Els refers to Roberta Carr's book Couture: The Art of Fine Sewing, which I don't have (insert a not nice word here!) and the library does not have it either (I love online library catalogues!). So, I have e-mailed two local PR members to see if either of them have it for me to borrow. Not wanting to stop my efforts on this skirt so soon, I turned to Google and took a wild guess.

I typed in "drafting circular ruffles" and found not only El's post over at The Sewing Divas, but also this lovely site that actually has a calculator that does all the math for you and actually tells you how many circles you need and how big to make them and how much fabric you will need to cut them! How easy is that?! I LOVE IT ... but I am still going to hunt down that book and buy it for myself for my birthday! The tradition continues ... a new sewing book each year!

On Age ...

I can proudly (and honestly) say that today I celebrated the 39th anniversary of my birth. Yup, that means that as of today I began my first day of my 40th. To my husband, when I pulled this logic on him some 6 years ago (the Pilot turned 46 this month, you see), he gave me a weird look and then said quite firmly "I am not 40! Not for another 3 hours ...". It was a challenging year for him and the only good thing about it was the fact that he was in his fortieth year and could laugh about it. You see, we both believe that if you don't have a sense of humour, DO NOT let us know when your birthday is. We are known in his family and amongst our friends for placing penguins, cows, buzzards, storks, or whatever tacky lawn ornament we can rent on lawns for significant days. We laugh at birthdays, not stress out over them. So, today, as I stare 40 in the face, I am laughing.

No midlife crisis for me! Why suffer through midlife, I ask, when there are so many little crises throughout your life already! Spread the pain out and laugh more! And who says this is the middle of your life? I personally would love to live beyond 80, so I have yet to reach the middle of my life! When I do decide on an end date, then I'll be able to decide what the midlife date is!

Time was when older women were respected and revered for their wisdom. The old crone was usually a woman of some status and respect in the village of yore, somebody who had seen life at its best and worse and survived to tell the tale. She was somebody who had answers, but knew when it was best to be a silent supporter to allow the youngsters to figure things out on their own. I am not a crone, but that is something that I aspire to. I see women who are double my age and they are out dancing through life and laughing a mile a minute, regardless of the wrinkles each laugh makes. Badges of honour, each and every one.

So, I am going to enjoy 39 and view it as a training ground for my 40's. May I have the grace of my sister in law who accepted our Stonehenge card with the caption "See? There is something older than you!", the practicality of my lovely mother who sent me a card that doubles as a fan for the hot flashes that are to come (a good German woman who believes that preparation is everything!) and the sense of humour of my friend who gave me a card at the coffee shop this morning wishing that my year (and coffee cup) "runneth over" with good things, may I keep the whimsy of my daughter who took me to Timmy's tonight for a birthday doughnut. Because life doesn't end at 40 ... it is just beginning!

Signing off as I descend to the workshop for a night of caffeine induced sewing thanks to my daughter, husband and dear friend!

Second thoughts can lead to surprises

Well, despite the initial sense of boredom with the latest project, I finished the top. And received a pleasant surprise! I am so glad that I didn't toss the top unfinished. I learned a few things from this top. First, I was right in not needing an FBA. It fits fine without it, but a small one would not be amiss if I want to use a s.a. of greater than 3/8" on the s.s. Second, I did need to lower the bustline about an inch or two to get it in the place I want it to be. It is OK where it is, but would be better lower. Third, I like this kimono sleeve style on me. I am pleasantly surprised! There is a bit of an armscye crease, but I think this is inherent in the design. If I am wrong, somebody please let me know ... I am always open to constructive correction! The last thing is that this would be great in a knit, so I will make at least one more from the supply of rayon knits from the stash. I suspect that the knit will fit better than the woven unless I do the FBA to give a bit more ease. Last lesson, Mindy's cover needs to be adjusted. It seemed way too small on her. So that will be a project for a rainy day I think!



So, I am glad I finished this top, even though the initial reaction was not very good. So, sometimes it pays to keep going even though you really don't want to!

Next up is a skirt project for the monthly S&B at Darrell's. A simple skirt with 3 original elements added. Lots of leeway there. I have decided to use the Hot Patterns Sportive Skirt as a base. I had initially planned on taking a pencil skirt and adding panels and a curved waistband on my own. But then my thought process was interrupted by the screaming from the Workshop Closet. Turns out I had a pattern already there with some of the elements I wanted already there! Amazing what you can hear when you actually listen to the Closet ...

I am going to use a medium weight dark green wool in the stash that was always intended to be a skirt. That way, I can later progress into a tailored jacket out of a coord checked wool. This is something that I have been wanting to do for some time, and since I am now seriously trying to re-enter the workforce, I now need that interview suit. So the question now is, what other elements to add. If I remove the box pleat from the back, I can then add a flounce to the bottom or a block of Hemline pleats in the side panels, or even just switch the box pleat to a set of narrower pleats. I plan to eliminate the waistband and instead use a deep curved faced yoke with belt loops. But I need one more element ... Maybe a welt pocket somewhere? I will have to see where the seams are when I muslin this up later on tonight. If the panel seams lie in the right place, maybe I can do a vertical pocket there. If not then I may have to do an angled pair in the side panel.

Second thoughts

Ever start a project with some enthusiasm only to have that slowly but steadily disappear as you progress? You know what I mean. You've done it. Picked a pattern, matched it to stash fabric in your mind and cleared the table of project so that you can carry on uninterrupted. Then, from the moment you lay out the fabric you hear that inner voice murmuring. First, the fabric is narrower than expected. Easy fix, you alter the layout (who follows those things anyway?). Then you start cutting (there should be enough ease with smaller s.a., after all, it is loose fitting, right?). Of course you did a dry fit of the pattern and the fabric pieces, right? You didn't just rely on measurements, did you? Because this is supposed to be an easy top for those hot days you are taking it easy sewing it together. Checking the directions even though it is all obvious (except for the insertion of the mandatory modesty panel, those are really hinky!), you start sewing. And, the more you sew, the more you really don't like what it is shaping up to be.

This is where I am at. The fabric is a cotton paisley print from a surprise bundle last summer. I thought this would be an easy project for a nice summer top, but it isn't forming up that way. The fabric is light enough, but there is not enough of it and I think I really should have done an FBA even though the numbers said I didn't have to. I think I am getting too complacent in my sewing. So, I am really not sure this will work out in the chosen fabric for fit issues. But I really don't seem to mind at all. I think I will finish and then re-eval as to whether or not I re-start in a different print. I have some nice summer calicos and florals in the stash that would suit this. I will have to see whether or not the kimono style sleeve suits me body or not, though. This is a new one on me. Either way, at least I am sewing again!

There is a new challenge at the S&B at Darrell's for August. A simple skirt with 3 differnent elements to it. I think that my mind is on that project right now and that is why I am not crazy about this top right now. I have till the 3rd week to get the skirt done. MB and I are brainstorming design ideas ... I hope to start the pattern once the Pilot is back to work on Tuesday. Whether I start from a ready project or I draft my own is something I am still trying to decide on.

Magazine Musings ...

It is interesting to see that Taunton Press has decided to cease publication of it's latest offering, "Sew Stylish". With the website up at the same time, I was watching to see how much content would be duplicated in the website. As I saw the site expand to include so many contributors, I began to wonder if it would become the main focus of the Sew Stylish staff. After all, the internet is the fastest medium in which to spread a message. It is also, so the "experts" say, the primary medium for the younger generation. It also doesn't require printing presses and a staff to handle subscriptions and can be advertising driven. So, it is not a surprise that the online version is taking over. Response time is so much faster online. Nothing like instant gratification in publishing!

The comments on the demise of the mag puzzle me, I must admit. I picked up a couple of issues to compare to Threads (to which I suscribe). While there were some articles that were specific to SS, I found the majority to have been copied from Threads (I did like the Formalwear themed issue, however, as it was a useful beginning reference for sewing formalwear). So, in light of this, I wonder why so many people said they preferred SS to Threads? Is it a question of layout? Of strictly article content (this would be puzzling considering the twinning of some of the content)? I would really like to know ... Anybody care to enlighten me with their views? I would love to discuss this ...

Pant foundation

Last night saw me start the pant foundation for the second time. Technically, it was the third time, but I figure the almost complete erasure of the first draft to be a drastic editing, not a re-start. The instructions are fairly straightforward, but I seem to have hit a stumbling block for a while on one step, but I think I have made it past that hurdle alright. I'll find out for sure when I get to the muslin stage!

The foundation (the portion of the pant above the crotch line) is formed by measuring your ankle to waist height and using that as a centre line from which you draft the front and back patterns. You then mark the crotch point, the hip point and the waist points on this line and then extend perpendicular lines according to the amount stated in the instructions. The result is a rectangle shape on each side of the centre line. The problem I have been having seems to lie in the formulas used to draw these lines. Whenever I got to the point of drawing in the darts and extensions, the back numbers never seemed to work out. The numbers would have me extending into the front piece ... so I read it through again and discovered a little note that said to decrease the dart intake by 1/4" if the waist measurement met up with the centre line. Seeing as my measurement bypassed the line, I just marked the side seamline 1/4" in from centre. We'll see how that works out when I muslin it up.

Tonight, I draft the leg extensions ... I think I will update later on with photos to better explain. This won't make sense to those of you who have not done this before. IT barely makes sense to me

Sewing Man Shirts

I have written before of my quest for the perfect fitting shirt for the muscle bound Pilot. Today it takes a quirky side route ... His new position allows him to wear civilian clothes on Fridays. Due to the July Temps, he wanted a short sleeved shirt really quickly for TOMORROW. Turns out the majority of the shirts in his portion of the Closet are POLY and he doesn't like them in hot weather. So, prior to him going shopping for a new shirt (Which we all know won't fit him anyway!), I made him try on the shirts already there that were LS, in the hope that I could cut one down sleeve wise. He has two striped shirts hanging, one is a Hathaway, I am NOT cutting that one until it wears out and can be used as a pattern! Then, in the midst of other shirts, there is the KS shirt I made about 2 years ago. "Try it on", I asked. What was too large then, now FITS!! That is what one full year of daily gym workouts to relieve stress will do ... Had I known that the old pattern would now fit, I would not have had to go bother Darrell. Not that that is a bad thing ...

Except for the sleeves, which are now too short to wear. So, that shirt is now off to the cutting table to become a short sleeved shirt. That means that the second shirt, ageing down in the Shop can be finished and worn for Fridays as well. I sense a menswear binge coming ... as soon as we can agree on fabrics, that is!

Pant Pattern Theory

Before heading to the drafting table, I did some more reading last night. The process of drafting pants is very mathematically. Why this surprised me, I don't know. When I first learned how to do an FBA, it was a similar process. I cut and spread according to measured amounts. In altering my existing pant patterns, it was adjusting by eye all the time. I find that I like the math approach better. It just fits my brain better. Whether or not it will fit my body better, I will find out soon enough, I suppose! I have a pattern printed off from Pattern Maker that I have yet to tape together and sew up. I think I will sew that one up after I have the self drafted pattern done to compare. I have not seen that one reviewed before, so it will be interesting to compare the two. The information that follows is taken from the Helen Joseph Armstrong book Patternmaking for Fashion Design, 4th edition. I am trying not to copy it wholesale, but I do think that for those of you who have not self drafted a pant pattern before, (like me) some of the information behind the process interesting and maybe even helpful.

The intial idea of drafting my own pattern from scratch was quite daunting. How would I handle the shaping of the pieces? How do I determine the crotch curve? How would I draw it? Once I realized that the whole pattern's shape grows as you use the measurements, it seemed easier. The shape starts with a vertical line with a number of horizontal points marked on it according to your measurements. These points are then extended to horizontal lines whose lengths are determined by your measurements and some minor math (all of which is easily diagrammed in the Armstrong book). The curve is also drawn this same way.

I had initially intended to start with the culottes, but closer reading revealed that culottes are based on an A Line skirt with a crotch extension added. Not what I want right now. While the thought of drafting a skirt block also appeals to me, my project this summer is to perfect the pant! So, which one to choose first? Armstrong's trouser pattern is the next logical place to start. The slack is based on the trouser pattern, but my real goal is a nice city short/pedal pusher as an end product. But first I have to draft the trouser, so I guess I will end up with both in muslins!

My time at the table is limited this weekend as I promised Monkey Girl that the next thing off the table is her new bathrobe/housecoat. I am using this cute Simplicity 4767 for her. I made her some PJ's last winter. She loved them but decided that the absence of fabric on her neckline was too chilly for winter temps, so this is now a summer PJ pattern. I cut the robe out of a nice soft yellow Minky that I found at Wal Mart last year for a great price just for this purpose. And I had just enough to sew this up. From now on, I go for my standard yardages for fudge factor. I had hoped to cut the robe longer to allow for the inevitable growth spurt that follows each sewing session for her! Not a chance ... although, there was probably enough last year when I first bought it ... It is all cut out and once I re-thread the serger with lighter threads, I will finish the edges first as it is very messy.

I aim to have it finished for tonight's bath routine, but I do have some shopping to do this afternoon. A coursemate of the Pilot is coming tomorrow with his family. When we were in Toronto, I was given a crash course in Pakistani cooking at his home. Tomorrow I have to recreate what I learned. Tomorrow I get to make Biryani, a wonderful spiced meat and rice dish that is spicy and oh so yummy! To top it off I plan on making a traditional dessert as well. As the family is Muslim, I have to get my meat from a store that stocks Halal meats. No biggy ... I absolutely LOVE going into ethnic grocers ... the smells are divine and I always get new recipes and techniques to add to the Kitchen. I have my list and am waiting for Pilot and Hamster Boy to get back from Rugby. After some lunch and some other errands, we are off to get groceries! I may make the meat tonight and then let it sit in the sauce so that all I have to do is the rice tomorrow.

Next in line ...

Now that Bollywood is finished, I am ready for the next major project. Aside from the spattering of kid sewing and finishing that shirt for the Pilot, I am determined to draft a pant pattern from scratch. Last year I bought Helen Joseph Armstrong's pattern drafting book and have been dutifully skimming it for a year. Time to put measuring tape to body and then pencil to paper!

I figure the amount of time I spend altering patterns can be better put to use drafting my own from scratch. I don't have software and am not sure I want it as I love handling patterns! I can much easier see how to change patterns to reflect the styles I want since I started with this book. And, since the budget may not allow me to take the courses I want this fall, I think I will start with this for now and then see whether or not I need to pay tuition for what I want to do. Once I have mine done, I have convinced a friend to let me do her a pair as well. This will give me experience and her new clothes as she drops her post baby weight. Win win I say!

So, tonight I have the Pilot take that measuring tape to me and then I will start the process. Armstrong's book has foundations for culottes, pants, trousers and jeans. I think I will start with the culottes first as they are fuller and I have a nice stash cotton that would be perfect for summer wear! Then I will go for the pants (only cut to short length).

I have yet to see a comprehensive review of this process anywhere, so I intend this series to be as detailed as I can make it without copyright problems. In other words, I will take photos but I won't type out the entire process. I will, though, post some of the math that I found interesting. To draft your pattern, you start with your hip and waist measurements and then manipulate those to get your crotch extensions, depth and so on. But that will be tomorrow's entry, so I will leave you all in suspense until then!

Bollywood Bash ...

Well, we are home! The graduation is over and was wonderful! The Pilot managed to turn it into a second honeymoon by booking us a room in the fancy hotel we spent the original honeymoon in as well as our first anniversary. This was all done without my knowledge, so when I arrived with my bags, he says with a grin, "Don't unpack too much ... we're not staying long". What a night! The restaurant had a wonderful view of Lake Ontario and the city as it revolved, giving us the full view of the sunset over the horizon. Perfectly romantic! Even with all the others at the table. We all were very quiet as we sat with our spouses and watched the sun go down. It has been a long 10 months, even for those who were lucky enough to be with their families the whole time. For those of you who put up with my private and public rants over the past year, thanks for putting up with me. Your kind words of patience often helped me get through this single parent thing. Now I just need to adjust to him still being here all the time!

I almost called this post "The Eagle Has landed ... in Bollywood" but thought better of it. It just isn't me ... but almost! The dress was a huge success. The Pilot had spoken about the dress (All he knew was that it was silk, no more info allowed) to the women on course who wanted to know what was being worn so that they could judge what to wear themselves. He was no help to them, but the rampant curiousity had me almost swarmed when we arrived. Those who knew I had made the dress were amazed and were asking permission to touch the fabric. Those who didn't know, soon found out as the word spread throughout the wives. I even had a Stacy London moment as the wife of a US Air Force officer came up and said "SHUT UP! You did NOT make that dress! By. YOUR. SELF! Tell me you do this for a living and where because I want you to make me something! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT FABRIC!!!!!" Between that reaction and the two German Officer's wives who both gave great compliments (one wanted to know which boutique I shop at that sells matching shoes!), my ego got quite the boost that night ... even before the wine started to flow!

So, credit where credit is due: To Darrell, thanks for the fabrics and the confidence. We'll talk more when/if that US wife comes up for a fitting! To MB, thanks for all the encouragement and advice! Ells, your knowledge, as always, is a comfort when I ask for help. Enough small talk ... what you really want is to see the dress, right? So, here it is after the night of dancing and socializing! I did end up hand stitching a modesty panel in the day before I left, but I think that it still works ...


The gathering shifted a bit I think when I stitched the bodice to the waist panel, so I am not 100% with the way the bodice lies, especially in the centre panels of the front. I had some concern about the fabric and the pattern, but in the end, it turned out OK. The last bit of hindsight self-criticism? I think I should have NOT added the fullness to the bodice. To my mind, it really emphasizes the Twins. So, should I actually do this as a summer dress, there will be no additional fullness on top. Too bad the Pilot couldn't get the shoes in the shot ... he is learning how to use his new digi cam. Finally, he joins the rest of us in this century! Suffice it to say that I found a pair of strappy leather sandals in a beautiful bronze that actually matched the contrast on the dress and I found them at Sears of all places! Fate, my friends, it had to be fate!

Well, I am off to get supper going for the restless kidlings. Iffy weather and friends being away has made them restless ... time to go shopping, I think! It always makes me feel better!

A quick note ...

This is just a quick note to say that I am about 30 minutes and one load of dishes away from leaving to join the Pilot. I am picking up the kids and then heading to my sister's for one night and then leaving them with her for the rest of the week whilst I and the Pilot enjoy the first weekend without children since before Hamster Boy was born. In that time, we will pack his room up, attend a garden party/graduation ceremony, a formal dinner at Toronto's CN tower and then maybe even dance the night away! We will then return home with the kids on Saturday, in time for our National Holiday.

The dress is finished, but I have to apologize for not having a photo done. You'll have to wait till I come back and have the photos uploaded. The skirt is also done, and while I did manage to get a top cut out, it is not coming with me. I ran out of time as there was unexpected laundry to be done last night as well.

So, I will post when I come back, with my family reunited at last! Then it will take a while to get used to having him here full time again! I love being an Air Force Wife!

Bollywood Gets a Makeover!

Yippee! The redesigned bodice works wonderful! Extending the contrast bands all the way to the waist panel looks really nice. The slight gathering on the bodice also works well. The fit is better and I love the look of it. Uniquely me!

Something that I found difficult was the understitching of the lining. I had to understitch the armscye and the neckline and I found that I had to start at one end of the armscye and then stop at the shoulder seam, then start back at the other end of the armsyce and do the same. It probably would have been easier if the shoulder was a bit wider, but I managed it anyway.

The skirt gathered like a dream as I laid it out so that there was less embellishment at the top edge. I even managed to French seam the sides and the contrast panels. All I have left to do is to hem the skirt and the lining. The zip is in and hand stitched already. I am happy with it, although I must say that this has been a hard journey. I probably could have done without the bodice gathers in hindsight, but I am not about to take it apart!

Tomorrow I leave to go bring back the Pilot for good. His course ends on Thursday and my sister is taking the kids for me for the week. Yup, we have reached the point in our parenthood journey that we are taking a few days WITHOUT the kids as we pack him up and attend all the functions this week. So, I hope to have the dress photo'd up and posted tonight. I may even have something else done as well ... I have the HP Trumpet skirt half cut out already. I had already done a muslin in the fall, so this is an easy sew up. It is getting the bias stripes matched up that is the fun part! I am dreaming in technicolour here as I also hope to have a simple bias top cut out and sewn together to hang overnight for early morning hemming.

See you all later (much later) on tonight ...

The Bollywood Saga Continues ...

Well, I have finished the bodice and pinned the waist panel to it to see if I like it more than I did this morning. I don't. I dislike it even more. As you can see, the pleats are really invisible and it is much fuller than the muslin was. Even though the pleats are mainly on the side, I don't think that moving them over closer to the CF would change the armscye puff. It just is not appealing to me as it would give the dress the appearance of a puff ball tied in the middle.

So, I spent the better part of this afternoon cutting out another bodice. This time, I started with the bodice mount/lining pieces. I liked the princess line of the mount and it fit well. I added 5/8" in length and also constructed a contrast band for the neckline. Instead of the simple V, I took the contrast band all the way to the waist semline, so the dress will have a Duro like effect. To keep some of the original feel of the dress, I also added some slight fullness to the bodice, which I will gather in. I kept the mount fitted without any gathering as per the original pattern. As the gathering is so slight, I am omitting the interlining. I suspect that the interlining is another reason for the extreme puff factor. This omission will, I hope, give the bodice a softer feel to it. We will soon see ...

Listening to Your Fabric

I am deep in the throes of Bollywood. I have completed the bodice, complete with one recut of the front. I am not sure what exactly went wrong there, but something did so I redid the fronts and things matched up this time around. I suspect that I forgot to add a s.a. on the contrast band I added. I am so glad that I reduced the gathering on the skirts, because I now have lots of Uh oh! fabric to play with! Of course, with each Uh oh! my wrap gets considerably smaller ...

Anyway, today's conundrum is the pleats. What looked very Grecian in the muslin, looks almost sloppy in the silk. I suspect it is the pussy willows that are causing the problem. The actual buds are almost chenille like, so when one lies on the crease of a pleat, they round it out like a gather. So, the seamline is trim and neat, but the pouf factor seems to be exagerated as the pleats are forced open by the fabric. As a result, I am going to remove all the pleating and gather the seamline. If I think it is still too full, then I will go back to the yardage and cut a new bodice, styled after the princess seamed bodice mount, only adding slight fullness at the bustline to echo the original design.

So, I am listening to the fabric on this one. The lesson for me? What looks good in muslin may not translate into the actual fabric. I trialed the gathers with a strip of the silk, I should have done the same with the pleats. I could have been done by now, but the song of the muslin was so much louder than the silk. It tends to be subtle and understated in it's teaching style. That muslin is so bold and bossy ... so pretentious, thinking it can behave like silk. This muslin didn't come through Ressy's dungeon, so I am not sure where it got such attitude!

Off to get the hair cut. I need a trim and Martin the Marvelous will be playing with the finish today as he tries to teach me how to "do" my hair to match this dress! If I can't do it on my own, then I have to try to get an appointment next week at a salon nearby the Pilot's residence. He comes home tonight for one last weekend trip.

On Shaving silk ...

No this is not typo. I don't mean saving, I mean SHAVING. As in with a razor blade. The pussy willows on the silk are almost velvet like but are actually just satin stitched patterns. That means that I have to shave it down in the seamline areas so that the seams are straight and that they lie flat. That tends to slow down the pace a bit. I found that a plain blade works best in the hand and that I need to angle it slightly to get the best shearing effect without slicing the base silk.

To test my method out, I stitched the contrast hem piece to the skirt bottom on the front panel prior to completing the French seam. I think that this will be the most time consuming portion of the project. I also think that I will be pretty good at French seams by the end of it as well!

All I managed to do was completely cut the garment out and to interface the waist lining and to construct the waist panels. I had the final Scouts leaders meeting tonight. But I did manage to get some time in, anyway! Off to bed ... tomorrow is another day!

Beginning Bollywood ... for real!

Although I said I wasn't going to sew over the weekend, Monkey Girl had a minor crisis. Her bathing suit from last year is too small and had a rip that was not worth fiddling with the stitch length on the serger for, so I threw together another suit for her. You see, she goes to the water park adjacent to the Rugby Pitch while Hamster Boy is playing. He is a proud member of the second tackle line on his squad. Now he gets to take down all the people he wants ... only he is discovering muscles he didn't know he had after an afternoon on the field! But he loves it! And I am proud to say that his squad won all their little games! WOO HOO! Go Scottish ...

I am about to head to the workshop to start cutting the fabric and lining. Unlike most linings, the Bollywood lining is not constructed independent of the dress and then bagged. Rather, it is attached in sections, so I actually have to cut the whole shebang out today. I am going to use some organza that I have in the stash for the bodice interlining rather than use self fabric or 2 layers of the lining.

I am taking a deep breath and readying myself for this. To keep me in the frame of mind (and to work them in), I am wearing the new shoes, bought just for this dress. I also am keenly aware of the fact that I only have 6 days in which to finish this dress and get the garden party dress done as well. So, I will be limiting my time online as I stick to the machines during the day. I will try to post my progress in the late evenings so that I have a means of ordering my thoughts for the next day. I make no promises about photos, however, until I have some significant progress made!

So, I am now off to pre-thread some needles for basting layers together and to layout and cut! I hope the silk is ready for this ...

Movie Night ....

The Pilot and I had date night tonight! First one is a while, so we took it easy and saw the latest in the Pirate of the Caribbean Trilogy. AS the others, it was was a wild ride! Questions were answered and more were left asked ... but all I will say is, STAY UNTIL ALL THE CREDITS ARE DONE. Otherwise you miss a part. No spoilers, here, me hearties! Just sty till the credits are done... and there are a LOT of credits!

G'night all ... Hamster Boy has his first tackle rugby match tomorrow at noon thirty. I get to watch the half the match after I take my turn watching Monkey Girl in the water park adjacent to the rugby pitch. I think I will take the second half! Let the Pilot tell her it is time to get out of the water! Mwaa ha ha ... why should I always have that privilege?!

Go Scottish!

Sitch and Bitch Report

No sewing to report, the Pilot is home for the weekend and the dress is to remain a secret until it is done and I am getting ready for the dinner!

BUT, I will give a little bit on the stitch and bitch that my friend, Darrell Thomas hosted last Wednesday. being the first session, this was more of a brainstorming session about what we all wanted this group to be. The first thing we all agreed on was that we would do some charity sewing. First project, to be handed in next month, is an apron or two for a Men's Shelter in the area. This organization helps men who are in need with shelter and whatever supplies they need to get back into a normal life. They always need aprons for their community kitchen, so that is what we will each do.

The make up of the group is nice. There are some older ladies and one that is a bit younger than me and we even have a gentleman who has taken the fashion design program at the local college. His wife is also a big sewer, having graduated with Darrell. what a wonderful concept ... couples sewing! Can you imagine shopping trips with those two? We all are looking for group support and the chance to learn some techniques and critical thought about current projects.

So, it looks like there will be some Show and Tell, some technique and some learning as well. The first Show and Tell was a Chanel jacket. One of the members attended a week long course one summer in Halifax, organized by Julie Culshaw of Timmel Fabrics. Susan Khalje and Judy Barlup were giving a week long seminar on the Chanel Jacket. Most of it is hand done and I tell you the result that I fondled and drooled over is fabulous! Hand quilted and even the sleeve was hand done! My word, it was truly inspiring to see the final result. Next session I am on tap to show the Bollywood Dress (no pressure) and our gentleman sewer will bring in one his tailoring projects he has underway for a client.

Aside from the program at the local college, there is a private school as well, but the cost for one year is way out of my league, so it is out of the question. But I think I may seriously look into the college program as it is in the part time studies department, so I wouldn't have to take it full time and spend $ I don't have. I could do a couple of courses at a time, which I can afford! I have 5 years to do 12 courses. I think I could manage it in 3 if I could take 2 or 3 courses per term. Have to see what the Pilot says; maybe if I pick up a part time job in the fall, that will pay for it ... The program is heavy in construction courses, there are 2 basic, 3 in tailoring and 3 in pattern drafting and one in draping plus a couple of others. I am really drooling over the chance to take these ... I have a few months to work on the budget to see how to make this happen!

Bollywood Gathering ...

52" of one skirt panel needs to be gathered into a 9" waist panel. That's is what I measured today. Those numbers are from one back piece. The front is double that. 104" into about 18". Seems a bit excessive for my taste. So, I cut a 3" wide strip of the silk to 52" long and then gathered it into the 9". Then I loosened the gathers to the 18" of the front panel. Much nicer! So, I think I have my solution. I will reduce the skirt fabric width by half in each piece. That will still give me some fullness while not making me look huge!

Playing with that strip of silk also showed me how much "fun" I am going to have with this fabric. My word it frays fast! I am going to have to serge the edges clean, but I think I will also attempt French seams on the verticals. I have not used true French seams before (something which shocked Darrell last night), so this is another opportunity to expand my knowledge. I will practice on scraps.

I removed the too full skirt and then attacked the bodice. I took the bodice apart but for the CF seam. I removed the gathers in the bodice and then re-pleated, trying to keep the pleats more even in depth and in location. Rather than do it on Mindy as I did the first set, I took the bodice and had it flat on the table and then used the waist panel as a guide for the pleats. I started at the CF, about 5/8" away from the CF seam, taking about 5/8" in depth for each pleat. It took 13 pleats to make it fit the waist panel, with no side pleating this time. The same process was taken in the back, which I think looks particularly sharp! The skirt was reduced by 50% and then re-gathered and attached.


When I put it on Mindy, with the lining underneath, I see that there is room to deepen the waist panel a bit. I also see that I have to add some extra length to the bodice in the pleated area as that area seems to ride up a bit compared to the rest. I really love the way the back panel came out.

Now all I have to do is get the other side of the back done and try that on Mindy to see how it lies. I am a bit concerned about the fullness closer to the s.s., but will check that out on me before I do anything else. My hip curve is slightly different than Mindy's lately. She doesn't work out as she has an orbital right in front of her but she never seems to use it ...

Bollywood Day 2: things that make you go HUH?

I have the front pleating redone and the waist panel and skirt attached to the bodice. The first comment, the bodice lies better with the skirt to weigh it down. And believe me there is a lot of fabric to weigh it down ... The front alone has slightly over 2 3/4" yards of fabric gathered to the waist panel, so there is a lot of downward pull. Here is what I mean about the fullness:


I am not sure if I like the hip effect of all that gathered fabric! There is the same amount of fabric in the back as well. This design is hiding the fact that I do have a figure, full that it is. I am not that square in shape! If it is way too much in the gingham, so I can only imagine how much it would be for the dupioni! I think I can safely remove at least half of the width and still have some slight gathering to give the fullness the design requires and the silk will give.

The back bodice piece is the same as the front, very full. While I have the Girls to help me fill out the front, I really don't know if I like all that fullness in the back. I think I may experiment with the back tomorrow. I can re-shape it according to the bodice mount, or I can just pleat out the extra ease and stitch it down on the muslin. If I like it, I'll transfer the changes to the pattern and go from there.

The waist panel is not near as wide as the sketch gives it to be. The lining has a skirt yoke to it, giving the extra width, but the actual waist panel is not that wide. That also may be widened to better suit my figure ... I will determine that once I have the other design variations figured out.

None of these changes is the fault of the pattern. It is all design changes that are being made to suit my body. The instructions are very clear and make a lot of sense once you see all the pattern pieces. So, before any of you decide to get on the anti HP bandwagon and start to grumble, please go to another blog. This is not the place for you ...

The BollyBodice has Begun ...

I have made the minor alterations to the bodice mount/lining of the Bollywood dress. I forgot to mention that I also needed to raise the front V a bit for modesty's sake. The dinner at which this will be worn has us sitting with some international friends, so out of respect (and not wanting to provoke an international incident LOL!), I thought I should avoid showing my bra at dinner!

Here is the muslin lining:




The only concern I still have is the slight fullness at the armscye. It seems to want a dart there, but that might be because I have not clipped the s.a. in the muslin. It might lie flatter once I do that.

Here is the pattern piece for the front of the bodice. You can see how much it has been spread to give all that ease:


I stitched the fronts together and then pinned it to Mindy to play with, knowing that I need to raise that V a bit to accommodate the higher lining. I pleated out the left side of the bodice and pinned it at the bottom. I think I have some more work to do tonight in distributing the pleats for the best effect. I then gathered the right side and tried to spread the gathers as evenly as I could to make it flattering. I still see fullness starting at the armscye, although not as much as in the reviews I've seen. I will staystitch the armscye and the clip the s.a. to see if it disappears when I sew this version.

Bollywood Begins ...

Although I seem to struggle with the HP pants, I must say that their upper body patterns are perfect for me. So far, I have only done a cardigan and a zip jacket and attempted a coat (which I altered beyond all need thus relegating it to the UFO bin). The two unaltered jackets fit like a dream with only the personal desire for a bit more length to the pieces. So, following this trend, I started the Bollywood dress. I cut out a size 16 from the old Glamour Girl range (which is now the "new" 16) and went for a muslin with standard s.a. of 5/8" in the lining/mount only. I started with this part as it is the more fitted portion of the dress.

The only alterations I had to do are extremely minor! First off, I needed to remove some ease to the front V neck by taking a dart out of about 1/2" at about 2" above the bustline. Then, in order to be able to wear the bra of my choice, I am raising the base of the V back by about 2", extending the zipper to a 16" vice the 14" called for. That, folks, is all I did. I know that the fit is supposed to be "neat" around the waist, and it is at this point of the evening. However, this is also due to me using 5/8" s.a at the CB seams vice the 3/4" called for. That extra 1/4" combined with control top pantyhose will make this dress perfect! So, tomorrow I will start cutting out the dress muslin and see about the fit of the BollyBodice.

I have to say that the fit styling of the lining is amazing! The bodice is a slight princess line with little easing required for the bustline (did I mention no FBA? at all??) that is then stitched to a waist panel. The skirt is also two piece, having a yoke and a skirt piece. This unit is then stitched to the bodice panel. There is a lot of shaping in the waist/hip area due to the separate pieces. Tomorrow I will take a picture and post it right away (now that I have figured out how to post with Picasa!) to show how nice this lies. I feel very glam in just the muslin with the shape this gives me. I would almost use this as a dress on it's own in a nicer fabric ... very 40's glam to my mind.

To say that I am excited about the so far lack of work is an understatement. Now if only I can get their pants to fit out of the package!

Birthday Unwrapping ...

Well, Monkey Girl's party is over and done with and mostly cleaned up. We'll leave the presents out until the Pilot and Hamster Boy come home from their camping trip tomorrow afternoon. The 7 invited girls had fun and cooled off at the end in the sprinkler. After all left, she and I snuggled on the sofa and watched Bugs Bunny, what is not to love about that?

The only part I didn't like was having to disassemble all the toys from their packages. Not only are they sealed in plastic, each piece is wired to the backing board and sometimes even elastic bound on top of that. Then all is taped on the back. Then the whole assembly is in another plastic package. That was the almost tiring part of the whole day!

I kept the girls occupied by tracing off a picture onto pillowcases which they painted with fabric paints. A whole 30 minutes of fun and minimal mess, I was very impressed! Now they all have a special pillowcase to take with them on vacations/car trips, etc. I like doing useful things at parties like this rather than spending $ on dollar store toys that last a day and lots of candy (not that they all didn't get a balloon and a few chocolates in their pillowcases!).

No sewing tonight, I am beat. Having a party without the guys here was great for Hamster Boy, but tiring on me and I know the Pilot was torn between the two events, but I think Hamster Boy needed him more. This past year has been really hard on my son and he really misses his father. He also got short changed on me a bit this year as I still have afternoons with Monkey Girl, but he is at school, so he has little to no solo Mommy time. I think we will go camping for a long weekend once this whole thing is done. That way he and I can get together again without him having to compete with his little sister.

I just finished watching Last of the Mohicans on TV. We saw it on the big screen on our honeymoon. We were in the Rockies at the time, it was the Fall rut, so the elk were in fine form. As we drove through the woods to get back to our little cabin, we had to stop to allow a herd to cross the road. We opened the windows and heard the antlers hitting tree branches and hooves on the road. Very eerie in the dark after seeing a movie like that ... we laughed about that for a while after! I also love the music of that movie. It is great for running to!

I have the muslin lining for the Bollywood dress cut out and ready to go. I will fit that and then go onto the actual bodice. There will be changes coming to the BollyBodice (thanks MB for that term!) now that I see the pattern piece. It appears that the bodice started as a regular block, then was slashed and spread, starting from the armscye, giving the fullness in the design. My initial feeling is that I don't need to have that much fullness. The plan is to gather in one side and then to convert the gathers to tucks to take out the fullness on the other to see which is more flattering to my shape. The only reviews I have seen are of ladies that are less endowed than I am, so I can't really use their photos as a comparison. Maybe I will just fill it out better? Finally a use for the Twins? LOL! I am off to bed after checking on the Rodent while his Boy is away. He's been kicking bedding out of his cage lately as he makes a new nest in the corner rather than in his little side room. Very messy ... naughty Rodent!

Playing Photo Catch Up ...

Sorry for the problems with the photos, it took me a bit to figure out how to post using Picasa! Here is the final post ...

I have been promising for a while now that I would get around to posting photos. Today is the day ... I have the long awaited Dragon shots, shots of the Raglan Princess T's and the Flower Girl dresses.

The initial dragon shots are out of date in that there has been some shape shifting due to going to the gym, so the fit is slightly different now. as such, I have re-taken shots of both pair to show the new fit. I may also cut off the khaki pair at the knee seam to make them into shorts.



The HP Chilled Out Sweats that needed a bit of tweaking are also shown below. Turns out what needed tweaking was my body! After one week at the gym and one week at home working out, things are "sitting" better but there is still room for improvement. This is why all the pant shots are new ones. The earlier ones just aren't real anymore! Amazing what some exercise can do in a short time! This feedback is much better than what I am seeing on the scales!


The Raglan T's got a work out this past weekend at the Area Centennial Beaveree. IT rained most of Saturday afternoon and was really muggy. I was quite comfy in those powerdry T's. And a couple of people actually asked where I bought the Beaver T's as the fabric were in Beaver colours (brown and blue). Very comfy indeed! The next ones will need to have a slightly larger neck opening, though. If I make this pattern in a woven, I will have to add more ease as they fit perfect for a knit. Not too tight and not constricting, but still fitted. LOVE IT! This T started out as this vintage Tunic pattern ...


and resulted in this new T:


Last, the Flower Girl dress. The first shot is the "muslin", where I used a donated stash cotton. I omitted the facing and used a foldover trim for the neckline instead. I also considerably shortened the skirt length, and only lined the sleeves in the muslin. The final version has the requested pink ribbons and unlined sleeves. The fabric is a bit heavier than I would have liked for a summer dress, but it works. There is some stretch to the fabric, so that is a benefit for the little girl who will be wearing it.



I am ready to go on towards Bollywood! I saw another version today. It was done in a silk, but not dupioni. Again, the wearer was not particularly buxom, but the dress seemed to emphasize the upper body and not have as much shape to it as I would like. This version had the added tulle underskirt, however, so that might emphasize the fullness even more. I am going to really need to take this slow as I want this to be fabulously fierce! To tease you all, here are the fabrics that Darrell picked out:


I'll post more later ... I am Bollywood bound for an hour or so before I get supper ready!

You win some and you lose some ...

First off, to any hockey fans in and of California, I hope you treat your goalie like gold! That guy has a talent for snatching pucks like Tretiak! He is truly amazing ... That is the loss part of tonight's post.

The winning portion is the raglan sleeve princess T I've been working on. I dug out some white 4 way stretch interlock and did up muslin #1 and stitched with 3/8" s.a. as I had started with a vintage size 12 pattern and wanted to make sure I would have enough room, even with the stretch factor happening. I also did a small FBA (for me anyway) of 1", which I eased in. I lopped off the collar pieces using the facings as a guide and I think it worked out OK for the muslin. I need to put it on Mindy and adjust the neckline for shape a bit more, though. Tonight, all I did was serge the edge and then use some FOE from the stash. I then did a contrast zig zag over the seamline for a bit of styling. I also topstitched the seamlines in a contrast thread.

The verdict? I can use the full 5/8" s.a. at the s.s and the shoulder seam in interlock. Otherwise, I think I will keep to the 3/8" in the bodice to accomodate the decreased stretch in the PD I will be using. This design is a winner! I hope that tomorrow I can post photos and maybe even a review over at PR ...

I know I am way behind on my photo postings, but I have been busy downloading my photos from Yahoo and then uploading them to Picasa. I haven't even touched my reviews over at PR yet ... that will be a long process. It would be easier if I could print out a list of all my reviews (not my catalogue) so that I could mark off which ones I had actually re-linked. My catalogue is also way out of date. I really don't use it much, so it can't help me in this effort without many hours of cross checking with my file cabinet.

This weekend Monkey Girl turns 6. It is also a weekend Beaver Camp to celebrate the Centennial. So, she gets her birthday at Camp and I don't have to bake a cake for another week, which is when she has her party (while Hamster Boy is off at his Cub camp with the Pilot). Only 30 more days till he comes home for good ... yikes! I better get to Bollywood soon!

Frustration Fix ...

What does one do when your favoured hockey team is losing it's first game in the final series of the Stanley Cup? You sew. But not client work, that is just forecasting ripstitching! So, I started to unpack some TNT patterns for easy T's, but could not find anything that matched my need to let out all that frustration. I love my princess T shirt, but that still wasn't doing it for me. What I wanted was a nice princess lined T with a raglan sleeve. This is something I have been thinking about for a long time, but hadn't been sure of just how to accomplish it. Do I start with the raglan or the princess? Do I start from scratch with a T shirt?

I pulled out my Helen Joseph Armstrong pattern drafting book and went at it. There are wonderful explanations of how to take a bodice with a bust and waist dart and make it into a princess line. So, I went into the stash and pulled out a vintage pattern that I recently bought. It had the requisite raglan sleeves and the two darts required to start with, so the morphing would be less than if I had to draft the raglan after. Following the Armstrong directions, I drafted the princess lines, making it an armhole princess pattern.

As I was winning with this process, my team ended up losing the game. We'll spot you this one game, Anaheim ... for Walt's sake. (I'll leave the debate about what he'd think about owning a hockey team for other boards!) You played well, just watch the stick action behind the play ... it'll get you in trouble someday!

Tomorrow morning I finish off the Flower Girl dress and then fool around some more with the pattern. It has a collar that is cut on with the sleeve front, very interesting! The fact that this is intending to be a T shirt means that the collar needs to come off somehow. That can be for Wednesday's game!

Go Sens Go! If only I could edit the Bugs Bunny/Daffy Duck "Wabbit Season-Duck Season" sound clips to be Sens Season-Duck Season ...

Client Updates...

It has been a while since I had time to sit and post. Life has been getting in my workshop time lately. The sun has come out big time and the bulbs arrived, so the daylight hours has been taken up with planting! The Canadian May long weekend has come and gone along with our annual trip to the zoo. One thing about being a family that moves a lot, you make some neat traditions. One of ours is that on the May long weekend, we go to a zoo. This year, we joined the Pilot at a hotel and then went to the zoo. We also had a night with my sister on the way as a means of avoiding serious road traffic.

The Flower Girl dress has been started. I drafted a facing for the neckline as the fabric is hefty enough to go without. The facing is on, the shoulder seams are done and the 2 piece sleeves are hemmed and lined up for gathering. I always take a break at this point in the sleeve. Makes for less ripstitching, I find!

I am ignoring the guide sheets for the most part, only referring to them for the match point on the sleeves. Rather than setting in the sleeve, I am going to put it in flat once I have them gathered. Then I can sew up the s.s. so much easier. Another change is to attach the gathered skirt in pieces. I am gathering the back to the separate back pieces and doing the same for the front. I did this for the muslin and made sure to keep the s.a. clear of gathers for the s.s. stitching and it worked out fine. It also makes putting the zipper in flat a lot easier. I am once again using an invisible zipper. One more thing I learned from the muslin was that I have to keep the bodice/skirt seamline free from gathering at the CB as well as 5/8" into the garment for ease of zipping.

The first batch of nylon has arrived for the salon capes and I will get at those by tomorrow night, I hope. I have been confirmed for 4 capes in total and no aprons. Those will be easy to do. I examined a lot of capes in use and saw that they are edged with either a narrow hem or with bias binding. I think I will go without the binding. I do have to go buy some snap tape, though, for the necklines.

Once these are done, I will have the table cleared for Bollywood ...

Inspiration!

No, I am not going to talk about snoop shopping or sewing projects by those I admire. Today is about the ability to keep going when the going is tough. I see my dear friend MB fighting her cancer with grace and humour. I see another friend who is re-defining herself after unforseen changes to her life with a smile on her face and with a renewed confidence. A close friend who lives in the same city as me is fighting to drop over 50 pounds through exercise and eating right. Ressy, the Evil Fabric Queen herself, is living with diabetes and now has another lifestyle adjustment to make as she tries to eliminate gluten from her diet among other things.
I have been a part time single mother for the last year (38 more sleeps ...) as the Pilot commuted from his post to home on weekends whenever he could.

We all have a personal battle of some type to go through in our lives. We all manage to do it. We get our support from online message boards, blogs of similar minded people, e-mails and phone calls. No matter how that support comes, I am glad it is there. Reading that Ressy was using the Dreadmill at her hotel made me go into the exercise room at my hotel over the weekend instead of lounging in/beside the pool while the kids splashed away. Knowing that my friends are eating well had me make better choices at the restaurants we ate at all weekend. Knowing I had to check in with Shallon when I got home made me second guess a lot of things ... there is not much you can hide from your best friend/massage therapist!

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to all of you whom I check in with, whose sites I lurk and for all those e-mails I read. I just wanted to let you all know that it does make a difference.

Tomorrow I post sewing, honest! I will be starting the Flower Girl Dress tonight after the Monkeys are in bed and should finish tomorrow afternoon. I just have to get a zipper and some trim for the bodice. The Pilot has said to stop working on the shirt to focus on my dress and paid projects. Little did he know I already had ... then he reminded me that there is a garden ceremony as well. DOH! Another dress to make ...

Bollywood, the Beginning ...

I took the Pilot to Darrell's today. I managed to baste in a sleeve and a cuff as well as the collar before we went. It made for a long night and an early morning, but it was worth it. The shirt got the stamp of approval from Darrell wrt fit. He gave some advice for hem lengths on formal vs casual shirts that the Pilot actually listened to as well. Turns out that he now likes having shirts untucked ... after almost 20 years, he has surprised me! We then looked at the shirting selections (with me hiding the price tags) so that I have my limits of colours. Bold stripes are out and don't even mention pink (although with his colouring, he certainly could pull it off!) but he will take some patterns in his shirts, thank you very much! I now have permission to mass produce shirts in both casual and more formal fabrics as much as I want. His new post will require civilian business attire for Fridays so come July, he will need them!

While I was there, Darrell slipped me a bag with my fabrics, lining, thread (some silk and some Poly/cotton) and a zipper. The fabric is even more luscious than the sample. I will try to match it to pantone cards and take a photo later on. We are not letting the Pilot see what is happening, you see. I want a complete surprise on his part. As for this Blog, when I mention my sewing site, my Techno Peasant hubby thinks I am referring to either Pattern Review or Stitcher's guild. He is blissfully unaware of Newman's Needle as anything other than my business name!

Re. the shirt, I have to re-cut the right front panel as it had a little mishap with the serger, it decided that it needed to be up close and personal when I was trimming the neckline seam. I have a nick about 1/4" that is butting up to the placket seam. Good thing I have enough to re cut that panel and then redo. Now I just have to rip all that stitching ... good thing to do while watching the hockey game tomorrow ... GO SENS GO!

Now. The dress. I have taken the instructions out and given them a glance. They are written well enough, but I think I need to see the pieces they are talking about to make them click in the brain. Aside from the lining being called the mount, there appears to be side and front/back panels. That is a surprise at that doesn't show in the drawing. Also, the only review I have seen doesn't mention it either. So, I think that the only way to go forward from here is to take the pattern out and start cutting pieces. I have to decide if I am going to choose a 14 or a 12 in this. When I made the Patchoulli, I cut and sewed a muslin of the bodice without any changes to guage fit and then hacked and slashed from there. I will do the same thing with this one.

Can't wait to see what that envelope holds!

Flower Girl Update

Well, the "muslin" is done but for hemming. The sleeves were a bit of a pain ... Lining a tulip sleeve and then gathering the overlapped cap made for a lot of fabric! So, I think I will not line the final dress. This is for a July wedding, so I think lining would be too much for this little girl. The final fabric is a heavier weight cotton so the lining is not really needed anyway. I will have to draft a facing for the neckline but that is not very hard.

A personal pat on the back wrt to the pattern grading ... the pattern in the proper size arrived yesterday in the mail. When I compared my re-draft to the actual size 4, I was very happy to see that except for minute differences in the armscye curve, I managed to get it right! Very nice to know that my technique worked!

The Pilot's shirt is all cut out. The shirting that MB sent is beautiful to work with except for that border print! Very subtle, but made for a challenge wrt layout! I finally decided to use that border for the front placket and the cuffs. I would have liked to have had it at the CB, but that would have required a seam and that is not on! I also cut the yoke, collar and stand on the bias. The Pilot needs that extra curve in those areas, I think. I took the time to match the stripes on the yoke and the pocket. I want this one to be wearable for him. He needs a few good shirts and if this one will fit then I can work on one for him for the grad dinner after the Dress is done. There is no hope of getting the Dress muslin done for tomorrow as I have a Scout meeting tonight and I have lots of coins to roll from all those almonds the kids sold! So, after Hamster Boy comes home I have to run out to the dollar store to get wrappers.

Confessions of a Confused Sewer ...

I finished the final alterations to the Dragon version #2 the other night. Even though I took in that back leg seam, they still bag out on me. I am NOT HAPPY! They look not too bad until I take the digi camera shot of the back. Then I can see all the wrinkles. Ick. It wasn't until I read the latest Threads issue that I had a lightbulb moment. This pattern needs drapey fabric. For me, that meant something lightweight. The article by Linda Lee on choosing pant fabrics for drape showed that I was really wrong about drape. I think that I actually need something heavier in weight but not hand to carry off the extra ease in these pants. I think the fabrics I have been using are too crisp despite their lightweight. So, seeing as I don't have anything in the stash that will suit this pattern, it has to go on an extended hiatus. Dragon hibernation if you will ...

On the other hand, I do have lots to keep me busy. The Flower Girl muslin is 50% done. I should have it to hem stage by supper. That way I can arrange a fitting for it later in the week. Tomorrow will be the Pilot's shirt second muslin. This one will be sewn up in some lovely shirting given to me by Mary Beth over at The Stitchery (sending lots of virtual hugs, MB!). I need to have that done quickly as we have a fitting on Wednesday with Darrell. Also, I want to have a muslin of the bodice of the Bollywood Dress done for he same day. That way I can get Darrell's help if I need it without a second trip downtown. I pick up the fabric Wednesday as it has arrived. He promised to have the lining and silk thread to match when I get there. I love that man!

My other clients have given the thumbs up on the field test of the rip stop nylon for the salon capes, so I can go ahead and start with those once the Flower Girl is fitted and approved. Those capes can be whipped up in a day, I think. I just have to wait for the fabric to arrive ...

Fabrics ...

The Closet is responsible, not me. It convinced me that I did not have enough summer weight tops and next to nil lighter colours for spring. I needed simple tops. I have the TNT patterns, but not the knits to make them up. So I went off to wazoodle to buy a couple of grab bags. As I live in a humid climate, I asked for 2 bags of wicking knits. Last summer I loved what I got, so I was looking forward to what Lee Ann would select. There were some repeats from last year in the blues and the soft yellow, but I got a orangey colour and a lavender as well as a nice steel blue with a hint of green, a khaki green, a chocolate brown and a nice black as well. I am pretty sure I can make a wardrobe of knit tops from that! The orange will be coord with the brown as will that blue green. The lavender will become a nightie, I think, for Monkey Girl. She might even like the orange. Hamster Boy refused with a "What are you thinking" look. I had to try ... I also picked up a nice textured white poly knit that is better in person than online.

News from Darrell ...

Yesterday I received a wonderful e-mail from my friend Darrell Thomas. Starting next month, he will be holding a "Stitch and Bitch" session at the shop. The idea being that the first 30 minutes will be discussions of any personal projects on the go and an opportunity to get help, then there may be a technique or two demonstrated and then the monthly creative challenge will be presented. The idea is to get us all sewing something unique. The example given was to sew up a skirt with a certain number of vertical and horizontal seams by the next meeting. There may also be charity projects the odd month as well. I can't wait! There are so many of us who love to sew and get together, so we take classes, even though we already have a certain skill, just for the community touch. We don't have the ASG up here, so this will certainly fill a niche!

Now all I have to do is wait till June 13th ...

Daily Dragon Update #4

Well, I managed to redo the crotch curve tonight. I was not a fan of how it was lying, so I took out the Silhouette pant sloper and compared. It was identical up to about 2 inches from the inseam. The HP curve was higher than the proven Silhouette one, so I lopped it off IAW proven pants. I then clipped the crotch curve, took in the inseam and the s.s. to the full 5/8" s.a. as they were too baggy. A big improvement, but there is still too much fullness at the back seam where the side and back panels meet. This is as far as I am going. When I pinch out the fullness, the pants are beautiful, so I think this fabric is still not right. I think it really needs something fluid.

I did some playing on the Flower girl dress pattern today. I really wanted to try my hands at grading a pattern, so I traced off the bodice pieces with all sizes (6-8) and markings. I then connected corner points, notches and dots and extended the lines inward. I then measured the lines for the existing sizes to see if there was a set distance. Where there was, I continued the distance inwards, using my curve when I needed to blend lines, specifically in the neckline and sleeve areas. The skirt was easier as the only difference was in the hem length, so that was a simple change. Tomorrow, I do the tulip sleeves. That requires fresh eyes. By tomorrow afternoon, I will be able to start a muslin to check the fit. I think I will do the first one with 3/8" s.a. to allow for growing room and "just in case".

I apologize for the lack of photos of late, but I have been sewing after the kids are in bed as I have been spending my days in the garden. This late night sewing is taking its toll, but the weather is so nice, I had to get the garden done. I only have to help Monkey Girl with her first flower garden and then I am done for a couple of weeks, anyway. That is when the new bulbs arrive! There is one more patch in the front bed, but that needs to have the backfill of gravel passed off as soil to be removed and put under the front step to shore it up. That needs the Pilot. He wants to do lots of "puttering" next week while he is home, so I see major work in his future ... I am even "renting" him out to a neighbour who wants to replace their fence. But please don't hold your breath, in case life gets in my way!

No Dragon Tonight ...

Nothing to report on the dragon's today. I skipped last night as it was Scout night. Today, while I should have been in the workshop, I made an executive decision and went into the garden instead. Last night, we had a special evening, as the older children all moved up a level. So, I said goodbye to 5 Beavers as they moved up to Cubs Scouts. Sad, but exciting at the same time. One of the boys started with me 2 years ago and he was crying for the first month as he couldn't participate in any of the games due to a broken arm. He was so unsure of himself for that time ... this year he is a very aware young boy who has loads of confidence! He is definitely ready for the Cub Pack!

Another event of note, last night I invested as a member of the 1st Gilwell Scout Group. That is the troop begun by the founder of Scouting, Lord Baden Powell. Members of the Gilwell Group have all completed Advanced Leader Training and have earned the right to wear the Gilwell neckerchief and one set of wooden beads on their necker. Those beads go back to the original beads handed out by BP himself. While the original African beads are long gone, the replicas carry the same meaning. Achieving this during the Centennial Anniversary of Scouting in Canada is even more special to me. An added bonus, my mentor had invited all the members of my training course to come and see me get my beads! I am the first one in our section to finish and get the beads. I was told last night that one of the youth that was also on course with me has finished his requirements now and will soon be getting his beads. I will be there to see him as he was for me!

The Garden got some more needed attention today. As we have been in the house now for a little over a year, I am now making the garden mine vice the previous owner's. Gone are the foundation platings that were taking over the front patio. The rose that was attacking people as they walked by it has been moved to harass the lilac in the backyard instead. The sassy Spirea has been relocated from the lilac corner to the front bed where it is now surrounded by some lavender to replace what the local felines killed last year. I also bought a pot with 3 Columbines in it. I divided them up and put them in the front bed where one of the foundation plants had been. I have found many of the lilies that I was sure were killed off last year due to their poor showing, were starting to grow again. I found this out as I was turning the soil and accidentally dug many of them up. Will have to see which ones actually make it now ...I also bought some Iris for the back bed.

Tomorrow I will plant some other shade perennials in the back bed. I am looking for some variety back there and now that the apple tree is gone I have room! To be fair, it wasn't really a tree. More like a tall sapling. It was only about 7-8' tall, but it wasn't very healthy. The roots were in full shade, the trunk was thin and at a bad angle. I managed to pull it out with very little loosening of the roots. That sassy Spirea had more of a root ball than the apple tree! and don't get me started on the roots of that rose ... it looked like something out of Harry Potter! That was the hardest job so far!

Once the kids are settled in bed, I will take the Rodent to the workshop for its nightly exercise. It will roll around the floor in it's ball for about an hour before it wants to go back to the cage to eat and play. By then Hamster Boy will be asleep and the wheel won't bother him. The plan tonight, seeing as I avoided the client work in daylight, is to trace off the flower girl dress pattern and then work on measuring and sizing down where needed. I had some really good measurements taken by the mother, so I have lots to work with. My experience has shown so far that there is not much difference between the sizes width wise, but I will have to see. I will do up a calico muslin to check fit. That way she will get 2 dresses out of this. That reminds me ... I have to do up a contract for the clients before I get too far ahead!

I am off to locate my old price list ... if memory serves, I did a flat rate per garment type for kids and did hourly for adults as they require more fitting. See you later ...