Memories of a Prom Dress

As many of you know, I chaperone Prom every year and this year* was no exception.  As per my usual, I sewed up a spiffy little dress.  I love attending Prom because it allows me to indulge in my desire for pretty party dresses by providing me with a venue to display said dresses.

This year, I revisited a lovely vintage pattern, Simplicity 3323.  I have made this pattern before, so knew how to put it together quickly (since I was coming down to the wire in terms of timing - why, oh why, do I always leave my Prom dresses to the last minute?).  I also had a list of tweaks to make to the dress that I had jotted down from the first go around.  The bodice was lengthened by 1" and I scooped away a 1/2" of the front armscyces, as the original dress was binding on my arms when I would reach forward.  This solved the really rather annoying straight-jackety feeling.

I chose a bright blue taffeta that had black flocked roses scattered over the fabric.  I had received this fabric as a freebie from Fabric Mart a year or so ago and it had been impatiently aging in my stash ever since.  I am absolutely smitten with this fabric, but I never would have purchased it on my own.  Thank you Fabric Mart's Free Bundle for providing me with interesting and unexpected  textiles! 

Only the bodice is lined (with some black silk dupioni that was left over from another project), as the flocked fabric is not transparent at all and I wanted the dress to be light and airy for a warm day.

I accessorized the distinctly 50s dress with a pair of metallic T-strap heels and a small sparkly pin at the waist.

I received many compliments (from students and staff alike) and I was cool and comfortable all evening.  This dress was a definite winner!

* Prom actually occurred at the beginning of May, so let's pretend it didn't take me two months to post this, mmkay?

The Wazoodle Coat

Next up is a winter coat.  I will be using the coat pattern from Butterick 2457, a vintage pattern from the 1960s.  I'm smitten with the raglan sleeves and the fabulous roll collar that stands slightly away from the neck.  Unfortunately, the pattern was not designed with pockets, so I will be adding some to make the coat more useful - I need a place for keys and the like.  I haven't yet decided whether I will place the pockets in the side seams or go for some cute patch pockets on the front.  Right now, I am leaning toward the latter.

I will be using a mid-weight wool/cashmere/acetate blend melton in balsam.  I purchased this fabric in several colourways from Wazoodle many years ago (back when they actually carried fabrics that were desirable - lately, their selection has been less than stellar).  Since I want this coat to be reasonably warm in the colder weather, I will be underlining the entire garment in a thick ivory coloured cotton flannel, also purchased from Wazoodle.

As this coat is to be a quick(ish) wearable muslin to test fit, I won't be going crazy with the tailoring techniques.  I have plans to use this pattern for a bigger project if this garment turns out well.

12-4-12 *Vintage Pattern Picks*

Yesterday, I showed a bunch of modern jacket/coat patterns that are on my short list to be made during the 12-4-12 Jacket Sew-a-long.  Today, I want to send out some vintage pattern love.

Aren't they all just delicious?

Presents of Mind

At the end of each school year, I buy myself a present (or ten) as a celebration of surviving another pair of semesters with my sanity intact (and more importantly, for not maiming any kids in  the process).  This year, my gift to me is a batch of vintage patterns.  All of these will make excellent additions to my work wardrobe.

These beauties were purchased at Your Pattern Shop, which has a 40% off everything sale.  They also offer free shipping (US & Canada) for the purchase of three or more patterns, plus additional volume discounts.  As I was browsing, I noticed that there is a good selection of sizes (bust 30 - 44) at very reasonable prices.

I have never purchased from this vendor before, but I'm always willing to give a new merchant a chance.  I'll report back when the patterns arrive.

Simplicity 2871

As the school year is winding down (my last day of work is June 30th), the workload is heating up.  The last month of school is always a whirlwind of activity.

Also, my gardens are demanding more and more attention.  So, I have been spending many hours on the weekends digging, pruning, transplanting and deadheading. 

Not to mention, my house looks like a pig sty because I simply don't have enough time for real cleaning duties.  Not that my husband or Simon notice.  Why are most men so oblivious to filth? 

So, unfortunately sewing has been on the back burner at Chez HZC lately.

However, I will sew today.

I already have the project all picked out.  I don't normally go for sheath style dresses, but Simplicity 2871 looks so chic (and above all, easy to sew). 

I have a navy floral cotton pique fabric all picked out and ready for cutting.  It was a freebie in a Fabric Mart bundle, so hopefully it makes a nice wearable muslin.  But, if this project goes south, no tears will be shed.

Now, I just need to get my arse in gear...

Emma Goes to Prom

Just recently on the blog, What Would Emma Pilsbury Wear?, there was a challenge posted.  The readers were asked to provide a Prom look for Emma - either what she would have worn to her Prom or what she would wear to chaperone a Prom.  Well, I'm pretty sure I know the answer to this all important question:

 

Gathering - The Magic

The "Better Late than Never" Dress calls for a fair bit of gathering in the bodice and the skirt.  There are all sorts of techniques out there for gathering fabric, but I thought I'd document my favourite method in the pictorial tutorial.  I am showing how the gathered midriff overlay piece is attached to a stay, but this technique can be used in any situation requiring the attachment of a large piece of fabric to a smaller piece of fabric, via gathering.

Run a line of basting stitches along the seamline on the larger piece of fabric (you can see the larger lime green fabric will be gathered onto the smaller avocado green stay in the picture below).  You can do this by machine by cranking up your stitch length as high as it will go - on my machine, it is 5 mm.

 Pin the two ends in place and pin the middles of the two fabrics together.

Continue to pin at equidistant intervals.

Add as many pins as is necessary to evenly distribute the fabric.

Pull up the basting stitches to gather the larger piece of fabric as tightly as possible.

Pull the ends of the smaller piece of fabric back into shape.  The gathers on the larger piece of fabric should now be evenly distributed amongst the pins.  Sit back and revel in your awesomeness.

 

P.S.  The dress is done and not a moment too soon.  I will be heading out in a couple of hours.  Hopefully tomorrow I will have all sorts of fab photos of me rockin' out at Prom.

French Seams - Magnifique!

The "Better Late than Never" Dress is coming along nicely.  Looks like I won't be naked at Prom.  Hey wait, I'm pretty sure I had a dream like that once.  Scary.

I like my formal wear to have a flawless inside finish, but I am pressed for time on this project, so I will be doing some serged finishes on the silk charmeuse lining.  However, I refuse to have a messy looking seams on the exterior silk chiffon fabric.  Nothing is tackier than a fraying or serged seam showing through a sheer formal wear fabric.  So, I took the extra bit of time required to employ some beautiful French seams.

Although I have done a tutorial in the past on how to create a French seam, I thought I would show some real live action shots of a French seam in progress.  Be prepared to be dazzled:

Place fabric wrong sides together and sew a 1/4" seam.  Trim the seam to an 1/8". This removes any loose fibres and cleans up the edge nicely.

Press the stitches flat to meld the thread into the fabric.  Then, press the seam to one side (it is pressed upward in the picture below).  Alternatively, press the seam open if the fabric allows.  On this silk chiffon, pressing the seam open was tantamount to herding cats, so I took the path of least resistance and pressed to one side.

Turn the fabric so it is right sides together.  Pin along the edge. Stitch a 3/8" seam.  This will encase the first line of stitching, creating a strong, neat seam, in which all raw edges are encased (you can see the encased raw edge if you look closely at the picture below). 

Press the seam to one side or the other (the seam is pressed downward in the picture below).

Admire your handiwork from the right side.  Beautiful!

The "Better Late Than Never" Dress

I actually attended two Senior Proms when I was in high school.  My boyfriend at the time was a year older than me, so we attended his Prom and a year later, we attended mine.  I've shown both of the dresses I made here and here.  Even back then I was channeling the full skirted 50s vibe.  Thank goodness I went with this classic style because the late 1980s were responsible for a lot of Prom fashion victims. 

Fast forward twenty years and I am again attending Prom (I estimate I've attended ten Proms over the years - you'd think I'd get to be Prom Queen just once, simply for sheer tenacity!) on May 14th.  I've already introduced you all to my inspiration for this year's dress, as well as the fabrics that will be used.  So, let's talk pattern.

I have made this vintage McCall's 9690 before (for Timmel's SWAP 2007) and I was really pleased with the resulting dress.  I will revisit this pattern for my "Better Late Than Never" dress.  It has the same full skirt, shirred midriff and gathered surplice bodice as the inspiration dress.  

Obviously the lime silk chiffon will be used for the bodice and the darker avocado silk chiffon will be employed for the midriff and the skirt.  If I had more time, I would tweak the pattern to look exactly like the inspiration dress.  However, time is short*, so the only changes I will make will be a small bust adjustment and a slight enlargement of the midriff band.


*This past week has been hectic, so I have yet to actually start this dress.  I hope to have it cut out and mostly sewn up by the end of the weekend.  Fingers crossed.

Better Late Than...Whatever, You Get the Idea

Procrastinate?  Me?  No.  Never.  Maybe.

Okay, I did say I was going to make this dress ages ago.  And then, it went into the "it's-next-in-line" pile and then it went into the "soon-to-be-made" pile and then I forgot about it.
 
So, for those of you that require a refresher on my plans (What?  You don't hang on my every word and memorize all my lofty goals for the future?  What kind of crappy blog readers are you?  Sheesh.), here goes:

Two years ago, I fell madly and passionately in love with a dress that I found on Vintageous.  Cast your gaze upon its fabulousness over to the left.  If it hadn't been so big in the bust, I would have snatched it up right then and there.  But, alas it was not meant to be.  So, I dabbed away the tears and formulated a plan:

Must.knockoff.dress.Must.knockoff.dress.Must.knockoff.dress...

The search for two similar (read: identical) fabrics ensued.  My quest was arduous and all-consuming.  I looked far and wide for lime green and avocado silk chiffon to no avail.  Tired and weary, I finally conceded failure.

Then, as if sent from heaven, I found them (cue angels singing) - the perfect fabrics.  Back in the day when Denver Fabrics was still Denver Fabrics (and not just a weird doppelganger of Fashion Fabrics Club), I received a sale email from them.  Intrigued, I went to have a look-see at their fabric offerings and the rest, as they say, is history.

I purchased the two gorgeous silk chiffons on the right and my hopes for the project were renewed.

Unfortunately, this dress requires some sort of lining, because see-through silk + Shannon = police record.  Well, trying to find lining fabrics in the appropriate shades was a major pain in the ass my next challenge.

I started to feel like that Ahab dude in Moby Dick and this dress was my white whale.  I kept sneaking up on it, sure that it would be mine, only to be thwarted yet again.  (Don't worry, I'm pretty sure this project won't ultimately lead to my death...I hope...I mean, I'm not some crazy obsessed person...I'm way more stable than that...!...Ishmael, hold me.)

However, as it turns out, patience was my friend.  Slowly, over time, I was able to locate and purchase two silk charmeuses (charmeusi?) in the perfect matching shades from Fabric Mart.  But, by the time I had collected all my materials, I no longer needed a formal dress.  Drat!

Until now.  It's Prom season, baby!  And I am chaperone extraordinaire.  So, I have to put this little lovely together by Friday, May 14th.  That gives me just less than two weeks.  Wish me luck.

Going in (Half) Circles

I have made vintage Simplicity 3881 in the past (see here and here).  It is a lovely half circle skirt that fits nicely and flatters my pear shape by remaining smooth and close fitting at the waist and flaring out over the hip.  So, when I was looking for the perfect pattern to use with a great piece of dusty yellow linen with a brown and blue plaid pattern (from Fabric Mart), this retro pattern came to mind instantly.

The trickiest part of the whole project was ensuring that the plaid lined up on each side seam.  However, with some careful cutting, a bit of patience and a ton of pins, the mission was accomplished.  The only other hitch was getting the skirt hemmed at the proper length all the way around.  A portion of the skirt is cut on the bias and after hanging for a few days (to allow the bias cut fabric to relax), I had a severely misshapen skirt. So, I just used my tape measure and measured down equal amounts from the waistband guaranteeing a perfectly level hem.

So, here's the finished product, all put together for work.  On top I have a pale yellow sleeveless sweater and a teal cardigan.  The cardigan is pinned together at the top with an over-sized dark peach enamel flower brooch (a gift from my Mom - she keeps me decked out in all sorts of gorgeous costume jewelery).  On my feet are a pair of brown leather sling back heels that sport an adorable little bow on the front.  These shoes were a purchased at Nine West several years ago.  At the time, the round toe look was just coming back in and I wasn't completely sold on the style (the 80s had trained my eye to see pointy toed pumps as the only fashionable choice).  I am so glad I didn't pass these shoes up though, as they have been a great addition to my wardrobe. 

Isn't it funny how odd a new style can seem when you first see it?  If you're like me, you vow that you will never wear the new style and dismiss it.  Then, after a few weeks (or months or years), when your eye becomes more accustomed to the look, you start to warm up to the new fashion.  I was like this with capris, platform heels and big scarves as indoor wear.  Now, I can't imagine going without.

So, dear reader, any fashion trends that initially struck you as horrid, only to later become some of your favourites?

Adjusting Wacky Darts to Fit Perky Parts

Anyone that has read my blog for a while knows that I was late to the queue when nature was handing out the boobage (although I was first in line for intelligence, wit and humility).  Over the years, I have bitched and moaned  priced out silicone funbags come to embrace my petite chestical region as a blessing.  I rarely need to wear a bra, I never lose sight of my feet and I can easily wield a machete without any centre of mass concerns (which will come in handy during the Zombie Apocalypse). 

The only real down side is that I typically cannot sew a bodice pattern straight from the envelope.  Inevitably I have to so some major alterations.  In the past, I have provided a tutorial on how to do a small bust adjustment (SBA) on a bodice that has a horizontal bust dart, as well as a vertical waist dart.

Unfortunately the aforementioned SBA will not work for my latest project, Vogue 5611.  It is a lovely vintage dress (circa 1962) with an interesting inverted V-shaped seam that joins the bodice to the gathered bell shaped skirt in front.  Such a wonderful twist on the classic sleeveless sheath.

The bodice of V5611 has a single, large horizontal bust dart and no waist dart, as you can see on the unaltered pattern piece to the right.  Using the above SBA (click link above for a tutorial) will not work as it will remove width from the inverted V-shaped waist seam.  This seam must remain the same length as it needs to fit properly to a skirt piece.

Instead I have had to create a method to remove fullness in the bust region, without losing width above or below the bust.  Below is a pictorial procedure on how I did it.

First I traced out half of the bodice onto white paper (only half is need as the other half is just the mirror image).  I did this to preserve my original pattern piece, just in case, I messed up.

Draw in three cutting lines:
L1 - a line from the bust point to a location 1/3 of the way up the armscyce.
L2 - a line bisecting the bust dart.
L3 - a line from the waist seam to the bust point, parallel to the centre line.

Cut along L2 and L3.
Overlap paper to reduce the bust dart.
The extent of the overlap is dependent upon how much smaller the wearer's bust is from the original pattern.  I chose to reduce the bust dart by half.
Tape alteration in place.






Cut along L1.
This produces a removable wedge-shaped piece.









Tape the armscye so that it will not change in length.
Slide the removable wedge-shaped piece so that it overlaps in the bust point region.
Ensure that the distance from the centre to the bottom of the side seam remains the same as in the original pattern (see where the ruler is measuring in the photo).
Tape this alteration in place.

This is a close-up of the overlap of the paper in the bust point region. 
Notice that the original bust point has been moved toward the centre of the bodice.  This will be shifted back toward the side seam in the next photo.

A new bust point is drawn in closer to the side seam.  If the bust point isn't moved back toward the side seam, the dart will be too long.

Paper is added in at the inverted V-shaped waist region.
A new waist seam is drawn in, from centre to side seam.
In the end, I actually redrew this seam line so that it angled up more steeply from the side seam toward the centre, thus removing some length at centre front.

Disclaimer:  I am in the process of sewing up the dress as we speak.  If this bodice alteration  requires any tweaks as I go, I will edit this post to reflect it.