Found! Gathered Hemlock Dress Fabric

Isn't this Anthro dress cute? It's the Gathered Hemlock dress, and I've had my eye on it for a while now. And last night I was browsing around an online fabric shop, and what did I find? The very fabric! For $15 a yard, which seems pretty reasonable to me. (Though I know my standards are warped from living in New York and having champagne taste in fabric.) At any rate, the dress itself is $148.

Pretty.

Readers, I bought some yardage. (You can too! The owner of Emma One Sock let me know right away that while the fabric is currently out of stock, she's expecting more in on Monday.) I have a project on the horizon that it could work nicely for. And, if not, I'd love to make a simple sheath out of it. McCalls 6282, for instance:

Wouldn't it look great super-fitted and a bit below the knee? Might be a good opportunity to play around with some powernet lining too!

One drawback: Jeff does NOT like the print. To be clear, he doesn't hate it. He just thinks it's "a little much." I guess it's a bit louder and splashier than what I normally wear, and I can see how it's not for everyone. I usually listen very closely to Jeff's style advice. He has a great eye. But I decided to go rogue on this one and ignore him. I just love that happy print! What do you think? Are you Team Gertie or Team Jeff on this very important matter?

Open-Toe Booties: Yea or Nay?

First, let me start by saying this: I know my "yea or nay" picks will be polarizing. That's the point! It would be an exercise in futility with you awesome people to post a frothy 50s Dior couture dress (for example) and ask your opinion. That's right, I know how you tick! Instead, I usually post things that aren't necessarily my style but I think may be kind of cool (or I could be completely wrong about).

Today's on-the-edge fashion is open-toe booties. Readers, how I've struggled with this style. I first dismissed them as utterly fug. Then I started seeing them on some of my favorite retro style bloggers, looking glam paired with full-skirted dresses. How confusing this dark period was for me!

Another turning point in this scintillating story occurred yesterday, with the arrival of the new Anthropologie catalog. Readers, I saw these:

And was inexplicably drawn to them. I just like them, that's all there is to it. I showed them to Jeff.

"Well, you don't have any other shoes like them, that's for sure," he declared. (He often puzzles over why I need, say, hot pink pumps in two different styles.)

"Are they . . . ugly?" I asked.

"Borderline," he replied.

So yes, I have ordered these "borderline ugly" shoes so I can see for myself. But what do you think, readers? What say you of open-toed booties in general?

Now, for a few footwear fashions that I hope aren't polarizing. First, what I think may indeed be the ugliest pair of shoes I have ever seen:

And on the other end of the spectrum: these fabulous platform pumps, which I admit are on their way to me as well, due to a moment of weakness and an Anthro gift card. Look at the raspberry-colored piping and hidden platform!

Now, if you need a good laugh at Anthropologie's expense after viewing any of these, you must read Regretsy's new feature: Etsy or Anthropologie? Pure awesome. She really stumped me with the plastic dinosaur brooch.

Sixteen Yards of Yellow Fabric

Yep, that's what this is! I've been prepping for my next draped design, which is basically a knock-off of a current Anthro design (blogged here).

The inspiration! (Which, in turn, is very 50s-inspired itself.)

I began draping the dress on my own (without the help of my teacher Sharon). I got through the front bodice and hit a major wall. In fact, I was ready to throw my muslin at said wall! Luckily, Sharon came over the next day and sorted me out. It turned out that I was quite close; I just needed some help tweaking it. I didn't document the entire draping process this time (since I had no idea what I was doing), but here's a little peek at start of the bust draping:

The straight grain is the fold running diagonally across the bust. I'm kind of amazed I figured that out on my own! You can also see in the picture above how the fabric is trying to form itself into a dart below the bust apex. Sharon always says you should let the fabric tell you what it wants to do. Cool, huh?

Here's what that pattern piece ended up looking like, in the muslin prep stage:

Interesting, isn't it?

I made a decision to really work on my couture dressmaking skills with this project. I'm going all out, with the help of the book Bridal Couture by Susan Khalje. It's sadly out of print, but you can buy a CD version here.

As for all that yellow fabric? The body of the dress will be a beautiful cotton/viscose faille. The whole thing will be underlined in silk organza - I choose a very bright yellow to make the fashion fabric appear even more vibrant. And then a buttery yellow cotton batiste for the lining. The funny thing is that the fabric ended up costing about $160 - and the Anthro dress costs $158! Anyway, I know I don't need to explain to you all why you can't really compare the costs of the two - apples and oranges and all that.

I've also been gathering notions: horsehair for the hem, grosgrain for the waist stay, boning, bra cups, interfacing, and a zipper. (Whew!)

I'm finishing up another dress made from my last draped pattern, and then I'll be ready to go into full muslin mode on this yellow concoction. I already feel like this will be a very special dress, and I have high hopes of wearing it to the Golden Age of Couture exhibit in Nashville at the end of August. A special exhibit calls for a special dress, right?

I heavily documented the draping and design stage on my last project, but I feel like this one is going to be all about the construction. So I'm looking forward to really getting my inner sewing nerd on and sharing lots of technique pictures with you. More to come!

Covert Fashion Spy Mission at Anthropologie

I rarely shop ready-to-wear anymore (too busy fabric shopping, I suppose), but yesterday at lunch I made a brief reconnaissance mission to Anthro. You see, I had spied this aqua version (below) of the "Tracing Twirls" dress online and fell madly, deeply, head over heels. Look at that 50s-inspired bustline! I knew I would have to attempt to drape this design. (You might remember that I blogged about this dress back in March - I was in love with it back then too.)

But how to begin interpreting the design? (Besides writing a desperate e-mail to my draping teacher telling her I must drape this design, stat!) I knew it would help tremendously to look at this dress in person. Luckily, it was in stock at my local Anthro, albeit in the black and white colorway above. I grabbed it, along with a few other dresses I wanted to study and made my way stealthily to the fitting room with my secret fashion spyware. (Okay, I actually just walked to the dressing room with my iPhone in tow.)

I took tons of pictures of the dress, from the inside and out and studying it closely definitely helped me understand how it was designed and constructed. I stared at the bodice pleats until they made sense to me. Here's a covert pic of me wearing the dress. (The fit isn't bad, but it's not perfect - just more reason to make my own!)

I especially liked the colorful petticoat detail on the lining.

I also tried the Dagmar shirtdress, because I was attracted to the skirt pleating patterns and the side seam pockets paired with a side seam zipper. I love the shape! I wouldn't have thought to put the pleats in the center only, but it was super flattering.

I also tried the Cascading Bows dress because it looked like it had high-quality construction. It did! Look at the lapped back center zip. (I put one of these into my latest dress and they're my new favorite thing.)

Here's the metal zip exposed.

And here it is open. There's a lovely grosgrain ribbon detail behind the lap.

But the fit - horrors! I tried a 10 and the bodice was too big while the hips were pulling tightly.  Note to self: bows "cascading" down the abdomen = not a good look. Ugh. On the bright side, it's my color!

All in all, it was a productive visit. I got to look up close at some great dresses, and also be reminded once again of the beauty of not having to rely on ready-to-wear.

Later in the day, I couldn't stop myself from practicing "draping" the Tracing Twirls dress bust with a paper towel at my desk. Yes, draping is definitely taking over my brain!

P.S. The draping project I've been documenting is thisclose to being done! I finished it last night, but then decided I needed to fine tune the fit on the hips. Hopefully I can take pictures sometime this week. More to come!

Back in the Dressing Room (Sigh.)

Let's take a little detour into ready-to-wear, shall we? I've happily been avoiding store fitting rooms lately. As you can imagine, I have quite a sufficient wardrobe, aside from the fact that I'm always adding new handmade items to it. (Plus no clothes shopping frees up funds for fabric and sewing machine feet! Yay!) But then I saw the above Tracy Reese dress in the latest Anthropologie catalog, and I was immediately drawn to it. I've never owned anything like it, really. The bodice shape, color, texture, and overall length are very different from anything I own. I was suddenly struck with the idea to make a dress like this someday. But how to know if this sort of thing would even suit me? Well, I supposed I could walk the block and a half to my local Anthro and try it on! And that's just what I did.

The first thing I did was to track down the dress. The second thing I did was to get honest about my size. (My recent remeasuring has certainly given me some new insights about my body.) I grabbed a 10.

So I took it to the dressing room (I actually picked up a few other items on my way - more on that soon). I pulled it over my head and it zipped up easily, but not too easily. I suppose that means it fit. But that's in the most generous sense of the word possible, because what I saw in the mirror does not describe "fit" to me. The draped top bodice hung sloppily. The bust did not flatter. The midsection was weirdly bumpy. And the length! Good god, are they really calling these things dresses?! (Yes, I know how old I sound right now.) Let's just say that bending over even slightly in this would be quite scandalous.

So obviously I wouldn't be tempted to spend $298 on this dress. I tried to focus solely on color and fabric. This creamy beige is not a color I would usually choose, but I thought it was a nice change, especially in a textured fabric like this. And the skirt/bodice fabric was divine - I believe it was an embroidered silk organza. So something in this vein might be in my future, but you have no idea how glad I am I can fit and sew it myself! (Actually, yes, you probably do.)

The other dress I tried on was the Traced Twirls dress. Isn't it adorable?

This fit in an 8 since the sides are shirred with elastic. And it is SO cute! The skirt has six gores, and I think it's actually fuller than a circle and the shape is super flattering. It has a cotton lining with a pink ruffle at the bottom that helps it stand out just perfectly. The bust has very cool petal-like folds. I love the 50s, Alfred Shaheen vibe of this. I will definitely be stealing some ideas from this number!

Next I tried on a couple pairs of pants. (DOUBLE SIGH.) Oh, pants. How I despise thee sometimes.

These are the Widest Leg Pants, and what I didn't realize when I picked them up is that they have a LARGE INVERTED PLEAT right smack on top of the thigh. In case you're wondering what this might look like (on me anyway), it is horrific. I think I'm going to have nightmares.

I also tried the Smooth Sailing pants, which won't give me nightmares, but they weren't anything to write home about either. They were a bit low-rise, making me appear quite wide in the middle. Taken in conjunction with the wide legs, there was a lot of wideness going on.

Anyway, the whole dressing room experience didn't do much for my self-esteem but it did make me awfully glad I can sew. Though, I must say, I'm mystified by pants fitting. I noticed recently that Sew Fast Sew Easy will be hosting a pant moulage class with Kenneth D. King. I'm tempted - anyone else?

A Brooklyn Wedding

Yesterday was the long-awaited wedding of my dear friend. (I might have mentioned once or twice that I was making a reception dress for her.) From start to finish, it was a lovely day.

Here I am waiting for the train, dress in tow. I had planned on wearing my red satin sheath, but I chickened out and ended up buying a new, more casual dress at the last minute. I realized I might feel a bit self-conscious wearing red satin in the afternoon. (Do you notice that I'm wearing a full skirt that hits well above my knees, a style that I railed about just a couple days ago? I'm such a hypocrite!)

The flower girls (the bride's fabulous nieces) performed their duties with aplomb. The pianist was playing "The Rainbow Connection," and I got a little choked up.

Luckily, I recovered in time to do my reading of Sonnet 116 during the ceremony.

The lighting of the unity candle. Here's my friend in her formal ceremony gown. Doesn't she look lovely? Her veil had little sparkly bits that glimmered in the candlelight.

After the ceremony, we had some time to kill. Luckily, the Brooklyn Arts Festival was happening under the bridge, so my husband and I meandered about for a while. There was a couple walking around in knitted camouflage full bodysuits. Artsy, huh?


I thought my date looked quite handsome.

It was a chilly day, so I cozied up in a wrap. Did you know that I wear spectacles? I always try to avoid having them on in pictures, but that gets a little tiresome after a while.

After dinner, the bride was ready to slip into something more comfortable.

Ta-da!

(You'll notice that her niece also slipped into something more comfortable, which included jammies, a binky, and her froggy.)

And here I am, next to my muse.

What a day! I just love weddings, don't you?

P.S. As for the dress I bought, I loved the fit and look of it - especially the really cool corset detailing, including laces up the back. But I wasn't happy with the quality. The boning (which was rigilene) tore out of the fabric - at the top of the bodice on one side, and on the bottom on the other side. This meant I had boning sticking me in my right breast and left hip, simultaneously. This was quite uncomfortable, as you can imagine. I've made my own dresses with rigilene boning before and have never had this problem. You can bet I'll be writing a complaint letter to Anthropologie!

The Dirndl Mini: WTF?

Here's a current trend I'm totally confused about. While recently browsing at Anthropologie, I found all of their gathered skirts to be of a completely befuddling length. The one above is a shocking 17 inches. Mon dieu! Fetch me my smelling salts!

I've noticed girls wearing these out and about. They usually seem to be paired with a tank top, a wide belt, and flats. Cute, but I always wish their skirts were about 4 inches longer. Not just for modesty's sake. (Though can you imagine trying to pick something up off the floor in one of these?) My real complaint is one of proportions. I think a knee-length gathered skirt is flattering because the poufiness of the waistline is tempered by the weight of a longer hem.

I usually make my skirts 24 inches long, which hits right below my kneecap. The longest gathered skirt I could find at Anthro was only 20.5 inches long.

The irony, though, is that I'm always complaining about the long length of vintage dirndl patterns. For my full gathered skirt from VoNBBS, I had to take a good four inches off of the pattern. Of course, hemlines are one of the most quickly shifting and provocative elements of fashion history. There are even economic theories surrounding hemlines, as well as a handy "abstract conceptual hemline overview chart", if you're really interested.

What do you think of these lengths? Do I sound like a cranky old fuddy duddy?

Emerald City Skirt

That's what I would call this little number if I were a copywriter for Anthropologie.

Don't you think that must be the most high-pressure job ever? How do they come up with those whimsical names all the time? For example: Flight-of-the-bee dress. Angles Awry Cardigan. Fruit Compote Skirt. Aren't they wonderful? I think I would get burnt out very quickly. It's just a green skirt, damn it!

Anyway, this is a skirt I made last week from my all-time favorite skirt pattern, Burda 8155. I had some of this fabulous wool crepe leftover from my first Joan Holloway dress, just enough with which to make a pencil skirt. I loved the idea of this vivid color in a basic slim silhouette, even though sewing with wool in 96 degree weather is . . . itchy. And sweaty.

I didn't line it because I have so many of these little slips now. I hate lining things, so this is a big plus for me! I've also become very well acquainted with my machine's blind hem function. It's so professional looking and easy.

Sometimes it's fun to make a basic pattern that you know well, don't you think? It refreshes me for the big challenges. Onward!

The Halter Dress Does Business Casual

When I made the halter dress from VoNBBS, I shared my worries about it here (backless! gaping sides! oh my!). Well, I tried it with a little jacket, and I'm feeling better about it.

I wore this to work on Friday, and was happy with it. I think the top looks nice peeking out of this red jacket, which is from Anthropologie about 4 or so years ago. I felt very put together in this get-up (though I also felt like I had a dirty little secret, wearing such a racy dress under a work jacket!).

But I think this dress plus jacket/cardigan is a nice idea to get more wear out of other summer dresses as well.

What do you think?

P.S. I'm wearing my new yellow Anthro crinoline under it. As you can see, the pouf is very understated, which I like. But the crinoline length is a little short, in my opinion. I might need to add some extra layers to it!

A Modern Crinoline

Isn't this crinoline slip lovely? It's a current offering at Anthropologie.com. I've actually tried to sew a crinoline before (as a part of a dress lining) without a lot of success.

I honestly don't like working with tulle; I find it very frustrating. And when you start cutting it in layers and gathering it--yikes.

I like this little yellow Anthro crinoline for a few reasons:

1. I don't have to work with tulle and sew it myself.
   
2. It's $38, which seems pretty reasonable to me.
   
3. It's yellow.
   
4. It has a modern shape: it's not so poufy that you would feel like you were wearing a costume, but it would still give a bit of shape to a full skirt.
5. It's a nice length: 19 inches. This seems manageable for today's skirts, as opposed to 50's skirts, which were often tea length. (But perhaps it will be too short?)
   
6. I like the shaping at the top; it looks like it wouldn't add bulk around the hips.
   

What are your thoughts on crinolines? Do you wear them with full, vintage-style skirts? Have you ever sewn your own crinoline? Or have you bought one with success?

P.S. The slip above is on backorder, but will be available after 8/17, according to the Anthro site. It also comes in black.

P.P.S. I also couldn't resist these earrings. Aren't they sweet?

An "Easy-to-Make" Chemise Dress

Well, it's done. The very first project in Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing. There were some tough times, but I persevered. I also discovered that there's a very good reason that "easy-to-make" is in quotation marks.

"The chemise dress is a wonderful starting point for your sewing career. There is no waistline seam . . . you just cinch it in with a belt."--VoNBBS

Ha! I just can't get over the fact that the editors of VoNBBS considered this a project for an absolute beginner. Sure, there's no waistline seam, but there's also a mandarin collar, a faced slit opening in the front, a thread chain button loop at the neckline, and bias-cut cuffs. I mean, really. If this was the first dress I ever tried to make, I think it would have ended up being my last.

In any modern sewing book, I think we all know what the first project for a beginner will be: a wrap skirt. It's just inevitable. I can't recall the last time I've seen anyone wearing a wrap skirt, but sewing books seem to think they're an integral part of any wardrobe.

But I digress. This post is supposed to be about the making of the chemise dress. I was apprehensive about this project, to say the least. Sure, it looks great on the model with the 22" waist, but what other woman really wants all that extra fabric bunched up around her waist? No, thank you.

I realized that fabric choice would be even more crucial than usual with this project. I wanted something that would drape, rather than bunch up, around the waist. But it needed to have enough body to make the tailored cuff and collar. You might be able to guess where I went: the 4 ply silk.

I did stray from the original dress pattern and book instructions quite often (guess I was feeling rebellious). I shortened the pattern by 4 inches. I made use of some of my modern luxuries, like serging rather than hand-overcasting the raw edges. I also added interfacing to the collar, neckline facing, and cuffs. Other projects in VoNBBS (the tailored ones, like the suit and coat) make use of sew-in interfacing, but the dresses and skirts do not, oddly enough. I used a purchased belt from Anthropologie.

The most interesting thing about this dress is that, to me, it looks almost contemporary. This shape certainly isn't what we associate with the early 50's, anyway.

I'm just happy to be moving on from this project. Hemming it really got me down, as you might have heard. I think this was partially because the hemline looks different depending on whether you're wearing a belt or not. VoNBBS instructed to wear a belt while marking the hem placement, but in retrospect, I think it would have made more sense not to wear a belt, and made sure the hem was straight as it hung down naturally. It still looks rumply to me from all the fussing, but ah well. But no sense dwelling on that now.

Next up from VoNBBS is the full, gathered skirt in gingham. But I'm going to take a little break for other projects, I think. I don't want to risk VoNBBS fatigue!

Rompers: Yea or Nay?

The subject of rompers is one that seems to always inspire a passionate response. Women either love them or hate them.

The naysayers proclaim that rompers are juvenile and make it too difficult to use the powder room. I'm a lover of rompers, and I proclaim that they are adorable, retro, and--with the right closures--make it no harder to disemrobe than a pair of pants.

Here's one I made last summer, from the vintage pattern above, which I bought from this lovely Etsy seller. It was inspired by a Betsey Johnson design. I'll definitely be making another one this summer, from the same pattern.

I've also noticed a plethora of rompers for sale at Anthropologie this season. (I have a fatal addiction to Anthro, but since I've been sewing so much, I've defintely reduced the amount of money I give them!)

Just look at this beauty:
Now look at the price tag: $228! Holy smokes. I will definitely be stealing inspiration from this one, though. I love the sweetheart neckline, halter straps, and full shorts.

Here's another gem, at $188:

I'm not usually into pants-style rompers, but this has a very Rosie the Riveter look to me, in a luxurious way (if that makes any sense). I'd like to make a similar one from this Decades of Style pattern:

Now, what say you to rompers: yay or nay?