OMG, guys. My teacher Sharon helped me make over my dress form to my exact proportions and measurements, and here she is! Isn't she pretty? (If you're curious, she was named Veronica as a complement to my sewing machine Betty. Betty has since been replaced . . . by Betty II.)
Well, here it is! The whole thing. Inspired by a Herve Leger design that Christina Hendricks wore, this LBD is made from Butterick 8963, a 1960s vintage pattern.
A while back, I posted about the possibility of a meet-up to go see the American High Style exhibit at Brooklyn Museum. Well, folks, it's happening! I've organized a group tour of the exhibit, followed by a catered lunch at the museum. Read on for details!
Believe it or not, I had never oiled a sewing machine . . . until last night. My last machine was "self-lubricating" so I never had to worry about it. But I've had my lovely Bernina 1008 for a few months now and I kept having a nagging feeling that I should be doing some sort of maintenance on it. Lo and behold, a quick glance at my manual informed me that I should be oiling this baby every 3-4 hours of sewing.
Good evening, dears! I'm just popping in to tell you about a cool sale happening soon at Colette Patterns. My friend and designer extraordinaire Sarai wrote to give us the heads-up that she'll be sending out a 30% off coupon with her mailing list tomorrow. If you want in on that (and I know you do!) head on over to this post on the Colette Patterns blog. You just need to sign up for the mailing list to get the coupon. Happy pattern shopping!
Have you read the book A Guide to Elegance by Genevieve Antoine Dariaux? It was a 1964 guide "for every woman who wants to be well and properly dressed on all occasions" that was recently republished. A lovely reader recommended the section on hems to me, and I just recently bought it. It's a funny little book, half enlightening and half maddening. For every useful bit of advice, there's another that drives me batty: i.e., elderly women should wear mostly pastels, or anyone with hips bigger than 38" should not wear shorts. (Whatevs, Genevieve!) But as I've been wardrobe planning for my mini-break, I read with much interest the section on "Weekends," which is a guide for city dwellers who weekend in the country. (Hey, just like me and Bridget Jones!)
Any Bridget Jones fans in the house? Bridget introduced me to the all-important concept of the "mini-break." When your sex god boyfriend (aka Hugh Grant) takes you away for the weekend, that, my friends, means true love (not just shagging). Sigh! Well, readers, I am being taken on a full-blown mini break holiday weekend myself in about three weeks. The mister and I are coming up on our sixth wedding anniversary and that means a long weekend upstate. Of course, the real question is: what to wear?
I've been eyeing this book for a couple months now (after reading a review on Threads), so I was super excited to find a used copy at Fashion Design Books last Friday. I've made it my mission to read it from front to back and thought I'd share some tidbits with you as I go. Let me tell you, I am loving this book so far. The chapter on stabilizers kind of blew my mind, but more on that later. In the second chapter, one of the things that caught my eye was the authors' SEW, CLIP, PRESS method. (Yes, it's capitalized like that EVERY TIME.) Here's the idea.
Hey, readers! As you may recall, I'm taking a trouser-drafting class with Kenneth King and also taking private draping lessons with my wonderful teacher Sharon. Here's an update on what I've accomplished and learned.
Readers, I have a weird superstition. I absolutely do not like to wear a garment before I've had a chance to photograph it and blog about it. What's that all about? Anyway, I just finished this Christina Hendricks-inspired dress last night so I could wear it to an event this evening. Hence, I'm wearing it to work (paired with a hot pink cardigan and matching suede pumps) and I haven't had a chance to share it with you yet. But here's a little sneaky iPhone blogging to put my superstitious mind at ease.
Readers, I have a new fabric crush: double knits. I finished my Background Dress in a deep purple double knit, and promptly sewed the Christina Hendricks-inspired cutout sheath dress in a lovely black double knit. (I'm wearing it to an event tonight - pictures to come soon!) And then, to top it all off, I spent yesterday's lunch break shopping for a red double knit for some summer basics. I'm obsessed! There's just something so perfect about this fabric: it has the flattering drape and comfort of a knit but the stability to act like a woven. I've definitely found double knits to be a very good choice for vintage looks. Plus they're easy to sew and they don't require any seam finishing. What could be better? Come along and join me in my fabric crush!
Have you ever noticed how vintage dress patterns usually have side zips instead of the back zips found in most modern patterns? A well-made vintage dress will almost always have a side lapped closure - and a metal zip, of course. I think there's something so sophisticated about a perfectly-executed side zipper. It adds that lovely authentic touch to your retro sewing projects. Here's how!
Why am I smiling in this picture? Because I have vanquished the Background Dress! Gertie prevails! This sucker is DONE, folks! Lots of self-indulgent pictures after the jump.
When I mentioned this Brooklyn Museum exhibit in last week's Girl Reporter, a very clever commenter proposed a meet-up to see it! I love this idea, so I thought I'd get a sense of interest from you lovely readers in this. Are you close by? Would you like to meet up with some like-minded vintage fashion enthusiasts and sewists to see some awesome couture on exhibit? If we can gather a group of ten and give the museum three weeks notice, we can arrange a group tour! Who's in? We'd be looking at a weekend visit in mid to late June. E-mail me at gertie [at] blogforbettersewing [dot] com.To mark the new relationship between the Brooklyn Museum and the Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum presents an exhibition of some of the most renowned objects from its costume collection. American High Style consists of approximately eighty-five dressed mannequins and a selection of hats, shoes, sketches, and other fashion-related material that will reintroduce the collection, long in storage, to the public. The exhibition is organized in groups representing the most important strengths of the collection. Works by the first generation of American women designers such as Bonnie Cashin, Elizabeth Hawes, and Claire McCardell are featured, as well as material created by Charles James, Norman Norell, Gilbert Adrian, and other important American designers. Also included are works by French designers who had an important influence on American women and fashion, such as Charles Frederick Worth, Elsa Schiaparelli, Jeanne Lanvin, Jeanne Paquin, Madeleine Vionnet, and Christian Dior. The Metropolitan Museum of Art will celebrate the arrival of the Brooklyn Museum costume collection at the Met with a related exhibition, American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity, on view May 5–August 15, 2010.
Readers, I got some new toys. Don't you just love when you find that sewing gadget that absolutely blows your mind and you wonder how you ever lived without it? Of course you do! Let's geek out over some notions, why don't we?
I suppose you think I've just been dutifully working on my background dress. Well, I had to sneak in another little project just for fun. A lemony, summery treat of a dress!
1964, gold satin (with shoes dyed to match!)
(Ooh, this is going to be a good one!) Is there anything more sartorially polarizing than a jumpsuit these days? People either love 'em or hate 'em. So it's unsurprising that Tina Fey's choice for the Met Costume Institute Ball this past Monday - a strapless Yves St. Laurent silk jumpsuit - has set off a firestorm of criticism.
I find myself in dark, uncharted territory right now, readers: I am questioning the wisdom of Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing. You see, the Background Dress is finished (!) and I'm working on its accessories: the link buttons and the scarf. (You may recall that the Background Dress has several different ways to wear the neckline, which incorporate these accoutrements.) My current problem is the link buttons, as illustrated above. What the heck are link buttons, you ask?
Aren't they cute? I just wish mine would go together easily. VoNBBS instructs us to thread the buttons with four strands of buttonhole twist, and then cover the strands with blanket stitches.
Here's the full instructions. Click to enlarge!
Now, here's what happened to me. It was going fairly well, and then: Major knottage! Also, I'm just not loving the look of it.
On the left side, where the blanket stitches are not all tangled up - doesn't it look kind of cheesy and amateurish? Is this my fault or the fault of the method, do you think? It just seems like there must be a more professional-looking way to do this. I'm thinking perhaps something involving a strand of jewelry chain and some pliers. But I'm no jewelry maker. And so I come to you crafty, clever readers for help!
I am super excited to be unveiling a new blog feature today - an opinion column written by YOU, my brilliant and beautiful readers. The idea for this new series came about the day of the fateful apron post, which you might recall set off a bit of a controversy in the comments. I was especially struck by the thoughtful words of regular commenter Elizabethe and knew I had to find a way to work her opinions into a post. And who better to write the post than the lady herself? Please read on for Elizabethe's op-ed piece!
The truth is, the various women’s movements have always had mixed feelings about what domesticity means for feminism. Does feminism mean women should be more like men and compete in a “man’s world” or should feminism mean traditional women’s work should be given a more valued place in society? I think the post-feminist movement of the late 20th century has answered a resounding “both.”
Indeed, women’s worlds never could be defined so neatly as “at work,” or “at home,” and some of these patterns Gertie posted reflect that on a practical level. A woman wearing a chic sheath dress with a matching apron does not think she’s going to “just be home” all day. A woman in a well-cut shirtdress could make her kids breakfast in the morning without worrying about getting grease stains on her dress, whip off her apron and go to a meeting with a local politician, serve on community board, or run a business from her home. Even if she “just” stays home, a woman wearing a nice outfit says to her kids and spouse, the people she interacts with on a daily basis, and herself that she thinks being at home is just as important as being at work.
As the Background Dress of Doom nears completion, I've started to set my sights on the next VoNBBS project: the Little Girl's Party Dress. Obviously, this project is the anomalous one in the book - it's the only one not intended for the reader to make for herself. But that's not the thing that I find challenging about this project. Here's the big hurdle I anticipate: I find myself somewhat confounded on how to go about choosing a fabric and trims for this project. It's quite a different beast from deciding how to style these projects for myself, you see. And so I turn to you, dear readers.
As for fabric recommendations, VoNBBS suggests a starched dotted swiss for a party dress, or alternately gingham for a school dress or silk taffeta for Sunday School.
I think my 8-year-old self probably would have been psyched by the princess-y nature of this dress, fit issues aside. But what do I know of the modern little girl? Times have, in all likelihood, changed.
Since I've been undertaking some major continuing education lately, I thought it would be fun to do a post on my weekly progress in each of my academic endeavors. First up, I'll share a few tidbits from my trouser class with Kenneth D. King, and secondly, my private draping instruction with my wonderful teacher Sharon.
