Rag Curls, Day Two (and a Note on Blouse Bows)

Guys, my set lasted another day! I didn't even do anything special, just slept on it. With a cat on my head all night, no less. I think this extra holding power was due to a couple factors: starting my set on dry, slightly dirty hair (one day unwashed), and really dousing it with LottaBody. Also, I left my curlers in longer than usual since I took yesterday off and didn't do myself up until about noon.

Yes, my hair is technically quite dirty today. But my hair is dry and coarse, so I don't get a lot of greasiness. If my bangs get oily, I just spray a little dry shampoo on them and it's all good. (Here's the brand I use; you can buy it at most Duane Reades here in New York.)

It wasn't as curly as yesterday, so I did a bit more styling. I did three victory rolls, and it's done. Nice!

Also, I've had some e-mail questions on how I get my blouse bows to look like they do. The secret is in this pattern (it's a project from Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing; read more about it here). It has a simple band collar, with about an inch left open in the middle. The bow is a simple strip, which is a separate piece that gets threaded through the open slot when you wear it. This results in a nice, crisp bow.

That's all for today! I'm going on a special birthday outing this afternoon. (I'm turning 31 tomorrow!) Shopping in the Garment District, followed by the Museum at FIT, and an Italian dinner out. Have a lovely day, friends!

Design Ideas for Button-Back Blouses

So, you've probably noticed by now how I love my button-back blouses. I've made five of them at this point, using either my vintage VoNBBS pattern or Colette Patterns Sencha. I've recently noticed some fabulous ready-to-wear blouses with similar shapes. For instance, the above blouse is from ModCloth and I think it's gorgeous. Wouldn't it be fun to use a simple lace overlay like this on a blouse project? The back is also strikingly similar to a vintage pattern with its tucks and covered buttons. This got me thinking about how to customize these patterns even further. So grab on to your Sencha patterns, everyone! Let's look at some design details that you can draft yourself.

I've done some more research into button-back blouse patterns of the 40s and 50s, and I've found that there are lots of ways that you can spice these tops up. And there's no need to spend a load of cash on vintage patterns. Just one basic (like the Sencha) pattern that you've fitted to your body can serve as the template for all these ideas. Just have a good patternmaking book handy, like Adele P. Margolis's Make Your Own Dress Patterns.

1. Yokes

An interesting yoke can add a fabulous touch to these blouses, and all it takes it the addition of a seam. I love the unusual yoke on McCall 7597.

Simplicity 1868 has a curved yoke. I love the look of the lace overlays on a yoke too!

2. Lowered Necklines

Another great way to vary these blouses is to draw in a lower neckline, in either a scoop or U shape. Look at the awesome addition of rickrack trim to a u-neckline on Simplicity 2345:

3. Collars

Collars are a classic addition to a simple blouse pattern. (See the first two parts of my Peter Pan collar tutorial here and here!)

This pattern combines gathers with a Peter Pan collar to great effect.


4. Waistbands

I love the idea of adding a waistband to a blouse, as in the pattern below (notice the pin tucks and Peter Pan collar too!) In fact, I might just try this next . . .

5. Neckline gathers and drapes

To amp up the soft feminimity of these blouses, try lovely neckline gathers, like on McCall 6453.

And check out the dramatic draping on this pattern. I die.

As you've probably noticed, a lot of these patterns combine two or more of these elements. Go crazy! How about neckline gathers with a waistband and a Peter Pan collar? The sky's the limit! Got any other ideas to make some fab blouses? Let's hear 'em!

Coral and Black

One of the many things I did over the weekend was put the finishing touches on a blouse and a skirt, both made from early 50s vintage patterns. The blouse is Vogue 7347, a VoNBBS (Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing) pattern, which you've seen made up before in a baby blue wool jersey. I've had this lovely coral silk twill in my stash since last summer, and I'm so glad I've finally made it into something. I got it at Paron's here in New York, and if I remember correctly, it was a Cynthia Steffe designer remnant (ooh la la!).

Here's the back! I did my usual bound buttonhole and covered button bit on the blouse back. (It looks a little rumply in this shot, doesn't it? I find that while wearing blouses and highwaisted skirts, it's sometimes so hard to keep all the works from gumming up in the back there. Ah well.)

The lower back skirt has two really cute pleats that I failed to get pictures of, but here's the pattern line drawing so you can get the point.

In a lovely twist of fate, I bought both the skirt pattern and fabric from two companies that would later become my fabulous sponsors. The skirt is Vogue Couturier 783 (purchased from The Blue Gardenia), which also has a fabulous jacket and blouse.This pattern was (for once) too big for me rather than too small, so I did a lot of work fitting it (and nearly messed it all up). The fabric is a drapey black wool boucle that I bought months ago from Gorgeous Fabrics. I don't believe they have this particular boucle anymore, but this one looks quite similar.

Inspired by Emma Pillsbury, I also styled this with a little cardi in an almost monochromatic color scheme.

Here's a better shot of the full skirt. I got it to the perfect below-knee length for me. Woo hoo!

Yay! I know I'll be wearing both these pieces all the time. The part of the outfit you're missing is that my shoes are lime green pumps. (Jeff is an excellent photographer, but he's still working on honing his fashion styling instincts and I forget to remind him to get the really important details sometimes.) I set my hair in large hot rollers and then did some Victory Rolls which I'm worried are verging a little on Chloe Sevigny in Big Love here. What do you think? (Extra tip: I left the rollers in for longer than usual since I had the time - probably around 45 minutes or more. The curls have had the best staying power!)

Funny story: when I first showed Jeff the outfit, he was very enthusiastic about the skirt, but of the blouse said, "Hmm, I don't know about the bow." I was incredulous, readers. I mean, this blouse is nothing without the bow. Nothing! He saw my shock, and amended his thoughts to: "Well, perhaps it's just a little too big? It seems a little . . . clownish." Clownish? Aarrgh! Luckily, I looked in the mirror and saw what he meant. It just took a quick adjustment, making the actual bow smaller and the ties longer, and it was in better balance. But goodness, it was a scary moment.

No bow! Have you ever heard of such a thing?!

Peter Pan in Teal

I pushed through my bad mojo last night! I only had handwork left to do on this blouse, and I had the apartment to myself. So I cozied up on the sofa with some reruns of The Office, and finished this baby up.

This is the Peter Pan collar variation of the bow-tied blouse from Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing. It wasn't included in the book as a bonus project, but I thought it was so cute that I had to make it. The fabric is a wool and angora blend jersey from B&J, and it's so soft and cuddly. I don't especially love working with knits, but you just can't deny how comfy they are. Perfect for winter days in the office!

I rocked the bound buttonholes once again, using the strip method, which has become my tried and true technique. The blouse bunches a bit above my waistband, and I'm not really sure what to do about that.

Anyway, I continue to be in love with this pattern. I just adore both versions, and you'll defintiely be seeing each of them again!

Presenting the Bow-Tied Blouse!

This is project 7 of 14 from Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing! Can you believe I'm halfway through? I just adore this little blouse, and it was fun and easy to make.

Here's a shot of the back, of which I'm extremely proud. I made bound buttonholes and made fabric-covered buttons with the help of a Dritz kit.

And here I am modeling it with the bolero, a la the photograph in VoNBBS

Here's what VoNBBS had to say about this project:

The short-sleeve blouse that has a soft neckline interest is a wonderful suit blouse . . . you can also wear it with any skirt in your wardrobe. We made it in wool jersey (which will teach you how to handle knitted fabric). You can make it in practically any fabric you wish . . . make it in black velveteen or pastel slipper satin for evening . . . make it in linen, pique, or chambray for warm weather in chalk-white, black, or a bright, vibrant colour. For cool weather you can also make the blouse in sheer wool or challis. The blouse buttons all the way down the back (it also has a Peter Pan collar version). It should take a beginner about 9 hours to make.

Well, this definitely didn't take me 9 hours, so perhaps I really am improving! After I figured out the bound buttonholes, I was able to whip this up in an afternoon. I will definitely be making this pattern again - actually I already have another one cut out. It will be teal wool/angora jersey, with the Peter Pan collar. This is basically my dream blouse for work, so I'll probably be whipping up a bunch of these suckers. And the pattern I bought actually fit me perfectly, no alterations required! I love it when things work out so easily!


The next VoNBBS project up is the little girl's party dress, which I imagine will be simple and a lot of fun to make. But then the projects start getting . . . involved. Let's just say that the second half of VoNBBS will separate the women from the girls. The subsequent project, the full-skirted dress, is estimated to take 30 hours! Well, when the going gets tough, the tough get . . . sewing?

Best and Worst of the Bound Buttonholes!

As promised, I made my first attempts at bound buttonholes. I thought you might enjoy seeing the best and the worst of my test run! Naturally, I'm leading with the best, shown above. Not too shabby, eh?

And now, for the worst. Look at this pathetic thing!

Doesn't it look like a Cubist version of a buttonhole or something?

Anyway, I've made the bow-tied blouse (it turned out wonderfully, and pics are forthcoming!). Unfortunately, I could not maintain consistently lovely buttonholes, and some of them are better than others. But, happily, when it's buttoned up I don't think anyone will ever notice.

I have to say, I did enjoy learning a new skill, and I found bound buttonholes to actually be quite fun to make. In fact, I think I'll make a couple more versions of the blouse so that I can perfect my technique!

Isn't it funny how some dreaded techniques actually end up being enjoyable?

Bound Buttonholes (Ack.)

So, I have a confession: I've never made a bound buttonhole. And the bow-tied blouse (which I cut out last night! In the baby blue wool jersey) has five of 'em. Right smack down the middle of the back. I'm scared, people. I've been doing research on various methods, and here's what I've come up with.

Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing boasts about their method: "Speaking of buttonholes, we show you how to make Vogue's streamlined one-piece fabric buttonhole. We love it. It's quick and easy." It's funny that VoNBBS acts like they invented this method, because as far as I can tell, it's the standard "patch" method.

Now, I am not impressed with this method. I first attempted it while making my taffeta skirt, and the results were so sad that I ended up just making the buttonhole by machine. But not this time! I'm determined to make some pretty bound buttonholes if it's the last thing I do, damn it.

So I turned to Issue 140 of Threads Magazine, which has an article on bound buttonholes that promises "professional results with industry techniques." I admit I have a soft spot for this article because the author, Barbara Frangione, opens the piece with a charming story. Here's a little excerpt:

Once upon a time (actually, it was during the winter of 1949), I took a draping class in New York City. I rode Long Island Railroad to get to class, and I usually sat next to a fellow student whose father owned a clothing factory.

One night, I wore my new wool coat - a Vogue pattern with every plaid meticulously matched and not a thread out of place. The bound buttonholes were made the way the pattern instructions had always directed. Needless to say, I was more than pleased with my work.

I said to my fellow passenger, "I made this coat."

"I know you did," he said.

When I asked how he knew, he replied, "By the buttonholes. They're just not right."

Can you believe he said that, readers? What a cad! I don't like this young fellow one bit. But the story has a happy ending, in which Barbara learns an industry technique for making bound buttonholes. It involves using strips rather than patches, a technique that looks a little something like this:


You then turn the strips to the inside and secure them in place. So that's what I will be testing out tonight (on some scrap fabric first, of course). Wish me luck!

And please, anyone have any great tips on bound buttonholes? I need all the help I can get!