While I was busy having a pity party I was also working on this project.
I have been thinking a lot about sewing these past few months.....
I have been thinking a lot about sewing these past few months.....
and decided long ago that I want to recreate some of my favorite pieces of clothing.
Now, none of these garments are out of service,
so this is the technique I am using to start copying the patterns......
First I made a double bed of cardboard to top my table using two used medium sized packing boxes from Home Depot...
then I decided to reuse the crumpled packing paper within for the pattern....
next I placed my very simple dress on top of the paper and cardboard...
and decided to iron that too....
I started with the center panel and marked that....
pushing pins through the fabric and paper into the cardboard at strategic locations....
You can use as many or as few pins as you like....
then I marked the pin holes with a marking pen...
and connected the dots with a marker....
I added a 1/4" seam allowance in some areas using this tool
Note: I am taking into consideration that the armholes and neck will be bound using Natalie Chanin's technique.....so I will not add the seam allowance in those areas.
After I cut it out along the added seam allowance lines, I folded the pattern in half to determine how well I'd done with the tracing. As you can see I needed to add quite a bit to one side for balance.
There is a center fold line if I decide to use that in my layout.
I will now move on to the sides and back.....
and since I plan to hand sew and appliqué this dress,
I'll make a muslin to check my work.
I'll keep you posted on the progress.....
Reminiscent, in a way, of my grandmother, who used to draw her dress patterns out (sometimes, I believe, free-hand!) on newspaper...
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing your progress, for sure.
Grandmothers are coming up a lot for me. I was named for both of my grandmothers. Anna, who I did not know was a fashion designer if you can believe it. Your grandmother was brave, wild and creative. As I have paid almost $20 a yard for the fabric I'm using....I am proceeding with caution.....praying for guidance from my Grandmother......and now.....yours.
Deletefinely done marianna,and in fact just i would imagine you to proceed.it is looking and sounding good, this remake, handsewn and appliqued. this process builds such a relationship with both the cloth and the form and makes the wearing extra special i believe.
ReplyDeleteI am hoping to transform the cloth as it is a rather pale and bland color......relationship will be much of the allure.
Deletesmart thinking here. so much more sensible and elegant a solution that something i read in a novel one time, where the chief protagonist was describing herself laboriously unpicking a blouse, using the bits to draft a pattern and then putting the original back together again...
ReplyDeleteOh my. That one wasn't thinking was she? I wish I could claim this technique.....but it is not new. Quite nifty as it is....
DeleteNice job, it looks like a really comfy dress.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing the 'new' dress...$20/yd. Whoosh.
And that's a COOL little tool...is it adjustable?
I'll have to try and find it around here-it looks like a real time-saver!
Thanks for sharing...Treena
Thank you Treena, I think I paid more like $18 a yard at discount. I will use Alabama/Chanin's organic cotton jersey. And yes the tool is 'cool' and and adjustable. I could not find it locally and bought it on line. Click on the link to see what it is and search for it on the web. It is beautifully made and yes, a time saver.
DeleteVery smart indeed. I am one who does not sew clothing but wish I could recreate some of my favorite pieces from the past. Your engineering skills are evident.
ReplyDeleteThank You Christine. That is quite an observation. I do like to 'figure' things out.
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