Crazy Legs

Are you ready for some silly?

No?

Then I advise you to STOP reading now.

I took some of the leftover fabric from the Dress->Skirt, and made some polka dot leggings!

(Hey, I like it when folks stare at my legs rather than higher up.)

I used my TNT Style Arc Laura Legging pattern, which I love! This is a very fast project.

Dancing!

I am wearing this with a purchased jacket, but I quite like to wear it as a dress! It has a great neckline.

I love to wear my wild leggings and my wild skirts. Just last week, I was sporting some wild leggings in the nap pod at work.

What?!?! You don't have a nap pod at work?

Maybe take it up with your management tomorrow.

I am working on a stealth project for April Fool's Day. I hope to have a report on that soon.

I'm also sharing with Patti's Visible Monday!

Butterick 5986 - Take Two - A Skirt!

As you may remember, last weekend I made the Katherine Tilton dress, Butterick 5986. Here is the pic after I completed my alterations:

I love the details of the skirt, but I wasn't as happy with the trapeze shape of the loose-fitting dress. To address this, I had removed 2" from the CF seam. I then took two large tucks at the side waist, where a seam would be, if there were a seam.

After these alterations, the dress was ok, but I still didn't love it. It was very comfy, but I knew I would wear it only around the house. One problem is that I used a very "droopy" fabric, and the cowl neckline needs a fabric with a bit more body, so that it drapes, without drooping. But, in general, the dress just didn't feel like "me".

So I decided to chop it off and make it into a skirt.

But first, I removed the side tucks and put the dress back on for more pictures. (And WOW, is it a super comfy dress!) These next two pics show the dress, sewn from the envelope, in a size 16. The only alterations were the removal of 2" from the CF seam beginning from the bust, and tapering of the sleeve from the elbow to the hem.

Definitely not a good look on this busty figure

Long ago, I made a "belt" made from 1" elastic which is handy in these sorts of situations.

I put it on and marked the dress with lots of pins.

I then used a Clover Chalk pen to draw the cutting line. I chopped it along the chalked line.

I measured the waist after cutting. It was 56", which is much larger than my actual waist. (Not surprising, since the pattern is marked as loose fitting.) Because the fabric was so drapey, I didn't bother removing fullness, but I added an elastic waistband.

Voila!

I LOVE this skirt!

It is comfy and edgy - two qualities I love in my clothing. I will get loads of wear out of this. In fact, DD1 is home for spring break - she attends university in Oregon which is a good 10 hour drive away. She brought a friend and the three of us are hanging out tomorrow. I think I'll wear my new skirt.

And, hopefully, I'll get a tiny bit more sewing in. I have a long todo list!

A Dress with Draped Hem - Butterick 5986

When this Katherine Tilton pattern came out I didn't see it as a great look for me.

It didn't help that the model on the envelope obscured her midsection by clutching her arms. What is she hiding? :)

I prefer a closer fit through the torso, rather than an a-line dress that hangs from the bust. When you are busty, and a garment increases in girth from the bust, it looks like you just keep getting bigger.

Not a flattering look for me.

When I looked at the line drawing, it definitely looked loose through the torso.

Then I saw this dress in the Tilton fashion show at Puyallup. It was worn by a busty model and it fit her closely through the torso. I quite liked that look, though I think it was made in a much smaller size than what would have been indicated for her bust measurement.

I loved the asymmetric hemline and the draping of this very Lagenlook-style dress, so I decided to give it a try, hoping that I could fit it more closely to my body.

There are no finished measurements on the pattern tissue and, in fact, the bust point is not marked. This pattern has no side seams, no shoulder seams, and consists of a single pattern piece that extends from center front to center back. That is not strictly true. There are TWO (huge) pattern pieces, but they differ only in the hem shape - there is one for the left side of the body, and another for the right side. The cowl collar is "cut on" - it is not a separate pattern piece.

The best feature of this dress is the draped hem. Make sure that you mark all of the marks at the hem. The marks are labeled A to H, and you will need those marks. Two pleats complete some of the hem, a casing (filled with elastic) completes some of the hem, and the rest of the hem is turned up and sewn. In this last section of hem, after hemming, there is a corner which is turned to the inside and attached to another point on the hem.

The wild hem really makes this dress!

The design of this pattern makes it difficult to determine how a given size will fit. I made a size 16 and it was quite large through the torso. If I make this again, I will make the smallest size on the pattern.

I mentioned that this dress has no side seam and no shoulder seam. This means that the armscye is a hole that you cut into the pattern piece. This can be a bit problematic if you need to narrow the shoulder.

I always have to narrow a Vogue/Butterick/McCalls pattern in the shoulder by 1.5" - 2". You might wonder, how the heck does one modify a pattern where the armhole is a hole cut into the fabric?

I will tell you!

What you do is "move" the hole. For example, to narrow a shoulder by 1.5", you move the armscye hole up (towards the collar/neckline) by 1.5". Make sure you do this on both pattern pieces since there is a separate piece for the left side of the body, and for the right side of the body.

This might be a good garment to make in a test fabric before you cut into the "good" stuff.

For this dress, I used a slinky knit that was gifted to me in a fabric swap of local sewers.

Because the dress was too loose through the torso, I made a couple tweaks to achieve a closer fit:

• I "scooped" more fabric from the CF seam below the bust.
• I removed fabric at the side waist by taking a very generous "tuck" where a side seam would have been, if there were a side seam. You can see this effect in the twirling photo below.

Check out the side tuck

I also tapered the sleeve from the elbow to the wrist, removing a couple inches at the sleeve hem for a closer fit.

I did NOT do an FBA on this dress. I certainly didn't need additional width for the bust, and it wasn't needed vertically either, since the hem is already asymmetric.

This dress has only a few seams and is a very fast sew!

With my fit modifications, which removed approximately 18" through the torso, I like this dress. It's very comfy, though I think I would wear it with taller boots next time!

There have been a few more posts about Puyallup 2014! I've updated my list. (I am keeping the list on the Puyallup Inspiration post to keep everything in one place.)

I hope you had a nice St Patrick's Day! I searched my wardrobe for green and I ended up wearing the only green thing I could find, my Swamp Green Mizono top!

An Ikat-ish Jacket - Vogue 1385

When I went to Puyallup last week, I loved the Sandra Betzina jacket worn Carolyne Cafaro, one of the Vogue executives. The jacket isn't shown on the pattern envelope (it's a blouse pattern), but Sandra made this version as a jacket. She left off the button closure and used a home-dec weight fabric.

So I made one for me!

This fabric is printed to look like an oversized ikat, but it reverses to solid black. It's a crisp fabric, which is perfect to hold the pleating at the neckline and at the bottom of the sleeves.

Given that the jacket has no closures and is unlined, it's a fairly quick sew!

I really love how the collar stands at the neckline. There are 8 tucks sewn around the sides/front of the neckline, but they aren't sewn all the way to the edge. This allows them to "fan out" and fill in the neckline. Lovely.

There are also three tucks sewn into each sleeve.

My only alterations were to add a patch pocket and bust darts. The length of my jacket is exactly the length of the longer view. That reminds me, I also omitted the fisheye darts.

Pocket

I plan to wear this to work tomorrow. I received such a nice unsolicitation at work recently.

I was wearing my asymmetric blue sweater, but I was distracted because my eldest daughter was in the ER that morning. She was alone in a town near her university, and they kept her for awhile running tests. I was walking to the mini-kitchen, staring at my cell phone and willing it to give me an update, when a colleague walking in the same direction said, "I love your outfit! You dress on the outside how I feel on the inside! Where do you shop?"

My daughter is fine, by the way.

I have added to my Puyallup Inspiration post. I have created a list of blog posts (or similar pages) that relate to Puyallup 2014. If you know of any other information that I have missed, please let me know!

I'm linking up to Patti's Visible Monday. Thank you, Patti!

TGIF!

Yay, it's Friday! I can't wait to do some sewing. Last weekend was all blogging, all the time. Last night I did my taxes. I've cleared the decks!

BMV Sale

Just a few things. First, since going to Puyallup I was waiting for a really good BMV sale on patterns. There was a $5.99 sale earlier this week, but I decided to wait it out. This morning, they announced a $3.99 sale on Vogue, $2.29 on McCalls and Butterick, and $5.99 on Kwik Sew. I fear that the $3.99 sales may be going the way of the Dodo bird, so I jumped on it. (The sale is through March 10th.)

I wasn't the only person who jumped online to take advantage of the sale. As I was perusing patterns, in happy abandon, response time became slower and slower. Then we collectively broke the BMV website for 15-20 minutes. During that time, the site stopped serving up photos, like this:

I envision some IT person in fire-drill mode as the sewists who had attended Puyallup (with new inspiration) ran to fill their carts.

PJs!

Second, my youngest daughter is returning from her year abroad in about one week!

She is returning to Washington D.C. and will be there for another month. The students will debrief, re-orient themselves to life here, go on a retreat to process the experience, meet with politicians at the White House and leaders from the World Bank. They will be preparing final presentations about the experience and they are even given classes on public speaking. Finally, there is a gala weekend with presentations, parties, food, and a graduation.

I won't be there.

But I am sending a very thoughtfully selected care package for my daughter's return. The clothing they have been wearing is pretty shot, I hear. So I am sending her things like underwear, socks, some tee shirts, stretch jeans. The items I've purchased are either from Uniqlo or the Google store. She has also filled 8 journals, so I'm sending her a new journal. Oh, and one of the most critical things I'm sending is Girl Scout cookies.

I hear they missed Girl Scout cookies.

When I last skyped with her several weeks ago, I asked her what she needed. Underwear? Shoes? What? She replied, "Mom, what I really need is a one-terrabyte external hard drive. Other than that, I'm good. I don't need much." My little geeklet. I sent her a TWO terabyte hard drive, as well as some dress shoes.

This has been quite the year for my daughter. She worked with Aids patients in South Africa. She bungee jumped off the highest bridge in the world. She taught students in India. She toured the Taj Mahal and she rode camels. She lived in Ecuador with a village Shaman. I saw photos of a snake wrapped around her shoulders - and this is a girl who hates creepie crawlies. She hiked the Inca Trail. While in a remote village in Ecuador, she planted trees and washed her clothes in a river. She saw the Killing Fields in Cambodia. She also experienced digestive issues and, in fact, she ended up in the ER twice in India and once in Ecuador - or Thailand - I can't remember, as well as a clinic in South Africa.

I can't wait to hear all about it.

Also in her care package, I included a pair of mommy-made PJ bottoms.

Of course.

I found this rainbow-colored cheetah print flannel at JoAnns. I machine washed and dried it twice. I would have done so a third time to remove more shrinkage, but I was in a rush.

And it (mostly) goes with the tee shirts. I used Burda 3217 - a long out of print pattern. The pattern says it's designed for 5'6" women, and she's about 5'3", so I removed 3" from the leg (in two places, since the leg is tapered). Hopefully these will fit her, but if not, I can use them. ;)

I love this "I Am Here" tee-shirt from the Google store. How perfect for a recent world traveler.
Of course
It doesn't go as well with the grey tee sporting the Google Doodle of the Cookie Monster, but I couldn't resist

If you are interested in learning more about the excellent organization who runs these gap year programs, check out Thinking Beyond Borders.

Great British American Sewing Bee

It's all over the blogosphere, but maybe you haven't heard. They are casting in the New Jersey area for a pilot of the Great American Sewing Bee. I know of several folks who have applied.

I haven't talked about this show, mostly because I just haven't been gobsmacked by it.

I don't care for most of the challenges and am not inspired by most of the sewing.

However, I just finished watching episode 2 of season 2 of the GBSB, and what I do really like (and maybe this is why, in part, the show is so popular) is the humanity displayed by the contestants, the judges, the host, the production people, and the editors.

People are nice. They support each other. They view their wins with self deprecation (and surprise) and they view their failures with humor. They do not build up the suspense of the winner or loser, or subject them to extreme degradation.

THAT is what I like about the show.

I just hope that the U.S. version doesn't eject all of the charm, especially as some of my friends may be on it.

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I'm off to work and then, looking forward to a weekend of sewing. Spring has definitely arrived here in SF, so we'll see what project(s) I end up working on. I'm not sure yet and it could go either way.

I hope your weekend is great!

Puyallup Inspiration

Thanks for the feedback on my post about Meeting with Vogue Patterns, which continues to roll in.

In the comments, Jan Crews asked why Carolyne wanted her face to be cropped from my photo. I am not sure, Jan. Carolyne is attractive and seems to be photogenic, so I can only conclude that she is in a Witness Protection Program. ;)

(I already published the fabulous Sandra Betzina jacket that Carolyne was wearing, but I showed it again at the top of this post, because this post is all about inspiration and I love this jacket!)

Philippa commented that I must have had a large notepad during my day with Vogue. No, I did not take any notes, either that day or later when I was traveling. I know I should have, as my memory is not as steel-trapp-ish as it used to be, but I think I captured most details accurately. Writing it while it was less than 24 hours behind me was key.

And Now, To the Main Event...

One of the best things about the show at Puyallup is the inspiration you can get. From the vendors (and their techniques, products, and samples), and from some of the visitors. It's a smorgasbord of goodness. There is something for everyone - many of the vendors are oriented towards quilting, and others sell yarn. It is not a fairground full of Marcy Tilton aficionados, but that is there, too.

I wanted to do a separate post on some of the inspiration I saw at Puyallup, because it is worth noting. In past years, when many of my friends would attend Puyallup, I would wait, with baited breath, for information and photos. I would haunt Marcy's website for information (this was before she had a blog or used Facebook much - she posted on her primary website, but not as quickly as she does now), I would haunt Sewing Workshop's site for information. I would watch the review forums. I really really wanted to see photos and hear about the fashion show. I wanted to know what was going on.

Puyallup is where the creatives shine. And who doesn't want to examine Diane Ericson's masterful workmanship up close, or grope Marcy's fabrics in person? And everyone knows the phenomenon of attending a class where the teacher talks about a specific product and then folks make a beeline for that booth to snap it up. Or maybe they use their smart phone to buy a product during the presentation. (I have actually done that!)

For example, after seeing the Tilton fashion show on Friday, I wanted to make up a few of their patterns which I had not yet purchased from a BMV sale. The Vogue booth was selling patterns for $5, but the Tilton patterns had been cleaned out by Friday morning. The Vogue folks had expedited another shipment of patterns to the show, but it wasn't to arrive until Saturday, after I had left.

Yes, Puyallup (and shows like it, such as the Novi show in Michigan, and the ASG show in Atlanta) are both balm and fire to a sewer's soul.

So, even though I was not there for long, and really didn't see much, I saw a few things I wanted to share with you. Because maybe you feel the same way I do about these things.

You're welcome. ;)

First, if you haven't yet seen, yesterday Marcy posted what she and Katherine wore this year in Puyallup. She also posted her March newsletter, which features clothing from their fashion show.

Both are required reading. There will be a test.

She has not yet posted what her assistants Gwen Spencer and Nancy Murakami were wearing. I hope she does, as they are each artists in their own right and many people visit Marcy's booth each day of the show to see what all four of them are wearing.

And let me just say that, while it's fabulous that Marcy posts all of these garments, it's just not the same as seeing them on the body and in motion. That is even more exciting.

We also haven't yet heard from Diane Ericson. I hope someone posts her outfits, which are also true masterpieces. (Diane, an artist of the highest order of magnitude, doesn't have a lot of time or patience with social media, more's the pity for us.)

I was very glad to see that Linda Lee (or her assistants) have been posting lots of photos to the Sewing Workshop Facebook page. Some beautiful garments there!

And what about Louise Cutting (Cutting Line Designs)? She doesn't have a Facebook page and I can't find anything posted else where about what she was wearing and showing.

We want to seeeeeeeeeee.

(Sandra Betzina, by the way, was not at Puyallup this year, though some of her garments were in the Vogue booth on display.)

I was happy to see that two of my IRL (in real life) sewing friends were featured on the Sew Expo Facebook page:

Kathleen is wearing a gorgeous coat she made from Pendleton wool she bought at last year's Puyallup
Marlene is wearing a beautiful, and super lightweight, necklace that she made
I ran into Marlene when I was with Katherine Tilton and we grabbed a quick pic
Marlene is lucky enough to share her passion with her daughter, Jonelle. You can see Marlene's necklace a bit better here.

I was very sorry that I missed a few booths entirely. These are some of the booths I would have visited had I a little more time:

• Sewing Workshop
• Pendleton Wool
• Billie's Designer Fabrics - I've never heard of this resource, but Maris Olsen highly recommended it. (I'm sorry we didn't get to meet up, Maris!)
• Kai Scissors - I breezed past this booth, without stopping, and ogled the scissors. I have several pair of Kai, but who doesn't want another pair or two?
• Vogue Fabrics
• The booth that sells strips of sari fabrics bundled like skeins of yarn. I stopped for 30 seconds and groped some bundles, but had to move on. So much yumminess.

Without further ado, let me post some of the things that I did see.

First, let me show you what Nancy Murakami was wearing as it is really fabulous.

For this jacket, Nancy started with a piece of plain muslin. She dyed it, she cut squares, and stitched them onto the base fabric, letting them fray. She ornamented them with circles of felt from a "failed felting project" and secured them with threads, also left hanging loose. For this amazing piece, she used the jacket pattern from Vogue 8975, Marcy's new dress with a little jacket.

Now, I hear tell that what she had planned to wear on Saturday was even more amazing. It was described as an Alabama Chanin style piece, but made with a different aesthetic. How I would have liked to see that! I hope that Marcy (or someone) posts some pictures.

And before I leave the topic of Nancy, she made a piece for Marcy's fashion show that I just loved. I'm sorry that these pics are not clearer, but they were taken with my cell phone and I wasn't that steady.

For this she made the underdress by lengthening a top pattern. I can't remember which pattern it was. The overdress uses a long OOP Vogue pattern by Issey Miyake, called "The Apron Dress. The front is cute, but just look at the BACK!

How cute is that?!?

I covet this outfit, but I have to remind myself that it would NOT flatter my busty figure. But I can certainly admire from afar.

Now let's talk a little about Diane Ericson! In this photo, Diane is wearing a top she made that uses fabric from a painting drop cloth:

She used some of this same fabric to make this stunning jacket that was featured in the Tilton fashion show:

I recollect Marcy saying that Diane used an OOP Miyake pattern for this jacket, but I might be misremembering. And, hey, if you know anyone who paints rooms, the next time they paint a color that you like, get some canvas underneath their ladder! After a few rooms of different colors, you might really have something!

Diane's booth was jam-packed with gorgeous inspiration. (As well as many products to buy to make your own!)

Here are a few pictures to whet the appetite:

I know, right?
The "buttons" on this jacket feature tiny pieces of stenciled fabrics made by Diane's son. I am sorry they don't show up better.
The back neckline. Diane is the master of creatives twists like these
A beautiful pieced top
I am sorry I didn't get a better picture of the front, but this piece includes refashioned garments from the thrift store, as many of her garments do
I was so sorry to see that this pic of the neckline detail was out of focus!

That is all the photos that I have to share. But let me give a couple shout outs:

• In the morning, as I was sitting in the cafe with Frank, Myrna Giesbrecht appeared from behind. We had never met in the flesh before. She hugged me, whispered some sweet compliments in my ear, and was off. I have no pictures, but I got a glimpse of her gorgeous coat as she left. I would have liked to study that a bit more in person. :) Thanks for saying "hello", Myrna!
  
  
• After lunch, when we returned to the Vogue booth, a woman introduced herself to me. It was Elaine, from Canada, who I recognized, after a moment, from a post on the Disparate Disciplines blog that I had just seen a few days before. She was wearing two patterns by Disparate Disciplines, a denim Dandelion dress and a pair of their wild Rose hip tights. She looked fabulous as she was giving Kathy Marrone feedback of what she thought about one of the fashion shows. Thanks for saying "hi", Elaine!

That is all I have to add to the photos you can see on the resources I have already listed. Check all of them out!

Hey, you know that I am a technical writer for the Dart programming language. But last week I published a couple of pieces before rushing off to Puyallup. Maybe you'd like to get a taste of what I do IRL, here and here. Believe me when I tell you, it's riveting stuff.

And now, I plan to enjoy this rainy, foggy, Oscar Day! I hope to get some sewing done. A teeny tiny bit, at least.

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More Information about Puyallup 2014

This is a late-breaking addition to the blog post. I have been collecting posts and other info that has been shared about Puyallup 2014. Here is the list:

• Marcy's post on what she and Katherine wore
• Marcy's March 2014 newsletter showing the Fashion Show garments
• Marcy's post on what her booth helpers were wearing
• Diane's post on Sew Expo
• Diane's post on how she made one of her jackets at Expo
• Kathy's Puyallup Wardrobe, helper at The Sewing Workshop
• What Makes One Creative? - a post about Diane Ericson's class on creativity, by Jonelle.
• Sew Expo Recap - a summary of several Sunday classes, by Amy of Sew Well
• Sew Expo 2014 by Gwen of Calm Under Tension
• If and When the Time is Right, a recap by Myrna