June Dress....in October

Wow, it was a beautiful fall day today! Good thing I am finishing up a light weight linen dress :). It seems that life has interfered with my grand dress making plans. I recently started a new job and that has monopolized all my time until today. Finally, I got behind my sewing machine and raced the needle through some fabric.

When I had sewn together the initial pieces of the dress, I wasn't too impressed. Actually, that is probably why it took me so long to finish it. It was looking too tunic-esk and that wasn't what I had envisioned.

After starting and stopping twice today, I finally hit some inspiration. By chance, I decided to make a fold down the front of the dress and it looked good! I pinned it and sewed it (being totally aware that I would probably have to take the whole thing out). This happens a lot when I am sewing! And my winging-it style of sewing continues by this random reinforcement of good outcomes. Remember my motto: Measure never, cut thrice!

It is clear from my dress making that I like V-necks, so why fight it. I also managed to get pockets in there. I'm still having trouble with the pockets stretching across my hips. Perhaps I need to move the them up and in, so that they aren't fighting my shapely body. I'm also struggling with collars. Actually, I hate them. It is the one place everyone looks and it is so easy to make a mistake on! I still think I can get around it without doing it the traditional way. This might be my collar making undoing. :)

This dress fits almost all the requirements I have in dresses. It is a nice print, has sleeves, pockets, and could be worn to work or for fun. All it is missing is a liner. However, in summer I probably won't need it.

Hopefully, I'll have to the time to catch up on all my dresses this month. I'm going to try at least. Let's see if I can sneak in some costume making!

Let the leather working begin!

As some of you know, my grandfather loved leather working. I was the recipient of more than one awesomely made leather product growing up and I've liked it ever since. I decided last year that I would really like to learn how to make bags, belts, and sandals out of leather. So to help speed along the process, Paw-paw gave me a kit for a handbag he bought in the 1970s, along with a few books. I was pretty excited to get working on it.

So before going on vacation I spend several nights pounding it out (pun totally intended!). It was easy enough to do since instructions were included. First, you just get the leather wet. Then trace a design on the the wet leather and adding whatever embellishments you want. Then you let it dry, sew up all the pieces (which turned out the be the worst and most time consuming part). And voila! you have a new handbag.

I really loved making it and I have so many ideas for other bags. I'm going to take it home this summer and see if Paw-paw can give me any pointers. I have lots of questions and I want to learn how to make it look more professional. Making a belt is also on the agenda

May Dress - Better late than never

It seems I've fallen behind in my dress making. While I found it easy to whip up a dress in a weekend during the winter and spring, summer has brought new challenges. I've been trying to make the most of the good weather, which mean sitting on my deck and staring out into the bay with a tasty drink in my hand. Also, I just got a puppy. There is nothing more distracting than a puppy. He is so darn cute! I really had tried to finish May's dress before going on vacation but what I ended up making wasn't what I had envisioned. The dress that came out was a bit strange for an everyday dress. It is made out of a cotton, linen blend. I loved the pink and green stripes, however it turned out to be too casual looking to wear out of the house. Therefore I made my first nightgown. It's less gown than I would like it to be but it's light weight and comfy.

Everyday in Manhattan is a fashion show and recently I have noticed women wearing dresses with contrasting tops and bottoms. I decided to see how this would work out. So I took the basic shape of the March dress and put a dark pink top with a light pink skirt. The top is made out of the same jersey material I used for February's dress and the bottom is new material. I think the color combination is fantastic but I look a bit like a 1950s housewife. I think it would have been better not to make a gathered skirt but just make more of a pencil skirt.

I'm less happy with this overall but it might grow on me. Not all experiments are successful but I'm going to keep at it. I've still got button holes and many other techniques to try out.

April Showers and April Flowers

While the rain poured outside, I decided to get crackin on April's dress. Inspired by my co-worker, who is in love with linen, I checked out a store on 39th street; Grey Line Linen. I found a lovely, embroidered white and pink fabric to become my April dress.

I wanted something that would be fun for summer, so I decided to make a sleeveless dress. I found a pattern in my book and started to chop, chop, chop. After 4 hours on this rainy Sunday, I finished the dress.

This was by far the fastest dress I've sewn. I used the same pattern as February's dress but this time I wanted to make sure that the hip width was not as tight as before. I cut the dress a little bit wider but in the end it was too wide, so I had to take it in. However, that allowed me to make very nice pockets. I was quite happy with them this time. The one thing that I'm not sure I like or not is that the dress is quite loose fitting. Typically, dresses feel cumbersome after wearing them all day but in a loose fitting dress, I may not be itching to get out of it. This is definitely an experiment I am willing to try.

Beach Bag

My newest crochet project. I can't wait to cruise the beach scene with an inch thick layer of suncreen (SPF 50) in my linen skirt and awesome beach bag. Here I come Jersey Shore summer!

Fun with elastic

I've been toying with the idea of folding a piece of fabric in half, cutting a hole in the middle for my head, sewing up the sides (leaving holes for my arms), and just adding an elastic band for shape. However, I've never made anything with elastic, so this skirt was practice.

I had some left-over linen, so I went to work.

I watched a few youtube videos to get a basic idea of what to do. What I realized is that you have to make the garment slightly bigger than your size (not a problem). Then, when you put the elastic through the machine, you have to stretch it while sewing. This terrified me because I was afraid of snapping off the needle (I shouldn't list all the clumsy things I have done while sewing, most involving pain to my fingers! So the fear was justified). Also if you pull on the front of the elastic band while sewing, this negates the dog-feed movement and you'll end up sewing in one place! Finally, I realized you have to stretch it out from the from and back of the needle. After that, I just watched the magic happen.

An elastic band in my skirt!


The finished product.


I made this skirt in the gathered skirt method with was a waste of time. The elastic band creates the desired ripples, just making the previous made waves mute. I wanted a skirt that was gathered looking and the elastic created that on it's own. I put a muslin lining in it, so I can wear colored underpants. :) And that's about it.

I see some pajama pants or even linen pants in the future!

A Jewerly Making Post

Recently, a fellow crafter, teacher, and student all rolled into one left New York. It made me sad to see her go but she gave me some good advice. In one of our parting conversations she encouraged me to post about all the things that I make, not just dresses. I am truly my very own sweat-shop worker and am constantly making things. Every time I see something new I excitedly want to make it. So if you run into me and you are wearing something super cute and I look like I'm spacing out, don't worry, I'm just working out how to make whatever it is that has captivated me. I don't know why I like making things so much. It isn't to show off or to somehow make people think I am smarter than I am (most of what I make is incredibly simple, thus the reason I do it). I make things because I love making things. That's the whole motivation. When you see me and I won't stop talking about whatever project it is that I am on, just know its not anything other than an internal making-motor deep in my chest that won't turn off. You can tell me to let it idle for a while and we can talk about something else. :)

Ok, rant done. Back to jewelry making.

I work in the fashion district which is probably fate. There is nowhere better to be to be inspired. Everyday I pass these bead shops to and from Port Authority and I can't help but stop in. Then I struck it lucky when one of my co-workers offered to teach an earring making class. From there I just haven't stopped. Here is a what I've been up to. (Disclaimer I'm not a photographer).

The collection:


This is the first thing I made. I wanted a cute necklace to match my black strapless dress for a friend's wedding. I ended up making one small necklace and then a long one. Good for work and black tie affairs.


In the next shopping trip I found these turquoise colored beads and needed to make something with it. I love this necklace and made earrings to match.


When I've got a couple of colors on and don't know what will match, I throw on this necklace. It's made from multi-colored beads and spacers. Simple and cute. That's the way I roll.


The reason I bought these beads was because I wanted to make a going away present. When I finished the necklace, I didn't want to give it away. It was super cute and all the dresses I've made of late are either pink or green. So, I made one more for me! And now it reminds me of the person I made it for originally. (Smile).


This is the necklace that 13-year-old Leslie wanted to wear. Nothing like never growing up.


I needed some red in my wardrobe and when I wear this with March's dress, it looks fantastic.


First pair of earrings ever!


These are the second pair of earrings I made in my co-worker's jewelry making class. In another situations I might have painted someone's nails that exact same color combination! I'm sorry!! This color combo must be in my subconscious.


When I was in 6th grade someone gave me a charm bracelet and I lost it immediately. I literally had it for like a day. I was totally bummed. Thus, I've made my own. It's nautical themed which makes it borderline cheesy living on the Jersey shore but I love it.


I tortured Greg all night shaking it in front of his face while he made something with diodes (which sounds like a made up word anyway, he should pay attention to me!).


Finally, this monstrosity is my most recent creation. I love it. I reminds me of a Mad Men or a 50s housewife. I don't know why that's appealing but it is!


If you see anything you'd like, I'll gladly make it for you! If you're up for it, I love craft exchanges (you make something, I make something).

That's jewelry making! I'm sure I'll post more later!!

Mint Chocolate Chip - March's Dress

Done by the 24th this time! Wow, it's like I'm getting good at this or something. So here is March's dress in all its glory. For some reason I have really been attracted to green, perhaps it's all this warm weather. This is the third dress in the book and I really enjoyed making it. I think it turned out the best of all the dresses so far.

This dress is called "drindle" which (as I read in the book) means gathered skirt. I was excited about doing this dress because I tried to make a gathered skirt once and it utterly failed.

First, I cut out all the pieces. Unlike the others, there were a few more pieces. The top part of the dress had 3 pieces and the bottom did as well.



Then I had to make the top part of the dress first. This was fairly simple and made me feel more accomplished because I could see one whole half of the dress finished.



Then I made a gathered skirt. I followed the instructions exactly and it turned out really well. I am glad I can add this to my skill set from now on, it is really handy. In the picture you can see the skirt gathered really close together but that isn't how I sewed it on the top of the dress. I had to stretch it back out a bit but it wasn't a problem.



Finally I put the top and bottom together and added a zipper. As you can see, it turned out really well. I am very pleased with it. It's a bit dressy looking with the gathered skirt but Easter is coming up! Also, I might add a red ribbon to it later.



And per my cousin's request, I am smiling! :)

Just can't get enough

Greg and I ran a bunch of errands yesterday and we just happened to stop by the fabric store. I managed to get new material for March's dress and also some linen. It was so warm outside, I could help but want warm weather fabric. I've been making all my summer clothes now and I can't wait to wear them more often than just the random warm days we've been having.

Feeling an itch to sew, I started working on my linen dress. I used the same pattern as February's dress but just added pockets on the seams. I was worried that the linen would be see-through and I wouldn't be able to wear it anywhere other than the beach. I have some muslin laying around, so I decided to make a liner.



In my infinite wisdom, I just sewed the linen and muslin together, kinda like when you make a pillow. I thought it would keep me from having to finish the ends and make the inside look cleaner. It kinda did those things but it was a pain. First, you've got to make the pattern larger because you are using the seam allowance to sew the muslin and the linen together, rather than to the rest of the dress. It was quite challenging to make sure the linen and muslin were completely lined up as well.

The pockets turned out well. It was simple enough to do and I'm glad I jumped that hurdle because it will be easier and easier to do them in the future.



As I lamented in the last post, finishing the ends of things would be nicer with a serger. So until I get one, I bought pinking sheers. They keep the ends of fabric from unraveling. They are awesome.



This dress turned out alright. I've still got to add sleeves. There were still lots of mistakes. It will make a good summer-afternoon-out dress.



I'll post a picture of me in the dress when the sleeves are done.

February's Dress: Finished

When I was younger, there wasn't any way to wrangle me into wearing pink. I preferred green because I was fascinated by turtles. I also wore blue to match my eyes. I loved orange, too. However, pink was a little too girly for me. Now, I can't get enough of it. It reminds me of spring and gives me a warm fuzzy feeling when I wear it. As Greg said, "that's a lot of pink" but I really love the way the dress turned out.



This dress turned out far better than January's dress. It only took me about 3 days to make it, a couple of hours of effort each day. I spent most of the month experimenting and unfortunately failing. My first design idea was a little too ambitious. I had envisioned making the neckline and sleeves of the dress out of sheer fabric, and the rest out of the pink jersey material. As I cut everything out and sewed it together, it was clear that the sheer fabric could not hold up the rest of the dress; it would tear if used as support, so I took it apart and tried other things. In the end, I got out the second pattern from my book, and used that.



After all, I only used the jersey material to make the dress. The sheer fabric made a great circle scarf.



What I liked:
The jersey material is great. It isn't as light as t-shirt material, so it has a weighty feel. The pattern was loose fitting, which made the dress more comfortable than the January dress. Also, I love the sleeves. This might become my "uniform dress," the one I make over and over in different colored fabric.

What I didn't like:
Unfortunately, I don't have a serger. The serger allows the jersey material to stretch without having the stitches pop out. Since I couldn't sew it like that, I used a zig-zag stitch to let the material expand where I needed it to move, in other words to keep me from "hulking out" of the dress. The dress was loose enough that I only had to do that stitch on the back. I would like to use this fabric again but I'm going to wait until I have a serger.

What I learned:
I learned that sheer fabric is tricky and I should practice more before using it. I also learned that thick jersey material is really comfortable.

February's Dress

It's going to be fun!

Success!

Look what happened! I fixed it!

The dress was too big in the arms and neckline. So, I put it on and when I gathered the material at the top, it all lined up. So I sewed across the top of the sleeves. I also changed the neckline.

Here it is!

This is the finished version. It looks a little plain and I decided not to put darts in it.


Instead of darts, I added a belt. I promise it looks better in person than in this photo.


This is the neckline.


This is the sleeve.


The only thing that needs to be added in the future are pockets.

I am just happy that the dress is finished!

A little like Cher from Clueless

So before the month of January ended, I figured it would be a good idea to critique the dresses that I own. Some of them are great and some less than great. However, I bought them all for one reason or another and am not as satisfied as I could be (thus this project!). Also, Cher taught me to take a photograph of myself in dresses to see what I really look like in them (jk!).

Let's go through each one and I'll tell explain what good and what's not.

I bought this dress for a date almost three years ago. I liked it because it is black, short, has pockets, and shows a little cleavage (it was a date afterall!). It also has a band that goes around my waste that gives the dress a nice form. However, the material is thin and it is on the "too short" side for any other occasions, making me wear it less often. If I could resign this dress I would make it out of weightier fabric and lengthen the skirt.


This dress is from H&M. I bought it because was $10. It is knit and there aren't really a whole lot of positive things I can say about it. The knit makes the dress see-through, I have to wear a tank top under it (way too much cleavage showing for a day-to-day basis), and it can be on the chilly side. I usually wear this dress layered with other things. That is not what I'm going for in general. I want a nice dress that is complete, nothing else except jewelry and shoes. Also there are no pockets.


This is my favorite dress. When I weighed 15 pounds less, it was much more flattering. (I'm working on that as well but not in this blog!). I bought this dress at H&M for $30. The fabric is thick, it has sleeves, it has pockets, the skirt is to my knees, and the shape shows off my shape. I'd like to make this dress again but the buttons down the front will be challenging I imagine.


I love this dress. I bought it in Moscow about 5 years ago. I like the design and the colors. It has pockets and is light-weight for summer. The only thing I would like to have on it is sleeves.



This next dress inspired me to make my own. First, I didn't try it on before I bought it, so its a little big. However, with a belt, it looks great. I got it at Uniqlo last year for $15. The material is thick and they just doubled it, making the outside fabric the lining as well. It has a weighty feel and is very functional. I wear it to work at least once a week.


My little parrotlet could not figure out why I was putting on dress after dress, so he came to investigate. This dress is from Banana Republic and was around $50. I love this dress. The fabric is warm, there are pockets, sleeves, and it has a little bit of a different design. It could be a little longer, as it is the shortest length that I can wear to work.


Black is a very versatile color. It can be worn in almost every occasion and allows accessories to really stand out. This is the other Uniqlo dress I bought. It is almost exactly the same as the other. It needs a belt but is an improvement because it has sleeves. I wear this dress at least once a week as well.


Finally, this last dress is quite old. It must be at least 8 years old. I bought it at H&M for $30 in Chicago. I like the wrap style dresses. It has everything I like except pockets. Plus, it is a little bit different because it has a bold design, unlike many of my others.


In the end, I've learned a lot thinking about the dresses I already own. First, I do not spend a lot of money on dresses! Perhaps that could be a problem. However, I can't justify spending a lot on a dress unless I wear it every week. Also, here is what I'll be making:

1. pockets
2. sleeves
3. dresses with liners or heavy fabric

That doesn't seem like too much to ask. Also, we'll see if I can keep the cost of the dress under $50. I think that is a good price for a custom made dress!

Here's to February! I hope I am more successful.

January - Dress #1

Welcome to the first post!

I've already begun the hardest part, starting. This reminds me a lot of when I first started to knit. My fingers felt foreign and wouldn't do what my brain was telling them to do. I was so uncomfortable. Now my fingers practically sing when they get two needles and yarn between them. This is what is happening while I sew. The machine is a bit awkward, I can't cut things exactly the shape or size I want. I'm constantly sticking myself with the pins. I know it will get easier and before you know it, I'll be able to whip together a dress in an evening. For now however, I just have to endure. If I can make it past "the start," then I am well on my way to becoming a proficient dress maker.

So, I picked out some fabric and the materials I needed and began sewing earlier this month. I'm using a book called "Built by Wendy." I found it in a yarn/fabric store in SoHo and it inspired me. The forward that the author gives about the reasons for making dresses really appealed to me. Dresses are timeless pieces of fashion and have been worn for a reason. I would never give up the liberty of wearing pants but I just look and feel better in a dress.

With my fabric and book in hand I started sewing the first dress in the book. It is meant to be something I can wear to work. This means it can't be too tight, it must have sleeves, and it has to be knee length.

At the moment, I have most of it sewn. However, I am at an impasse. The dress looks like a hospital gown and when I wear it, I look like I should be on meds. So let's look at what I did right and what I obviously did wrong.


This is before I finished the sleeves and added the collar.

First, the good things:

1. I followed the pattern very well. I cut it out and all the pieces matches up and sewed up easily.

2. I put the zipper on without tearing it out a million times. This was probably the easiest part of the whole project.

3. It fits! I didn't have to let it out or take it in. This is a first, usually I have to try something on and make adjustments. With the pattern however, I was able to know the exact shape.

Second, the bad things:

1. Something went wrong. The neck is too large, the arm holes are too large, and the dress is too tight in the hips. If I pull the fabric up a few inches, it fits better around my hips.

2. I can't wear it outside. There are too many mistakes for me to wear it to work or any other place. I wouldn't say I failed because I learned a lot in the process but I'm going to have to figure out how to tailor the dress a little better to fit my body.

What to do for next time:

First, I didn't like making the collar. Also the fabric of the dress was too thin. To fix both these problems in one fell swoop, I'm going to buy double the fabric and sew a liner immediately. This will take care of finishing the inside to keep the dress from fraying. Also, I could potentially make reversible dress. (That's an idea for later!)

Also, I'm going to try to make the dress just from my measurements and forget about the pattern. I've made skirts before that fit my hips much better than this dress is, which means that pattern was not meant for my body shape. I think that getting a pattern that fits me exactly is the key. Let's just hope it happens sometime soon.

As for this dress, I won't waste the fabric and throw it out. I'll probably use it to experiment on or make a skirt. Let's hope dress #2 is better!