OK; it’s done, the second and arguably the most time consuming component of my one year one outfit project!
Can I just interject right here… WOOOOHOOOOO!
Phew! so, just saying, but I’m tentatively predicting that this one piece could well be my piece de resistance for the year. I made the dress, and not only did I make the dress but I made the fabric too! previously post about making my fabric from Western Australian Merino fleece here.
And I hand-embroidered it, with a motif of my own design. Also the dress is of my own design. Is this a little insane? probably.
Ok, YES.
So, the dress. As mentioned, it is fully embroidered with kangaroo paws. Why kangaroo paws, you may ask? Well, the kangaroo paw is our state floral emblem and my project is an all-Western Australian deal, so it seemed like a pretty appropriate choice. I sketched a stylised kangaroo paw design based upon one from one of my own photographs. I drew a few in different sizes and then for each section of the dress drew up separate, big all-over patterns. Some of the paws wrap around the side seams from front to back, which was planned since I wanted to kinda tie the design together as well as I could.
This style of all-over embroidery is obviously inspired by the Alabama Chanin style, but the design is all mine. I chose to incorporate embroidery for a few reasons; firstly to give some added strength to my felt, since the felt seemed just a touch fragile on its own.
Secondly, for decorative impact too, of course! My felt is quite textured already, but I really liked the idea of something more, and a white-on-white design. I embroidered the under-dress, below, in a regularly spaced and repeating pattern of identical kangaroo paws, while the overdress, above, has a more random appearance, with different sized kangaroo paws, placed non-regularly and more artfully; as if someone had taken a bouquet of kangaroo paws and scattered it across the piece.
For the embroidery: I used natural, undyed Western Australian Merino yarn, handspun here in Perth by a lady named Beverly. I bought this from Bilby Yarns.
The side seams are hand-stitched and hand-fellstitched in a thinner version of the same yarn. I left the lower edge of the dress with its naturally wobbly self-edge, just as how it came out from the felting.
As per the one year one outfit strict criteria, I could not use anything in my dress that was not locally sourced; meaning no thread or zips. So, I could have used buttons, since I still have some lovely ones made by my Dad using wood from my parent’s block… but I decided to go with a dress that I could just pull on over my head and with no closure required. I used my standby plainy-plain dress pattern, Burda 8511 and drew up a wide, midi-length, loose, A-line dress pattern; two layered and with slanting asymmetrical hemlines. The under layer is a full length dress; and the over layer is a shorter and briefer one, one-shouldered with a diagonal top edge disappearing into the side edge/armpit. I cut out “facings” for the top edge, and these are fused/felted to the inside of the dress, underneath the single layer part of the under-dress. Meaning, the dress has two layers of fabric all over, which I fused together by felting nearly all over after embroidering. The front has felted-together layers to waist level, while the back has the layers felted together to below bum level. The remaining lower portion of the overdress float free, and the only parts that are a completely single layer are the lower portion of the underdress.
Clear as mud? Yep, I thought so!
Also: it may superficially look like the dress has not a skerrick of shaping, with no visible darts or piecing, but actually that is not the case! It is shaped… with invisible darts!!! yes, really invisible 🙂 The shaping is not drastic since I needed some looseness to enable me to get the thing over my shoulders ok… but the shaping is there. I cut out the bust darts and back waist shaping darts, and closed them together by hand-felting the layers together with a felting needle. This is a clever little needle, long and with tiny serrated point. You jab it in through the layers of your felt and its serrations enable the wool fibres to meld and mesh together thanks to their own naturally barbed nature, albeit microscopic. This is how felting is even possible, of course! Thanks to this wonderful property exclusive to wool, my dress has a nice subtle shape but with no visible evidence of such shaping, such as darts or seams. It’s also how I felted together the two layers of the dress, all over.
It’s like magic, I’m telling you.
Once I had completed all my wool embroidery, I went over and painstakingly hand-felted those upper and underdresses together as described above. Then the very final step was to run a simple running stitch around the neckline and armholes. I wanted a nice subtle edging to these areas, not only for some strength, as the running stitch is almost like stay-stitching if you like, and stabilises these vulnerable areas that might otherwise get stretched out every time I pull the dress over my head and push my arms through those armholes. The edging also provide a nice visual border that that does not compete with my embroidery… and obviously I want my embroidery to have the biggest visual impact.
So! This is merely part two of my one year one outfit project, part numero uno was my knitted alpaca jacket/cardigan, posted here, and I have a couple more components still going in the works. What will they be? we shall see, we shall see… 🙂
I may have a few surprises still up my sleeve, mwahaha!
Details:
Dress; my own design based upon Burda 8511, of self-made wool felt with wool embroidery of my own design
Ugg boots; from some ugg boot shop, forgotten which one
Ahhh, the uggies. I know they’re pretty awful but I just could not resist! Seemed only fitting. I’m gahn the full Strine here, mate. 🙂
That is so impressive Carolyn! So much work! And you've done it so neatly. I really love your final dress with all its details. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Um, just wow. This is gorgeous Carolyn. You have the patience of a saint to have completed this dress. It's simply awesome.
Gorgeous, congratulations – that is an amazing project!!!
you're my superhero, carolyn! i love it! and the fabric you created is so beautiful
Carolyn, this is commitment! Like a full circle of sewing boss. Please tell me there was a lovely glass of wine to celebrate after completing this wonder?!
Beautiful, really unique. I love the white on white and the kangaroo paw inspiration and design. A lovely ode to W.A.
This is one of the most beautiful selfmade dresses I've ever seen. The only thing that makes it look "homemade" is the hem for me – maybe once you got some wear out of the dress consider hemming the dress? 🙂
No matter what you decide to do: Wow, Wow, Wow. Beautiful dress, beautiful vision for the dress, crazy commitment!! 🙂
Absolutely gorgeous! Truly WA and truly WOW!
Absolutely stunning! Worth every moment of your time, you look lovely in it. Hem is perfect as it is xx
Your dress is absolutely amazing! I am completely wowed by your skill and craftsmanship. Truly an inspiration.
I am speechless………..your dress is perfection……….
I am speechless………..your dress is perfection……….
I am speechless………..your dress is perfection……….
please please please enter this in the Australian wool garment/fashion awards it is perfect and don't hem it perfect as is you could definitely win with this, brilliant if you could hear we're all cheering well done.
Wow. This looks right off a high-fashion runway! I can't believe the dress is felted together and fully hand-embroidered. The felted darts are genius as well. It looks great on you.
Amazing. Your dress is breathtakingly beautiful. You are beyond talented!!
Your dress is really stunning and wonderful, Carolyn! I love all the details, the felting, the embroidery of this lovely flower design, your dress pattern with felting the darts and the felting together part of the two dresses. The dress is chic and wearable at the same time!
Wow! Every element of this dress is amazing, I'm so impressed.
Wow wow wow – this is incredible! Definitely worth all the effort I'd say 🙂
Words aren't enough…it is awesome!!! As is…please don't hem it.
Wow! I bet you're so proud of the final product of your hard work. The embroidery makes a simple dress into a piece of artwork. The dress is absolutely stunning. Incredibly beautiful. High five!
Wow! You are really talented.
Stunning!
Wow! That is beyond amazing, Carolyn! I'm enjoying watching your project progress along — so many thoughtful and well-considered decisions you've made! This dress is absolutely stunning and so you! Beautiful work.
This is an absolute stunner! Congratulations on creating this beautiful piece of art!
so beautiful.
My goodness…..the patience, the foresight, the beauty! So inspirational.
There are no words…!!!! Just so very amazing! Congratulations Carolyn!
I'm actually in awe of this craftsmanship. And the dress looks great! You are so ahead of the curve when the next apocalypse hits 🙂
That is so cool!
Wow! What to say….. speechless really. Your creativity at its best in your one year one outfit project. Love, love, love your attention to every single detail from connecting the embroidery with the floral symbol…. to needle felting the layers together at the top….. to inserting invisible darts…. and on and on. Thank you so much for inspiring the rest of us!! And if you have a chance to enter this outfit as a fashion award entry….. please do and let even more folks see the stunning, original, work you do. 🙂
Seriously, I'm beyond speechless with your talent. You blow me away with your creativity and ability to follow through. It sounds like the talent was passed down (your Dad makes buttons!), Cool family too. That dress is beyond fantastic and you must be over-the-moon proud of all that work. Bravo.
As usual. F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S.
Stunningly beautiful. Your creativity, skills, and commitment are awe-inspiring.
Gorgeous. Stunning. Truly couture.
Would you mind sharing how you pass the time whilst doing all this handwork? I love the look of such things but find myself feeling quickly fatigued from the tedium of doing it. You obviously enjoy it in its own right, but are you also multi-tasking in some way? Commuting, watching television?
Thank you Glenda! Yes, I do enjoy handiwork in its own right; but I'm often doing it while watching tv at night or something at the same time. For this; I had to do it standing up at my kitchen bench, since I couldn't do the embroidery with it on my lap, it was too big. I did get a bit tired of it at times; those times I set myself small goals, like an hour an evening, until I felt more inspired about it. 🙂
Wow! Just stunning, i particularly love the white on white kangaroo paw embroidery. I must go and read about this one outfit project, sounds amazing and a fabulous challenge.
I am SO impressed. Especially with your patience in both constructing and embroidering the fabric! The dress by itself is stunning, and I'm both excited and curious to see how the rest of this outfit comes together!
Your dress is amazing, so elegant. It must have taken ages to create. You have lots of patience.
This is truly beautiful! Amazing work!
What a pull on my heartstrings, to see what you have created with your imagination, materials and skills. It is truly moving. One of your children may want to wear it for a wedding dress, and I hope you consider donating it to a museum. It is wonderful.
I'm gobsmacked. This is an exquisite piece of art. You need a humongous necklace that says, "I made this entire fricking dress by myself – the whole thing!!" Yes, it would have to be a large necklace. But I can imagine the thrill of having that little secret as you wear this dress out and about. You'll get the Mona Lisa smile effect for sure. Truly, a magnificent piece. Hand embroidery too? Sigh of admiration.
This dress is AMAZING!!!!! You have created a genuine masterpiece. Really, it's breathtaking…*and* well done. This is the sort of thing a high end designer could make and charge thousands of dollars for, and it would be worth every single penny. Very well done. Good job!
Stunning!!
I'm blown away. This is even more beautiful than I imagined from your teasers on Instagram. Wow on every level!
It looks couture and elegant to me. A real tour de force !
Ooooh, my eyes are so happy. Your dress is magnificent and your design work is exquisite. Thrilled that I get to see such artistry take shape.
This is just stunning! Stunning!
Oh wow!! Love, love, love your dress and every detail. It's lovely on its own and even more lovely as you model it.
Exquisite! Your work is amazing and your patience and dedication is unsurpassed.
Amazing! You are so clever!
Beautiful work, Carolyn! It boggles my mind that you have the patience to make THAT MUCH fabric. And hand embroider it too!! I like that you've left it au naturelle rather than dying it. The embroidery gives a lovely contrast of texture. Well done!
Oh wow. Simply beautiful and perfectly inspiring. It's gorgeous, in spirit and style. x
Oh my goodness – that is gorgeous!!!!
Oh Carolyn! Oh my word its amazing gorgeous! I'm gushing, so impressive its unspeakable. Congratulations, you have made something very very fine, dear lady, very fine. Where this leads you to next, the sky knows no limit, you can do amazing things!
Amazing! The idea, the time the effort and the commitment – all worthy.
Does the skirt 'seat' after a day's wear? Did you line it or wear a slip?
thank you Ruth!
a. no, partly because I do not intend to lounge around in it very often; it's too special!
b. no; because the whole point of this challenge is to make an outfit for myself using ONLY locally sourced materials and labour, and that excludes popping into my local fabric store and buying lining fabric. My options here are very limited, any and all fabric had to be made by me 🙂
Amazing! The idea, the time the effort and the commitment – all worthy.
Does the skirt 'seat' after a day's wear? Did you line it or wear a slip?
This is dress is so wonderful! Your felting was really cool already but for the embroidering I don,t have words. AMAZING!
I wouldn't dare wear it out of fear it might be damaged. I'd love to see pictures of the first occasion you'll wear it to. Sorry I know I'm prying… only if you feel like it!
Wow! Your skills and creativity are mind blowing Carolyn. I am speechless.
omg this is crazy! I don't know what to say, I am just speechless!
I'm pretty sure you just won the internet of sewing. This dress is amazing and so perfect for your challenge! Stunning work, from the felted fabric to the embroidery to the invisible darts. Incredible!
What a triumph. I love this project – keeping the colour natural – it is so subtle, the shaping is delicate and beautiful, the motif is just super (I was looking, literally, for the paws of the kangaroo {had never heard of the plant}, and the design is gorgeous. I wish you could get married it in (and the uggs).
I love this so much……breathtakingly beautiful! Amazed at your imagination and your talents/abilities to bring it to life. Lovely (sigh)
Carolyn, this is just stunning!!! The most beautiful and spiritually perfect thing you have ever posted. Congratulations and thank you for the inspiration.
Carolyn,
I have read your blog for several years now and am always impressed by what you do, but have never commented. I am awestruck by this dress. It is truly amazing. Your style, craftsmanship and personality really come together in this one garment. Hooray for you!!!
Meredith
Insane? It is absolutely brilliant!!!! This dress is totally YOU!
Your dress looks amazing! I'm so impressed by all the hand felting and hand embroidery! I'm curious — is it comfy to wear against your skin, or do you need a slip underneath?
fascinating and a timeless style is the result
Omg! Your embrodery is nice . I just know to do it thé samedi. Xoxo
You are amazing!!!
What a work of art. It deserves a place in a museum someday.
That is so beautiful! Wow! Someday I want to be able to make beautiful pieces like yours.
I'm speechless. This is such an amazing project, and the results are simply stunning.
Gorgeous!!!
WOW. That's seriously impressive.
You're right, this is crazy!
But absolutely gorgeous – and quite the feat ;- )
Wow Carolyn!!! Such a pretty fabric! Well done!
Oh Caroline, you literally leave me speachless… I hope you´ll find occasions to wear that really really beautiful dress (I have this fear of wearing the very special and dear clothes and then they end up sitting in the closet which I think is the worst…) ! I can only assume how much work and love went into it! Congratulations!!
This a true work of art! Congratulations on your gorgeous dress!
*thud*
That's a massive WOW!!! Gorgeous, my dear!
OMG this is gorgeous, love the shape, and those "paws" one of my favourites.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, EVERYBODY! I'm overwhelmed by all the lovely comments. Thank you so very much 🙂 *mwah*
Swoon! So beautiful, so original. What more can I say.
Beautiful, inspirational and aspirational!
Love the styling… Ugg boots;) work of art and labour of love.
This is a wonderful work of art…absolutely special and I adore the embroidery and the fact that you worked every little stitch yourself.
Congratulations indeed!
That is an amazing work of art. Well, done.
Magnificent!
Perfection!
Amazing dress, Carolyn! Great work! 🙂
This is beautiful. Amazing work!
So inspiring!
What can one say? Sensational.
It's an achievement to make a dress from scratch, even the fabric, but to make it gorgeous even more so. The embroidery does elevate it into something really special. I'm curious to know how wearing it feels.
I'm blown away – just stunning, Carolyn, from concept to creation. I love the couched yarn in the embroidery. Just beautiful.
This is just mind-blowing! I admire your creativity, skills and defined style so much!
Just stunning, Carolyn! What an impressive impressive feat! It just shows how tremendously persistent you are!
Lovely! Creating it from the ground up has really infused it with your style. That must feel very satisfying!
amazing , I love it
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