Tag Archives: Daily Outfit

Autumnal shades, and a dilemma

13/04/2011 4:22 am \ 25 Comments \

Just been enjoying those lovely fresh autumnal days lately, feeling the sunlight warm but not harsh on the skin, breathing in that fresh crisp air.  When the days are just that little bit fresher like today I get to employ one of my favourite outfit styles; layering a few thin cardigans together to get a bit of a autumnal colour palette happening.  I just love these rich warm colours together, I think they are “me” colours, and I’m happy the weather is cool enough for me to wear this great dress again.

Details:
Dress; Burda 8511, with minor modifications and lined, purple raw silk (hessian silk?) seen first here
Apricot cardigan; Metalicus, found secondhand
Khaki cardigan; Country Road
Scarf; refashioned from an old Tshirt, seen first here, tutorial here
Shoes; Betts & Betts, had these for about twenty years

I went out and bought a few extra supplies for my Vogue 8333 jacket; the horsehair canvas and the silk organza for the underlining.  Something I have not got yet though is the lining and this is because I have hit a bit of a dilemma; when I looked at the silk linings I still couldn’t decide which side of this fabric is to be my right side…  When I first spotted this fabric in Japan I knew it was The One, and I initially was drawn to the wrong wide of the fabric, which is the darker side.  It is mostly a very dark charcoaly-brown, almost-but-not-quite black, and showing through is the multicoloured thread of the other side, coming up as dots of coffee, beige and bone.
However since I got home and have looked at it a few more times, the right side is starting to grow on me too, a rich mixture of all the warm shades of coffee, caramel and bone, and with a hint of metallic gold sparkly thread every now and again which probably doesn’t show very well in my picture below.  The golden sparkle was the initial turn-off to me for using this side out as I’m not sure if a sparkly coat, even a subtly sparkly coat is really “me”, but the warm cosy browns are kind of appealing to me a lot right now.  It would certainly be a more interesting jacket and more out of the ordinary.

Thoughts anyone?
In fact, I will admit that actually the sheer beauty of this fabric is crippling me somewhat… the prospect of stuffing up is causing a mild case of paralysis.  When you have cheap fabric and an easy project it’s very easy to slice straight into it and whip something up, and the confidence and lack of worry one has simply because of the cheapness of the fabric and the easiness of the pattern, often insures a good dressmaking result.  On the other hand when one is facing magnificent fabric and a difficult pattern, the looming menace of failure sits on one’s shoulder like the little old man of the sea….

Does anyone else ever get flummoxed by the crushing responsibility of not ruining a too-beautiful fabric?
(I will confess to fleeting thoughts of going and buying less gorgeous fabric for this project, just to avoid making a terrible mistake…. !!!  this has not been ruled out!)

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Vogue 8333, a wearable muslin

11/04/2011 6:56 am \ 17 Comments \

I have finally finished my muslin of Vogue 8333, a bit late for the RTW jacket sew-along, but meh.  It’s done.  I will wear this thing.  I like it with the sleeves folded up like this, and I like the oversized nacre buttons I found for it.  I think it will be even better after a few more washes, to nicely wrinkle it up and settle in those seams, and I am toying vaguely with the idea of dyeing it… what do you think?
Something I’ve noticed, and you can see it in the picture, the right side lapel has a slight tendency to sit up higher than its roll line, in spite of  (or because of?) the hand-stitched bridles within.  Do you think I should I be worried about this?

I really wanted to make this muslin wearable since wasting fabric, even calico, goes against like just about everything to do with consumerism and using planetary resources that I believe in.  It is finished (sorta ridiculously) to couture standards…  well, I needed to have a go at all the couture techniques that are introduced in this wonderful pattern…
With a few exceptions; I forgo-ed pad-stitching the collar (I figured I’d already practised that one sufficiently pad-stitching the lapels) and just whacked in some iron-on interfacing.  No one will notice that.  I’ve learnt the thing about couture… done properly, no one should be able to tell couture apart from RTW, without taking the whole thing apart.  
Couture is in the inner details.  
The only reason one might notice a difference between the two at a casual glance is of course if one’s hand-stitching is so badly uneven that it stands out on the outer like a sore thumb… but I pride myself on having pretty good hand-stitching if I say so myself.  Another couture exception in this garment is that I machine-stitched the buttonholes.  Will save the hand-finished buttonholes, with properly waxed and pressed silk thread as specified, for the real deal.  Finally, this garment is not underlined, unlike my “real” jacket will be.
Irene warned me that the torso of this pattern ran narrow, and I did check this carefully during the bodice construction bit.  But I am kind of narrow in the torso already, and actually found it to fit me fine.  I might shave a teensy bit off the bust curves but I don’t think very much.  One part I had to drastically adjust was the sleeve cap… here is the jacket with the sleeves as per the pattern set in.

See how horribly poof-y and gathered at the top they are?  Even my youngest son, who is remarkably uninterested in details, and clothing details especially, noticed and kindly pointed it out to me unbidden, in case I hadn’t noticed the hideousness myself already (I had).
I then reduced the height of the sleeve cap by a good 1.5cm in my muslin (as in top photo).  A bit better, no?
However will I need to adjust this detail in my wool/silk jacket? possibly not, since wool has shrink-ability going for it allowing one to shrink the sleeve cap into the armscye, whereas of course calico has absolutely zero shrink-ability.  Leading naturally to one of my pet peeves with the whole muslin charade in the first place, the difference in material properties; also titled “why the only useful muslin is one made in the exact same fabric as your garment” rant that I am not going to go into here, wishing to spare everyone a massive post.

Details:
Jacket; Vogue 8333, calico
Camisole (under, barely seen); Country Road
Skirt; skirt “m” from Unique Clothes Any Way You Like by Natsuko Hiraiwa, linen/cotton mix, details here
Sandals; Micam by Joanne Mercer, from Hobbs shoes (will be so depressed when these die…)

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An un-stylish blogger writes about Vogue 8333

08/04/2011 1:27 pm \ 17 Comments \

I didn’t intend to take a photo of today’s outfit, as it was one that I threw together with no intention of looking stylish or put-together.  Purely randomly chosen things.  And I ended up being perversely happy with it.  You know a day where you have a contrary, grumpy, don’t-give-a-toss attitude to how you look… and end up feeling sassily funky and pleased with your unglamorous, even weird ensemble.  All these items I threw on today are individually items I have felt ambivalent with lately.  I didn’t care what I looked like as I was contemplating a day at home, office-ing, and a little bit of muslin-ing.  Yes, people, I am getting along with my muslin of Vogue 8333 and it is proving a doozy.  Not in a good way.  I’ve read before about the dangers of OD-ing on your pattern during the muslin stage, and I am in near danger of doing just this… I have nearly finished my muslin, on which I am trying out all the couture techniques explained within that are new to me, and then I will take a short break before starting on my “real” jacket.  A short break during which I will do some quick-fix fun stuff, instant gratification stuff.  Vogue 8333 is emphatically NOT an instant gratification project.

Details:
Shirt; Burda 8497, white cotton, details here
Skirt; Vogue 7303, green velveteen, details here
Tights; my own design, details here
Cardigan; Metalicus
Thongs; Mountain Designs

Thank you so much Donna, for giving me this award!

Now, I’m to write 7 things, supposedly about myself, but instead for something different I’m going to write about 7 of the couture techniques I’ve learnt doing the muslin for Vogue 8333, which I expect will be a lot more interesting.

1. Bridles.  You could be forgiven for thinking Vogue have inadvertently branched out into horse-riding advice, but no, this is still within the realms of dress-making.  The bridles are a pieces of tape hand-stitched onto the roll line of the lapels in couture jacket construction; to both stabilise the fold and also help create a soft fold.  Giddy-up!

2. Pad-stitching.  Is where you do long lines of running stitches laid out in a grid, or a cross-hatching arrangement.  The result is fabric that is a bit stiffer, like it’s been quilted.  Well, padded.  Thus the name,  Methinks. When one does this to thick wool fabric with some body one can hide the pad-stitches within the fabric somewhat, making them almost invisible.  When one is trialling pad-stitching on a calico muslin like I did, it looks…. kind of ridiculous.  I don’t care.  I will wear my silly looking pad-stitched muslin with pride whence it is done, you’ll see.

3. Taming, (the seam allowances).  If you think that sounds a wee bit kinky, well, in the immortal words of… somebody, the best is yet to come.  Taming the seam allowances within a corner involves folding the two edges of the corner down firmly and closely to each other, pressing into submission and hand-stitching down.  One does not, I repeat, NOT trim triangles away from the corners to remove bulk.  Oh yes, I tell you, we are throwing old ideas out the window in wild abandon with this project, die-hard corner trimmers….  NOT SO FAST with those scissors!

4. Spanking the corner;  ooh, yes, I kid you not, fellow seamstresses.  And you thought sewing was for squares, dried up earnest individuals with no excitement in their lives… well, little did we know about all that “spanking” going on in those couture workrooms!  The Vogue 8333 instructions recommended something called a “clapper”, not owning one of these intriguing sounding tools I used a wooden spatula instead.

5. Fell-stitching.  Well.  Having not done fell-stitching before I googled it and found a little tutorial.  And discovered that I had been fell-stitching, like, only all my life, believing myself to be slip-stitching.  Who knew?  A subtle little distinction…

6. Hand-finished buttonholes.  Hold your horses, before one steamrolls ahead and starts hand-stitching one’s buttonholes, the instructions specify to first wax, and then press the thread.  Yes, press the thread.  Another first.  Has anyone else out there, and I mean anyone, ever ever pressed their thread before?  Hmmm?  Been using un-pressed thread for your buttonholes?  Faaail…

7. Not necessarily a couture technique, but the instructions recommended that once the collar is turned out, and if you are not ready to sew it to the neckline, in order to keep the roll-line nicely folded and in order pin it to a tailor’s ham and set aside.  I couldn’t resist giving it a little face…

Now to give the award to 7 other stylish bloggers, (and please, there is no obligation whatsoever to do this… if you hate blogger awards then feel free to ignore this and don’t hate me)
Darci, of Darcidoodle-do
Liza Jane, of lizajanesews
Steph, of 3 Hours Past the Edge of the World
Magda, of magdamagda design studio
Patty, of the snug bug
Bernice; of Raindrops and Bellyflops
Denise, of dame design studio

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The dress that wanted to be a skirt

31/03/2011 4:12 am \ 19 Comments \

This skirt was originally a dress.  I posted about my dissatisfaction with it here, and Terri brilliantly commented that she thought this dress wanted to be a skirt.  Well, that revelation was like a bucket of cold water over my head.  Oh, I mean that in a good way, actually in this weather, a bucket of cold water over the head could be a very welcome thing.  I mean it was like I woke up and looked at the dress with new eyes and saw that yes, it did indeed want to be a skirt.  Thank you , Terri!
Was able to fashion some facing out of the old bodice, luckily.  I cut off the top of the invisible zip and held the top ends of the same over a candle flame to melt the top couple of plastic spiky zip bits into a biggish round blob, so the zip pull won’t come flying off the top when I pull the zip up.  Yikes, has anyone else ever ever done this??  I have, once, years ago by accident, and learnt my lesson, never ever take that risk again.  Re-attaching the zip pull back onto an invisible zip is NOT FUN!   
Aaaand bob’s your uncle.  New (very) high-waisted skirt.  I think I like this style, especially worn with my husband’s white linen shirt tucked in, and all oversized at the top, setting off the slimline-ness of the skirt.  It is Craig’s shirt, but I am allowed to wear it this month, since I made it.  But poor Craig.  Perhaps I should make myself my own oversized crisp white linen shirt, so I don’t need to go hijacking his all the time…

Details:
Shirt; Burda 7767 with minor modifications, white linen, details here
Skirt; Burda 8071, the skirt part only, faced at the top; embroidered silk

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Brighty tighty

30/03/2011 5:26 am \ 19 Comments \

Me-Made March, Day 30
I’m not 100% feeling this outfit.  Both the top and the skirt are getting old and have been kicking around in my wardrobe for a few years… both were part of my earlier plan to inject some colour into my life when I first started this blog.  I’m not sure how that’s panned out for me.  I feel a little conspicuous whenever I wear bright colours, so maybe they are not for me after all.  And combining two really bright vigorous colours like in this outfit is really pushing my comfort barrier…!
Actually, I’d forgotten how much I liked this skirt with its sharp kick pleats.  They lend such an old-fashioned ladylike air to an skirt, no?  Maybe I should bring it back into regular rotation.
And although I’ve enjoyed this month-long me-made challenge …. just one day to go!  (squeee!)  My camera will be glad of a break!

Details:
Top; Butterick 4985, orange polkadot print cotton, refashioned from a costume skirt here
Skirt Vogue 1023 shortened, some turquoise synthetic stuff, details here
Sandals; la soffitadi Gilde, from Zomp shoes
Nail varnish; Santorini Sunset

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Clad in plaid

29/03/2011 4:39 am \ 21 Comments \

I deemed today cool enough to wear one of ma newbies; a plaid shirtdress made using pattern no. 111 from Burdastyle magazine 05/2010.  Naturally with a one or two little adaptions…
The brushed cotton is stash fabric I’ve had for yonks, and have finally got around to using… actually initially intended for a shirt for one of the boys but I decided to be selfish and waylaid it for my own devious purposes instead, mwahaha.  The reason for my lack of motherly thoughtfulness; when I was out shopping the other week I tried on a delightful little plaid shirtdress in Country Road and fell in love with the style.  Had to have one.  Just had to.  So searched through my pattern collection until I found this suitable candidate and added to it some features that were absent from the pattern but are nice finishing touches for a classic shirtdress.  
My alterations to the pattern were namely, the addition of buttoned arrowhead tabs to the shoulders and also inside the sleeves so the sleeves can be rolled up and buttoned to elbow length (probably the way I will wear it most of the time!), the addition of inseam side pockets (well, really, why are these not in the pattern anyway, hmmm? tut tut, just no excuse, imo), and hemming the lower edge in a nice classic shirt curve.  Plus, instead of the straight up and down side seams of the original, mine is shaped slightly to give it some vague hint of a waist.  
Also I left off the belt carriers, which in the magazine photograph (below right) show the belt to be at a supremely unflattering spot just above the hips, and just underneath the tummy.  Err, no…  And incidentally this is right where one would want one’s pockets to go anyway.  If I am going to wear a belt with this dress, it will be up around the waist where it should be.  I love Burdastyle magazine, but just occasionally their styling options leave a bit to be desired…
Oh, and please note, it may not be obvious from the photo but my plaids front and back match up perfectly!  Plaids not matching up is one of those little things that I find pretty irritating if I see it… (yah, neurotic, I know)
Below is the review I submitted to Pattern Review, if you’re interested.

Details:
Dress; Burdastyle magazine 05-2010-111 with minor alterations, brushed cotton
Shoes; Bronx, from Zomp shoes
Sunnies; RayBan

Pattern Description:
Slightly flared shirt-waister with long front polo fastening and flapped breast pockets
Pattern Sizing:
38-46,  I sewed a size 38.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you had finished sewing it?
Pretty much.  I added some bits and made a few variations.
Were the instructions easy to follow?
yes
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I like the basic pattern.  It was a bit too basic for what I had in mind, so I added a few details.
Fabric Used:
brushed cotton
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I added buttoned arrowhead tabs to the shoulders (purely decorative) and also to inside the sleeves so the sleeves can be rolled up to elbow length and buttoned in place.
I added inseam side pockets.
On my version the straight up-and-down side seams are slightly shaped to give some vague hint of a waist.
I omitted the belt carriers because I saw no need for them, also to put the inseam pockets at this level of the dress.  If I wear a belt with this I will have it around the waist.
I put only one button and buttonhole on each of the breast pocket flaps, because I thought the two buttons per flap looked a little fiddly and would be annoying to open and close.
The lower edge I hemmed in a nice curved classic shirt curve.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
If I needed another shirtdress I probably would use this pattern.  And I would definitely recommend it to others as a good basic pattern.
Conclusion:
Great pattern, very easy to make, and I love it!  I wasn’t initially excited by the picture in the magazine of this dress, well to be brutally honest my first impression was that it looked awful, and outdated.  I think the belt was the problem.  But with the little added extras, lifted from RTW mens’ shirts and ladies shirtdresses I’ve seen around, I’m now super happy with how it turned out.

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Roundabout

28/03/2011 5:43 am \ 12 Comments \

Me-Made March, Day 28
This morning my Monday morning gal pals and I were discussing Mad Men and the fashions within, and it was fortuitous that I happened to be wearing this dress and my friends noticed and admired it… fashion trends come around to these parts slowly and sometimes not at all, as I mentioned in this post previously.  I can never tell when I make something for myself inspired by an overseas trend whether or not it will “fit in” for around these parts.  I would have to say this particular trend for early sixties inspired, big-skirted, floral dresses such as this one has not taken hold here (at least, not yet), and I look pretty unusual when I wear it.  To say I stick out like a sore thumb wouldn’t be too far from the truth.  Sadly.  It’s such a feminine fashion, maybe too prettily feminine for the likes of our extremely isolated little city with our strongly beach-y outdoors-y lifestyle.  I feel I look a bit like an extra from Hairspray, or something…
However that is certainly not going to stop me from wearing it!  It’s super comfy to wear, the sort of dress that makes you feel like skipping and humming when you have it on, and I feel good in it.  Let’s face it, not many of my dresses inspire me to head over to the playground equipment in a playful mood…  And I think it has enough personality that it can stand a little styling fun.  I’m already looking forward to toughening it up in the winter with boots and a biker jacket, or even my new khaki army jacket…

Details:
Dress; Vogue 8555, with pleated bodice of my own design, printed cotton, details of the bodice drafting here  and my pattern review here
Thongs; Mountain Designs
Nail varnish; Santorini Sunset

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Cleaning up

27/03/2011 6:22 am \ 8 Comments \

Earlier in the month I wore a silk dress for general gardening.  Today I have selected black lace… to clean out the garage and shed.  Don’t worry, it’s not expensive lace just cheap-ish polyester-y stuff.  But it is lace, meaning cool and open to breezes; a priority.
Every six months local councils around here organise a verge pick-up.  That is, you get to toss out all your unwanted old junk onto your verge, and theoretically the council will come around and pick it all up for you to cart off to the tip.  Theoretically.  In reality however, everyone’s rubbish pile is reduced to a fraction of its original size by the time of the pick-up because this is just the best neighbourhood re-cycling scheme ever devised. Cars cruising very slowly up and down the streets become a common sight; people checking out everyone’s rubbish piles and periodically hopping out to retrieve a few treasures to stash in the boot for their own house and garden.   Kudos to the clever cookie in the public service who thought this one up.
And for once, this time we have managed to not pick up anybody else’s junk, although we had a close call when Sam spotted an old TV on the way home from volleyball yesterday… and I had to talk firmly and convincingly about how not only did we not know whether it actually worked  (sometimes people put a helpful note on the top telling you whether things still work; not this time which tells me it probably didn’t) but that personal TV’s in one’s bedroom are unsociable and unhealthy and not conducive to study, blah blah blah.  None of these points of view being particularly relevant arguments to the teenage mind.

Details:
Top; Butterick 4985 with different plainer sleeves, black lace and blue nacre heart-shaped buttons
Shorts; Burda 7723 modified, ivory corduroy, details here
Nail varnish; Santorini Sunset

Later: I lie.  We just got an old beautifully decorative ironwork gate from next door.  Score!

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