Monday, September 07, 2009

Garment No. 1 - Saturday/Sunday's Entry

or as I thought of it during construction..."The Building of A Dress, yet again"

This fabric...


Inspired this dress...



However, it's not exactly how I envisioned the dress when I purchased the fabric. I "saw" my TNT sheath dress with the border at the hemline. I was going to cut off another piece of the border and bring it up to the neckline to carry the eyelet theme throughout the dress. Ummmm, it didn't quite work out that way! *LOL*

First, 40" wide is not as wide as I think it is...especially when it's got a border on either end.

Second, my dress piece would not fit on the crosswise grain of the fabric - which I needed to do to take best advantage of the embroidered border.

Third, the realization that my pattern didn't fit caused me to step back a moment and come up with a new plan. After pawing through ALL and I do mean all the pieces in the TNT dress folder (as an aside, I did not realize that I've made so many different versions of this dress with the accompanying pattern pieces), I came up with a new plan.



So this is my second idea for this fabric...and after adding a seam to the dress, I needed something to give the fabric some pop...I found a yard of black grosgrain ribbon...just a yard...not quite enough. My hand then landed on a remnant of black silk/linen that would work just as well as the ribbon...so I cut the length I needed and added it to the dress.

Some stats:

Fabric:
3 yards of 40" wide black/white cotton eyelet from Fabric Mart
2 yards black cotton batiste from Metro Textiles
1/8 yard black silk/linen fabric

Notions:
22" black invisible zipper

Some additional construction information:

*All of the pieces were underlined with the black cotton batiste because the eyelet holes are pretty large in some places.

*The top of the dress was constructed using the black cotton batiste as a lining instead of an underlining. After playing around with the border print at the neckline, it just didn't work for me...to home sewn looking for this girl...so I sewed the two pieces together this way instead of basting them together as I did for the skirt pieces.



*As I was sewing the satin black bias binding onto the armholes, I noticed how kewl it looked if I only pressed some of it to the inside. So I left about 1/2" all around, pressed it down and then machine stitched it flat. I like how it adds some detail to the armholes and it gives your eyes a place to rest from the eyelet pattern.



*The skirt underlining pieces were given a 2" hem. It was pressed and machine stitched and then basted to the fashion fabric. A 2" hem was chosen because it cleared the embroidered edge of the fabric and didn't show through.

*The black band was two long strips 4" wide, sewn right sides together and then turned, pressed with the edge slip stitched closed. The piece was then sewn down to the front of the dress and again at the side seams.

This dress took about 8 hours to make from the first cut to the final stitches. It's a fun and a little funky dress that I can wear with a jacket to make it more corporate for my job or with my favorite black sweater and some sandals for date night.

So item one is completed...next is a cute little jacket from Simplicity 2570.




52 comments:

  1. Nicely done . . . looks fabulous! This looks like a gret year-round outfit; adding the sweater definitely takes it into the cooler weather!

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  2. Really nice - I love this one!
    Blessings,
    Patti

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  3. Fantastic start of your vacation! The fabric is gorgeous and you used it wonderfully in the dress. I love the detail at the armholes and the band in the bodice is brilliant.

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  4. Well done - off to a good start. Looks really cute.

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  5. Prett dress. I like your faux-piping look.

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  6. Very pretty dress, love the fabric.

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  7. This dress is very flattering on you.

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  8. Fantastic fabric and another wonderful dress!

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  9. I love that fabric and the dress is very flattering!

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  10. Lovely! Love that border at the hem!

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  11. I can see how you were so inspired by such a beautiful fabric. You really came up with a wonderful dress. Which TNT pattern did you choose in the end for the dress?

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  12. Oh--I really like how that came out. The black-and-white is very classy and the black ribbon really makes it pop-- just as you said. Greta start to your vacation. Looking forward to checking in all week.

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  13. i have been keeping my eye out for lace dresses. I love your dress!The white and black together is gorgeous. Enjoy.

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  14. For about a minute and a half I contemplated keeping up with you. What a great start to your vacation plans. I'm looking forward to seeing the jacket. I hadn't seen the pattern before so thanks for bringing it to my attention. Did you pick out the fabric yet?

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  15. That might just be my favorite thing you've ever sewn! It's beautiful.

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  16. That fabric is incredible! That is just gorgeous!

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  17. Beautiful. Bee-U-Ti-Ful!
    Your eye for design is a delight. I love the way you used the gorgeous eyelet border fabric. Thanks so much for sharing. Enjoy wearing your wonderful feminine becoming dress.
    -Jane

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  19. Great evolution of a fab dress! It's the excellent details that make it special.

    I looked at this fabric too, but I don't wear much black, so I passed. If it had brown and white, well then I'd have been all over it!

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  20. That eyelet fabric is wonderful, Carolyn, and the border at the hemline looks perfect. I particularly like the view with the black jacket. Tres classy.

    Kathryn

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  21. It's fabulous. I hope you are enjoying the process (I know you are). g

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  22. That's a really special looking dress. It looks fantastic.

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  23. Great first effort! I like the hem detail, but agree it would have been too much around the neckline.

    Can't wait to see the jacket, although I have to say I love the little sleeveless v-neck that's also part of that pattern.

    Have fun the rest of the week!

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  24. Great dress - black and white is a classic combo and will carry you through the seasons. I can also picture it with the jacket and high black boots, maybe with a long sleeved something underneath for warmth.

    I was so excited when I turned on my computer this morning - I was itching to see if you had posted about your first garment yet Lol!


    Enjoy the restof your sewcation:-))

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  25. Gorgeous dress. I like it by itself, but LOVE it with the cardigan.

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  26. You do like your black-and-white prints, doncha! Nice job! When are you going to make up that B&W wool print you bought at Mood?

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  27. That is such a great transitional piece. The use of the scallop at the bottom was smart.

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  28. Fabulous dress Carolyn, and such a great transition piece.

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  29. That dress looks amazing. I love the way you did the sleeves. When I first saw them I thought you had used piping. Nice accent. Beautiful job as always.

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  30. I do love seeing the products of your great big stash! This dress is so nicely done. The trims are perfect.

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  31. Such a lovely dress and gorgeous fabric. I am never this imaginative when it comes to fabric and I am very envious of your ability to bring something to life in the way you do. I will just have to keep practicing ...

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  32. Love the fabric and the dress.Great start to your sewing vacation.

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  33. This outfit is definitely a winner. It looks amazing!

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  34. Fabulous dress and as you say also really versatile, I love it!

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  35. I love it!

    I saw this fabric the other day and thought it was wonderful, but didn't know what to do with it. You inspired me, so I went back and bought the last few yards of this! Your such a little enabler! I'm just learning to sew, so this may marinate a while in my newly forming fabric stash.

    Did you make your own black satin bias strips or did you purchase it (and where lol)?

    Thank you in advance!

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  36. Beautiful dress! The fabric is just gorgeous....I love the satin piping around the armhole...good idea....

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  37. I love it! I'm looking forward to the future posts about your sewing vacation...looks like it's off to a great start!

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  38. Lovely dress! Looking forward to following your progress the rest of the week.
    Linda

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  39. I just love that fabric and you chose such beautiful trims for it! I particularly like it with that jacket. It just looks perfect as a transition piece!

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  40. Beautiful dress. I love the black band of fabric. It adds a very nice touch and gives the eye a nice resting point. I too have that Simplicity pattern. I'm looking forward to seeing what your creative mind comes up with for the jacket. :)

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  41. Awesome fabric and adding the black band adds a great touch. You look great.

    I have 2 yards of fabric with a border and have been scratching my head on how to make good use of it.

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  42. You look great in that dress! The fabric is striking and it is just so classy. Well done.

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  43. What more can I had to all the good comments - the dress is wonderful - what a good start to your holiday!!

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  44. This is very flattering and my favorite thing you've ever made.

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  45. Your dress looks gorgeous. You made great use of your fabric!

    Enjoy your sewing camp ;-)

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