Tuesday, July 06, 2010

The Architectural Dress - Part IV

The dress is finished except for the hem because several times today I noticed that the bias center piece has grown as its hung waiting for the next step to be completed.  So I've decided to let it hang for at least 24 hours to make sure that the bias piece has grown as much as possible.  Then I think I'm going to go in and reinforce the front seams with stay tape...and finally hem it.

However, this dress has been a journey and not always a pleasant one.  Am I upset or sad that I made the journey?  No.  Did I learn a thing or two from the journey?  Yes.  One of the main things that I learned is that no matter how much you plan, no matter how many times you go through the construction steps in your head, something is ALWAYS going to come up that you didn't think about or plan for so you should be prepared for it and have the ability to move past it! *LOL*

First some stats:

Fabric:
4 yards of 100% linen from fabric.com
2 yards of china silk for the lining

Notions:
1 22" invisible zipper
3 yards of nude lace
5 yards of rayon tape
1 large blue button (from Fabric Mart)

Instead of a whole lot of words...because you know the main design on the dress front is the pleats...I'm gonna share some pics.  But first, my dress front is different from the inspiration photo.  One because I think I was just too frazzled from a day of making pleats, so my pleats ending up not chevroning in the front of the dress.  And second I added a pleat and a button at the neckline...it's my touch added after I tried the dress on...definitely making it my own.

after making the pleats, I thread traced the pattern pieces
and then cut around the thread tracings for the front panels


front pieces cut out waiting to be
assembled to the side dress front pieces


close up of the pleated front pieces sewn to the side front pieces
Notice that the pieced piece is just sewn on the bias and not chevroned


dress lining made from china silk


close up of the lace added to the hem
The lining feels like a wonderful piece of lingerie added to the dress.


Close up of the pleat and button added to the front of the dress

I will have more construction details and a picture of me wearing the dress once the hemline has settled.  I'm not at all upset that the dress isn't wearable tomorrow.  I would rather the hem "cure" than hem it and wear it...only to have to re-hem it again.  I do feel as if I accomplished my goal of making the dress this weekend.  I don't think that I made an exact copy of the inspiration photo, though I was aiming too.  But in actuality, it is very rare when my own creative impulses don't kick in and I end up adding something to the inspiration garment to make it uniquely me.

It's Monday night and I don't feel frustrated...I feel calm and ready to face my work week because my creative side has been challenged, nourished and refreshed.

...as always, more later!


31 comments:

  1. Wow!!! It is sooo beautiful!!! What a treasure, and what an accomplishment! I can't wait to see it on you :)))

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  2. I am pleased that the pleats do not chevron. The way you did it is actually the way I envisioned the dress to be even though I did see the inspiration picture. The Chevrons would have been too busy, I think. You are wise to let the hem "cure" as bias does lengthen. I would also suggest that you store the dress folded. I know.. but no sense wasting all the effort. Looking forward to seeing the dress.

    Oh, check out the new THREADS. It is one good issue.

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  3. Wonderful, completed project. Congratulations.

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  4. The front of this dress looks really interesting - worth the pain.

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  5. Well done! You have got yourself one fabulous dress!!

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  6. Looking great! I thought all that pleating would take up tons of fabric even if the back is plain (which I assume it is or you would not sound so chirpy surely!) but 4 yards seems pretty reasonable. Good idea to let it hang a day although that means we all have to wait longer to see it.

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  7. you made me so happy this morning to see this dress. You are such a great inspiration. Thank you. Its going to be a great week for sewing, I can't wait to see you in your fabulous new dress and I love grey in the summer, its under-rated how classic it looks and this dress really showcase that grey is always a good choice.

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  8. This dress is like a piece of art. You perfectly turned your inspirational piece into your own design. Can't wait to see the full dress!

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  9. Congratulations on your beautiful new dress. I'm glad to hear you're happy ypu made it - I often get bogged down and uninterested in more involved projects.

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  10. Wow! That dress is amazing. The pleats are a work of art. CANNOT wait to see this on you. I can't believe you pulled this off in one weekend. Kudos!

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  11. oh my... what a stunning project! (right now I'm trying to picture something in my fabric collection that would pleat up nicely). I really enjoyed your previous post where you talked yourself through your feelings... thanks very much for all the effort you put into your blog. I actually smile (out loud) every time I see that there is a new post!

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  12. Aaaaaahhhhhh, that's the spirit! Glad you pushed through the tunnel and am not surprised that the dress has taken a twist that reflects your special style. We all go through tunnels at times (I'm going through one now, nothing to do with sewing) and you've reminded all of us that we CAN succeed!

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  13. You are awesome! What a wonderful inspiration you are. My Mum always taught be to 'cure' a hem too. Monique xx

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  14. We all knew you could do it !!!It looks lovely,as much of it as you showed. I'm with Toy. Grey is a great classic colour that i love although it doesn't flatter my colouring.Can't wait to see it on you.plobud

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  15. I am so happy that you finished this dress. I could feel your pain in the previous posts, but the end result is AWESOME!

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  16. OMWord Carolyn, its not even completed and I love it... totall love it.

    I was wondering how did you determine how much fabric you will need to make up for all the pleating.

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  17. Wow! You do such amazing work.. You are such an inspiration. I really enjoy reading your blog. Sometimes I get lazy with my sewing but everytime I read your blog I get a surge of energy to push on... Thanks. I can't wait to see a photo of you in this fabulous dress.

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  18. Please tell me you're going to enter this in the designer knock-off contest on PR! You are?? Great! What a beautiful piece of artwork. Great work as always!

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  19. ... I'm speechless! It's so amazing! I really can't wait to see the final dress!!

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  20. Carolyn, You are just awesome. You are great source of inspiration. love your creative designs. The dress is beautiful and I look forward to the final photo shot.

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  21. I love what you have done to make it your own. That button at the neckline is fabu.

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  22. Wow, fantastic job! I love the pleating. You did an awesome job. What a show-stopper! Just beautiful!

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  23. That dress picture is in my inspiration file too, so I can't wait to see the finished masterpiece, and that is what I am sure it will be.

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  24. I am swooning over the pleats. I love them in the grey linen. Love them, love them, almost wish they were mine ... but probably don't wish them enough to try this myself.

    But any pleating tips you have would be great, just in case. I'm having a tremendous urge to go find some linen right now and start playing around with folding it.

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  25. Ok, I am very curious to see this on you - because I know this is going to be a knock-out dress! You've truly made it your own with a fabulous button, too.

    BTW, I may take you up on the offer of button shopping. You know there's a dearth of buttons around here and I won't be in NYC until Aug. 10 (I'm taking the kids to the King Tut exhibit).

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  26. It's looking great, I can't wait to see it on you!

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  27. Oh my, it looks lovely so far. I can't wait to see this on you. I know this dress is going to be worth the work. Kudos to you!!!!!

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  28. Wow, your time and effort paid off! Very well done and such an interesting look and a nice new twist for your dresses.

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  29. Carolyn! It's so pretty! The pleating looks amazing - your time and effort definitely paid off. I also think the lining looks like a piece of high-end lingerie added to it - what a fun and pretty touch! :)

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