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Saturday, July 03, 2010

I'm in pleat h*ll

...or I've finally gotten around to working on "The Architectural Dress."

Do you remember this post..."A Few Things I want for Spring?"  In that post there was a picture of a Calvin Klein pleated front dress...and I got the bright idea that I wanted one for myself.  Being plus sized I knew Calvin wasn't making one in my size, so I would just have to help him out, right?! 


I carefully gathered up my materials, purchasing a linen that wasn't far from the original dress' color. 


Mentally, I've gone over how I would put the dress together...refining the steps as I thought about it again and again.  Many nights I fell asleep thinking about those pleats and this weekend since I have three days off, and knew it would be a process, decided the time was right to make this dress come to life.


Now I find myself in pleat hell...seriously, this is hard!  I know what I want to do and where I want to go but it is taking quite a bit of time to get there.  So here's where I am now...making pleats...hoping and praying that this is going to come together...


...more from the pleat factory, later...

25 comments:

  1. wow, ambitious. I certainly wouldn't give it a go, but if anyone can manage it it's you!
    I'm sending good pleat vibes your way!

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  2. Hell or highwater, I know you will make it work. I am so looking forward to your pleated dress. I recently purchased a ruffler foot and played around with the pleat setting and thinking about adding pleats to a garment. For now I'll enjoy your creative process.

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  3. Way to go - I am looking forward to seeing your dress.

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  4. Waiting with baited breath to see how it turns out.

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  5. this is going to be fabulous, keep on going. At least you can focus on this part over the holidays

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  6. Have you seen the Perfect Pleater?: http://www.clotilde.com/detail.html?prod_id=1711

    I haven't tried it, but perhaps it's something to try if you see more pleating in your future?

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  7. That is going to look fabulous when you finish it. I think it will be well worth the effort.

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  8. Thanks for being such an inspiration, Carolyn. I'm going to have a go at this pleated dress but only after you've shown me how! And your TGIF post cracked me up- I know exactly what you mean! I like to get in touch with my inner toddler occasionally. When pushed past my limit, I like to describe my revenge fantasies to my friends, we all end up laughing, I feel better and I still have my job.

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  9. I'm sure it will be fabulous! I'm so excited to see how it turns out.

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  10. I hope we get to see it soon! I love pleats as a design element, but wow are they tiring to make!!!

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  11. OMG. The color is stunning. When I first looked, I thought where can I get some pleated linen from -then I read your post and saw you did it!!!! You HAVE to finish this soon!!

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  12. That is just the kind of place I am likely to get myself into. But what you've got so far looks fabulous, and in the end all your work will pay off.

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  13. Keep going, keep going . . . I suspect the end result will be fabulous and I can't wait to see it!

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  14. I didn't realize they were hard to do. I think you may have scared me off them. Good luck!

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  15. Very ambitious project, what the hell you are worth it! I am anxiously waiting to see the results!

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  16. Holy cow. You're so brave!!! That dress will be beautiful though. :D

    Do you have a Clothilde Perfect Pleater?? That seems like the ultimate notion for this project.

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  17. This is going to look amazing when it is done, keep thinking that...

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  18. Wow. Impressive. Your blog has inspired me to start sewing again. I'm another plus size woman in a profession (CPA) that has to dress up and I am so tired of not being able to find work clothes that fit and express who I am... Thank you for all your inspiration!!!

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  19. I think Clothilde's Pleater could have been a big help here as well. What you have accomplished looks perfect. This will be a stunner. It has been a pleasure to watch you spread your sewing wings and see the growth with your TNTs. I just knew it wouldn't be long before you would start tackling some more innovative designs. Go, Carolyn!

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  20. Good thing you didn't pick one of the hottest weekends of the year to press and steam all those pleats, right? :)

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  21. Oh my gosh, I love it! Can't wait to see it finished and you modeling it of course! The first time I did pleats I was 15 and didn't know any better, hahaha!

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  22. First,thank you so much Carolyn for the kind comment you left me. I appreciate it with all my heart.
    Now,about those pleats! If anyone can do this ,it's you. I'm going to be very interested to see this dress come to life. However,if it doesn't,please remember that we all have projects that work better in our heads than on fabric and sewing machine.Good luck!

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  23. Wow, that seems like a lot of work. Bit it all will pay off in the end. You will have a perfectly fitted and absolutely stylish dress.

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  24. I'm so impressed that you're even attempting something like this. The pleats you've done look fantastic though.

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