May I Present...

"The Lavender and Gray Skies Collection" in pictures...

Patterns:

TNT Pants, Dress and Skirt Pattern

Burda 8869 Cardigan pattern

Butterick 3124 Cowlneck Top

Simplicity 2566 - sleeveless white shirt

Fabrics:

100% tropical wool in gray

Lilac acrylic cable knit 

White cotton & lycra blend shirting

Lilac felted/fulled wool jersey

Garments:

Gray lined sheath dress

Gray lined straight skirt

Gray lined pants

Lilac sleeveless cowlneck top

Lilac v-neck cardigan

White sleeveless top

Lilac felted/fulled wool jersey jacket

A couple of things:

**I like the jacket in the pictures...still not so sure about it in real life.  Will need to wear it to see how that goes before I pass final judgement.

**The Simplicity shirt is sleeveless - more on that in my next post when I review the pattern.

**Love the versatility of the wardrobe

**Added a RTW pink cardigan over the dress in one of the pictures, will use this so that I can wear all the pieces to work this week.

**Yes, I will finally be wearing these pieces.  I haven't worn any of them yet.

**I didn't make the white version of B3124.  Just didn't feel like looking for the white knit.  However,  I will be making this top again.

I'm thrilled that this collection is finally completed.  When my daughter showed up this afternoon to take pictures she couldn't believe that the twinset was made by me.  She thought I had bought it. That was a fantastic compliment especially since this is the daughter that sews and knows the quality of my work.  So look for a post on the white shirt...boy was that an adventure!  *LOL*  And my next piece after that will be a dress...y'all know how much I love a dress and I've got dress ideas running through my brain that need to be worked out!

Finally, a parting shot of "The Little Prince" - who will be 3 next month!  Boy does time fly!

Congratulations to the New York Giants

2012 Superbowl Champions!

Whoooo Hoooo!

...as always, more later!

In Real Life - Part 2

This will not be a regular thing on my blog because we are starting to get really busy at work, so to stop and have pictures taken is just a little much.  However, my photographer (my boss John) was very willing this week so here are the garments I wore in real life this week....

Monday

Black Doubleknit Suit

Tuesday

Designer Inspired Dress 

worn with RTW Cardigan

Wednesday

Heidi M Inspired Dress

worn with RTW Cardigan

Thursday

Versace Inspired Dress

worn with RTW Cardigan

and I even have a Friday shot because yesterday was "Wear Red for Women's Heart Health Day" and I wore a reddish twinset with my jeans.  Yes, I've been in jeans on Fridays for the last few weeks because now that we are on another floor and don't see as many visitors, my area has taken to wearing jeans on Fridays.  So here is Friday's outfit:

Like I stated earlier, this will not become a regular feature on my blog, however, it will probably show up from time to time.  I'm definitely taking pics of the Lavender and Gray Skies wardrobe this weekend, so look for them soon!

...as always, more later!

End of the month recap

January 2012 was a great sewing month for me.  I made eight pieces.


1.  The Erdem Inspired Dress
2.  The steel gray pinstripe lined pants
3.  The lt. gray tropical wool lined pants
4.  The lt. gray tropical wool straight skirt
5.  Lavender wool jersey and knit jacket
6.  Lt. gray tropical wool sheath dress
7.  Lilac sweaterknit sleeveless cowlneck top
8.  Lilac sweaterknit Burda cardigan


The sewing cave really got a workout because the month started with a three day weekend and then I had four days off for MLK Day.  The extra days allowed me to spend some quality time working on getting the Lavender and Gray Skies wardrobe finished since six of the eight pieces from the list were part of the final tally.


I used 19 yards of fabric and purchased 13 yards...more went out than came in. So that's a good thing!  My main goal for January was to get as much of the wardrobe completed as possible and with only two pieces left to sew, I think I accomplished that.  I have several items left on my sewing list that I really want to make before the soft breezes of spring show up and turn my head!  Hopefully February will be as fruitful as January has been.  


...as always, more later!

Lulu's Home!

When I moved I didn't know if I had room for Lulu so she took up residence with my daughter for a couple of months.  But when I made this last twinset, I knew Lulu had to come and live with me...

Now don't these pieces look so much better with Lulu wearing them?  First the cowlneck sleeveless top...

...and now the two pieces together...

I have some white t-shirt knit (somewhere *sigh*) that I want to pull out and use for another cowlneck top, as well as, the white top from Simplicity 2566.  So the wardrobe will end up being 8 pieces instead of 7 and I'm fine with that.  I think having two white tops will give it more versatility.


After these last two tops are completed, my daughter has agreed to come by and photograph the entire wardrobe, so I will have some decent pictures.  We will also work with my tripod so that I can get acclimated to using it.


Regarding the tripod, thanks to everyone for the tips on how to make the tripod work.  Schoomom, the tip about the tape is ingenious, and I will be using it.  And I need to say a special thank you to SueC56, it was her initial encouragement that started me on the road to purchasing a tripod ~ so thank you!  Finally BetsyV, as you can see Lulu is an amputee...she's hard working but she is legless!


There were a few questions on the last couple of posts:


bpatricia74 asked, "I'm actually looking for a clothes rack for my sewing room. Do you have any suggestions?"
Sorry but I don't have a clothes rack in my sewing room so I have no suggestions.


Farhana asked, "How many hours do your really spend per item or outfit?"
I don't time myself.  I kinda head downstairs to the sewing cave and sew in spurts.  Sometimes I sew for hours at a time and sometimes I kinda piddle along. Timing myself would definitely take the joy out of it.  If I get the item completed by the end of the weekend, I'm happy.


Stash Empress - I bought the book for $72.  It was over $94 when I put on my wishlist, so I was thrilled when I flipped into Amazon and saw it for $22 less.


Kuby asked, "If I always use Bemberg?"
Yes, unless I'm using a cotton or silk batiste.  I love how Bemberg feels and wears in my clothing.


A Sewn Wardrobe asked, "What fabric I was going to use for my second Rachel Dress?"
It's a black 'n white herringbone with black lace appliques that I bought from the craft store that masquerades as a fabric store several years ago.


Oh and I have a horrid confession to make...I haven't seen Project Runway in years or any of the Project Runway All-Stars episodes.  I know, horrid, right!  *LOL*


...as always, more later!


     

The Cardigan and the Top

Pieces number 5 and 6 are now done.  The cardigan was made from my tried and true Burda pattern 8869 and the top is from Butterick 3124 which is now out of print.

I took several pictures of the process because even though the cardigan pattern is a TNT, the fabric dictated that it get some special consideration. There is a lot of fusible interfacing in this garment to give it structure in all of the important places like the sleeve hems, the hem of the cardigan, and the binding along the neckline.

interfacing at the seam hem

At one point I contemplated adding pockets to the front of the cardigan but discarded that idea after I let it sit overnight.  I didn't like the idea so much in the morning.

Otherwise, it was a pretty straightforward construct with most of it done on the serger.

The top is a good first make and it will be a wearable muslin.  I will make it again because I love the way the neck and the shoulders fit.  Although, I still need to do some work on the body because this one was cut too big and I had to take the side seams in alot.


Here is a picture of the collection so far:

Cardigan, top, pants, jacket

skirt and dress

I will have more about the pieces after I work some more with the tripod.  Because this is the best picture from my first effort.  Now if I can just learn how not to cut my head off, it will be a good thing! *LOL*

The last piece in the collection is the white shirt from Simplicity 2566 which I will work on this weekend...


...as always, more later!

Saturday Morning Diary Bits

Well it's the weekend again...and thank goodness because it has been a long week!  I've done no sewing this week but that's no surprise since I rarely sew during the week.  However, I have purchased a few things:


1.  A tripod

Thanks to Shams who fielded quite a few questions and gave me a lot of encouragement, this arrived a couple of days ago.  So not only will I hopefully be able to take pictures of myself in my garments but you will probably be subjected to a few posts on me learning how to use it too.


2.  A book, "Professional Sewing Techniques for Designers"

This book has been on my Amazon wishlist for awhile, ever since Ann, of Gorgeous Things, reviewed it.  It went on sale earlier this week, a $22 savings, so I snatched it up.


3.  February 2012 BurdaStyle Issue

You know I gave up Burda Style pattern magazine last year.  In my opinion, the subscription price is over the top for patterns that I was no longer inspired by and the Universal newsstand where I bought the issues one off closed a few months ago.  They had stopped carrying them before they closed and I just didn't have the time to troop around NYC to hunt down copies.  So why did I buy this issue? I loved this dress.

The color blocking is awesome and I thought I could make it using my TNT pattern but I really wanted to see the pattern pieces so that my rendition would be as close to the original as possible.  Then Audrey of Sew Tawdry went and reviewed it on PR, and I knew I had to own a copy of the magazine.  I don't know if I will get to it soon (like in the next 2 or 3 weeks) but definitely before February is done...there is that 3 day weekend coming up for President's Day and it would give me the time I needed to work on the pattern alterations since it only goes up to a size 42.


4.  A piece of fabric

I was in a bad place earlier in the week and the only thing that would soothe my soul was fabric.  You know how it is, the imaginings of a new garment from a new piece of fabric ~ okay maybe you don't know how it is! *LOL*  But it works for me and in this instance I even showed restraint and only purchased one piece along with a piece of lining to make the $35 free shipping on fabric.com.  Anyway, I also found this Vintage Vogue Pattern on eBay that perfectly displayed the idea I saw in my head when I bought the fabric...

Vogue 9127 is on the left and the one I want to make

Another idea added to my sewing list...this is a piece that can be worn into early spring and would make a great work dress...so even if it doesn't get made until April it would be fine since the wool is a lightweight wool blend.  Speaking of April...


5.  10 more weekends to sew winter gear
...that's including this weekend of course and also includes one more three day weekend.  I worked this out earlier in the week which was really helpful in figuring out how many outfits from my sewing list have the ability to be completed. Sometimes my sewing list can overwhelm me, so knowing how much time I have left to complete it, helps me to assess what from my list will actually get made.  I mean not like anyone else is as obsessed with sewing as much as I am!  *LOL*


So I'm off...I want to work on my cardigan and top for the Lavender and Gray Skies wardrobe.  I'm getting close to finishing up this wardrobe and I want to wear it to work this week especially since we are experiencing unseasonably warm temps for winter here in the NY/NJ metro area.


...as always, more later...

Pockets, Pockets, Pockets

Last night "The State of the Union" address was given by President Obama and this morning I went to the blog, Mrs. O, to see what the First Lady wore.  I missed the address because I was out.  She was wearing a Barbara Tfank dress from the Resort 2012 line so I moseyed on over to style.com to check out the line.  After closing out the screen, the Spring Couture 2012 lines popped up and a blue dress in the Chanel line caught my eye.  I clicked in and thought I would just take a peek...


You know I ended up taking more than a peek.  I ended up viewing the entire collection, then printing some pics out for my inspiration board...but as I looked at garment after garment, all I could think is that it was all about the pockets.


Now what does this remind you of:

(all pics courtesy of style.com)

And doesn't this look like 

McCalls 5007 and the Rachel Skirt

Aren't these pants kewl with 

the deep pockets on the side:

I just love what I can see of this dress:

Almost every model walked the runway with her hands in some type of pocket.  But what struck me the most was the use of that invisible pocket that was featured in the Rachel Cormey skirt.  I mean Karl Lagerfeld used this pocket quite a bit in some really creative ways...he added a satin band, he added a floral embellishment, a sequined embellishment, and the frayed edge of the fabric.  I thought I was doing something when I used that pocket on my Rachel Dress but Lagerfeld took it to an entirely different level.


I have another Rachel Dress on my winter sewing list and after seeing the Chanel Couture Spring 2012 line, I'm moving that one up to the top of the list cause those pockets, pockets, pockets are doing a number on me!


...as always, more later!

It's starting to look like a collection

There are now four pieces of the Lavender and Gray Skies Wardrobe completed.

The dress, the pants & the skirt are all from the 

gray tropical wool using my TNT patterns.

I know hanger shots stink

but they're all I've got now!

The jacket is finished and made from the wool jersey 

and sweater knit.  I'm still not in love with it...*sigh*

I've cut the pieces for the cardigan out so its up next. Thank goodness because I so need to work with some color because the gray is seriously getting to me.  So glad I've sewn the last piece in it...Yes!!!...It's starting to look like a collection...


...as always, more later!

Saturday Update

So it's Saturday afternoon here in NJ and it's stopped snowing...I'm safely ensconced in the sewing cave with the heater going and the TV playing...more Law & Order of course! *smile*

I'm going to spend the weekend working on the rest of the pieces of the Lavender and Gray Skies wardrobe.  I'm adding the facings to the jacket and hemming the sleeves then I'm moving onto the dress.  If I have time left this weekend, I will work on the cardigan also.  If I get all of this done, it will leave only the two tops to be completed.


As a reminder the two tops are, Simplicity 2566 ~ in the white cotton stretch fabric and I've added Butterick 3124 an out of print sleeveless cowl neck top from the cardigan fabric.

I've read the PR reviews for it and Lara's review on her blog, Thornberry.  One of the first things I plan on doing is lengthening the top.  Even from the photos on the pattern envelope the top is too short.  If I have enough fabric I may make it dress length but that's something that I will determine when I'm working on the garment.  I do like the fact that the top has side bust darts, which are my darts of choice.


Since I no longer have a photographer and haven't figured out how to take pics of myself yet...trying to decide if I want an entirely new camera...it will be a minute before I have pictures of me in the completed garments.  But I am happily sewing away in my sewing cave working on finishing up this wardrobe.


...as always, more later!


  

Just the Basics...

I finished three pieces this weekend...

I'm really missing my white closet wall these days!

...although all the pieces didn't belong to the Lavender and Gray Skies wardrobe. As you can see from above, I made 2 pairs of pants and a skirt.  The pants belong to the UFO vest that I mentioned in this post. I guess the cold got to me because when I sat down to sew on Saturday I started working on the pants first. Well actually I spent Saturday cutting out all the pieces from the gray tropical wool, the lining for the pieces and pretreating the white fabric for the blouse.


I made the pants on Sunday with no changes to the way I make my TNT pattern. Except that when I made the gray & white pinstripe pair last year, I used a flat lining technique. After wearing them, I realized that I don't like the seams on my inner thighs. So even though the linings don't rub out this way, I'm not comfortable using this technique in my pants. The cheater method (serging the lining fabric to the fashion fabric and then sewing them as one piece of fabric) works so much better for me.  


The fabric for the second pair is from the Vera Wang fabric haul from a few years ago. And of course, both have rayon bemberg lining in them, the stretch elastic in the waistline and seam binding in the hems.


The Lavender and Gray Skies Straight Skirt
Pattern:
TNT skirt pattern


Fabric:
Gray wool tropical from Fabric Mart


Notions:
White Rayon Bemberg lining
9" invisible zipper
2 - 1/2" steel buttons
1 yard of 2" wide lace
1 yard of gray seam binding


Again this is a TNT pattern so there aren't any new construction techniques. However, the fabric did require a little assistance. I added a 1" strip of fusible interfacing to the center back seams to stabilize them for the invisible zipper insertion...

The lace that I chose to add to the lining will also be used on the dress lining...

...and I added two buttons to the waistline...the same buttons that will be used on the cardigan and coordinating jacket.

Gawd is that stitching crooked...thank God it will be covered!

Egads, I'm gonna have to remove that...I don't think I can live with it. *sigh*

I have to admit that before I began working on these pieces I was worried that they wouldn't work with the jacket...that light/dark contrast thing. But they seem to be fine and I'm encouraged enough to continue working on the rest of the pieces.


I'm finishing up the jacket now and will move onto the dress, cardigan and shirt. I hope to finish these pieces up by the end of the month because I really want to finish off the other garments on my list before I catch spring fever.


...as always, more later!

MLK Day

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

January 15, 1929 ~ April 4, 1968

"Now I say to you today my friends, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream.  I have a dream that one day, this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed - 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'

Speech on Civil Rights March on Washington, August 28, 1963

Watching the Golden Globes...

Okay this is a very exciting Sunday for me...

www.yahoo.com

First the Giants Won!  OMG!  The Giants won!  

I have to admit that I thought the Packers were gonna wipe them off the field (bad fan, bad fan!) and I could only watch the final quarter (kept updated by Yahoo) because I was watching the Red Carpet on E!  But they won!  They won!!!!!  Next up the NFC Championship game...


Second, I LOVE red carpet season...the shows are okay and I do watch but I avidly watch the red carpet shows, check the internet afterwards to see the dresses I missed because I'm so inspired by the fashion.  I'm sure you're wondering how can evening gowns inspire...but think about it.  The colors that are on the red carpet are usually the new trends.  I love the silhouettes and how the dresses are put together.  I definitely get ideas for combinations and colors from the gowns...and my favorite of the night hands down was Angelina Jolie:

www.dailymail.co.uk

I also loved Viola Davis' dress, Kate Winslet, Claire Danes (wouldn't this combination make a great dress!), and for plus size chicks Octavia Spencer.  To me everyone looked so amazing tonight!  Even Sarah Michelle Geller who has already been panned for her dress.

Finally the red carpet fashion show made me think of my top five fashion movies.  I own all of these except one on DVD and love them for the fashion inspiration that they provide.  They are:


1.  Lucy Gallant
This movie is from 1955 and stars Charlton Heston and Jane Wyman.  It is the story of a woman who goes to Texas and starts a women's clothing store devoted to high fashion.  One of the highlights of the film for me is the fashion show that is narrated by Edith Head.  (btw I have this on VHS, I taped it from the TV one evening, have been totally unable to find this on DVD.)


2.  Mahogany
This was Diana Ross' second film and was about a girl from Detroit who only wanted to design and the price  she paid (giving up Billy Dee Williams - what the h*ll was she thinking!?!) to have her dream of designing her own fashion line.  Okay she gets Billy Dee in the end but seriously she left him...


3.  The Women (2008)
This is the adaptation of the 1938 movie featuring Norma Shearer and Joan Crawford but updated with Meg Ryan, Annette Benning, Debra Messing, Jada Pinkett-Smith, etc.  But my favorite part of the movie is the fashion show towards the end that features Narcisco Rodriguez's garments.


4.  Valentino - The Last Emperor
This is just the most amazing display of photography...my friend called it an art show and not a movie and I have to agree!  It is Valentino all the time and an awesome tribute to this marvelous designer.


and finally the one that would make everyone's list...


5.  The Devil Wears Prada
Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, designer gear, and a much better story than the book!  Oh yeah and the designer clothes! *LOL*  ..."that's all"


So what would your top five fashion movies be?



...as always, more later...and sorry Packers fans!