Simplicity 2777-Arkivestry Gown

This is not one of my usual garments, but a friend asked me if I could make this for a project he's involved in. It sounded interesting so I agreed to help him out.

The fabric started out as white silk chiffon, then he painted it with Setacolor  to get the red he wanted. You can also see the gold accents he added, but it's difficult to see all the effects he added from applying the paint over scrunched up plastic and adding accents of other colors. The paint does not affect the hand of the fabric too much, but made it easier to handle.

The pattern is this one from Simplicity:

There is a lot of ease in this pattern, to say the least. I made it in the smallest size in the envelope (6) and I was able to try it on with plenty of room to spare.

I originally intended to have French seams throughout, but ended up switching over to serged. I kept sewing the French seams backward because I couldn't tell right side from wrong. Either way, I think it's fine since both types read as narrow seams from the surface of the gown.

I do have a couple of gripes about this pattern that I'll remedy if I ever make it again. I initially thought that the neckline was a casing; it is not. The instructions call for a gathered neckline that's a production to make. And I still don't know what they mean by 2" wide "novelty ribbon braid", which is supposed to encase the raw edge of the gathered neckline. C'mon Simplicity, you own a company that sells trim! So throw us a bone will ya, and tell us what you want us to use! It's not as if there's a copyright issue or anything. I couldn't find a trim fitting this description locally, so I punted and used the neckline technique from the blouse views. Still gathering like crazy, but this version has you narrow hem the raw edge and sew narrow ribbon over the gathers, forming ties. I think it's reasonably successful:

There are two layers of ribbon on mine. I bought satin and organza ribbons to play with. The organza was a little weak for gathering onto, and the satin was a little bright. So I gathered onto the satin and applied the organza on top to knock back the shine. I actually like the ruffled edge, so I hope my friend will too.

The gathers were made by zigzagging over dental floss laid on the gathering line. Excellent technique if bringing in a large quantity of fabric. However, turning under a casing and inserting elastic would have also accomplished this effect with less effort.

Vogue 2637 Evening Skirt

It's been a while since I posted. But in my absence, I've been working on a sewing project in addition to working some crazy hours. Our niece's wedding was October 11 and I needed something to wear. I already had part of an ensemble, starting with a sweater I bought last holiday season from Coldwater Creek but never wore. It was an orphan piece, so I decided to make a matching skirt. I found an excellent match at Silk Baron, so while waiting for the Evergreen silk dupioni to arrive, I began auditioning patterns.

My first choice was the Iris Skirt from LaFred. Unfortunately, this pattern line is no longer in production due to the untimely death of its creator but the design is classic. I traced it off and made a prototype out of one of the many cuts of fabric I bought from the Vera Wang liquidation. This one:

The Iris Skirt pattern is really great. The pattern is well drafted and the view I chose includes lining pieces for a kick pleat. The guide sheet has excellent instructions for installing an invisible zipper, too. I loved putting it together, but quickly realized that it would take longer to perfect the pattern than the time I had available. I've set it aside for now and will revisit it later. A good pencil skirt (with pockets!) is definitely worth developing into a TNT pattern.

By this time the dupioni had arrived and was prepared for sewing by machine washing and drying. I usually prewash dupioni because it knocks down the shine and mitigates the risk of water spotting.  I decided to revisit a TNT pattern that I had successfully used before, Vogue 2637. This is an early 1990s pattern that I previously used for my wedding so I knew it would work.

Like the view of the Iris Skirt that I tried, it's a pencil style with pockets and a kick pleat. But this skirt has an elastic waist instead of a zipper. That's ok because I had not planned to tuck in the matching sweater.

When making the skirt, I underlined the dupioni with flannel. This is a technique I learned from Sandra Betzina and Kenneth King's books. Underlining strengthens the garment and prevents wrinkling when wearing. My mom also used this technique when making dance costumes for me and my sister--it makes the garment look more luxe as well. I have plenty of flannel in my stash and just used one of them. The print doesn't show through the dark fabric.

I also lined the skirt to finish it. Because I had made it before, I had already drafted a lining pattern The poly charmeuse is (again) just something from my stash. It's a nice surprise to have a pretty print inside.

Wedding activities started around 3 pm and continued late into the evening, and the skirt performed perfectly through the ceremony, photos (in the cold!), pre-reception cocktails, and reception dinner with dancing.  The only thing I would have changed is to snug up the waistband a little bit more. I did the fitting without wearing shape wear, but added spanx for the wedding (which I forgot to wear in the photo above!). Oh well, still wearable and easily fixable in the future.

Vogue 7457 (OOP)--Completed

The top is done, and here I am actually wearing it in a photo. I'm sure the neighbors enjoy seeing me posing on the front porch with the tripod and self timer!

The pants are a pair of one-seams I made from TSW's Hudson Pant. These are full length instead of cropped like on the pattern. I made them from a black and cream pinstripe linen. Pretty fabric but wrinkle prone.

I had a question about making darts in a pattern like this for a busty person. I'm not small busted, but the full bust adjustment  (FBA for short) I made this time was a dartless version that gives more room in the chest and adjusts the lower front so it's more even across the lower edge. I may try this again in a darted version. I suspect I might like it a better, but then there's the issue of disrupting the print. There's always a trade off.

Vogue 7457 (OOP): In Pursuit of Stash Busting

My latest project is a circa 2001 pattern that I made a couple of times back when I was in business banking.  I made Views B and C for various work outfits. The tunic was great on its own in over a pencil skirt, while the top worked well with suits. Just 2 pieces, front and back.

I've been looking for a simple pattern to make some tops from. My typical selection method involves picking several, pulling envelopes, reviewing,  then winnowing my choices down--and that's how I rediscovered this pattern. I decided to add an undarted FBA. I used Louise Cutting's video, Industry Insider Techniques Volume 4, and my trusty book, The Perfect Fit by Singer as my guides.  As a Threads Magazine "Insider", I was able to stream the video, but is also available to purchase as a DVD.  The Singer series is out of print, but if you happen to see this one at a used bookstore or a yard sale, grab it. I use it all the time. The fashion photos are dated but the step-by-step instructions, which are also in color, are very helpful. (I just looked at Amazon and learned that The Perfect Fit has been republished and is even available in a Kindle edition. Different cover, but the content looks the same.)

This version of the top is a prototype (aka "wearable muslin") that I cut from some free fabric that I acquired through a Material Girls giveaway.

One of the members of our group used to be the President of our local ASG chapter, and people kept calling her and offering stashes of fabrics and patterns. She took it since she had the space, and we had fundraisers with a lot of it. With still plenty of yardage left over, she started bringing it to Material Girls and giving it away. I have accumulated a lot of nice pieces this way. But since it was free, I figured that there was no reason to hoard it.

And that's why I'm making this top from a piece of stretch silk charmeuse. This stuff is like buttah, and has the added plus of not being overly shiny. It's also drapey yet more manageable than you'd expect. I wouldn't want to make something complex with it but it's great for a simple top like this.

I expect to finish it up later today, so I will try to post a photo once it's done.

By the way, I realize that it's been some time since I've posted, but August was a busy month with out of town visitors, vestry activities, and work "stuff." None of it bad, just time consuming. I am ready for a vacation!

A Refashioned Top

This weekend's project was a refashion of a RTW knit top. Coldwater Creek used to sell these nice silk t-shirts and shells. Alas, no longer available!  I own several, and they're still in generally good condition although being worn all the time. Well, at least the body...

The neckline of this one was in terrible condition, but the color is so versatile...What to do?

Time for a trip to Jo-Ann's for a suitable trim where I bought a yard of pretty lace. I preshrank it by soaking it in a glass of hot water, then shaped and steamed it into a curve to dry. Once prepared, I pinned it to the top to get an idea of how it would look.

Then I removed the lace and cut a curve into the front of the top. I initially placed the lace on the form about 1" lower than the original neckline, but I ended up cutting a curve that was 1 1/2" lower. I chalked the desired curve on half of the neckline, then flipped the cut piece over and used it as a guide for cutting the second half.

I originally planned to simply serge the edge and attach the lace by machine, but that didn't work so well. I struggled with the ribbed texture of the fabric and couldn't get a good finish. So I ended up evenly folding the wrong side over to the right side and hand stitching it into place.

Then I laid the edge of the lace at the fold and hand stitched it in place. In effect, basting it into place but with an invisible stitch. I finished up with a couple rows of narrow zig zag. One row is right next to the fold, the other near the raw edge along  a design line in the lace. Although the main purpose was to attach the lace, the  zig zag also had the effect of stabilizing the neckline

No photos of these stages. After the serger fail,  I was just improvising to find a way to make this project work.

Here's a closer view of the finished neck edge.

So for the cost of the lace and a little time,  I can get a lot more use out of a wardrobe basic!

Sewing for a Higher Power, Part Five

August has been the month of liturgical sewing. I've been working on the stoles for the red gold set this month, consisting of 3 priest stoles and a Byzantine stole for the deacon. I'm happy to report that they're all done and I'll be delivering them tomorrow!!

I've been asked to do some documentation on this project in case someone wants to attempt this project in the future. There are also bills to submit. But then I'm done, and hopefully out of the vestment business.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not sorry I took on this project and I've learned a lot about sewing silk dupioni. But making 2 sets of vestments is a major project. Each set consists of 3 priest stoles, a Byzantine (deacon) stole, and a chasuble--that's sewing 10 items and all that entails. Plus, I drafted patterns, made a prototype of the chasuble, calculated layouts, and sourced fabrics. It's a lot of work. Now that I've typed it all out, I don't feel bad that this project has taken more than a year(!) to complete.

After all that, here are some results. This round, I was working on the red-gold set. I made the matching chasuble last fall, so these are the remaining pieces. The priest stoles are all the same and look like this:

They are exactly the same style as the green silk ones I made before.

The deacon's stole is the same style but a different pattern than the green one. As I mentioned recently, she didn't like the fit of the green one so I made a new pattern from this stole:

It's a gorgeous piece from our Lenten set, made from hand woven wool ikat with a lightweight wool lining. It was made in France by this company:

I'm not sure if they have a web site, the rector actually found this place by accident on a trip. My version looks like this:

I'll have a few more posts in this series with more details on this stole vs. the green one, some sewing techniques, and a summary of all the pieces.

For my East Coast readers, stay safe and may any property damage be limited.

I'm Still Around, or Still Sewing for a Higher Power

I've just been busy with the gold vestments. And I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. 2 of the 3 priests' stoles are done, and the third just needs a little more poking and prodding to refine the corners before finishing it up.

I also got some feedback from the deacon on her stole. Seems the original version makes her look "hippy", as in "my hips look big" not "I look like I'm from the 60's." So I borrowed a French stole we use for Lent and will make a new pattern from it before proceeding with her stole. Leave it to the French, even their vestments are chic and slimming!!

I'm enjoying working with this project's fabrics. It's hard not to like natural fibers that yield under the sewing machine and iron. More on all that later, but I'm using dupioni silk underlined with flannel and lined with hand-dyed cotton. I'll have to make something for myself soon using the same combination.

Dupioni Silk Part 3

In this post, I'm sharing some of the helpful dupioni comments I've received. I know it can be difficult to keep up with blog posts, not to mention the comments! So, in case you missed them:

Pam~Off The Cuff ~ is a fabulous sewist, blogger, and merchant. She shared this comment and link:

I wash the living "heck" out of all the dupionni I use both for my custom shirts, and garments for me too...I love what water does to silk! Here's the method I've used for over 10 years...
"Distressing" Silk Dupionni ...surely not the only way, just another way :)

Lindsay T prowls and blogs about the Garment District in addition to her own personal blog. Her recommendation:

Try Mood Fabrics. Their online site is run separately from the store, and they specialize in stocking loads of colors in their silk fabrics. That's where I would go if I was doing a color-specific search. 

The Mood site looks promising. The listing is Shantung/dupioni, and there are 5 pages to choose from.

My Canadian friend Duchesse provided a recommendation:

I've spilled wine on my silk, too. there is a marvelous product sold here (Canada) called Wine-Away; works on silk. 

I'll need to check that out. Good stain removal products are always worth adding to the laundry room!

A couple of differing opinions about Silk Baron. I'm not trying to create controversy by passing along either experience, I just felt like people needed to know both the good and the bad. The jury's out IMO, but I may try a test order or two and see what happens.

Pretty Kitty had a positive experience:

I first heard about Silk Baron from Cynthia Guffey. She had samples of clothes made up using her patterns and I commented on the dupionni fabric. She highly recommended Silk Baron. They have a sale or maybe two sales a year on all the roll ends. You have to sign your email up in advance with them to receive a special invite to their sales, but they don't spam you with lots of info. The sale yardage is small, but good for small projects. You may only get a 1/2 yard or a 1 yard piece of 45" fabric, but the quality is superb. The colors are to die for.... or is that to dye for! 

However, Karen didn't:

Not sure if I should post this publicly but my experience with Silk Baron was not good. I bought several yards for an evening suit and it was badly flawed. I was in a time crunch so had no choice but to make the outfit. I made the owner aware of the problem and got no satisfactory response. Actually, the silence was deafening. Leads me to believe they sell an inferior product, hence the low price(s). 

Karen, I think you should share if that was your experience. You presented your situation in a "just the facts" manner which I appreciate.

I hope these comments are useful. Silk dupioni is fun to sew and wear, and relatively easy to care for. I hope you'll try it.

Dupioni Silk, Part 2

The vestment project has involved a lot of shopping for fabric since there wasn't enough yardage to make 2 complete sets. I've done a lot of sourcing as a result.

The original fabrics came from Satin Moon Fabrics in San Francisco, and that's where I ultimately bought the rest of the dark green for the chasuble I completed recently. As shams noted, this isn't the first place to consider when buying dupioni. I so agree! But I didn't make the original purchase and sometimes you have to play the hand you're dealt. Although they're not really set up for off-site purchasing, they were really great to work with once I was able to reach them by phone. They suggested I mail them a swatch of the original fabric, and then they called me back the same day they received it, a Saturday afternoon. The package was mailed out on Monday and I was able to get the project finished by the following Saturday.

Because I wasn't sure I'd be able to get the right green from Satin Moon, I had also sourced a few other places. Do you know how many colors of green dupioni there are? 100s, I tell you.

I started with an internet search of all the usual suspects: Thai Silks, Gorgeous Fabrics, Waechter's, and Emma OneSock among others. These are all great fabric sources but didn't have what I was looking for this time.

I also tried some brick and mortar stores when I was in Chicago this spring and was able to find the chartreuse at Fishman's. It washed up exactly like the piece from Satin Moon so that was easy. But unfortunately, they didn't have a suitable green.

I also looked into a couple of new sources, Silk Baron and New York Fashion Center Fabrics.

Silk Baron came highly recommended by Patti F., who had purchased from them before. Great selection of colors and a well organized web site. Andrew, the owner, also provided wonderful personal service on the phone and email. Although I didn't get the dupioni from him this time, Silk Baron is definitely on my short list for a future purchase.

New York Fashion Center Fabrics was sourced through Google, and a resource that I'll need to try again. They carry a broad selection of dupioni and lots of other fabrics too. They responded super quickly to my swatch request and had a couple of colors that were extremely close to what I was looking for.

By the way, Pam Erny of Fashion Sewing Supply sent me a link to her blog on how she launders silk dupioni. It originally appeared on August 10, 2010. Pam posts some great tutorials, and this one is no exception.

Oh yeah, another addition to yesterday's post. I'm pretty sure the church will be dry cleaning from here on out. That's fine IMO, because you can't ever tell how people will do laundry. For example, DH believes that clothes aren't really clean unless bleach and hot water are involved. Needless to say, we each launder our own clothes!! But back to church. One of the priests told me that the first time he wore the gold chasuble, wine was spilled on it. No stain because of the prewashing, though. So consider running the yardage through the wash even if the final garment is something you'll dry clean. It may save you a lot of grief.

Dupioni Silk, Part 1

I love sewing with dupioni silk. It sews up easily because it's not as slick as many silks tend to be. And it's just plain nice to touch and handle.

I've washed every dupioni I've worked with. This accomplishes a couple of things--it eliminates the chance of water spotting when sewing or wearing the the garment, and it results in a more "quiet" sheen while still retaining the shimmer of the fiber. IMO, it also provides a more luxurious hand--the texture of unwashed dupioni can be a bit crispy while the washed has more drape.

Of course, you can always have a surprise when washing it. Remember the color shift I experienced when washing these?

The pale chartreuse piece on the right became orange-gold. I'd rather have this happen before making and wearing the garment instead of after!

I wash and dry my yardage by machine after serging the raw edges to prevent fraying. I have a front loader, but other than that, I really don't baby it much. Normal cycle, cold water (I wash almost everything with cold), liquid Tide, Downy Free. And a Color Catcher to pick up any loose dye molecules in the water. Once washed, I throw it in the dryer, normal cycle. I press the yardage after it's dry to smooth it out, then it's ready for cutting.

Sewing for a Higher Power, Part Four

Yay, sewing this weekend! I finished another chasuble yesterday; this one matches all of the green stoles I made last fall. This one was a quick project: I ordered the silk dupioni last Saturday, received it Thursday, laundered and cut it on Friday, then sewed it up on Saturday.

It'll be worn today as St. Michael's returns to "ordinary time" on the liturgical calendar. This one, and the orange/gold one, are designed for New Mexico--natural fiber and no lining to mitigate our desert heat. The wrong side is finished with French seams and the neck is faced with cotton. The hem was just double turned and topstitched.

I ended up buying this second piece of silk from Satin Moon, the same place that the stole fabric came from. It's an exact match, a feat when you consider that this project began last July. They're definitely not an internet store, but once I got them on the phone they did an excellent job. I'll be writing another post soon about my dupioni research. I've ordered many swatches from several sources, so maybe my efforts will be useful to someone else.

I still have some stoles to make from the orange/gold silk, but I have a couple of months until they'll be needed. I'll post on them when I get back in vestment production mode in August. In the meantime, I'll be sewing stuff for me! The Material Girls group is meeting this afternoon, so I'm taking more projects to lay out and cut.

The tomato plant is still valiantly surviving after being beaten about by a windstorm and dealing with the dry, hot weather we've been having. It even has one tiny tomato so far:

I think there will be others soon, the plant developed several flowers all at once. But look at how crispy some of those leaves are!

ASG Sale Fabrics

I had time for photos because DH took my car to the carwash. It's not that I'm trying to hide anything, but he doesn't get fabric/pattern/blogging. Throwing stuff on the floor beneath the skylight and taking pictures doesn't make a lot of sense to him. It's easier to do it when I'm home alone.

Anyway, here goes. This first one is cream with woven dots. I think it's linen but I haven't done a burn test on any of these yet.

This one is either rayon challis or viyella. I'll be holding off on working this one at least until fall.

This one is definitely silk. It's blouse weight and has a great hand. I'm still collecting black/cream/khaki fabrics to coordinate, so this one will be a good one to add to that wardrobe.

Another one for the black/cream/khaki collection. The color is richer in real life. I don't know if you can tell, but the roses and plaid are woven into the fabric, not printed. My guess is rayon. It's fairly heavy, but quite drapy.

This one is cotton gauze and lightweight. The width is narrow, so probably Indian hand-lomed. It'll be perfect for summertime.

All of the above fabrics except the gauze were $4 per yard. The gauze was $2 per yard. I was tempted to buy more but held back since the Sewing Cave is already full of fabric.

Chicago Fabric Shopping

As previously noted, we visited two fabulous fabric stores during the Chicago Weekend. Or at least I was there for two stores, as the early arrivals and late departures got to visit a second location of Vogue Fabrics and a Chicagoland outpost of JoAnn's.

At any rate, here are my spoils from our Saturday expedition. The first two selections are from Fishman's:

 Cotton by Michael Miller. Love this design!

Cotton batiste. Ann spotted this one and I couldn't resist those colors!

I also bought some chartruese cross-weave silk dupioni for the long-delayed vestment project, but that's nothing new. On to Vogue Fabrics:

Wool and cotton blend challis-type

Wool gauze, an Anna Sui print. Yes, safety pins!

Cotton retro-style print. Louise Cutting brought this fabric (in pink) around to the sewing expeditions a few years ago.

So what am I going to make with this? As usual, I don't buy for a particular project but I do keep a general idea in mind. 

• The Italian print is crying out to be a shirt of some kind.
• The floral batiste will likely be a little summer blouse or tank top.
• Same with the green, gray and white bow print.
• The scribble print could be a shirt-jacket or even a skirt. The weight would be fine either way.
• The wool gauze safety pin print will probably be a TSW Now Shirt.

I would be in real trouble if I lived in Chicago. On the other hand, maybe not. Perhaps I'd let the stores hold my stash instead of bringing it home. Still thinking of some of the ones I left behind, but I can always come back...

Sewing for a Higher Power, Part Two

This round, I made a set of stoles--three for priests and the fourth for a deacon. While the chausable was unlined, these were not only lined but also underlined to give them more form. I was planning to underline anyway, and I knew it was the right decision when one of the clergy mentioned that the stole he wore last Sunday was scarf-like. Not good.

I used the remaining dupioni I was given, this time a beautiful dark green that washed and dried well and did not change colors! The underlining was flannel from my stash. My mom used a similar technique to underline satin for my dance costumes when I was a kiddo. In addition to firming up the stoles, it really makes the silk look even more luxurious. The lining was hand dyed quilting cotton from Hancock's, amazingly close in color to the silk. And why use cotton for the lining? A couple of reasons, actually. First, it was the closest match to the silk. Second, cotton isn't slippery. It will tend to stay in place, where a smooth lining would shift around when worn.

The priests stoles were fairly straightforward and simple. If you've ever made a sash, you already know my general technique. However, the deacon's stole is rightly named the Byzantine style. Not that it was so hard to make, but I had a hard time wrapping my head around what part of the stole went where. And my instruction book made it harder by printing the pattern diagram upside down!

There will probably be some tweaks after the clergy has had the opportunity to wear the stoles. The priest stoles seem awfully long to me, although I drafted the pattern exactly per the instructions. And perhaps the Byzantine stole could use a fastener at the shoulder. We'll see.

Sewing for a Higher Power, Part One

This summer, the rector at my church asked me to sew some vestments before all the drama of losing my job. After I agreed, he even went fabric shopping when he was in San Francisco! So I've had the fabric since July. He gently inquired about them recently and suggested that it would be nice to have the vestments made while the colors were still in season. Yeah, well, ummm....so I've been working on vestments this past week. I delivered the chausable Wednesday afternoon and hope to have the stoles completed by the same time next week.

I drafted the patterns for this project with the help of a book called "Vestments for All Seasons" by Barbara Dee Baumgarten. This is a great book to have if you're interested learning about or making vestments. I didn't make any of the specific projects from the book. However, the illustrations were very helpful for developing the projects, and the diagrams were simple to draft patterns from. I used Do-Sew overlaid on a gridded mat to make the patterns

The vestments I'm making are fairly plain, although the stoles may be embellished later. Ornate High Church vestments don't exactly work with Northern New Mexico architecture.

The clergy wanted lightweight, natural fiber garments because of our hot climate. They wear several layers up there at the altar and it can feel warm. With the advice of the Satin Moon sisters, the rector bought several yards of silk dupioni on his trip. Two lovely shades, one a greenish gold with red warp threads and the other a dark green.

I washed and dried samples, and the results were great...except that that greenish gold? Its color shifted to red gold as you can see below. It's still beautiful but not exactly the correct liturgical color for the season.


Fortunately, the change was ok but this is something to keep in mind when pre-washing fabrics. Changes can happen. So why wash the dupioni at all? First, we decided that it would be best to launder the silk to avoid issues with water spotting, etc. when the vestments were worn. Second, it takes care of shrinkage. When tested, each fabric shrank lengthwise about 4-6%. The finished items probably wouldn't shrink when dry cleaned, but why take a chance? Lastly, the dupioni becomes more beautiful when washed--the shine gains more depth and the hand is more drapey.

Anyway, I finished the chausable and delivered it to church on Wednesday. I snapped a quick hanger picture just before leaving the house:


It's lightweight, with no lining in accordance with clergy's wishes. There's a facing to stabilize the neck opening. All seams are French seams. Originally, I had planned to bind the edges, but ended up turning up a hem instead--lots of hemming in a large cape-like garment like this.

Thursday and Friday, I worked on another church project (not sewing). I'll start in on the stoles at the beginning of the week. Three will be typical priest stoles, and the fourth will be a deacon's stole. Hopefully, these will be easier since there won't be so much fabric to wrestle with. I'll write more about those later as I get into production.

Sunday Update: One of the priests wore the chausable during today's services. Sure enough, the deacon spilled wine on the front of it, so prewashing was a really good idea! The wine should come out (they dabbed water on it immediately after the service), and because I prewashed, there will not be any water marks. The priest said it was a perfect weight for our warm weather, too.

The BIG Project: Action!

Ta Da!!!

The wedding happened a week ago today, and it was just a lovely time. Our immediate families flew into Las Vegas, as well as a few friends. Small but sweet. The Mirage did a wonderful job of putting together the wedding and reception. I'd highly recommend them. Even though they don't have a dedicated chapel, the hotel and grounds are beautiful and they really work with you.

Pictures are still filtering in from various guests but here's a taste. I'm planning to set something up on Flickr or Picassa as well.

The BIG Project: Done!

I replaced the missing beads last night while watching TV. Unfortunately, the pictures don't really pick up the shimmer of the beads. Harder to take pictures of a cream garment than you'd think. I took these two this morning without flash.


And here's a shot of the shoes I picked to go with the dress.

I also finished up the hem and side slit of Vogue 8241, aka "Hearts Fluttering in Vogue." As you may recall, that project was my original concept for the wedding ensemble that didn't quite work out. However, it's still a nice dress so I'm taking it to Kauai for the honeymoon.

The BIG Project: I Have Not Dropped Off the Face of the Earth

...In fact, the outfit is virtually complete. The garments are made, I just need to replace a few beads on the top.

I probably won't have a chance to do photos on me, but I'll at least dress up Ms. Acme so you can see what the ensemble looks like. Hopefully tonight!

The BIG Project: My Hearts a Flutter Lower Band

Incremental progress and a quick post.

I had problems wrapping my head around the process of making those uneven miters for the intersecton of slits and hem. Although I've made this top before, my brain wasn't processing Louise Cutting's excellent guide sheet instructions in the least. I couldn't find Linda Lee's small book on miters and totally forgot that I have the Taunton(?) book that she wrote on the same subject.

After many false starts, I finally worked through it and got all 4 miters done last night. They're not the best I've ever done, but maybe the best possible for this fabric/interfacing combination? Know what I mean? Anyway, they look fine from the visible side, and no one's going to be flipping up the hem at the wedding. So no worries. And it's a good thing that the band will be lined--it will have the illusion of perfection at least.

Before I got ready for work this morning, I hand stitched the seam allowances and hems to the silk organza. It only took a few minutes. Now the band is ready to be attached to the top. I'll probably machine baste it first--easier to make any adjustments if needed.

Also, thanks to you readers who have posted comments. It's really meant a lot to receive supportive messages on this project.

Now that the ensemble actually looks like something, I'm hoping to post some photos this weekend, so stay tuned!

The BIG Project: Vogue 2637 is Finished!

Yes, it really is! The above picture shows the front on Ms. Acme, while the picture below shows the back:


I realize it's kind of poorly arranged, especially in the back. But I was very thrilled to have it done so I wanted to document it for posterity--or at least this blog.

I also started on the lower band of the My Hearts a Flutter shell this evening. I cut out the silk organza underlining, machine basted it to the silk twill, finished the edge on the serger, and pressed up the hem. Underlining was definitely the way to go--it looks rich. The silk twill would have been too soft and floppy without it. I want to look at the guide sheet before going any further, so I've stopped for the evening and will resume tomorrow.