Modern Twist

My Husband Needs to Acquaint Himself With The Dressingroom

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Thu, 12 May 2011 19:18:00 +0000

This has happened to us all: you pick up something in the store in your size and, in a rush or just out of laziness, you don't try it on because it must fit you because you picked out your size. Only you have failed to take into consideration the fact that maybe you have been working out, maybe there is some post-holiday bloat, maybe you like Key Lime Pie a little too much. Whatever. Your size is not your size anymore and that item that you just ripped the tags off of and no longer have the receipt for is now unwearable and a reminder that you can be such a lazy halfwit sometimes. Dang.

My husband has this problem, and the last few things he has bought himself have been WAY. TOO. SMALL.

Cool T-shirt bought at Brick Lane: SKINTIGHT.
New running shoes bought in Malaysia: TOECRAMPING.
Brand new golf shorts bought last week: WAISTCINCHING.

He lives in a size fantasy world. You know what I mean. I am afraid he will pull an incredible hulk or a fat-guy-in-a-little-coat. Or just split his pants. I split my pants once doing some booty dancing, but it was totally not the same thing. Their structural integrity had been compromised.

So what does this mean for me? Me me me. It means I have to undertake a task I am not excited about: letting his shorts out. Grr. Mindless sewing tasks.

I still haven't resized the pattern for the Orange Linen Wrap Dress. I have no idea what I have been doing with my time.

A Question About Interfacing Placement

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Tue, 10 May 2011 13:56:00 +0000

I have decided to go with the orange linen for the Advance pattern. I am making view 2, with sleeves, as I suspect we will end up in London and it is more practical for a place with perpetually crap weather. Plus, I do not have enough of this orange linen to make the sleeveless dress, which is odd, considering that they have the same facings but view one lacks sleeves, but who am I to argue?

On to my question.

I bought fusible interfacing, and since this is technically a wrap dress, the front right bodice and skirt are interfaced. However the instructions are technically for non-fusible interfacing, and the Joann's I was forced to shop at did not appear to have non-fusible interfacing, and it also lacked staff that had any sewing knowledge to assist me. Grrr. I digress. The pattern instructions say to sew the interfacing first to the edges of the front bodice. Then, the actual un-interfaced facings are sewn on top of the interfacing, sandwiching it in between the bodice and facing.

Now, could I also fuse it to the wrong side of the actual facing, and then sew the facing to the bodice? Or is it better to follow the instructions?

Finally, A "New" Machine Was Found!

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Fri, 06 May 2011 17:30:00 +0000

This is my machine for while we are in Florida. I was lucky enough to find it for $40 on Cragislist. It is a Husqvarna Viking Huskystar E20. The previous owner said she sewed a single curtain hem, put it in the box, and never used it again. Practically new! I don't know if this is a quality machine or not, but since we don't know how long we will be here in Florida, and I will not be able to use a US machine in the UK, I didn't want to spring for a higher end machine. I think this will do nicely, as I am sure it is nicer than the craptastic Singer Tradition I was using in Bahrain.

I brought a few things with me but will need to hit up Joann or maybe WalMart for some supplies.

I will likely make a dress (in what can only be described as a shocking turn of events) from one of these patterns:

These are the two fabric choices.

I'm thinking the Vogue or Advance in purple, and the mail order in orange.

What do you guys think?

Soaking Up The Florida Sun

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 12:12:00 +0000

We are back in the States, and it feels great to be amongst civilization again, albeit a grey-haired one. We are finally unpacked in the condo and getting ourselves settled in for our stay.

I am excited to get back into sewing, and a trip to get supplies and a machine is on the agenda for tomorrow. I brought some things with me, including a few flat-pattern drafting books (Joan is in a storage facility in Bahrain; poor thing), some vintage patterns, and a few pieces of fabric (you may remember the green, purple and orange fabrics from Malaysia and the printed silk charmeuse from Bahrain).

I hope to have some actual sewing related posts soon.

Stay tuned, and thanks for sticking around!

Just Some Pics From New Orleans. I Love That Town.

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 14:34:00 +0000

Goodies from London

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:12:00 +0000

I went to visit some haberdashery shops in London's Soho neighborhood and ended up stumbling upon some truly delightful textile shops.

Two were devoted only to silk, and what amazing silks they were. Gorgeous colors and textures. An amazing selection. The only two things stopping me were not enough luggage space and not enough money! They were quite expensive but if I had a specific dress in mind, I would splurge.

Cloth House had a wonderful selection of a wide range of very high end fabrics, as well as some pricey vintage trims.

I bought a few goodies at Liberty of London, which you all know from their lovely cottons. They also have haberdashery out the wazoo and great vintage items as well. We also splurged on two needlepoint kits to keep us busy on our Florida vacation.

I also got some lovely trim, vintage buttons, and matching buttons and a belt loop that I plan on making into a belt with the blue velvet ribbon I bought. I have a saucy shirtwaist in mind. Self-drafted, of course.

And shopping London would not be complete without a trip to Harrod's. A posh fish and chips in the Food Hall and then a quick trip to the book section where I found these:

Great success!

London's Brick Lane Markets: Look What I Found!

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 14:28:00 +0000

So, I have been to London many times, but somehow never made it over to Brick Lane. For those not acquainted with London's layout, there is the West End and the East End. Most people who visit will inevitably stay west, like I had, but there are some gems in the East End like the Shoreditch area, and the Sunday markets around Brick Lane. Brick Lane was a Bangladeshi neighborhood and the street signs are still also up in Bengali. It is decidedly hipster, and I swear I think some of these people dress themselves with the sole purpose of looking as ridiculous as possible. (Also, someone please explain to me what is up with old ratty cut off jean shorts over black tights. This is a truly hideous fashion trend. People, please do humanity a favor and CUT IT OUT with the jean shorts. Thanks.)

You can actually find great stuff, unlike other weekend markets I've been to that are predominantly junk. There is some great affordable art, vintage clothing, jewelry, cupcakes and whoopie pies, handmade clothing and accessories, cool T-shirts and bags, home decor and amazing food stalls with every kind of ethnic food you can think of.

In addition to the markets, there are also some nice vintage shops. I didn't find much I was interested in but I did see THIS:

Holy Glam Dress, Batman! It is most definitely a dress made from the Ronald Paterson Vogue No. 100 pattern than I used to make the Glam dress. Vintage styles are so rare, I was blown away that I saw an actual vintage dress from a vintage pattern I used and just wore to a wedding. I was told it was a child's size and the woman graciously let me photograph it. I love the pinkish brocade and the contrast faux tie at the gathers. I originally wanted to make my dress from a brocade but could never find one that I liked.

It makes me want to make another, but this time according to the pattern specifications. It is so lovely.

Next up: New Orleans and shopping in London's Soho for sewing goodies!

I Wish I Could Say It Was Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 19:45:00 +0000

But it wasn't! Good Bye, Bahrain!

I wrote a little haiku, to commemorate our time together.

We could have been friends

But Bahrain, you had to blow

So I say Good Day!

We thought we would be here for at least three years, but precious little in life is certain. When the time was undetermined, we had to make the best of it. One coping mechanism was never admitting to ourselves or each other just how much we disliked living here. I tried to like it, I really did. But, my god, this place is awful. I can only speak for myself in this admission, but there is nothing redeeming about living here. Factor into that the current civil unrest and general whining, and the situation is insufferable. While not unsafe, military checkpoints, tanks in the streets, and a curfew do not add to this dust bowl's, um, charm.

Luckily for us, Steve has resigned his position and we are out of here as of next Saturday. We are high tailing it back to civilization, baby! USA, here we come! We are laying low in Florida until my dear husband secures new employment. It is blue plate specials, purple hair, and big pink Cadillacs for us until we have a new home to go to. Maybe New York, maybe London. Either one is infinitely better.

Most of my sewing stuff is going into storage here until we have picked out a new continent to live on. But, I plan on buying a machine in Florida and sewing up a storm (when I'm not on the beach, that is.)

I have some show and tell from New Orleans and London, plus picks of the Glam Dress in action. And an amazing coincidence I stumbled upon in Brick Lane in London. You won't even believe it.

It is good to be back!

Modern to Vintage "Upcycling" Challenge. Any Takers?

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 07:00:00 +0000

I don't know about you guys, but most of my everyday "wardrobe" (not the one I am supposed to be making, of course!) consists of contemporary fashion. I am always inspired by those of you who can take modern looking clothes and transform them, either through alterations or just styling, into vintage styles.

This challenge would be simple to do and the level of effort would be completely up to you: take something modern in style and transform it, through sewing, into something with vintage appeal.

Your something could be anything contemporary: a modern pattern (if you want a big challenge), a dress or garment you already own that could use some sprucing up, or even something new you buy just for this.

We could all post our projects in a flickr group (as well as on our own blogs) with the following:

A picture of the item in its pre-transformatiom state and the kind of vintage appeal you are going for. Your vision, if you will.
A picture of the item after your transformation with the details about what you did during the transformation.

We could perhaps start April 1 and end at the end of April.

What do you guys think about this idea? Anyone interested?

Introducing The Purple Peg Top Skirt

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 07:00:00 +0000

Oh my goodness this project was a challenge.

Is it obvious in the photos that I am not breathing? It is because I couldn't. This skirt is so tight that I have to wear a waist cincher just to get it buttoned. After all the fiddling with the size, it is now too small.

Too small. Too big. Too small. Goldilocks would be so disappointed.

You see, boiled wool is stretchy. So when you slip on the garment mid-construction to test out the sizing, you think to yourself, "Man, this thing is still too big! I need to take it in a little more." And you do. And then you don't put it back on until the waistband has been resized and attached and you are past the point of no return. At which point the sad realization occurs that the lining fabric you so lovingly attached and the stitching around the waist prevents the wool from achieving the same stretch as before.

You have totally screwed the pooch.

Blimey.

I spent a couple of hours hand sewing the inside and finishing it because it is a lovely skirt. It only has a couple of blatant sewing errors, besides, you know, being ill-fitting. The second buttonhole from the top looks terrible on the inside. Also, the inside corners of the pockets had a weird bit of bias fabric for reinforcement that peaked out a little bit. Other than that, this was good, careful sewing.

On to the next one.

Where Does The Time Go?

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 07:00:00 +0000

Two years ago today we braved torrential rain storms to make it to our ceremony at the historic and lovely Preservation Hall in New Orleans.

Happy Anniversary to us!

We had gospel singers during the ceremony, and then danced to traditional New Orleans jazz at the reception.

And then to South Africa and Mozambique. I cannot wait to go back to Africa.

New Orleans, Here We Come!

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 15:21:00 +0000

Photo from here

Do you guys have a city that will always pull you back to it, no matter what?

I have a few, but New Orleans is at the top of the list.

Two good friends are getting married, which is a great reason to get back. We leave tomorrow night, flying through London and Houston, Texas, to get there. It will totally be worth it. Steven and I were married there almost two years ago on March 14, 2009 and we will be there on our anniversary.

Anything can happen but the following are pretty much guaranteed.

I will give the Glam Dress its debut.

I will eat po'boys and crawfish.

I will drink mint juleps all day long.

I will eat beignets until I am covered in powdered sugar.

I will listen to music. Perhaps I will dance.

I will go vintage shopping on Magazine Street.

We will have our anniversary dinner at Commander's Palace.

I will have a few posts while I am away.

Have an awesome weekend.

Finishing Your Bound Buttonholes

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:11:00 +0000

Now I am going to show and tell you how to finish up your bound buttonholes, because, frankly, they look like a hot mess from the wrong side. In most instances, your pattern will likely have a construction feature, either a facing or a lining, that will cover the back of the buttonhole when you finish sewing. So how on earth are you supposed to button up?

The answer is that you must once again cut into your fashion fabric. I know, this makes you nervous, slicing an unrepairable hole into perfectly good fabric. But this time, you are cutting through the inerts of your garment, so the stakes are lower. Only you will know if you make a mess of it!

Step 1: Insert pins, from the right side, into the corners of the buttonhole. This will show you on the inside where to slash.

Step 2: Using small sharp scissors, make a tiny snip in the middle of the pins, and then cut out towards the pins. Be careful not to cut the lips of your buttonhole. This would be an absolute disaster.

Step 3: Thread a hand sewing needle. Turn under the triangles you cut and catch stitch them to the edges of the buttonhole.

Alternatively, you could just slash the fabric across the lips and then make a hand worked buttonhole. Or, if you really plan ahead and are confident of the placement, you can machine work buttonholes on your lining or facing before insertion.

You are done!

The backs of my finished buttonholes (at least the five that are pretty) are shown above.

The World Travelling Pattern

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 10:13:00 +0000

I bought this Jean Patou pattern from The Blue Gardenia last summer. It was part of a few fancy dress patterns I bought at once from her, including the Jacques Heim I made the Teal Polka Dot Dress from. I have a proclivity for dresses, in case you hadn't figured it out yet, and had intended to make this regardless of my need to wear it.

Alas, the poor darling has been sitting with all my other unmade vintage patterns since last July. It's not that I don't love it, you see, its that it requires a lot of fabric and I cannot commit unless I know I have somewhere to show it off. But her lonely, unused days were soon to end.

I received an email a few weeks ago, before I left for Abu Dhabi, from a woman named Leah. She wanted to make the Jean Patou dress for a wedding she was attending but was having no luck finding a copy of the pattern for sale. She asked to borrow my copy and I happily obliged.

In a breathtaking show of efficiency, we emailed, she sent me a form to print, and then a courier came by one morning to whisk it away and send it over two continents to New York. It will be whisked back when she is finished, along with (hopefully!) a picture of the finished dress.

By my calculations, this vintage pattern will have traveled 21,400 miles from Arizona to Bahrain, to New York and back to Bahrain again.

I am so happy that someone is making this lovely dress and I cannot wait to see what fabrics she chooses and how it all comes together.

Happy Sewing, Leah!

How To: All-In-One Window Pane Method for Bound Buttonholes

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 12:16:00 +0000

I finished up the remaining two bound buttonholes on the Purple 40s Skirt. I thought I had come up with a simplification, but it actually turned out to be a complication, so I ditched it, but happily stumbled upon another way to easily make the lips. These two are the best looking of the seven, and once I stopped making it harder than it needed to be, they went in perfectly the first time and the lips are even. Hurrah.

While bound buttonholes do take a bit of time, I am not convinced that they are more time and effort intensive than machine worked buttonholes. I could think this way because my machine does not make particularly nice buttonholes. This could also be operator error. It is probably operator error.

I did another tutorial on the strip method, from a pattern instruction sheet from the Red Shirtwaist Dress. The method below requires less prep work and accuracy, but the strips method, I think, makes better looking buttonholes.

Without further ado.

Step 1: Cut rectangles of fabric that you will use for the buttonholes. They should be about 2" longer than the actual finished buttonhole and about 1.5" wider. It doesn't have to be exact, and you can eventually trim any excess. You cannot, however, add on dimension once you get started so err on the side of caution here. I used a different fabric for some contrast. But you can use whatever you like, really.

Step 2: Interface the wrong side of the fabric where your buttonholes will reside as well as the wrong side of your rectangles.

Step 3: Draw a grid marking the outer edges of each buttonhole. This will be your sewing guide so be accurate. You can see that I made a chalk grid first, then interfaced. Run basting stitches over the grid. Double check that your measurements are correct and even.

Step 4: Pin your rectangles to the fashion fabric right sides together. Try to center the rectangle over the buttonhole marker. (Please ignore the fact that my rectangles have their edges folded. This was the complicating factor I mentioned earlier that I scrapped, but didn't photograph new rectangles.)

Step 5: From the wrong side, stitch over the grid, using small stitches (my machine was set to just before 2). Be as accurate as you can stitching and pivoting the corners. Your accuracy, however, unless totally crap, will not drastically affect the outcome of the buttonhole like with other methods, like the strips method. But still. Try.

Step 6: Turn over. Using small sharp scissors, make a small clip in the very center of the rectangle, through the fashion fabric. Clip lengthwise until you get to about 1/4" or 5/8" from the edges. From this point, clip towards to corners, getting as close as you can without clipping the stitches. Push the fabric through the cut to the wrong side.

Step 7: Iron the rectangle flat. You should have made a rectangular hole in your fabric. Makes you nervous, right? Don't worry!

Step 8: Now, you have to make the lips from the rectangle. Pull the top of the rectangle and the trapezoid of fabric toward the hole and, using the trapezoid as a guide (because it is exactly the width that your lip needs to be), wrap the rectangle around it. Pin. Do the same for the bottom. If you want, either for durability or for aesthetics, you could insert some piping into the lips at this point.

Turn it over to see if your lips are centered and even. To keep this all in place, I used one pin on each end, coming up through the end of one lip and down through the other.

Step 9: Sew the ends of the lips to the triangle on each end. You want to sew over the stitching of your original rectangle. See how my presser foot and needle are over the bottom of the triangle? Cut any excess off the sides, leaving just the triangles' length.

Step 10: Turn it over and admire your handiwork! I somehow made the rectangle on the right too narrow, so the lips on the wrong side are not wide enough. Luckily, this is okay because it will be covered with lining. If your excess fabric extends beyond the top and bottom edges, you could also stitch in the ditch to tack them down or catch stitch by hand. You should do this if you are piping your lips. I am leaving the edges alone because I know they will be enclosed.

You will also likely have fabric that will cover the back of the buttonhole, either a lining or some self facing (my skirt has both). I will show you how to finish the back next time.

The Purple Skirt Has Her Revenge.

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 13:45:00 +0000

I told her to shut her pie hole, and the sewing spirits intervened on her behalf. But I shall have the last word (according to my mom, this was one of my most annoying teenage character flaws, and sadly, for my husband, it has carried over into adulthood). Oh yeah, Mwah ha ha ha ha!

I cut this out awhile back, at a time when I had just first started working with Gill, my personal trainer. Personal trainer? You may say "Pshaw!" but listen to this. The pattern was a 40s size 12, which had it cut for a lithe body measuring 30/25/33. Seeing as how I am not an adolescent boy, I added width to the skirt by slashing and spreading, bringing up the measurements to my own.

Turns out, all my slashing and spreading was a colossal waste of time because my measurements are a full two inches smaller in the waist and hips than they were in late December. Which means that the damned purple skirt is way too big now. Blurg. (But, thanks Gill!)

I am sure I will undo all of that over 9 days in New Orleans when I let the good times roll and my muffin top rules the roost. Hopefully The Glam Dress still fits. Yikes.

Anyway.

I will take care of this mess by altering the back side of the skirt. It is all I can do, really, given that the front is done and there are no side seams. I need to take a total of 6 inches, so I will bring in the center back seam 1.5" (3" total removed) and will add a second dart, with a suppression of 1.5", to each side, for another 3". All that is left is to alter the waistband.

I made five of the seven bound buttonholes. They don't look perfect, and they are a bit, um, stout, if you will, but the method was kind of "all-in-one window pane" which, after the prep work, was pretty painless. I have an idea about how to make it even easier and I will do a little tutorial when I complete the last two on the waist band.

I used my lining material to make the buttonholes, because nothing but disaster was going to result from my trying to make small bound buttonholes with boiled wool for god's sake, so I saved myself some aggravation. The colors are much more similar than in the photos, and it adds a nice little bit of contrast.

So, the lesson here, ladies, is three fold:

If you have the time (and, sadly, money), personal training will get you looking tizzight.
The longer you wait to sew something up, the less likely it is to fit you.
Shaming yourself on the internet is a great way to get motivated.

You Will Not Get The Best Of Me, Purple Skirt!

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 09:12:00 +0000

I have a confession to make. That 1940s purple boiled wool skirt has been cut out for many weeks now. I stalled on getting started in the first place because I hemmed and hawed about ordering vintage buttons. I never found any that (a) matched, (b) I liked and/or (c) came in the right quantity. I am left with the buttons I originally bought, which are not great, but will have to do for now. Sigh.

The second reason for stalling is the requirement for SEVEN small bound buttonholes down the front of the skirt. The other view has a zipper, and I can still go that route, but giving up on the nice vintage details of this skirt seems like cheating to me and I cannot make myself do it. Arg.

So, the result of this stalling is that the skirt has sat in a neat little pile next to my sewing machine for what has felt like an eternity. It taunts me. It laughs at me. It guilts me. Its unfinished presence shames me. And the days in which I can wear it comfortably are numbered, as boiled wool + triple digit temps= disgusting meltdown.

Well, skirt, today is the day that you can shut your mouth. You are getting sewn. Maybe not finished, but definitely started. Progress will be made and paralysis will be overcome. (Que maniacal laughter.) I will not continue to shame myself in front of the sewing community!

I feel motivated already.

Are there things about some of your sewing projects that prevent you from getting started? Do you have any go-to excuses for delaying a project, even if you do really want to sew it? How do you overcome that project paralysis and get motivated?

Twist Pattern Progress and Some Bahrain Tidbits

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 06:40:00 +0000

This is muslin number three. The bodice is not yet attached to the skirt. I played around with the darts, converting my originally waistline darts to french darts. Joan was giving me a quick assist with determining whether the new skirt panel was laying properly. It is a big improvement over my first draft, which went totally wonky.

There are a few kinks yet to iron out. When I lift my arm it pulls the bodice up. I suppose I need to raise the armscye to enable me to raise my arms higher and not pull the whole dress up. However, the armscye is already pretty high because I intentionally cut it that way. What other remedies are there to this issue? The sleeve looks to fit and hang well otherwise. Perhaps I need to widen the sleeve at the bicep?

The pattern is coming along slowly because it seems like we have a thousand errands to run (and Steve currently cannot drive because he has no license, but that is another story) and I never have time to just sit down.

Also, I don't know if you all are aware of a show called Sons of Anarchy, but it is rocking my world. We watched three back to back episodes last night. Who would have thought a show about a biker gang would be so compelling?

Moving on.

From here

Bahrain has totally calmed down but the demonstrations continue. What is the fuss about, you may wonder? Let me fill you in on a couple of things. First of all, the Pearl Roundabout looks like a garbage filled kiddie carnival. There is graffitti and trash everywhere, people are just lounging about smoking shisha and eating hamburgers. It is an excuse not to go to work.

Second, the picture below is the kind of stuff some people worry would be the result of a shift of power here. I was in Boots yesterday buying some lotion for my thighs. Clearly, somewhere, the morals police got to work with some stickers. I think these probably came via Saudi, because that is what they do there.

Steve bought an Esquire. It came in a Hustler-type blacked out plastic bag. It also cost ten dollars.

And, if you have any delusions left about the Bahraini protests resembling the real calls for democracy and change in others parts of the Arab world, let me let you in on a little something. Here are the demands of people living in a suburb called Isa Town, which is a large township with full facilities and good housing built for Bahrainis by the king. Most people who live there are middle class. It is a nice area.

God bless democracy.

Back In Bahrain

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 13:47:00 +0000

Pearl ROUNDABOUT

Hi everyone!

The radio silence was a book getting the best of me in Abu Dhabi. I am currently reading a spy novel called The Company by Robert Littell and it is utterly and completely engrossing. All 1300 pages of it. It was nice to have some time where I had literally nothing else to do but nap, read and sit by the pool. The life of the voluntarily unemployed! I cannot believe my luck, sometimes.

We have only been back for a few hours and haven't seen too much of the country but, honestly, things look the same as when we left. There are protests scheduled around where we live, but the State Department does not have its knickers in a twist about them, so neither do we. Plus, the protests were violent last week but what is happening in Bahrain is NOT what is happening in Libya or Egypt or Tunisia. Bahrainis want a constitutional monarchy; their brethren to the north want human rights, elevation out of poverty, and more than a modicum of democratic representation. There are no riots, the protesters seem to be peaceful, and the country is not burning. Oh, and Pearl "Square" is not a square, it is a giant roundabout by the highway. As is Tahrir "Square."

So, I am excited to be back, and totally geared up for pattern making, sewing up a long-awaited purple skirt and another white blouse, not to mention beginning another dress pattern I have been dreaming up.

Let's get started.

Sewing Can Be A Life Saving Skill

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 07:40:00 +0000

From globalgiving.org

I came across a news story about a US woman who was collecting sewing supplies to help a National Guard Unit in Afghanistan in their mission to provide sewing supplies to Afghan widows. (Here is a DoD news story about a Female Engagement Team in Khas Konar who is trying to accomplish the same mission.) These supplies would be used to allow the women to sew in order to make money and provide for their families. Though it doesn't say how we can help, I got to thinking about sewing as being something more than just a hobby.

Those of us not living in a war zone sew for fun, for personal fulfillment, for the challenge of it, or to be cost conscious. But in some parts of the world sewing can be so much more than that to women. It can save their lives and preserve their dignity. Empowering women, helping them help themselves, is the first and best step in stopping the oppression of women in countries like Afghanistan.

Globalgiving.org is a collection of small global giving projects and makes donating very easy. One of many worthy projects I came across is Tailoring: A Small Business Skill For Afghan Women, run by a Dearborn, Michigan non-profit called the Afghan Institute of Learning. For as little as $10 (or the cost of a vintage pattern), one woman can be provided with the supplies to take a 6 month tailoring course and be on her way to supporting herself.

I have put a badge on my blog in support of this project, and I hope that you will check out this great way of sharing a skill and hobby that we all enjoy with someone whose life it can radically change.

"You like me, right now, you like me!"

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 07:40:00 +0000

Actually, you likely don't, at least not in the way Mark Zuckerberg envisioned. I broke down and signed Modern Twist up for a Facebook page. Let me get one thing straight, I have never nor will I ever use a personal Facebook account. I am too old, too set in my ways, too personally private for that. Plus, my life ain't that interesting. But I think my blog and hobby is (at least some of the time).

So, mosey on over to the right side of this blog and find the Facebook Like Box. Or, go here and like Modern Twist. Or don't. That's ok, too. I'm just glad you are reading this.

Have an awesome weekend.

The Glam Dress Pattern On eBay! Pattern Prices Briefly Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 08:00:00 +0000

We had a great discussion last week about the pricing of vintage patterns and your willingness to pay. I mentioned that I had spent about $100 on the pattern for The Glam Dress. Said pattern is Vogue Couturier Design No.100 by Ronald Paterson, from 1957. A really unique and beautiful design, which I changed up a bit.

Well, my handy saved eBay searches alerted me to the fact that this pattern came up for auction again last week. Curious, I added it to my watch list, to see what it would go for. Hold on to your pants, ladies.

Four hours before the close of the auction, the pattern, which started with an opening bid of $9.99, had jumped to $58.50.

Not bad, but I knew things would get interesting. And they did.

Winning bid, after 25 back and forths, was $177.50. Can you believe it?!?!

So, again, a single person's willingness to drive the price up led to the same pattern going for drastically more than it had previously. Crazy.

I'm just glad I wasn't proven to have overpaid.

Sleeves and Proportion: Inspiration From Vintage And Modern Fashion

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 13:38:00 +0000

From here

First of all, somebody give me a hanky so I can dab the drool off my chin. Second, would this dress be as dreamy if it just had standard one piece short sleeves and not these delicious flared short sleeves? Maybe. I say emphatically, "Maybe Not!"

All the dresses I have made so far have had your standard one-piece set-in sleeves. Of course, the lengths have varied with each style, but that has been the only differentiating factor. Sure, I put a dart in The Red Shirtwaist Dress' sleeves, and it looked smashing, but that was mostly for fitting reasons, and the style was a nice byproduct of necessity.

I've been perusing L'Officiel de la Mode (all pictures below are taken from there) for vintage fashion inspiration photos and noticed how much interest can be added to a garment with a nontraditional sleeve choice. This got me to thinking about how important the sleeve can be to achieving the right balance and proportion in a design. And while some sleeves can be complicated creations, like the first photo below, sometimes just altering the sleeve width (the beautiful proportions achieved in red velvet above) or the design of the sleeve cap (with pleats as in the second photo) can turn an otherwise simple garment into something more special.

Behold!

The fuller sleeve cap achieves balance with the otherwise tight wiggle dress.

The pleats extending from sleeve cap to neckline broaden the shoulders and keep nice proportions on this simple sheath.

Slim, tailored sleeve is the same length as the jacket.

Again, a simple sheath transformed with what I will call kimono cap sleeves. (I am making this up as I go.)

Sleeves set far off the shoulder achieve a classic 60s silhouette and add space for the two-sided tie at the neck.

Extremely wide sleeves on a coat whose overall proportions are oversized.

Sleeves slightly flared, but the same length as the jacket.

On this sheath, the sleeves ARE the design.

Adding some pleats and a cuff to the sleeves draws the eye down from the wide neck and balances the suit.

Lovely ethereal butterfly sleeves.

Greetings From Abu Dhabi!

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 18:54:00 +0000

Yas Hotel

Steven and I are in Abu Dhabi for about 8 days. He has work (boo) and I am just here tagging along. We are staying on Yas Island, which is a "reclaimed" island (reclaimed from the sea, I suppose) in a sweet hotel in the middle of the F1 track. Not a bad way to spend a week or so.

Ferrari World

No sewing, obviously, but I will still try to post on interesting topics I come across whilst here. I hope to do some textile shopping (and other shopping, if possible!) and I need to teach myself some graphic design software.

Until next time...

Patternmaking is Engineering. Yeah, I Said It.

noreply@blogger.com (Jacki) — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 15:28:00 +0000

I really like the way the Twist Dress pattern is turning out, though I still cannot quite get the skirt "twist" to behave like I envision it. Luckily, this pattern sews up quickly as a muslin, so I have been able to try out various darts and other features easily. A new pattern piece has been cut for the skirt that I hope to test tomorrow. Unfortunately, I have used up all my toile fabric, which means a trip to crazy Divya Textiles is in my future!

I also have a couple of more ideas for new dresses, which is not meshing well with sewing up the two projects I have cut out and the eight more I have fabric and patterns for. Blurg.

After getting through that 40s blouse, this project is a welcome intellectual challenge. While the white blouse was an exercise is following instructions, pattern making is an exercise in engineering. If I think of sewing a dress from scratch as "building" a dress, it does the process a lot more justice. After all, making a pattern requires considering stability, testing and stabilizing potential points of weakness, employing a keen eye for aesthetics and proper proportions, and integrating various parts into a working whole. See, engineering. Fancy!

This next week I hope to sew up the purple boiled wool skirt. I never found vintage buttons that were suitable so I am going with the plastic purple buttons I bought. I can always change them later on.

Hope you all have a great weekend (mine is almost halfway over!).