Front view #1.

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Front view #2.

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Front view #3.

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Closeup view: lucite bracelet and faux bakelite black bracelet. (The bruise is probably from getting beaten up at jiu jitsu.)

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The Facts

Fabric: Navy and white polka-dot rayon, $5/yd 60″ wide
Pattern: Simplicity 1578
Year: 1945
Notions: Navy invisible zipper, $1
Time to complete: 16 hours, maybe more
First worn: Never been worn yet!
Wear again? Yes
Total price: $11

Pattern used:

It’s the middle of winter here and since every week has been 30 degrees and freezing. It’s refreshing to work on a summery rayon polka-dot sundress.

I’ve made this pattern once before unsuccessfully. This time around was different.

Construction details:

• made a muslin (which accounted for the 16+ hours)
• basted all the seams before sewing it up
• inserted an invisible zipper in the back
• used seam bindings for the armholes
• serged the seams
• used some leftover navy gabardine for the neckline facing
• hand-tacked the facing at center front to prevent it from flipping up

Using a fabric with good drape and hand was crucial. The rayon is lightweight and has good drape. This pattern also reminds me why the 40s is my favorite sewing era. I have enough leftover fabric for a skirt, a blouse or shorts and the silhouette is vintage enough to be authentic yet doesn’t look costume-like or overwhelming.

I don’t know how many sleeveless sundresses I’ll be making but this silhouette is definitely a win.

(Cross-posted on Sew Weekly.)

Front view #1.

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Front view #2.

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Closeup of bracelets: lucite root beer colored bracelet with glitter, black faux bakelite.

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Closeup of brooch. I take all my pictures myself so sometimes there are erratic angles.

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Blouse: Simplicity 1554, homemade
Cardigan: H&M
Pants: Hand me down from my mom
Bracelets: Faux lucite and faux bakelite
Shoes: Penny loafers, Hush Puppies
Brooch: Brown thermoset flower brooch, ebay

I’ve been making more of an effort to wear my projects this year and the ones that get the most wear are the blouses. I’ve also wanted to document more of what I wear from a day to day basis to keep track of the projects that I do wear.

It might be the erratic, freezing cold days we’ve been having but lately I’ve been really drawn to casual wear from the 50s (straight cut plain slacks) combined with 40s elements (brooches, lucite bracelets). I walk to and from work so whatever I have to be wearing has to be practical. I’m also allergic to nickel and can’t wear most jewelry that isn’t real. We’re also not allowed to wear jewelry on the mat so I’m constantly taking off my jewelry before going to class (jiu jitsu), and I’d like something I wouldn’t have to worry about losing if I put it in my wallet: hence large lucite bracelets and brooches.

That reminds me: I need to sew more pants.

The Facts

Fabric: Blue microfiber, $7/yd. White cotton swiss dot, $4/yd.
Pattern: Gathered skirt, self-drafted
Year: 2012
Notions: Blue invisible zipper, $1. White lace trim, $12/yd.
Time to complete: 6 hours
First worn: Never been worn!
Wear again: Yes
Total price: $30

This skirt was inspired by the Vocal Celebrity Skirt from Modcloth. The skirt was self-drafted and is a simple rectangle gathered at the waist. I inserted an invisible zipper and sewed the lace on to the hem. I didn’t have any cream silk or silk charmeuse so I made a sash belt from cotton swiss dot in my stash.

All the materials from this project except for the lace came from my stash. I wouldn’t have otherwise thought of making this skirt, but it came together pretty well with what what was in my stash. A more accurate version would have a silk or charmeuse sash. Mine was cotton since that was what I had on hand. I didn’t compromise on the tall wide lace for the hem since I think that makes the look.

During construction. My favorite part of the skirt is the lace.

It was a cloudy day indoors when I took these photos so there are very few full outfit shots that aren’t blurry (will definitely have to repost when I find a better light source for these), but I accessorized with this confetti lucite hinge bracelet from the 50s. It has seashells embedded in with huge glitter confetti.

(crossposted to Sew Weekly)

I recently got this more modern pattern from the 60s and thought it had interesting curved seams and edges. I’ll probably convert the gathers to pleats in the waist area. It has no instructions but hopefully I’ll be able to figure it out.

Spring 2012 SWAP:
4 bottoms – 1 pants, 3 skirts
4 tops – 3 blouses, 1 camisole
1 dress

I’ve been thinking about the Spring 2012 SWAP since last year, but it’s only now that I finalized the storyboard for it. I have a habit of making really boring projects that I wear all the time, and I’d like to make more interesting pieces that are fun to make and are still versatile and yet I can still wear it all the time.

I kept the SWAP colors to mainly blue and white with a splash of orange. It was inspired by this scarf. I kept to blue and white for simplicity and hopefully for versatility’s sake.

I always test how the SWAP colors work together by putting everything in a tall pile and seeing if it still looks harmonious.

The Facts:

Fabric: Cotton shirting bought over four years ago that I found while cleaning out my closet, about $4/yard
Pattern: Simplicity 1554
Year: 1945
Notions: black plastic buttons, $1
Time to complete: 6 hours
First worn: Hasn’t been worn yet!
Wear again? Yes!
Total price: $5?

Pattern used:

I found this already-cut plaid cotton shirting wadded up in a ball at the back of my closet. The blouse is surprisingly comfortable and came together pretty quickly (from cutting to stitching) in about an afternoon.

I serged the interfacing so it would be more flat, and double-folded all the edges. I used French seams on the sides. I’ve made this once before but altered it to use facings instead of seam binding, since the seam binding kept flipping up. I also lengthened it to it’ll hit around mid-hip.

Shown here with Wearing History trousers. The shirt is very comfortable and would work well worn casual or dressed-up. The muted color of the plaid makes it feel very 40s.

Btw: I have no idea if I like my hair like this. It makes me feel really self-conscious.

(Crossposted to Sew Weekly.)

I love documenting my sewing fails as well as my successes since it reminds me that (just like in life) not everything you undertake will be executed to perfection or even turn out well in the long run.

I haven’t finished this dress yet but I can already tell it’s a fail.

I’ve been working on this project here and there this week. I took Colette Jasmine (which worked well for me previously as a blouse) and grafted a skirt on to it, thinking it would be a good drop-waist silhouette dress. The cutting took the longest (more than an hour), and everything was pieced together in half-hour intervals throughout the week.

The sketch started out like this:

A good premise but terrible in either execution or how it actually fits me.

Pros:

• I like red and it makes my hair look even more black
• this was some $2/yd fabric I found over the weekend so it’s not a huge loss

Cons:

• the 20s silhouette is not friendly (or flattering!) to me
• it looks like a deranged figure-skating outfit
• chiffon (or crape?) is really hard to work with, especially on the bias
• the skirt keeps riding up
• I haven’t worn anything this short since I was five

I’ll probably still go to the 20s event, but break the rules by wearing something modern (read: circa 40s or 50s).

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The Facts

Fabric: Faux leather
Pattern: self-drafted
Year: 2011
Notions: black invisible zipper
Time to complete: 3 hours
First worn: New York Fashion Week, last Fall
Wear again: Yes
Total price: around $10

This skirt was inspired by two accessories: these leather studded platform boots and these two leather cuffs, worn stacked together. I picked up the chunky leather cuff with silver studs at a now closed-down accessory place on St. Mark’s Place. The other bracelet wraps twice around the wrist and has gold studs, and was a gift from one of my best friends last Christmas.

Way before I got into vintage, I’ve been very much inspired by the music I listen to: glam rock and classic rock and roll. The whole look consists of leather, loads of black eyeliner, tights, unset hair, tattoos, and tons of attitude.

I drafted the pattern myself based on my bodice block. This is my first time working with faux leather, and it went along smoother than I thought it would. I did make the fatal beginner mistake of pressing down my seams with a hot iron, which absolutely melted the fabric so I had to re-cut one of the pieces again. I pressed the pieces down with a cold iron the next time around and it worked out well.

This skirt is very comfortable and it survived my second day of Fashion Week last year. Since then I’ve worn it several times (including to work). It’s a nod to the East Village, riding the L train late at night, listening to Bowie on your headphones while cutting fabric at 2 am, seeing your first runway show at Fashion Week, and evokes the energy that surrounds the city I live in.

(cross-posted to Sew Weekly.)