Thursday, October 18, 2007

Sixth and seventh wardrobe items

The dress is Burda WOF 09/2007, dress 121. As I said some time ago on an Artisan Square board, I get these style crisis from time to time when I feel like my wardrobe is too conservative and I want funkier things. This dress is an example of a funkier garment for me - maybe it's pretty classic to you, I don't know :)





Dress lying flat




This was really easy and quick to make, I cut it and finished it in about one hour and a half and it is done entirely by serger, including the hem which is blindstitched with the same serger.



The fabric is a nice cotton knit with a texture (you can see it in the photo above) and the back of the cotton is a bit fluffy, you know like in bathrobes. I'm sure there is a name for this fabric but I don't know it or can't remember it.

The entire top part is lined with self-fabric and this is how I did it:
  • Cut 4 fronts and 2 backs
  • Sewn the shoulder seams on the garment part and the fabric part, pressed the shoulder seams of the two in opposite directions (for the garment part, they are pressed to the back and for the lining to the front), in order to reduce bulk, especially at crossing seams.
  • Sewn the neckline of the garment part to the neckline of the lining part. I didn't want to understitch because too lazy and in a hurry (I did this the evening before I flew to Brussels and the plane was at 7.00 a. m.) so I took care in doing everything to avoid seams showing on the garment part. Turned the two pieces right side out, pressed the seam towards the lining part and then pressed the two of them together, making sure the seam is a bit on the underside.
  • Turning the seam a bit to the underside made the lining part a bit bigger at side and armhole seams therefore I cut the part peaking outside the garment part.
  • I then stitched the two armholes together, turned and pressed. Making the lining part smaller keeps all the seams on the underside and they don't show at all. Pressing carefully makes them lie flat even without understitching.
For hemming knits, I've been using this tip by Sewing Diva Gigi for quite some time now. Great tip, it definitely improved the appearance of my hems.

This was more of a wearable muslin (I'm not that crazy about this cotton knit and I think the colour will fade during washing) and I plan to do another one in a green interlock, but it looks very nice. I've worn it in Brussels (with a black turtleneck and my houndstooth jacket) for a visit to the European Parliament and it was perfect!

Read my PR review here

The pants are Hot Patterns Denim Diva Pipe Jeans, made in a stretch black denim.





I cut a size 6 and they ended up loser than I thought but I decided to keep them this way. I find that, especially for clothes that follow closer the body, I like them to be a bit loser - they make you seem slimmer and more ... I don't know, classy??

This time I used a twin needle (100, space between needles 6 mm) to do the topstitching.





Sorry for the wrinkles, the pictures are taken after wearing the pants in the office for an entire day.



Side seam, topstitched, and hem (wider, I like a wider hem in jeans)

Read my PR review here.

18 comments:

Adrienne said...

Your items look great! I especially love the dress!

Lori said...

Laura, love your new garments. The dress is on my to-do list, thanks for the tips. Great job.

LauraLo said...

Thank you, Adrienne and Lori! I couldn't recommend the dress more, it's so stylish and yet easy and quick! Definitely a rewarding project

Tany said...

Laura, both garments are spectacular! You know, the dress is on my list too! I hope I have enough fabric to double the bodice! I will take all your tips into account!

I also get the same style crisis from time to time, and I feel tired of wearing the same classic styles. I think the dress suits you fabulously well and you will wear it a lot!

rosanne said...

Your jeans and dress are wonderful, Laura! You always look fantastic, by the way; the care and attention you pay to details is obvious. I was hesitant about the pinafore because of the way it seems to restrict leg movement in the burda picture. Do you have that issue or is your knit very stretchy? Oh! And thank you for nominating me as a rocking girl blogger! I discovered this the other day very happily!

Christina said...

The dress looks great on you, I'd love to make that one too.

And your jeans are fabulous!! Definitely doesn't look like you made them yourself. Very current and versatile.

LauraLo said...

Thank you so much, Tany, Rosanne and Christina! Tany, if you get style crisis too than I'm really relaxed! You're one of the trendiest persons I know.I'm sure the dress you make will be great and in case you don't have enough fabric, you can always line it with another knit! Rosanne, you are a rockin' girl, so you deserve it! Don't worry, there's plenty of walking room in that dress! And that despite of my knit having very little stretch.
Christina, I think you would look great in such a dress, it really is your style, I think. The jeans are indeed great and so comfy. I love them, worn them two days in a row :)

Erica Bunker said...

What great pieces these are! They make great wardrobe additions!

Summerset said...

I love both pieces and the bright turtleneck!

I, too, get the style crisis that you and Tany both get! What to do? I'm trying to plan a SWAP that's *not* work clothes oriented, but it still keeps looking to "business"!

angie.a said...

Ooh, your dress is so cute ! I love it. I've been wanting a dress style like this.

LauraLo said...

Thank you, Erica, Summerset and Jemima Bean! Summerset, maybe we should make a style crisis club or a self-help group :) I am thinking of a mini-SWAP with funkier clothes in various shades of purple and gray. Most of the items could be knit garments, so this should go pretty quick. However, I'm trying to prioritize now and my priority are tops. I desperately need tops so I should start sewing them. And a coat too...

LauraLo said...

I forgot. Summerset, the turtleneck is from Zara (I loved the colour too) and I bought a second one in that jewel green.

Kitty Couture said...

You did a great job on both and look very classy in that dress and those pants, Laura. Bravo !

I'm trying to figure out how to do a blindstitched hem with a serger, but I can't!

Mirela Popovici said...

Waw! An hour and a half on a serger with changing the threads for different seams like the blindhem (that alone I could never do right...) OMG!!!
For me it is hard to keep up with your posts and in the meanwhile you are creating all this from scratch.
You truly are amazing!

Oh! About the crisis, I feel like my wardrobe is all over the place and I have no style at all...I guess I like everything and then when it comes to getting dressed, I think to myself: I have nothing to wear!

ifthisistuesday.wordpress.com said...

What a great dress--that one is on my list too, so it was great to see it made up.

I like the jeans too--I think you're right about not-completely-so-tight being a bit classier.

And thanks for mentioning my menswear fly tutorial in your PR review!

Carolyn (Diary of a Sewing Fanatic) said...

You are moving right along with those pieces...this SWAP will be finished in no time! I really like how you made the dress but in no way do I think its funky! :) How are you doing with the Chanel outfit?

Vicki said...

You have been busy! Wonderful work on the pants - perfect topstitching (of course!). I like your dress too - very nice with the hot pink.

LauraLo said...

Thank you, Isabelle, Mirela, LMH, Carolyn and Vicki!
Carolyn, I probably don't use the word "funky" right :) At work we use it a lot (in English, of course) to describe trendier, more innovative styles of dressing (the funkiest would be layering a summerdress over a pair of satin jogging pants for instance)