Tag Archive for '13 dresses'

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13 DRESSES : DRESS 9

Published on August 6, 2008 in etsy, stitchery and textiles. 9 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, Japanese dress book, Kaffe Fassett, seam allowance.

Dress 9
Stylish Dress Book (available at the workroom)
Dress ‘F’ : Kaffe Fassett ‘Red Lotus’

The Stylish Dress Book is definitely my favourite Japanese dress pattern book so far. Almost all of the dresses in this book are super sweet looking – all in that Japanese smock aesthetic that I’m not totally convinced translates into the real world. I’m game to try it out though and so far I like it. The cool thing is that these dresses never have zippers and the construction is super simple.

I started working on this dress a few months ago. Most of these books come with a sheet or two at the back where all the patterns (sometimes 20 or more) are printed over top of each other. It definitely takes a keen eye to locate your pattern pieces, but usually they are numbered or lettered. What’s interesting is that you begin to realize the all the dresses are based on just four main templates with slight variations in sleeves, necklines, and silhouettes. I traced out my chosen pattern and headed on to cutting out fabric, serging and sewing it all together. Everything was going swimmingly until I attached the sleeves. Suddenly the dress didn’t fit in the shoulders and the sleeves didn’t have the proper fullness and ease I would expect. I thought that I had chosen a size too small. I figured I would try to re-draft a new sleeve pattern to compensate and perhaps add some fabric to the shoulders.

The project was put aside until I read this posting on The Purl Bee about Japanese patterns. Guess what? Most Japanese dress patterns don’t include seam allowance! If you’ve been following along, you’ll know that this is not my first seam allowance debacle. Once I read that, I knew exactly what went wrong with this dress. I re-examined the fit and tried to figure out if there was a was to fix the problem. I was heartbroken once again, but decided to abandon the sleeves. I got out my trusty bias tape maker and made some bias tape to finish the armholes and called it a day on dress 9.

I think I’ll try this pattern again one day because the sleeves are so incredibly cute. It actually is the perfect shift dress and that Lotus print is happy-making. All’s well that ends well.

I promise, no more accidental sleeveless dresses.

There’s a great on-going series at Label-Free on Japanese Craft Books. There are even translations of some of the common symbols that is very helpful. Thanks Anabela for the tip.

The Golden Yard has started a worldwide google map of fabric stores. It’s a collaborative project and anyone can add their favourite fabric stores to the map. It’s a great resource for when you’re traveling to new cities. {via True Up}

Dress 9, originally uploaded by the workroom.

13 DRESSES : DRESS 7 & 8

Published on July 28, 2008 in stitchery and textiles. 4 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, Amy Butler, burda, fresh poppies, Kaffe Fassett.

Dress #7, originally uploaded by the workroom.

Dress 7 – Burda E971 Tunic
Fabric - Grey Asha by Kaffe Fasset

This tunic dress is a free download from the Burda Fashion website. If you’ve never downloaded a pattern off the internet, it usually means that the pattern has been tiled over many pages. Be prepared to print off 30+ sheets of paper and then have to tape them all together. I found this to be one of the few perks of working in an office, the endless supply of paper and high quality printers to facilitate such projects

I was very excited about this dress. I taped the pattern together, cut it out, then cut out my fabric and started to read the instructions. OOPS! I quickly found out that the pattern did NOT include the seam allowance. I talk about this all the time in my classes, always check your seam allowance on a pattern. I had heard that some patterns don’t include it, but to be honest, I had never encountered it. It’s not just an urban sewing myth, they do exist!

The tunic dress is quite loose, so the biggest effect that not having the seam allowance made on this project was that it was impossible for me to put the sleeves in. There was just nothing at the shoulders for me to sew the sleeves onto. Thus, the dress turned into a sleeveless dress with bias trim around the armholes. The dress is still cute, but not exactly what I had planned.

Dress 8 – Burda E971 Tunic (round 2)
Fabric – Fresh Poppies by Amy Butler

I hope you don’t think that this is cheating, but I had to get this pattern right. I went back and added seam allowance on all the pattern pieces and started again. The second time around was pretty easy. I really loved the cute puff sleeves of the tunic. There’s a piece of elastic sewn into the sleeve cuff that makes those tiny gathers. It’s my favourite detail, I’m a sucker for gathering. I don’t often repeat the same pattern, but I’m happy that I did for this one, just for the sleeves.

There are some important lessons to be learned here. a) Always read through the instructions of your project before cutting out your fabric and embarking on a potentially heart breaking journey, b) a 1/2″ seam allowance doesn’t seem like a lot, but it has great impact on a garment and c) if something goes wrong, don’t fight it, just go with it and make the best of it. Mistakes are fantastic lessons and lead to unexpected discoveries. (or sleeveless dresses)

There’s only five more weeks until Labour Day and five more dresses to go….

13 DRESSES : DRESS 6

Published on July 13, 2008 in stitchery and textiles. 0 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, 27 dresses, burda, hunter wellies, navy.

Dress 6, originally uploaded by the workroom.

Dress 5 – Burda 7798
Fabric – Navy Graphic Rhythms by Gerald E. Roy

Burda patterns often require you to look past the questionable photos and styling to see the real shape of the garment. If you take a look at the pattern envelope of this one, you’ll see what I mean.

This pattern has cute dart details around the neckline, an empire waist and a nice full skirt that is cut on the bias. I really liked the long, gathered sleeves with ties. I decided to create my own half sleeve that kept that detail. The dress itself was very simple to construct. The one hitch I ran into was finishing the slits on the sleeve. I spent over an hour re-reading the instructions, looking at the drawings and trying to figure out how the heck to make it work. In the end, I made up my own solution, which does the trick.

The fabric I used is from a collection by Gerald E. Roy called Graphic Rhythms. Gerald interpreted the rhythms from music of different tempos into visual linear units and created repeating patterns. The navy fabric also matches my Hunter wellies, so this dress has become my rainy day dress. It all feels very British. Now, I need to get my hands on a navy brolly to go with.

I wanted to let you know that I finally watched ’27 dresses’. You had to see that one coming, eventually. I was entertained, if only for the kinship to a girl with a closet full of dresses.

13 DRESSES : DRESS 5

Published on July 10, 2008 in stitchery, textiles and the workroom. 8 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, apc, grey, knock off, shirring.

Dress #5 : APC vs karyn, originally uploaded by the workroom.

Dress 5 – APC knock off
Fabric – Red & Blue yarn dyed plaid

I promise to try not to inundate you with too many shirring projects, but hopefully you’re starting to get the sense that it’s really easy and kind of fun. A while back I had bookmarked this cute APC dress from their current summer collection. Of course, I recently realized that I could now make this dress and then I found a very similar blue/red plaid fabric at DFO. It seems a knock-off was in order.

This dress was made much like my silver shirring top. I did a rolled hem edge for the hemming, five lines of shirring spaced 1″ apart and straps that were about 1.5″ wide. The straps and patch pockets were cut on the bias, exactly like the APC version. I think that this is a really sweet detail and totally makes the dress. The APC version has shirring on the pockets too. I attempted to do this but ran into some issues with the pocket bunching up too much and thus tugging on the skirt of the dress in an unattractive way. I’m going to try to remember to use the shirred pocket on another project in the future.

Obviously this brings up the whole issue of knocking stuff off. Is it ever okay to knock off someone else’s design? An independent designer? A corporation? Is it okay for personal use or learning? Clearly it is absolutely, positively wrong to copy someone’s design and then sell it. To me, there is a grey area when it comes to making a copy of something for yourself especially when A. you can’t afford the real thing (because it was designed by Stella McCartney and is $1900) or B. you want to learn a new technique or style.

Clearly, it is something that everyone wants to do. the workroom’s new Knock it off class sells out within hours of being announced. It seems like we all want to copy someone or something. So what do you think – is imitation really the sincerest form of flattery?

13 DRESSES : DRESS 4

Published on July 8, 2008 in stitchery and textiles. 5 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, anna griffin, blythe, burda, tunic.

Dress 4, originally uploaded by the workroom.

Dress 4 – Burda Easy 7969
Fabric – Anna Griffin Floral Catalogue from the Blythe Collection

If you’re looking for a simple and quick dress pattern, this is a good one to try. There are no sleeves, no zippers and no darts in this dress. But even still, it fits very nicely. The encased tie around the waist cinches the fabric into pretty little gathers across the back side. The tunic has a very Grecian look, in my opinion.

I made three adjustments to the original pattern. When cutting out the fabric, it seemed like the skirt was going to be way too long, so I shortened the skirt pieces. Once I finished the dress, I realized I had shortened it a bit too much. I would have preferred to have a couple more inches in length. Next time I do this pattern, I’ll cut it out exactly as they have it printed.

After I put the dress together, the skirt was a bit too a-line for my liking. I felt that the silhouette would be better slightly straighter, so I ended up bringing the skirt in a few inches around the bottom.

The pattern also called for store-bought bias tape for the neck line and the arm holes. I made my own bias tape using the Anna Griffin fabric. Bias tape is the easiest (and dare i say, funnest?) thing to make. The key is using the right tools, the most important being a bias tape maker. I promise a little tutorial very soon on bias tape. I want you to love it as much as I do.

The Blythe line from Anna Griffin is filled with fun prints like maps, calligraphy, engraved drawings and botanical studies. I especially like this fabric because it feels like I’m wearing a vintage flower catalog.

What are your thoughts on the ‘proper’ thing to wear under a dress with no lining? Do you wear/own slips? Do you have another solution? Do you care? For me, it usually depends on the show-through factor of the fabric, especially on light-coloured ones. I’m thinking that I’d like to make a few simple cotton slips to go with my growing dress collection. Hmm… foundation garments may be the next personal sewing challenge.

13 DRESSES : DRESS 3

Published on July 5, 2008 in stitchery, textiles and the workroom. 4 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, cityscape, fabric, simple wrap dress, spoonflower.

Dress 3, originally uploaded by the workroom.

Dress 3 – Wrap Dress
Fabric – City Limits Espresso Neighbourhood

This was actually the first dress I made this spring. I made this in the Simple Wrap Dress class taught by Sarah. The pattern was originally a frumpy Vogue pattern, but Sarah modified it to be the sweetest little frock. I’m not sure how many of these she has made, but she’s got it down to an exact science. The dress looks great on everyone who makes it.

This was the perfect opportunity to use one of my all time favourite fabrics. I wish more fabrics were like the City Limits collection. The illustration style is whimsical and the repeat is so large that it feels more like an art piece. I have a known weakness for cityscapes, so this fits right into my growing collection.

ALSO – Everybody is talking about Spoonflower, where you can design and custom print your own fabric. I only mention this because I think some of you, dear & talented readers, need to do this…

13 DRESSES : DRESS 2

Published on June 30, 2008 in stitchery and textiles. 4 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, Alhambra, Art Gallery Quilts, ice cream, Japanese dress book, strawberry.

Dress 2 pattern, originally uploaded by the workroom.

Dress 2 – ‘V’ Style
Fabric – Yellow Maze fabric from the Alhambra Collection by Art Gallery Quilts

This book was the first Japanese dress book that I ever bought. I don’t remember what the translated title was at the time, but I did a google translation and came up with, “A nice one-piece straight stitch, much more! From 26 different styles”. The ISBN is 4-309-28055-2. There are 26 dresses in this book, each identified by a letter in the alphabet.

Many of the other Japanese dress books seem to come with a sheet with all the patterns, but this one doesn’t have that. The instructions in the back of the book show measurements (in cm) for every dimension of pattern pieces, so this adds another layer of work. The other thing is that it only shows measurements for one size. Perhaps the book discusses how to adjust the sizing, I’ll never know. Luckily, I fit into the one size they illustrate.

The dress is super simple, so it wasn’t difficult to figure out the construction. Plus, the schematics are detailed and well illustrated. The pattern calls for putting in a lining on the skirt, which I didn’t do. It also suggests putting the top together, then putting the skirt together and then attaching them to each other. I changed that and put the front pieces together, then the back pieces together and then attached the two halves to each other. The key detail of the dress is the fact that the button holes are offset from where the buttons are placed, creating a ripple. The little vintage buttons were a gift from my friend Jen and they perfectly match the blue grey dot in the fabric print.

It’s day two of my three day long weekend. I’m planning on trying out a new ice cream recipe using some fresh Ontario strawberries I bought yesterday!

13 DRESSES : DRESS 1

Published on June 25, 2008 in stitchery and textiles. 3 Comments Tags: 13 dresses, Amy Butler, bias trim, fabric, Kaffe Fassett, Lotus Tunic, personal challenge, sewing, sewing pattern, William Morris, Winding Floral.

getting ready to test Lotus Tunic pattern, originally uploaded by the workroom.

In the spring, I made a little personal challenge with myself to make ten dresses by the end of the summer. There are a couple reasons for this challenge – 1. I love dresses and 2. I was finding that I was doing very little personal sewing, being so caught up in running the shop.

Looking in my closet this morning, I realized that I had made six dresses so far! With still two more months until Labour Day, I decided I should up the ante and go for thirteen. (this is my favourite number & the day of my birthday) I’ll be posting each dress, starting with the ones I’ve already finished. Wish me lucky thirteen!

Dress #1 – Amy Butler Lotus Tunic
Fabric – Kaffe Fassett Winding Floral in Pastel

This is the first Amy Butler pattern that I’ve attempted to make. I found her directions to be quite clear and easy to follow. Amy suggests using a contrasting fabric for the upper bodice pieces and bias trim. I decided to stick with just one fabric. This William Morris-inspired print is so stunning that I wanted it to get all the attention. The pattern also calls for belt loops in the side of the tunic and a belt. I tend to avoid belts and I really like the look of the girl on the cover of the pattern. (They have styled it with the belt tied in the back, which is another option)

The only other adjustment that I made was to make the back darts bigger, to cinch the waist in more. I have a very curved back, so I make this adjustment a lot. Other than that, the fit of the dress is amazing.

I wasn’t planning on doing the lining. You can use the facing pieces from the tunic top instead. This is what Dory did with her dress. At the last minute I changed my mind and decided to do a solid Lilac cotton lining. I’m really happy that I did. The dress feels very finished & proper with the lining. The sleeve detailing is my absolute favourite part.

Already I’ve been spotted wearing it on multiple occasions by certain people. Yes, it’s THAT dress, the one you wear because it requires no thinking in the morning and you know you’ll look good.