SweetMyrtle

the prom dress ~ part 4 Prom Day

prom day arrived and after a trip to the hairdressers with her friends, she put on her dress...

it really was a perfect colour for her as it was young and fun.  her hair had been styled naturally and looked pretty. i was so pleased that she was happy and felt great.

here are a few more pics...

 

her shoes were pale pink suede wth a small bow, her clutch bag was made to match and the earrings were carved mother of pearl roses which were a birthday present from her sister from highland angel at not on the high street

a great time was had by all  so it was worth all the work. it kind of made it more special too that we worked on the dress together though i am in no rush to make a wedding dress for a good few years!

 

the prom dress ~ part 3 putting it all together

this is a follow on to part 1 and part 2 of the process of making my daughters leavers prom dress.

once the bodice was completed i was happy as this was the most challenging part. Next it was the skirt...

the skirt was made  of three layers. the first being  in the lining fabric. this was constructed with darts at the waist for shaping and to keep any bulk to the minimum. it was then cut as an A line to create some foundation for the fullness at the hem of the top two skirt layers so they didn't hang around the ankles.

The next layer was the satin which was lightly gathered at the centre waist and sat over the lining with a little more fullness at the hem.

the top layer was the beautiful silk chiffon which was also gathered at the waist but kept flat at each side to contour the hips.

once all three skirt layers were joined they were attached to the waistband. we used my very old overlocker to neaten all the seams; here is my girl overlocking, it was great to teach her how to  do this.

An invisible zip was attached to one side seam and then the linings were stitched in with a slip stitch  to keep everything neat from the inside

 

the final job was the hems and we had 3 of them!

initially we were going to roll the hem by hand on the chiffon but if frayed so much that the turning was greater than i had anticipated and my girl wanted the skirt to be as long as possible. As i had already cut the length i decided to try a roll hem on my overlocker. it sewed beautifully much to my surprise so it was the perfect answer. the other two hems were also hemmed on the overlocker.

overlocking hems to me seems to feel like it's unfinished or just lazy, but it really gave the best finish in this case.

here are my samples on each of the fabrics...

when she tried it on we were both very excited and also very relieved that it had all come together.

i also made a little chiffon flower for her hair and a sweet bow clutch bag using a tutorial i saw in Love Sewing Magazine issue 1 . i found the fabric for the outer bag in my stash and it matched her little suede shoes, which also had a bows on. the bag lining is a patterned silk  which was passed on to me by a special aunt so it felt perfect using it  for this occasion.

much to mine and my family's amazement the dress and accessories were finished with days to spare. as i am usually an 11th hour girl this felt a little strange but good at the same time!

now  we just had to wait for Prom night.

 

the prom dress ~ part 2 sewing the bodice

Whilst we were waiting for the fabrics to arrive I got on with drafting the patterns for the prom dress.

I shall explain a little about the organic approach I took;

I first drafted a close fitting bodice block to my daughter's measurements from my Winifred Aldrich book and then altered it to a sleeveless bodice block which i made up as a toile .

Whilst fitting  I  decided to lose the waist and bust darts and create a princess line for the front bodice to give a smoother line so altered the calico toile. I marked in  the crossover at the front bodice  and marked a high waistline to accommodate the wide waistband.

I then re-drew everthing to create a paper pattern.

For the pleated chiffon top layer i used a layer of cheap poly chiffon to mock up the pleats by draping on the stand and then adjusting this whilst draping on my daughter. This gave me a good template to draft the pleated fron bodice pattern from.

Cutting out came next; we cut out the  bodice in the sanforised mull to use as a pattern when cutting out the satin back crepe. Satin back crepe moves so much that i decided to use this instead of paper as the mull grips to the crepe and stops it shifting. we also cut out the lining fabric of the bodice using my paper pattern  and also an interlining in the eqyptian muslin.

After transferring all the markings for darts, we tacked the muslin onto the reverse of the crepe to interline and then constructed the bodice and the lining for the bodice.

Using my pleated front bodice pattern i mocked this up again in the mull to check the pleats before cutting the chiffon.

The mull also worked as a pattern in the same way as before and helped me to cut more accurately around the silk chiffon without it moving. All my pleat markings were transfered through the mull on to the chiffon using tailor tacks, very time consuming but essential.

Next the chiffon top layer of the bodice was constructed and then mounted on to the crepe and muslin layer.

 

The lining layer was attached at the neck edges and armholes. clipped, understitched and turned through. the front panels and armholes where also interfaced for a little extra structure.

The bodice was completed by sewing the shoulder seams and one side seam (the other was left open for the zip)

The waisband was mocked up in a similar way and then attached.

At this point i had copious glasses of wine to celebrate stage 1 completed!

See part 1 - the prom dress here

the prom dress ~ part 1

my eldest has just completed her last year at school.

the final date of the school calender was a leavers Prom. now the whole Prom thing is new to me as when i left school (many years ago) we just had a disco and some tea and cake with the teachers. now it seems to be a much bigger thing and gowns are ordered, cars hired etc etc.

school has been full on this year as they all worked towards the exams and the final prom party has been a happy distraction for many . the thought of dressing up and having fun and marking the transition of leaving school and going on to the next stage of their journeys has been something to plan and look forward to. my girl enjoys sewing and said she would like us to make a dress for the event

Being uncertain as to what she wanted the dress to be like or what colour intially,  trying to work with her to find this out was tricky. the good thing was she was clear about what she didn't want!

After searching many patterns we ordered Simplicity 2692 as a starting point, and i whipped up a bodice toile to see if there was potential there.

It would make quite a pretty dress but sadly the gathers at the shoulder and underbust line didn't give the pleated look she was after. Pinterest was useful and this image was one she kept coming back to.

Armed with her measurements and my trusty Winifred Aldrich Metric pattern cutting book i first drafted a close fitting bodice block and then adapted it to a sleeveless bodice block.

I made a toile and fitted it and decided to lose the waist and bust darts and create princess seams for the bodice foundation.

Meanwhile we started searching for fabric.

A trip to Berwick street in London took me down memory lane (a favourite haunt in my costume making days). Borovicks Fabrics were super helpful and we found the perfect colour in satin back crepe. There wasn't quite enough on the roll so they ordered some in for us, along with some lining.

The chiffon layer was ordered online from Harringtons fabric and Lace and was the perfect colour match.

My husband also picked up some Eqyptian muslin and sanforised mull for me to use as interlining from MaCulloch and Wallis in town.

Now i just had to work out the pattern pieces and how to put it all together so we could start.

my golden mending

as a girl who loves making and was bought up to mend things, i am so pleased that the make do and mend movement in the UK has caught on again and that people seem to be thinking twice before they chuck stuff out.

as a sewing teacher i am lucky to be able to pass on valuable repair skills such as sewing on buttons, hemming  and patching. I do many alterations at home  for my family and a fair bit of patching for my husband who has a nak of splitting his jeans across the seat.

A few weeks ago in the field at my local Food CSA i ripped my skirt on a bit of barbed wire which left a small hole.  Inspired by the vouge in visible mending and using gold thread to repair i used a piece of gold silk dupion to make a heart shape backed with a fusible web.

I  pressed the small golden heart over the hole and stitched over it using freemotion stitching on my sewing machine.

i was really happy with the result and when i showed it to my youngest, she smiled and said to me, 'mum, you have a heart of gold' ; ) aww x

there is a flickr group devoted to mending set up by Eirlys Penn from the Big Mend  in Bristol where you will find some great mending inspiration and here is her golden mending experiment.

Morwhenna who ran the Love What you Wear project i took part in last year has a wee video of her golden mending too.

new * Textiles Festival *Thread* Sun 3 Nov

I must share with you my excitment at being involved in a new Textile Festival hosted by Farnham Maltings in Surrey (also home of the amazing 2 day Unravel festival in February).

Thread will include inspirational exhibits, workshops, talks and a chance to purchase a variety of textile gifts and supplies.

Companies such as Clothkits, Mollie Makes, Guthrie and Ghani, Sew Sister, The Makery, Selvedge, Royal school of needlework, Think make do, Cloud Craft, Sarah Waterhouse  and The Silk Route are attending and also me with  Alice and Ginny showcasing our students work and offering sewing advice. full list here.

There is also a chance to show off your sewing skills in the 'Best in Sew' competition;

Adult catergory, make an A line skirt and under 15's sew a bag for life.

Full details can be found here... there are still a few days to get stitching and entrys are dropped off on the day.

So if you are free this Sunday do pop by,  it's going to be great!

17 years

today i have been married for 17 years, it seems amazing really,

amazing and good!

after this long coming up with a gift idea to celebrate the occasion gets harder. 1 - 15years of marriage  all have well documented traditional gift ideas as well as a  modern ones if you do a quick google search.

but really now, apart from the main ones, with a 5 or 0 on the end then there isn't much suggested. the only reference i could find to a gift to celebrate 17 years together was furniture! yes, really, i thought it odd too.

so as that didn't excite me i decided to make a bag for our bread.

my beloved makes bread everyday, it's his thing.

so an anniversary present to us both that means something and will get lots of use.

we are both happy : )

and i was allowed to make the bread today x

love what you wear ~ mending

last november i joined the Love what you wear project.

there are quite a few of us now committed to not buying any new clothes for a whole year.

i have suceeded so far and i plan to make a few items and refashion some others, although since i started i have sewn a lot for others but not yet for myself.

Morwhenna has started a virtual sew along on a tuesday between 7 and 9 pm so we can share what we are working on and also ask the group for advice. this is a great idea and as i still haven't started on a project for me i thought i would tackle the large repair on my guys linen jeans that i had been putting off as i wondered whether they could even be repaired!

 take a look

the fabric has worn so thin over the holes and it is a pretty lightweight linen anyway. here's a close up.

Jen wanted to know how to patch. i have patched many denim jeans before and these were a little different but essentially most of the process was the same.  so here is what i did for these;

first i looked in my stash for a good colour match. normally i would use a similar weight but i wanted greater stability so i decided not to use linen or cotton but i found a lovely soft wool. now i knew wool may not be great from a laundering point of view but as  i plan to cool wash or hand wash these i'm happy that this will avoid any shrinkage.

Next i cut a piece of wool to cover the holes and the area where the fabric was thinning. I placed the trousers inside out over the end of my ironing board and pinned the patch on from the inside first.

then i turned over to work from the right side and re-pinned from the front (i then took the pins at the back out). It is really important to get everything flat. The wool fabric is now creating a new fabric behind the holes. please note that the holes cannot be pulled together as you risk getting an unsightly pucker and altering the drape of the garment.

with a matching sewing thread and taking small stitches i stitched around the whole area to secure the wool patch. i then took further small stitches, about 1cm apart around the holes to keep the fabric flat. you may be able to see a few hand stitched areas on the next photo.

when i was happy that the patch was secure i threaded up my sewing machine thread in a close colour match. Many people now use contrast threads and funk it up but as these are his 'posh' summer trousers i thought i would go subtle.

as i was going to 'darn' over the patch i needed to drop the feed dogs on my machine. Feed dogs are the rough teeth that sit under your presser foot and move the fabric along as you sew. on some machines you can drop the teeth and on others you cover them with a clear plastic cover. I then attached my darning foot, which is also the embroidery foot. The process is the same as with free machine embroidery (think poppy treffry). with freehand and darning you move the fabric independently to create the stitches.

i set the stitch length and width to zero for darning and then placed the fabric under the foot ready to sew. i stitched lines up and down over the patching with just a few stitches across at the top and bottom to flow one line into the next.

with darning the fabric stays facing the same way and is not turned as this can cause the needle to break. when i had finished my up and down stitches i stopped, took the fabric out and turned it 90 degrees, replaced it under the foot and stitched over the first lines up and down again to create a 'weave'.

can you see?

and another detail

so here they are finished and not a hole in sight!

i also had to neaten up and restitch the fell seam too as some of the threads where coming away.

i don't know how long they will last but hopefully most of the summer, when it finally arrives.

the final thing i did was trim back the wool patch on the inside to remove any excess fabric. usually i would turn a hem and stitch this in but as the wool is thick i haven't bothered. it's pretty secure and looks ok from the inside too. this next photo is before i trimmed it back close to the stitching, but it gives you an idea of how the inside looks.

well i hope you held with me there on this very long post and that the photos are clear enough ( i took them with my phone camera in very poor light).

 i do hope that this will be of interest to those of you who wish to have a go at patching. this method is, i think is a fairly traditional one but there are also many other methods, so if you don't fancy this one, google 'patching'  and i'm sure there will be lots of alternatives.

happy mending!

Gx

past and future

happy new year to you! i hope you are having a good 2013 so far x

the few weeks off over the festive holiday were very welcome for me as I had been working very hard. It was so good to have some time to relax and reflect. 

2012 was both busy and fulfilling. i faced a few fears, applied myself to tasks which at times where difficult and was pleased for the first time in my life to have fairly successfully managed to balance all the different areas of my life.

a few things i was proud of  in 2012 were,

• finally getting round to making my girls quilts for their beds,

although my youngest prefers to wear hers!

•  devising and delivering a 45 minute solo talk to a large group of business ladies. kinda scary but hugely enjoyable and i want to do it again!

• running my first vision board evening; something i had wanted to do for some time as i wanted to share my enjoyment of this process with others. it was a little departure from my usual sewing teaching and it was fun. i ran my second one last night and helped a lovely group of ladies create their vision boards for 2013.

• in 2012, along with my gorgeous sewing partner Alice, i  taught lots and lots of  people how to sew and how to use their sewing machines. it is so rewarding to facilitate and help others on their sewing  journeys. Many of our students really got the bug this year and we are both so proud of all they have achieved.

 

• Alice and i also wrote our third book. It's another sewing book but this time it's for children, though we suspect many adults will enjoy making the projects too. It's release date is in March, so more on that soon : )

 

So 2012 was a good year. I ate better than ever and returned to my yoga practice, which felt like coming home. i have realised  how i need to have that space and me time and how my body needs to stretch. yoga grounds me, brings me into the moment and helps me to feel positive and energised. so more of this in 2013!!!

Since the new year has arrived, it's all been about decluttering. Even the family have got  involved. decluttering years of stuff is an ongoing process but it is all moving in the right direction.

and we have made some family plans;

• to finish off all those unfinished jobs around the house. our first project was to tile the kitchen which has been without tiles for, hmmm, 5 years!

• we are thinking of inter- railing with the kids in the summer but still need to work out where, although a separate trip to Scotland is a definite. if you have any recommendations please do let us know.

• we are also going to spruce up the garden so we can feel like we are on holiday at home, think tuscany, alfresco : )

My personal aim is to 'Keep it Simple', which is my mantra for the year and i am going to follow my interests and continue to live lightly.

This is  my 2013 vision board.

what are you inviting into your life this year? how do you want to feel in the months ahead?

wishing you every happiness for a wonderful 2013

Gx

ideas for a homemade/handmade christmas #4

an upcycled tie snake

after having seen a few of these snakes on Pinterest i decided to make one for Rufus who is just 4.

i searched the charity shops for a suitably patterned tie to stuff and found one in our local heart foundation shop for £2.50

I thought it would be a simple case of just stuffing the tie,  sewing on the eyes and adding a forked tongue but the back seam on the tie i had chosen was catch stitched through all the layers to keep everything in place. When i undid this so i could stuff the tie the seam unravelled making it a bigger job than first thought.

I checked online to see if other folks had mentioned how they had made their snakes but no one had  so i will tell you how i made Rufus's.

1. First unpick any stitches along the back seam which hold all the layers of the tie together until you have a tube to stuff.

2. If the seam unravels as it did in my case then carefully pin the two back edges together and sew with a small slip stitch or overstitch making sure you don't sew through all the layers. I kept about 10cms open at the wide end.

3. Take some stuffing, (kapok/polyester hollowfibre from a cushion pad or pillow/or chop up old  tights) and gently push the stuffing in from the small end. Do this in small bits to avoid any lumps. I used a long wooden ruler but a pencil would work.

4. I stuffed half from the narrow end then the remainder from the wide end.

At each end of a tie you will find a small  facing, usually in a polyester lining fabric. This can be lifed out and the stuffing can be placed behind it. It can then be folded back, pinned in place and sewn to the main tie fabric. I hope this picture shows what i mean.

5. Once your snake is stuffed and sewn up, cut out and sew on a forked tongue in red felt and sew on some button eyes.

and there you have it, one snake for a 4 year old to play with  (or whack his brothers with which i expect may be more likely, hence using stuffing and not rice!)

Hurrah, another present crossed off the list G x