Modified - Marbelized Jumper

Note to Self: Slow sewing is fine, but if you focused on the task at hand, it wouldn't be silly sewing.

Briefly: A picture -before I get all rumpled!! And I may have to do something about those bust 'darts'.

Awhile ago I purchased some forest green fine wale corduroy with which I planned to make some slim trousers.
After I washed it, some weird things happened to the fabric-a marble-like texture came with it out of the dryer- and I decided to use it for something else, tho' it took awhile to sort out what that would be.

Forest green, not grey -trust me.

Since I am still off work while my foot heals, I have time to experiment.


Many moons ago I made dress from OOP Simplicity 4991, circa 2004. Since it fit well, I wanted to make a sleeved dress and thought the corduroy would be fine for the test.

To increase back coverage and add sleeves I combined the Simplicity pattern with Sewaholic Oakridge blouse (I really like the ease of sleeve insertion in that blouse.) I also added a dart to the back shoulder to increase the fit, and, I just like shoulder darts.

Definitely more winter-appropriate coverage.

As you will have noticed, this is a jumper, not a dress. I did not have enough fabric for long sleeves and short sleeves on what would be a winter dress would not be sensible in this climate. I would either have to put a sweater over top (imagine trying to stuff corduroy sleeves into a cardigan) or a long sleeved sweater underneath, which would look a little odd.

At time, I choose to ignore things I have preciously learned. In this instance when I shortened the bust darts I did not make it into two narrower darts but left it as one short wide dart. The result was as expected -rather pointy.

The 'eyes' are the very pointy darts.

I managed to fix this somewhat by releasing the darts and making them tucks instead. They can't be that bad because The Geek, self appointed Chief Constable of the Fashion Police did not make any pointed comments (please stifle your groans at the weak pun).

Still a little obvious but not as bad as before.

If you can get past the glare of my winter-white legs and clashing socks, we can evaluate my experiment.
Considering this dress was supposed to have sleeves, but doesn't, there is no pesky gaping at the armholes.

There is a bit of strange rippling at the base of the zipper, but since I can't see it when I am not wearing the dress, I don't think I can fix it.

I think a large part of the 'ripple' seen here is the the marbeling of the fabric.

Outtakes:

I attached the pocket bags and moved them to the right side when I serged the sides of the skirts. Unfortunately, I also sewed the side seams without moving them back inside. I suppose if I could have figured out how to still use them as pockets I could have left them as they were and felt they suited the 'edgy' fabric. HAH! Grab the stitch ripper and put them back inside.

In my desperate attempt to have an un-rumpled outfit, I even photographed it one morning over my gym clothes.

Up Next?
I'm still trying trousers and I'm auditioning a kimono-sleeved bodice for a (summer) dress I'd like to make. And one of my mom's patterns. I like the neckline and the shoulder dart but there will likely have to be some modifications. My mom is 5'2" and was a wisp of a thing when she made this dress. I am...neither.

Nordic Formal

Note to Self: At some point you should plan to take pictures before you become rumpled, not after wearing said items for 10 hours.

Briefly: There are very few occasions where one can be both warm and dressy.

I attended a friends birthday at the end of January. The theme of the party was Nordic Formal, with a Prairie twist, and no hints as to what that meant. Thankfully I received my invitation the day after my foot surgery so while I couldn't actually do any sewing, I had about 10 weeks to do some plotting about what to make as well as time to make them.

Winnipeg at the end of January can be a chilly place. I hate being cold so I wanted to be warm while still filling what I thought was the 'formal' part of the theme. I'd made the Suffragette skirt (link) this summer and thought it would fill the warm and formal requirement nicely, especially if it was made of wool. The top is New Look 6901 (review seen here, picture here) designed for knits but made here in a loosely woven silk.

I think undergarments back in the time of this skirt would have been somewhat different. I suspect women would have worn a corset with garters for their stockings and not have the indent at their waist from tights, as you can see happening above.

While the skirt pattern did not include pockets I prefer to have them for convenience sake. I used a rather stiff lining that would slide well inside the skirt.

The lining was grey but I added brown stripes in fabric marker.

It seemed to make the pockets blend in well enough.

I was probably the most formally dressed person at the party. The other guests were wearing anything from sequin-enhanced party dresses to jeans and shirts. I was also happily surprised to find the walking boot was relatively easy to dance in, even in the rather impromptu conga line that snaked through the room. And I was warm enough, definitely a win!