plans
Showing posts with label plans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label plans. Show all posts

Franken-dress

I'm working on a post about my wedding dress but in the meantime I'm obsessed this dress from Asos...
 
 
 
 
I'm a lover of maxi dresses and I think this could be a good option for fall. It looks a little dressy but I think with flats it could be casual enough for dinner with the husband or a not-too fancy party. I probably wouldn't wear it to Target or anything, but I could see it working for dinner out with friends.
 
 
Anyway, I'm wondering if I could Frankenstein it with the top of a pattern like Simplicity 1872,
 
and the bottom of the Anna Dress from By Hand London...
 
 

I actually have a McCalls pattern that's similar in some ways to the Asos dress but it's made for knits and sort of looks a beach cover up, so I'm thinking the structure of the Anna skirt is needed to make this look more like a dress I would wear over a real bra with underwire instead of a bikini top.

But now for the real issue. The dress from Asos is $54, which isn't cheap but also isn't a horrible price considering the amount of fabric the dress uses. I already own the Simplicity pattern but I'd have to buy the Anna pattern (about $26) and fabric (I would imagine I would need 3 to 4 yards and I don't have enough of anything appropriate in my stash). Since this is just a fun dress to wear to dinner I probably wouldn't spend tons on the fabric, but even at 4-5 dollars a yard the Asos dress is probably a better deal. I know I would have fun making it but I have a million other projects I would have fun making too so entertainment is not my top priority. Also, I know the dress I made would probably be a little better quality, but since this isn't something that I'd wear all the time (like a pair of jeans or a coat) I'm not super concerned about it lasting forever. Finally, considering the dress is not supposed to be super tight, I don't think I would have a problem with fitting if I ordered it. So all of my normal reasons for sewing (fit, quality, price) are not as relevant as they usually are.

It's funny how much of a dilemma something like this is to me now. Before I knew how to sew I would have just ordered it, no questions asked. Now I almost feel like its a moral issue! So my question is, what would you do? Do you make things when you know you could buy them cheaper and the fit and quality would probably be similar?

My buying vs. sewing rules are:
I buy things that seem boring to make and I can buy cheaply (like white v-neck tshirts) or that I couldn't replicate at home (like if they are made of some incredible fabric and I don't think I could find something similar).

What are your rules? And if someone just wants to tell me to buy and and get over my sewer's guilt, that's ok too :)

 
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Wedding Dress: The Inspiration

I spent the weekend before last beginning the work on my wedding dress and I'll continue to work on it this weekend, so I thought I start to show you what's going on. This post will be about my inspiration for my dress and the next few posts will show you "the plan" and the beginnings of the process.

From the beginning I knew I wanted a short dress for several reasons.

One, the style of the wedding will be pretty casual and the reception will be outdoors in hot Texas so I knew a ballgown wouldn't really work.

Two, I'm a pretty simple girl who doesn't wear a lot of jewelry or like a lot of embellishments or accessories, etc and because I was planning on making the dress myself, I didn't want to attempt something super elaborate with a bustle or detailed beading or anything that would be really complicated and not feel like me anyway.

PS The guiding principle of all my wedding planning thus far has been "does it feel like me?" Is this a slightly fancier, white version of a dress I would wear to a party? Is this the kind of food I would serve if I was having people over for dinner? Does this look similar to the style my house is decorated in? etc. It makes trimming down all the options a lot easier!

Three, the fiance and I love to dance and we would both be annoyed by tripping over a long dress.

Four, I love shoes and I bought fabulous ones for the wedding and I don't want to hide them under a huge skirt.

So it's a short dress for me, and a strapless one. (again because of the heat factor)

       
  
Here are the exact shoes I'm wearing, which are fabulous, and obviously the reason for a short dress.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 





 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The only thing I'm still slightly undecided about is the drape of the bodice. I'm planning on using a bodice pattern with a sweetheart neckline and draping lace over it (more on the lace in my next post), but I'm not sure how exactly I want it to look. Here are some ideas...

       

So that's the inspiration! We'll see how it works out!

All images from this pinterest board
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2013 Planning

First of all, Happy New Year! 2012 was a big year for me and contained a lot of the major milestones in life (aka buying my first car, getting engaged, starting a new job and moving in with my fiance), but I feel like 2013 will be even bigger!

My sewing room is officially unpacked and I actually started sewing a dress Tuesday night, the first thing I had worked on in at least 2 months. I can't believe I went that long without working on a sewing project, it had been so long that I was going through serious withdrawls. Anyway, I'm back in the saddle and planning my sewing goals for this year. Without further ado, here are my 5 sewing goals for 2013.

1. Make my wedding dress.

I'm actually starting this project tomorrow! I'm really excited to make my dress and so far I really don't have any anxiety about it, although anytime I tell someone I'm making my dress they act like I've completely lost my mind. These are some inspiration pictures but I'm planning a full post to explain what look I'm going for and get everyone's advice/approval on the methods I'm planning on using.

 

2. Try some new independent pattern companies.

Specifically Papercut and Deer and Doe. I helped proofread the English version of one of Deer and Does patterns, so now I'm even more excited to try them! Below are the ones I want to order first.

                      
        


3. Actually make the jackets/coats I was planning to in 2012.

I had grand plans of making the Lady Grey, the Anise and Gertie's Starlet Suit Jacket last fall. I even bought all the shell materials, lining, interfacings and tailoring supplies but between switching jobs, moving and general laziness I never got around to it. I'm obsessed with learning to hand tailor so I want to start these jackets right now, even though by the time I finish one jacket it will probably be so hot in Texas I'll barely want to wear anything more than a bathing suit.


                      

4. Expand my pants wardrobe.

I've made 2 versions of the Clover pants and I have one more cut out but I'd like try out a few other pants patterns this year. First, I'm in love with Sunni's coral Burda pants! I've had that pattern for a while and I've always wanted to attempt it so her version has definitely motivated me to pull it out. Also, I'd love to make a pair of Juniper trousers in a pretty grey linen I could wear in the spring and fall.
                      

5. Make something with leather.

I'm really excited about this goal because I just found out (thanks to my mom and dad) that the best leather store in town is just a few blocks from my house! I visited it for the first time the other day and bought 2 gorgeous skeins that I can't wait to work with. I'm thinking something simple initially, like this clutch, then hopefully I can build up my skills to something more intricate!



I've spent the last few days reading everyone else's resolutions and I must say, I think 2013 is going to be a great year for sewing!

All images from my Pinterest.
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Fall Sewing Plans

If y'all know anything about me by now it's that I am not an organized, thoughtful blogger who plans out posts, takes beautiful pictures and creates lovely graphic designs. I'm mostly just a lazy girl who occasionally likes to have people appreciate her sewing (or at least know that she made what she's wearing), since no one I see regularly really cares.

So rather than show you my fall sewing plans in some beautiful way (like those ladies who take the line drawing from a pattern and add in the fabric in photo shop so you can see what the piece will actually look like), I just dumped the fabric on the floor of my living room last night and took pictures with my iPhone. Also, the lighting is terrible. I'm amazed you people put up with me!

So this (with the addition of these two coats) is my fall sewing plan. Or maybe it's more like a wish list. There's a lot of projects and I'm pretty sure I won't complete them all, but this gives me plenty of options depending on my sewing mood (aka: do I want to sew something difficult or easy, a dress or a top or a skirt or a pair of pants, do I want to make something to wear to this weekend, etc.).


First up are PJ's. I've actually already made pants (view F) out of all three of these fabrics from Joann's,
but 2 of them were close to the end of the bolt so I got extra fabric and I think I'll make the short sleeve top (view A) from the same pattern with the extra fabric.

These will become Anise jackets. A mustard one with black and white polka dot lining and a black one
with a red and black polka dot lining. (not sure you can tell there are polka dots on that fabric, but there are). Both of these outer fabrics are medium weight suiting. I know that the suggestion for the pattern is for wool but it's not often cold enough here for too many wool jackets.
Medium weights are better for South Texas.

These will also become jackets. A light grey blazer, view A (with enough fabric left over for maybe a pencil skirt) and something else with the black and white stripe.
Maybe a blazer, maybe another Anise, not sure yet.
Skirts, all pencil skirts, except the grey, which will probably become a Beignet.

These will be tops. The butterfly print on the left will be a tunic like this, the grey/blue polka dot
will probably be this button down, the black/white polka dot something like this,
and I'm still not sure about the fabric on the far right. It's from my New York fabric buying binge and I've never been sure what to do with it...

Next up are dresses. This pretty teal will be a Nicola wrap dress, the grey plaid a simple pullover dress, 
the grey and black floral will be a wrap dress like this, and finally, the pretty mustard floral will be a remake of this dress, probably with a dirndl skirt.

These 2 will be pants. The plaid will be these Vogue trousers and the hot pink corduroy (this stuff is BRIGHT PINK in real life) will be another pair of Clovers.


Finally, these might end up as some combination of suiting pieces. They're all pretty large pieces, so I think I can get a few garments out of each. The left piece might be a dress and maybe a pencil skirt. The grey linen in the middle might be a pair of wide legged pants with a matching vest and the black wool on the right will probably be the Starlet Suit Jacket from Gertie's Craftsy course, (I can't find the link to this class on the main website! wonder if it's no longer available?) with a pencil skirt rather than the one from the course...

I would like to add this last piece of fabric to the project list, but I'm not sure what to do with it. It's a really loose weave knit, that has pleats ironed into it. It's pretty see-through, so it would have to be lined if it was going to be a dress or something. I bought this from Joanns a few months ago. Anybody buy the same fabric or have any ideas?



Oh yeah, I'm also making a quilt but this crazy cat keeps sleeping on it so it's slow going!


So that's my fall/winter sewing plan. I'm sure it will change, things will be added and subtracted, but it's definitely enough to keep me busy! The cutting out starts this weekend...
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