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At the wedding I thought, “I am just going to enjoy this and not worry about taking pictures, because the professional photographer’s pictures will be so much better.”  After the wedding I realized it will be weeks before I see those pictures, which makes it hard to blog about the dress and the flower girl apron.   I said hard, not impossible, so here are a few of the details I can blog about. 

Perhaps the simplest thing I did was the flower girl’s apron.  We opted to use an apron to hold the flower petals instead of a basket.  Kayla, the beautiful flower girl, did an excellent job scattering the petals, and she enjoyed wearing the apron.  (Better pictures to come later.)

I took a piece of lace yardage, cut the bottom layer to the size I wanted and cut the top layer the same width but shorter length.  I  sewed together the side edges,  with the right side of the top layer facing the wrong side of the back layer.  I then turned it and topstitched along the scalloped edge.  I added pleats to each side of the apron to keep the pieces from being flat against one another (making it easier for the flower girl to reach in for the petals) and finished the top edge of the pocket with a simple zigzag.  I cut a length of ribbon long enough for the ties, centered it on the apron and folded it in half over the top edge of the apron and topstitched it in place.  Very simple, and it went perfectly with her purchased dress. 

This photo of the apron doesn’t show off the beauty of the lace, but you can see the general idea.  The ribbon had a little silver sparkle in it which picked up on the silvery accents in the lace.

Here are some pictures of the dress.  We bustled the dress for the reception and had to pull up some in the front too, as the bride changed to a lower shoe for the reception.  Thus the bottom of the dress in these photos doesn’t show the original intent of the dress.

I have the honor and the pleasure of making my daughter’s wedding dress!  She visited some bridal shops and tried on dresses to determine what style she liked best.  I think this is important, as you may think you love something but change your mind once you have tried it on.  Likewise, you may be surprised by the styles that you fall in love with and love your body as well. 

This is the dress Meagan liked. 

Meagan is vertically challenged, and hemming this dress would take away some of its best features.  Also, because of her height, the position and scale of some of the folds weren’t optimal.  By designing the dress just for her, she gets a dress that will be perfect for her. 

I wanted to drape the gown and knew it would be easier to drape it to size rather than alter it.  I used my Click N Sew sloper/fitting garment  software and made a very fitted garment.  We tried it on and I made adjustments and sewed it onto my dress form.  I stuffed it to fit, measuring to make sure my measurements were correct.  I recommend using a tightly woven fabric for the cover. 

Next I made the interlining, which I will attach the boning to.  I can’t drape the skirt without an underskirt to attach the outer skirt to.  I made this and pinned it onto the form.

By the way, this dress form is a duct-tape double I made a long time ago.  The major disadvantage to duct tape forms are the inability to pin into them.  Also, I thought the arms were a good idea at the time, but they just get in the way and look strange when taking photos.  I am going to get a cheap dressform and make a cover my size when I get time.   I have to say I was impressed once again with the Click N Sew basic block pattern  and the fit I got with minimal adjustments. 

This dress is really a lot easier than it looks.  It is draped in 3 parts, the bodice, torso and skirt.  Looking at the muslin, you will still need to use some imagination, as the muslin won’t hold the shape the way the satin will.  Also, I will play more with the shape of the skirt and the tack ups, but the muslin gave me enough of an idea to know what I need to do and I feel confident enough to start with the actual fabric.  I will have a lot of hand sewing/tacking, when I get to the actual dress, which I will be starting this week.

Stay tuned for more details!  When I get a little further on the dress I will tell you the wedding date.  It is closer than you may think and I am panicking enough without hearing your gasps of shock.

I have finally started the Jaquie Fingerless Flap glove pattern by Pepperberry Knits. 

Pierre Cardin became a household name in the 70’s by licensing his name to everything from men’s cologne to umbrellas and keychains.    What a shame, because before he went into trinket overkill, he was an amazing designer. 

In the Texas Fashion Collection at UNT, there are several pieces by PC.  By far my favorite is this beautiful green wool dress with a whimsical  hem band and a neck band with rows of top stitching.   There are 4 symmetrical “petals” to the hem. 

I think the things  I love most about this dress are the structure combined with the whimsy and the clean style lines that are carried into this simple decoration. 

 Of course, the designer and sewist in me loves to see how a technique was successfully accomplished.  In this case, I was surprised to find a thin layer of a spongy type of fabric (not batting) along with a muslin type fabric sandwiched in the band.  There is no particular seam finish to the band, as the rows of stitching will prevent unraveling.  (Click on the picture to view it larger).  I see this more often than one would think in couture garments.  The purist in me would want to bind the edge to make it pretty.  This reinforces my belief that we have set couture on too high a throne for ordinary sewists.  My impression from browsing the garments in the Texas Fashion Collection is that a couture design is a designer using imaginative techniques and mastering the fabric, making it do what he or she wants and end up looking effortless.   It is spending time on the details that matter and letting the fabric’s innate characteristics work in your favor.

 Here is another Pierre Cardin dress in the collection that uses this technique. 

Interestingly, I discovered that in addition to his other licensing activities, PC also delved in the home sewing market.  According to http://vintagepatterns.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Pierre_Cardin there are 42 patterns.  Here are a couple of his patterns that use this stitching technique for a subtle adornment.   

 As an adjunct instructor at the University of North Texas, I am fortunate to be able to browse the aisles of clothing in the Texas Fashion Collection.  If you like this thread, check back or subscribe to my blog, as I will be adding more on a frequent basis

Green has been my favorite color for as long as I can remember.  Even ugly green things, like my first used, ubiquitous green couch from the 60s/early 70s period. 

As a child, my first favorite green thing was moss.  I would gently remove it and resod it into a continuous area.  I could imagine a world where moss was the new grass.  Inevitably, despite my gentleness it died after its transplantation.    Perhaps that was the earliest indication of my love for art and texture and the reason I love velvet and felted wool so much.  Hmmm…

After a lifetime of love for green, I have decided to make green the signature color in my wardrobe.   Although a great part of my wardrobe is black or revolves around black, I don’t think a neutral color should be a signature color…and it is too cliche.  Green makes me happy, and so I am going green.  The good news is I don’t have to throw out anything in my wardrobe or wear green ad nauseum to others who may not love green the way I do.  While I do have some awesome green clothing, I can also accessorize with a touch of green.   I like subtly and I think it fits my personality.  Subtle doesn’t have to be unnoticable.  It can be unforgettable. 

For the first additions to my jewelry collection, I had to look no further than my own Baubled Brooch pattern!   These brooches can be made in as many ways as you can imagine.  Thus each are unique.   Below are 2 of my new green Baubled Brooches.   Both of these pins use water-felted wool and silk that I made at a workshop given by Jill Gully of Outback Fibers (www.outbackfibers.com)   These were the samples we labeled and took home to remember what we did.  Oops.   I couldn’t resist cutting circles from the experimental pieces! 



 The pin above uses a vintage lace flower and a beautiful button in the center.  This one is mine, but check out my etsy page www.dianacouture.etsy.com for other pins using these beautiful vintage lace flowers.



 

  

The green shading on this pin with another piece of the felted wool with silk fibers and has a hint of  rustic berry fibers.  As I stitched onto it, It began to look like an impressionist painting.  The stitches were pretty much random, as is the beading.  I love contrasts as much as I love texture, and as I stitched I meditated on the balance of order and chaos, circles and straight lines, belonging versus not belonging, as well as random and planned.  Perhaps a little deep for a simple pin, but these thoughts and subjects seem to be informing my ideas for upcoming works.   Beginning to work them out on a small scale is a great way to delve into new ideas.

I love making these pins and am excited to have learned the craft of wet felting.  I think it will continue to be a great source for felt for my pins as well a larger projects.  When looking for felt for your own Baubled Brooches, visit the thrift shop for old wool garments to wash/felt.  Also, wool rug hooking suppliers have some nice felts as well.   The Baubled Brooch pattern, as well as my complete line of patterns, can be found at www.dianacouture.com/patterns.htm.  All patterns are sent via e-mail.   Buy the pattern today, wear your pin tomorrow!