Happy New Year Fellow Fabric Lovers!
Welcome to 2015 - The Year of Garment Sewing!!!
Welcome to 2015 - The Year of Garment Sewing!!!
If you are anything like me, you crave a unique wardrobe created with fabrics you love and full of garments that fit you! Why not spend some time at our pattern table (or in our webstore) and pick out designs that will flatter your figure and make you smile. Or you can start by cruising our fabric aisles to see and feel what calls out to you! All our fabric is yummier than ever - year round cotton, not just special occasion silks, Italian wool, comfy rayon and knits for every day running around…how can it get any better than this?!
My seamstress Laurel and I spotted this beautiful Asian inspired "chirimen" rayon - it came in two different patterns and each of us wanted a dress from it. The two of us tend to gravitate to the same fabrics though our body types are totally different.
After seeing our Mary Jane in a (Vogue 1390) loose fitting dress at our Sandra Betzina event in November, I wanted this design, too. Laurel wanted something more fitted, so she chose the New Look 6013 pattern, which we have already mad twice for me. Either design will be smashing in this rayon fabric. And, needless to say, Laurel made a muslin first to ensure a great fit!Since Laurel actually had an upcoming event to wear her dress, we started there. We used a soft cotton batiste to inner-line the body of the dress to add a little weight to the rayon. We also chose a black linen-look rayon fabric for the sleeves and added a band around the hemline to "frame" this busy pattern. Remember: it these design details are the very things that make your dress unique to you.
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| Secure the inner lining to the fabric using a zig zag stitch |
Nothing says Asian influence like Chinese red on black…
so red thread for the serged seams and,
just for grins, why not add a bright red zipper?
so red thread for the serged seams and,
just for grins, why not add a bright red zipper?
Securing a facing is either done by tacking it by hand or sewing it by machine, usually resulting in a top stitched effect. Laurel's first inclination was to just add a stabilizing top stitch to the neckline facing...but since we're going all out here, let's try a fancy stitch...
After making the Key Stitch pattern in red thread, it became more than obvious that the line of red stitching was too pretty to hide (we can thank her hubby for the suggestion - "Why would you hide that?!). So instead of turning the facing at the neckline seam, she shifted the facing upward to expose the beautiful key stitching. To secure the facing, a "stitch in the ditch" technique was used.
Oh so very pretty!
Laurel's dress inside out…
Details that only you can see make it unique!
Details that only you can see make it unique!
And, the finished dress - total perfection!
We have to say it looks amazing on our Laurel!
She wore it to her friend's "Fancy Coat" dinner,
where a group of friends all wore their fancy coats,
celebrated womanhood and shared some great food.
where a group of friends all wore their fancy coats,
celebrated womanhood and shared some great food.
(In case you wondered, Laurel's "fancy" coat is a vintage Joseph Magnin swing coat fashioned in silk faille fabric, not a fabric that you see too much these days…)
It sounded like a great evening! Now I'm anxious to see the Sandra Betzina design made up for me in this luscious rayon print - sometimes its nice to make an average day special by wearing something special! Truthfully, you can dress this fabric down if need be...pair it with some leggings or boots. The fabric would make a great short jacket too, check out the chairmen rayons we have in stock below (or find another great choice!):
Have a dress that you've made? Send us a photo! We all inspire each other and that's what makes sewing SEW FUN!!!
Creatively Yours,
Suzan
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