Fast forward to the present, and I'm revisiting my first love of making clothes, this time with an old singer 237 sewing machine. The project? A fabulous gown for the upcoming O'Christmas Trees Auction/Gala on December 3rd. Follow my photographic journey through this couture process, and cross your fingers for me that this will turn out a success!
day 1:
the sketch
my trusty fashion mate
I love my dress form
filling the bobbin
the first pinnings
ironing down the pleats
the needle is threaded
the neckline
made with love
it gets pinned before i sew
voila! a zipper
fitting #1, still kind of lumpy
*** This silk dupioni fabric was purchased in New York city at Mood Fabrics, made popular by the tv show Project Runway. I knew I wanted a bright jewel tone gown, and this blue is hard to find in fabric stores in Seattle.
day 2:
made in studio V
the back
fitting #2, looking more like a dress
*** I've already started to make minor mistakes in this process, thus owing much respect to the couturiers who do this for a living.
day 3:
starting to make a mess with all these scraps
unstitching a mistake
making straps
strike while the iron is hot
voila! straps!
godet cut out and ready to fit
godet stitching
*** I’ve been working on the dress for 2 hours a day, mostly during the day when there’s a broad amount of ambient light filling the room. So a total of about 6 hours has been spent on it so far. There’s still tons of finishing touches that need to be made, such as delicate beading that I will hand sew onto the straps.
day 4 and 5:
added the hook and eye
beads to be hand sewn onto the straps
timely sewing of beads by hand
more beads on the back of dress
finished straps
finished back
finished hemline
*** I did deviate a bit from my original sketch, adding the beading and altering the straps a bit. However, there's nothing wrong with improvising, as I let my creativity decide each new step.
There's a huge sense of pride in making one's own clothing. Every choice that I made for this dress came from my heart, so just knowing that it's one of a kind is the greatest accomplishment.
I'll finally get to wear it tonight, December 3rd. More photos and another blog of the finished gown to come!
