Shift dress with a side fold
Last week I posted my draping on the stand progress. I mentioned that rather than a skirt I wanted to make a shift dress. Here is the inspiration picture again (isn’t it lovely?)
I used a simple, yoked shift dress, keeping the back the same as designed, just adapting the front skirt section by creating a whole pattern, pleating it, and then cutting it so that the pleated section is on the cross. For interest I created the front yoke on the cross grain and the back yoke on the bias (joined across, rather than a chevron arrangement, as I wanted it to echo the front.)
At this stage the pleat was pinned across and the side seams were pinned only. The tailors tack is CF waist.
I lined the dress with two pieces of left over fabric. The bodice is lined with the £2 metre fabric I bought for my circle dress; the dress is lined with a fairly robust silk – both of them in navy. This saved me making facings. I find it quite helpful to use my dress stand to do linings by turning the outfit inside out, especially when the hem line is so unreliable, as it is with this dress. I let it hang around a bit too, due to the bias cut at the hem.
I did briefly consider making pleated sleeves – the sort that Sew2Pro has championed. But when I tried the basted dress on – with its very linear look – I thought my bare arms were light relief against the fabric. The dark navy is a bit deep for me, lifted to a degree by the light blue-grey stripe. So my arms and silver jewellery will bright some lightness into the outfit. But overall it is a structural, architectural look. I made a little stock, or cravat for the dress with some of the left over fabric, using the lovely red selvedge for a tiny splash of colour. The shift dress isn’t ideal for my curved body shape, but the dress looks quite nice with a belt and a jacket too. It’s so dark when I get home from work at the moment – these pictures aren’t very good – I have lightened them a bit!
The Indian Flag flies proudly in London this week!
Mr Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India has recently been in London, where he addressed both Houses of Parliament. I am glad we were able to put on a good show with the flags which I saw last Friday, a sunny autumnal day. Can you see Churchill? Westminster Abbey? A London taxi and a red bus?
I love the Indian flag – not just the splendid colour scheme – white, saffron and a particularly Indian green. Did you know that the Indian flag must be hand woven with handspun cotton, and features a spinning wheel at its centre?
You maybe aware that Gandhi’s non-violent struggle against British Imperialism took a number of forms. I remember my father telling me about the Salt March. But the aspect that interested me the most was his approach to cloth, clothes and spinning. I learnt more about this when we visited the Gandhi museum in Mumbai – I would recommend it, if you go there.
The flag, by law, must be completely hand made in the rural areas of India. The fabric, known as Khadi cloth, emphasises the idea of self reliance in cloth and clothing was a very important tenet of the Gandhian movement from the 1920s onwards. At mass rallies and protests Indian people were encouraged to set fire to their imported British goods. Cotton grows in India and the raw material was exported to Britain by the British who wove high quality fabrics in factories (my father’s father started such a business in Lancashire at around this time, concentrating initially on ribbons and narrow fabrics). The woven, bleached, dyed or printed fabrics were then imported to India where they were sold at relatively high prices. Gandhi campaigned for people to reject these fabrics and instead rely on making their own yarns and cloth even though the quality was in some senses “inferior” (although everyone likes homespun these days). Gandhi encouraged men and women to spin their own cotton and the Ashok Chakra in the centre of the flag is a spinning wheel.
Ghandi not only learned to spin himself; he taught mass rallies to do so (while they listened to political speeches), invented a small portable spinning wheel, and he encouraged all his supporters to spin daily and to weave the Khadi fabric for their own Kurtas (shirts). He wore just a Dhoti wrap, made from Khadi – which certainly caused a stir when he travelled to chilly London for negotiations.
Wearing hand made cloth, rejecting factory products, became a sign of nationalistic commitment. Even today these fabrics and garments are prized in India, and often chosen on Independence day in Patriotic colours.
I like the simplicity and subtle quality of the Khadi cloth – usually cotton but silk is available too. You can see examples of Kurta cloth at the Fabrics of India exhibition at the moment. There is also a short film about Gandhi which covers the role of textiles in the Independence Movement, covered in this interesting post.
Meeting the Fabulous Dr E!
Last weekend I had a very important visitor, Elizabeth of The Fabulous Dr E’s Fabulous Blog. Elizabeth is an American who moved to the UK in her twenties and moved to Sweden a couple of years ago. Her husband is Swedish and she now lives in a small place, near water, where they both pursue an academic life.
What an interesting, creative person Elizabeth turned out to be. If you look at her website you will see a wide range of fascinating topics covered from how to make clothes for children, dolls and ladies; to bag making, knitting and crafting. She is also rather knowledgeable about photography and technology. She has an ancient sock knitting machine, and quite a few other bits of kit. Getting this old trooper to work has been a tortuous process but Elizabeth has carefully logged it all in case someone else, out there in the internet world, wishes to do the same.
I came across Elizabeth on Artisan’s Square where she is SWAP stalwart, but also someone who created a variation on the SWAP called the 6PAC. This is an approach to creating a seasonal wardrobe that works well. Do have a look if this might appeal to you.
It was fun to have Elizabeth round on a brief visit to London with her family. She wanted her kids to enjoy Halloween over here (not that Halloween in London is much to write home about). Elizabeth kindly put on a pair of our slippers and made herself at home – having a look at my sewing area, fabric storage and notions drawer. She has also written a lot about creating a fantastic sewing area.
Anyway I am very fond of this extraordinary woman. She embraced me on Artisans’ Square when I was a “new or quiet member”. She is very chatty on the site whereas I am fairly restrained but she was so warm and friendly I really appreciated it.
Through the internet I have met such great sewing women – most recently Lesley from Australia. Every connection has been illuminating and enriching and I feel so privileged to have made such nice friends.
Sewing with a Plan 2016 0.3 – A neutrals collection?
Although I have a reputation for being a little bit radical with my colour and clothing choices I do love neutrals and wear them frequently. They are easy to wear for work, go with everything and can be a good way to tone down something a bit obvious like a pink dress. I like wearing light grey or beige to work, especially in spring. It only takes a nice scarf to stop it looking boring.
In real life I would not necessarily wear grey with grey, or beige with beige, but I can. I suit cool colours at the lighter end of the scale and have accumulated a few nice fabrics over the last couple of years that I feel I should deploy. I would always find some bright colour too – pink, turquoise, bright blue for example – to stop it looking too sludgey. My friend Lyn Bromley commented:
Anything but beige, please!!! It’s so not you. I can’t even imagine you in beige when you are 101!
In my fabric cupboard I have a range of nice cool beiges and greys. There are some fabrics I have used before, but a few I have bought with no plan in mind. So I thought I would try a notional grey/beige swap and see if it might work for me. I would also rely on some tried and tested patterns that I have used before.
Pod 1; Grey
Grey chiffon blouse, grey wool skirt, grey fitted jacket
Pod 2; Beige
Beige skirt (with dinosaurs), beige linen blouse, beige coat
Combo pack
Grey silk dress, beige shirt waister
Wildcards
yellow trousers, bright pink top, colourful painted silk skirt
I am attracted to this collection which would be classic and calm and would actually extend my existing wardrobe no end. I am sure other SWAPpers would concur that just because you present an “outfit” or “set” in your SWAP pictures, we hardly ever actually wear the set together. It might be a bit too matchy-matchy. I love my SWAP outfits but I really mix them up and de-formalise them – here is how I actually look on an average day. .
If I do the beige and grey SWAP I would concentrate on some nice shapes, using lovely fabrics. I would be the first to admit that they do look a bit, well dull, piled up on each other. This is probably why they are an unmoving part of my stash – they don’t excite, do they? The other thing is – would the inherent calm of these fabrics provide me with energy, or would they sap it? Sewing for four months with neutrals seems a bit like purgatory, despite the wild cards.
Hmm. I do like a challenge, but maybe this isn’t the SWAP for me.
Draping on the stand 0.11 – Folded on the cross skirt
(Sorry if you are confused by my posting this morning. I am sleep-deprived after a long night of babysitting. The children were very good and slept until 4am. The problem was my daughter’s hyperactive, nocturnal cat. It cried all night and then, when let into the bedroom at about 1am, wanted to play “catch the mouse” with my hand and arm. Which involved “play biting”. Most unwelcome. So now I am feeling completely knackered. Hence I put the wrong post up earlier.)
Let’s have another look at my skirt inspiration. This is a Westwood RTW skirt with a huge chunk of fabric picked up and caught into the side seam, so that the hem is on the bias and the stripes on the skirt are intriguing. I really fell for this look but wanted to put my own twist on it.
First I started with some small bits of calico that I drew parallel lines on with a pencil (roughly). Then I folded and cut to see what would happen. I tried with different proportions.
Although my fold is different to Westwood in that I have a fair amount of bulk at the hem I rather liked this idea. However there are three layers at the base which is perhaps a bit thick. Then, using the stand, I draped a skirt with this sort of fold. As I took the fabric up to consider how to achieve a nice waist line finish I took the fabric up to the bust, thinking this might work well as a shift dress. I am thinking of creating a shift dress, with a separate bodice taking up the bust dart. It might be quite fun. What do you think?
I then did a few more experiments with the fold, this time using a softer cotton left over. The pleat here is smaller and more acute, still bringing the stipes together in an interesting way. This is something closer to the Westwood pleat. Can see the relatively small”dart” formed in this way? On the right I have opened up the fabric (once the side seams and hem is cut off) to show the shape of the pattern piece.
I bought some nice striped wool at £8 a metre at Oakmount. I think it may have once been used for blazers.
I will make this up and show you my results soon.
The Fabric of India at the Victoria and Albert Museum
If you like fabric – woven, embroidered, block printed, dyed; silk, cotton, wool; ancient, Victorian or modern; made into clothes, shawls, wall hangings, carpets or tents; if you love colour and India – this is a marvellous exhibition which I would heartily recommend. If you can’t get to London have a look at the V&A website and watch the videos. (All pictures from V&A website)
The exhibition is summarised by the V&A;
The highlight of the V&A’s India Festival, The Fabric of India will be the first major exhibition to explore the dynamic and multifaceted world of handmade textiles from India, spanning from the 3rd century to the present day. Showcasing the best of the V&A’s world-renowned collection together with masterpieces from international partners and leading designers, the exhibition will feature over 200 objects, many on display for the first time. Visitors can expect a stunning range of historic dress, heirloom fabrics, and cutting-edge fashion.
I went with a friend Sam Tennakoon (whose family originates in Sri Lanka). There is a great deal to see – and while it is an expensive exhibition if you are not a member – we loved the exhibition and felt you really get your money’s worth.
The exhibition starts with an explanation of Indigo dying, showing a dress, a turban and other items. Then we move on to red fabric – some of it dyed with madder, some with insects. And then a big display of yellow items – deriving their vivid hue from pomegranate skins and turmeric. There are lots of tiny, intricate tye dyes which is fascinating. The block printing (a particular interest of mine) held my attention, especially the video of how the wood blocks are made by a whole team. For a while I have been thinking about going to India to learn more about block printing. This company offers some amazing, although rather expensive, tours.
I was also wowed by the embroidery on show. A shawl is embroidered with a map of the area, including trees, lakes and houses. The tent was stupendous and we sat under it for a while, imagining what it must have been like to rest inside it, in the desert, the embroidered trees making it seem like we were in a lush forest.
And there were clothes too. The modern looking tie dye turban was so fresh (from the 1880s!), and the beetle wings embroidered into a Victorian border were stunning too.
There are really some amazing things to see. At the end there were some modern versions of the Sari. The blue one was tie dyed with indigo to look like moons. The lemon sari was embroidered with a running stitch to look like differently shaped pebbles. The orange sari had crows printed on it. Sam told me that Ceylonese saris are worn quite differently to Indian ones. Something I need to find out more about – maybe I can persuade her to do a blog post for us.
Making up the draped skirt (flat pattern version)
Yesterday I explained how I made a pattern for a skirt with a side pleat. This pattern will work best with a plaid or tartan with medium body. I used some medium, stable, 100% woolen curtaining fabric (seconds) that I got at Oakmount in Burnley at £12.99 a metre. I really liked the blue-purple, light turquoise, grey and navy colour scheme. Full price is apparently £30 a metre, but the light blue wool is a bit “fluffy”. No problem for me – it adds a bit of interest.
I suggested laying this pattern out at 45 degrees. When I actually got the fabric out I realised I wanted to match the side seam that is not folded. So I messed around a bit with the pieces until I had the right hand seam (featuring the zip) lined up (the picture doesn’t show how I did it, sorry).
Once cut out I applied iron on interfacing to the area that the zip was going in, but to be honest the fabric is very stable and gave me no problems whatsoever. But when you cut off grain you do have to treat those seams with respect. I actually stay stitched most of them. This also meant when I folded the side fold I stay stitched it to hold the angle firmly in place.
I didn’t fancy a waist band, so I created facings, to which i attached a piece of left over silk lining. This waist finish is very comfortable and as it sits a little low on the waist it can accommodate any slight fluctuations in midriff sizes.
One thing I didn’t explain on my previous post was that I partly closed the back dart and created a little stride width in the back skirt piece (you can see it on yesterday’s post if you look carefully at the paper pattern). With the turquoise skirt it was just a little bit tight over the knees and has begun to come apart at the seams. So this one is a much more comfortable fit all round, especially in terms of walking which is what I do rather a lot of. In fact in my job I do have to go up ladders or step through windows from time to time so ease of movement is very important to me.
That’s it. Simples.
I am pretty pleased with this skirt – it is nice and easy to wear but it has a little drama. It also goes with my new blue Barcelona glasses. I like the side pleat (which maybe could have been bigger) and the waist treatment. It is just the hem which knows it is not straight. In retrospect I have been thinking of separating the front and back sections with a side split at each side and actually finishing the hem on grain, so that we finish with a straight-grain hem, but the back and front go in different directions.
I can’t really draw what I mean. I may have to make one.
Post script
Since publishing this post, I found a picture on the internet of more or less what I was thinking. The back and front of this green skirt go in different directions, but the hem is stitched on the straight grain. (Not sure about the flash of red lining – that might be an issue).
How to make a Westwood style skirt pattern from a skirt block
When I was draping the skirt with the side pleat I thought about doing the same pattern but using the flat pattern cutting method.
It was an interesting experiment.
This is a draped pencil skirt, cut on the (non-true) bias, with a fold at the right side and a zip in the left side seam. Here is how I did it.
- Using your straight skirt block, or a commercial pattern for a straight skirt (with two front darts), make up a full pattern by tracing it and joining on the fold.
Full pattern piece for pencil skirt - Draw a line from the left side seam to the base of the left hand dart at approximately right angles, slash and spread so that the dart appears in the side seam.
Close left hand dart and open in side seam - Draw a second line from about thigh level(say 8 to 10 inches below the first side seam dart) to the base of the right hand dart. Again cut along this line and the side of the dart. Close the second dart allowing the dart to open in the side seam.
Close right hand dart and open in the side seam - Now that you have transferred both darts to the side seam you will need to add paper to take up the small high dart and large lower dart. Now create a large box pleat from the paper, and pin it so that the length of the left side seam is the same length as the right one. Mark the pleats clearly. Draw in a new side seam, the same shape as you have for the right side. Cut through all layers of paper so that the pleat is the right shape.
- If you want a more exaggerated look slash again from the left side to the base of the right dart and spread again (I didn’t do this)
- For the back of the skirt you can just use your skirt block or the back of the commercial pattern.
- Finally create a new grain line on both front and back of the pattern. I created a grain line at about 45 degrees. (However I adjusted the layout slightly to make best use of the width of the fabric)
Draw in new grain line on front and back pattern pieces - This pattern works well on striped or checked fabric so the changes in the grain will be evident.
- Take care in construction as the seams will stretch. In order to minimise this I found it helpful to stay stitch the large side box pleat and the waistline. You can get a good pattern match on the left side seam (which includes the zip), so concentrate on this when cutting out. Obviously because of the pleat on the right this will be much less likely, although you could create a pleat with one whole repeat if the fabric lent itself to this).
- I used the last bit of my grey “wool” to toile this pattern – I will make it up in something more exciting and show you tomorrow.
Toile in grey wool
Sewing with a Plan 2016 0.2
The rules for this year’s Sewing with a Plan challenge are up! I am in. Are you?
This is a six month plan for sewing – two months of planning and preparing and four months of actually sewing between nine and 11 garments. It is suitable for all levels of ability and can be based on commercial patterns. The rules are very flexible and enable you to create a “wardrobe” that works together and will see you through a season – often for a few years. I have loved joining in for the camaraderie and interest. It is not very competitive and there are no prizes – but there is a huge amount of effort, discovery and sharing. If you pace yourself, and proceed at the level you are comfortable with, there is a good amount of challenge without it being overwhelming. This is what I did last year.
So what are the rules this year?
1 “3 pack” A of one or more Color(s) (3 garments)
1 “3 pack” B of one or more Color(s) (3 garments)
1 “Combo Pack” of Colors used in A & B (2 garments)
1 “3 pack” of Wild Cards
And in more detail
A “3 pack” will be:
2 tops + 1 bottom
or
1 top + 1 bottom + 1 outer layer
or
1 dress + 1 top + 1 bottom
or
The final 3 pack option is 1 dress + 1 top OR bottom + 1 layer.
The “Combo Pack” can be just about anything, but they must be garments, not accessories (scarves, belts, bags, etc). The “Wild Cards” can also be any color, or any color combination, but for this to work they will need to follow the format of one of the other “3 packs”. That is, you’ll need more tops, bottoms, or dresses to make the wardrobe work.
For this to work for you, the “combo pack” may need to be both tops, or both bottoms, but two more dresses is allowable for those of you who wear them. If you’re in the colder climes or need business attire, a jacket can be either a part of the combo pack or a wild card, whichever will work for you best.
A “top” will be any shirt or blouse worn on the upper half; a “bottom” will be any garment worn on the lower half, and it shouldn’t be obscene to wear either without another layer.
A “dress” will be any garment that covers both upper and lower halves, and again, it shouldn’t be obscene to wear it without an additional layer.
An “outer layer” will any jacket or sweater that is intended to be a second layer, over a top or a dress. If it can also be worn alone, that is fine.
A “bib” garment will considered a bottom, unless it can be worn alone without a top under or over it.
Two garments may be previously sewn, one may be purchased, and because I’m late with the rules, two may be sewn up before the official sewing start date of Dec 26, 2015. Muslins, pattern fitting, cutting, interfacing, and other preparatory work may begin right away. All garments must be finished by April 30, 2016.
I love it that obscene clothing is ruled out! Otherwise it is a very flexible plan and allows lots of creativity, especially with colour. From now until Christmas I will be posting every Saturday as I develop my own SWAP plan. At the moment I have three competing ideas for themes:
- A lightweight summery collection, based on sweet peas
Silver porringer with sweet peas - A tailored collection inspired by Vivienne Westwood
Vivienne Westwood outfit (inspiration) - A neutral based collection using grey and beige
Beige stash
Of course I want to do all three! My dear artist friend ChezSews is making SWAP plans herself. Her comment on my plan is interesting:
I like your ‘Sweet Pea’ concept, the mid pinks and purple will really suit you and say “summer casual”. The sweet pea theme is sort of the middle of the grey/beige neutral classic and the Vivienne Westwood dramatic collection. Have you thought of sneaking in a grey classic bottom? or a VW inspired pink/purple (Linton Tweed?) jacket/top.
Cheryl recognises that most of us have a dramatic side, and a boring side, and in my case I try for classic with a twist. I will have to give all these thoughts some consideration.
But stay with me – I will come up with something workable (and I even hope for wonderful) by the end of the year.
And if you sew do consider joining in. It would be just great to be following along with you.
Time for a bit of remodelling?
I can’t say I am a great fan of remodelling existing outfits. I had a go last year as part of the SWAP contest, and was pretty underwhelmed with it. It took forever to reclaim the fabric and then I didn’t much care for the outcome. But on Instagram there are a few people who put up before and after pictures which are a lot of fun. I could give you a picture of some fabric, and then show the outfit, but it is fun to see someone looking ridiculously swamped or hideously dated, and then – a few days later – we see a picture of the horrid hippy blouse turned into a gorgeous sexy top – for example. These professional photo shoots normally work best on fantastically pretty girls – the remodelling will always need to be smaller than the starting garment so it helps if you have nice, slim legs and a washboard tummy. One person I follow is Sarah Tyau a petite Korean-American who does this all the time.
Which reminds me. One of my dear friends is a big supporter of the Museum of London. He met the person responsible for all the clothes in their collection, who explained the small sizes of many of the items in their collection. Aparently this was not due to people being much smaller than they are today, but due to them constantly being cut down and remade for smaller people, including younger adults. It’s obvious really.
Using the “changing room selfie” method, standing in sad, grubby, overly lit, faux wood changing room, I had a go myself. Complete with recycled plastic hangers and a charity advert and a particularly washed out complexion. In a moment of madness I bought a suit in a Traid charity shop that is currently unwearable. Certainly over my trousers it’s a bit of a shocker. The shoulders, in particular, are much too big for me. The suit is size 44 (UK s16) so it should be possible to make something of it.
Of course what attracted me to this suit is the lovely colours and the fact that it is mainly made from wool, with a bit of polyester. I think I will be able to remodel the skirt fairly easily – not sure what to do about the jacket. Maybe a nice hat?
What do you think? Do you think I can make something nice from this? Just the skirt? A coat? A suit? Has anyone every restyled a jacket – is it likely that it will yield enough cloth?
I would appreciate any feedback – thank you.
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