Kittys Drawings

Hello!
On Friday I finished this pattern:

I’ve had this one for a while but wasn’t sure what to make it up from – I didn’t have anything in my stash that would fit the bill – the bill being a lightweight fabric with a lot of drape….Rayon? Yes. I don’t have a lot of it and what I do have is already earmarked for other things.
But then I saw that Sew Retro Rose had recently been to Spotlight and found RAYON there – tropical print rayon at that. WITH BIRDS ON IT.
Omg!!
She was so kind as to purchase me some and send it my way, and this is what I made – also a wrap dress but from the 40s instead of 50s.

This pattern came together really easily – complete in two and a bit sessions – probably about three hours all up. There’s really not much to it – I can’t even say what was the hardest part. Even the hand sewing is quite minimal, just tacking down facings. I finished the seams with rayon Hug Snug binding – though there are two French seams on the back gores of the skirt. I did a narrow hem as I think this looks neater on wrap skirts where the sections can flip up more than in a regular skirt. It also makes this a very economical dress – I used about 2m of quite wide fabric.

You can’t see the details too well in these pics – it’s the curse of prints I guess – but it’s more apparent in real life The gathers at the front are awesome – there’s five rows there and also some at the shoulders.

The closures are just two sets of hook & eyes and a tiny snap at the bust to keep it from gaping open (learnt this the hard way *cough*).
It’s a very breezy, casual and comfortable dress that is perfect for any more 38°C+  days that may be thrust upon us this summer. Plus this amazing fabric works with a LOT of colours, most notably red which always makes me very happy.

The shoes are Miss L Fire of course – I just had these re-soled so they get to be worn again. They’re a smidgen big though so can be annoying to walk in for long distances. I’ve put little heel stickies in them which has helped a bit. They’re my standard EU size 37 – does anyone else have Miss L Fire’s that *dont* have straps and can tell me if they ALL run large? In case I want to buy another pair of pumps…(likeliness of this happening: 100%). This is why I usually buy shoes with straps because then, a tiny difference in size isn’t going to have your shoe falling off your foot every fifth step.

Any-whooo….I don’t know what to start next! How bad is that! I’ve got some odds and ends that need doing – patterns to trace and things to mend. Not sure if I should get stuck into those?
My green coat is still on my mind too – I’ve found a place on eBay that sells heavier weight silk charmeuse for either $20p/yard for 100% silk or $10p/yard for 60% silk, 40% rayon. I need at least 7 yards just to be safe. Thoughts on what I should get? Both are an investment and this coat already isn’t cheap so cost, while it is a factor, I know I just need to suck it up.

Ugh – and my pics are pretty grainy and out of focus today – the camera wasn’t behaving….

Well that ought to be it for today. Till soon…

Hello Everyone!
Woowee am I excited to show you this latest creation!

EVERYTHING is awesome about it ;-P If I do say so myself! Haha.

Pattern: Butterick 3989 – from early to mid 40′s I think. From the amazing Evadress Patterns
Fabric: Awesome tropical print rayon WITH PINEAPPLES from eBay. This isn’t vintage as the selvedge mentions “Hoffman Internation Fabrics 2001″. How COOL is it!? I have another piece which has Plumerias and palm trees on it!

Notions: Just a heap of snaps and thread. Duh.

Cost: About $28 – The pattern was $20, the fabric I got three yards for $6 plus shipping, and snaps are cheapish. Still enough fabric left for a top
Changes Made: Made it knee length – easy! ZERO fit alterations – These patterns fit SO well straight outta the box! Yay!
Finishing: I used selvedge as best as I could, and rayon seam binding on most seams. The curve seam at the front I zigzagged.
Notes: I made a boo-boo with this! I don’t usually make any serious mistakes but here I did. I traced the front draped skirt piece to make a new piece, since I didn’t think I could do my usual trick of folding the pattern piece up to shorten it. It’s a bit of a weird shape and I didn’t want to hack at my pattern. Yes I am naughty and cut straight from precious pieces of paper that are older than my grandma (almost). Though this wasn’t the real reason I made a boo-boo, but it probably helped. See, this dress has quite a few pieces that are only cut once, so it’s important you’re cutting the right side of the fabric. Get where I’m going here? Yep! I cut this piece the wrong way round so I had two left facing skirt sections. Derpalina!
Easily fixed though and the rest of the make was easy….

Until I got to the sleeves…

Yeh this confused me for a bit. I couldn’t figure out how the little tiny sleeve section was to join the cap sleeve, and still be finished on the outside. I decided to just follow the instructions and baste each piece in (instead of taking a shortcut and sewing straight away) – and what do you know? Patience won out and it made sense once I’d basted it all together. It’s a bit of an interesting way to finish a sleeve – and involves less hand sewing than Mccall 6006.

The gathers are so cool, as well as the asymmetrical neckline. These details might have been more visible using a plain fabric but I LOVE prints so much.

Next project and other things – My 1940′s trench coat is cut out. I also found some lining online for my green coat. Silk and rayon blend from Vietnam – the price was very good so I’m hoping it’s nice when I get it. It’s going to be a rich purple colour – a nice contrast to the apple green. *GRIN*
Also went to Brunswick the other day and found some very light white cotton for the underlining of a very special project (hints are on Facebook). Savers was picked clean of anything good – Just got some dark green cotton drill which would be good for a pencil skirt, and buttons to match. Coincidentally I found some Jeffrey Campbell shoes today in the SAME SHADE for $65. Bought. Yep. No more spending til next pay-day so dont let me! Hah.
I’m not usually that keen on the crazy Jeffrey Campbells I see around the parts…I like crazy shoes, but not ones that make your feet look like giant hooves. Errgh. Anyways, you’ll probably see them eventually.

I’m continuing on with hair experiments. This one is a bit blah but the roll is cool. I don’t think my face shape is suited to have two rolls on the top of my head so one will do for now. I’ve purchased some setting lotion and lots of pin-curl clips and currently have my hair setting. Fingers crossed for a nice result tomorrow!

Enough rambling – time to go!

Ciao!

Hi Everyone!
Been a bit long since I last posted huh?
The parents were up last weekend so I was running around too much to take photos. Though you might have seen some on Instagram. I have no idea how to link my profile tho. Usually I’m good with techy things too. If you go to my FB page there’s a few Instagram pics there and I guess you can follow from those.

Sooo – this dress. I’ll do a nice list of details kinda like the Sew Weekly posts because they are easier to read aren’t they?

Pattern: Simplicity 3835 from the 40′s – early in the decade I think, but can’t be sure.
Fabric: Pastel green sheer with white floral flocking – possibly nylon? New Japanese made fabric bought from one of the little shops on Sydney Rd Brunswick.
Notions: A heap of snaps and 3 tiny hook & eyes.
Cost: About $13 – $5 p/m for the fabric – I used just about 2m. Snaps were probably about $3 – they’re so expensive here and I use heaps of them. Need to buy them in bulk from somewhere!

Changes Made: Lowered the neckline a smidgen (just by hacking at the front piece where the bow sits) since it was super high. That’s all! The pattern pieces are for the long skirt so I wouldn’t count shortening them as an alteration.
Finishing: Snaps and hook & eyes at waist with an opening on both sides. One side is lapped and the other with just the seam folded over and stitched twice. Narrow hem on skirt and belt ties. Seams finished using a double stitch, about 1mm apart and then trimmed. I couldn’t be bothered with French seams for this. Lazy!

Verdict: Love it!! I’ve wanted to make something with this fabric for a while – and it’s been planned for many things but I settled on this pattern in the end. I love sheer dresses and want to make more! I’m only wearing a nude coloured slip under this but wearing a bright layer would be so cool – the possibilities are endless. It’s not really winter clothing but who cares? It’s not really colder than wearing any other dress in winter. Plus it WILL be awesome when the hot weather rolls around. It was really easy to make but there is quite a lot of hand finishing – I guess these earlier patterns don’t come with all the facings either. I was instructed to cut my own bias strip to finish the neck edges and to cut a piece for the bow.
The double side openings are interesting too, because it only says to lap one side. If I made this again, I’d do a lapped opening on both sides because it’s tidier. Even if it takes more work.

(look – seams! Hehe. And my hair is freshly ‘redded’ – yay!)

My makeup – since I thought I’d show you….The lipstick was a gift from the always fabulous Super Kawaii Mama for when I helped her out with the vintage bridal talk she had at the Love Vintage fair. The colour is so rich and the actual lipstick smells like cinnamon – nice!

I don’t always wear the Laura Mercier powder – sometimes opting for Revlon Colorstay, but this one is really good. It has great coverage. I bought it off StrawberryNET so the colour is a shade too dark – will go lighter next time! Not that you can tell in the photos.
The concealer I always rave about to everyone who will listen – I’ve had it for ages and it’s the best concealer in the world – covers EVERYTHING. And you only need the tiniest smidgen.
I could rabbit on about the other things but I wont. Heh. If you have any questions, do ask!

Now onto other news: I’m making another dress – haha! Surprised? I went a bit mental this month and bought a shitload of different rayons. Some from Denver Fabrics and the rest from eBay. Dad also bought me some really amazing black and purple pure wool plaid from the Vic Markets. It will become a wiggle dress with an empire waist and black bow at the back. I’ve never matched plaids so wish me luck with that one!
The coat is still going nowhere – waiting for payday so I can get some lining for it. I’ve not found anything good online so I’m going to try my luck out at Brunswick or maybe hit up Tessuti.

Umm…what else – Work has been crazy-busy lately – 12 hour shifts in front of the computer are intense. It’s not going to let up for a while either. There will definitely be less time to sew next week. But I should finish my current project.

Bla blah – okay I think I’m done! This post has taken me ages….Time to go relax and watch a movie. I haven’t even done any sewing today – might leave that for Sunday.

Oh and thanks for all the comments on my shirt post I’m really behind on replying but I will get to it eventually!

Ciao for now!

Hiii!

LOTS of pics today!!

This dress, made from Mccall’s 6006 (1945) has to be my favourite make so far! I am so so in love with 1940′s Mccall’s patterns – they’re just the best. What I love about this one is – the cool cap sleeves…If you could call them that. Maybe flutter sleeves? The tucks at the shoulder and back waist. The gathering on the front waist….The awesome gored skirt.

I didn’t change much on this pattern at all. The waist came in about 1.5 inches.

The fabric is more from my stash. I’ve been waiting to use this one on the perfect pattern and I’m glad it became this. It’s a cotton of some sort with the nice soft drape perfect for this era.

I did quite a bit of hand finishing – The way the sleeve attaches to the bodice requires a lot of turning over and sewing down since there’s quite a few raw edges under there. Very strange construction because the sleeve is attached around the outside of the bodice and is then bound. I wish I could show you the construction pics on my dress form but once it was put together it no longer fits on her.

The side closure is my preferred snaps on a placket
And the seams are finished with rayon bias tape on the bodice, and French seams on the skirt.

I made a self fabric belt to go with. Made the way the pattern instructs – which requires no tedious turning of the fabric!! I took some pics while I was sewing it so I can make a tutorial. Would anyone be interested in that? It’s quite simple but a great way to use up any strips of fabric you may have left over from making a garment.
Actually, it’s so easy, I whipped up an orange belt in less than an hour just the other day.

Also – there are shoulder pads!! Yes. Shoulder pads. I decided, after trying on the bodice, that the sleeves did need just a little structure. I bought some cotton batting and made some small triangular pads which aren’t the big fugly 80′s ones that usually come to mind when someone says ‘shoulder pads’. Hehe.

All in all, I couldn’t be happier with this dress. I want to make another – very soon! But I’ve got so many other projects on the go it might have to hold on for a bit. Don’t you think the long sleeve one in a fine wool crepe would be amazing – maybe a deep purple colour?

Well, I’ve got some more updates etc but I will save that for my next post. I’ve got my Fashion Illustration class tomorrow so expect some more drawings soon.

Ciao!

Hi Everyone!
On Easter weekend, as some of you may know, I attended a corset making class with The Dreamstress. Now I’ve been reading Leimomi’s blog for a couple of years now but it wasn’t through that that I found out about this course. Surprisingly, my boyfriend sent me the link via Thread Den’s website and suggested I go. I moaned about not having enough money, since getting paid monthly means you need to plan such purchases in advance…But he insisted -  “Just do it”, he said. Not being the type to need much encouragement, I signed up.

And so on Good Friday I was stitching away with other eager seamstresses! Leimomi is a great teacher and we powered through making our corsets. There was one small holdup when we were all having difficulty attaching our eyelets. Pushing a tiny awl through 4 layers of fabric just wasn’t working out. Thankfully, one of our classmates piped up, saying she had a contraption that could stamp through the fabric. I have no idea what it was called – just a small metal tool that you bash with a hammer (I could Google this) and it punches out a small round of fabric to fit your eyelet through. It saved so much time! We were sewing away to the sound of multiple hammers bashing on timber as we all punched 24 holes in our corsets.

We ran a little overtime but by the end of the day we were all up to the final steps. I’d finished everything but the binding, which I spent my Saturday finalising. It was awesome to learn that corsets aren’t as difficult to make as they seem. The pattern pieces are small and the fitting is simple and can be done with just a few pins here and there. I learnt some great techniques like ‘sandwich’ seams, which I couldn’t even begin to explain but I could show you – and they are ingenious indeed. The trickiest part was figuring out which way the busk needs to go I also found out that the simple cable tie (found at Bunnings!) is the best alternative to whalebone, used in corsets from the 1600′s onwards!

My fabric choice was inspired by an Electra Designs colour scheme of cream and navy. I struggled with finding the exact fabrics I had in mind, and actually bought some things I didn’t end up using in the end. My stash proved helpful and I found my lining fabric there. My idea was a simple cream outer with navy binding, and a finely detailed navy & cream floral lining. Success! The binding was a last minute purchase of amazing silk satin from Clegs. The colour can’t be accurately reproduced here as it’s so dark.

All in all, the corset doesn’t look like much from the outside, but I love the lining. It fits excellently too It doesn’t reduce my waist dramatically, more so it reshapes it. As Leimomi explained, corsets don’t always reduce the actual circumference of your waist, but instead reshape it so that it becomes more cylindrical (as opposed to the flat oval it is naturally). This gives the visual effect of narrowing when looked at from front on. I like the shape it gives, and is more comfortable to wear than my cincher. That said, my cincher reduces a lot using only heavy elastic, so it’s doing heaps of work.

So Friday was a really fun day – I met some cool people who share the same passion, and we all made cool corsets. I loved seeing everyone’s fabric choices! There were some amazing ones like bright red brocade with golden embroidered birds, lustrous purple satin, black with white pinstripes (so steampunk!), subtle white patterned cream cotton, crazy geometric prints, and polka dots & florals.

My photos are a bit different than normal. I didn’t know how to capture this without looking too….boudoir… I don’t own any simple dresses to wear it over like Leimomi did with her demonstration corset…so a slip it is, and heavily cropped

My current projects and things coming up: I finished my amazing green dress with cream polka dots. Its my favourite so far and I just love it. Everything about this dress is perfect and I want to make it again and again and again. It’s a 40′s pattern and naturally requires a fabric with a lot of drape, as most patterns from that era do. I’m thinking a long sleeve version in wool crepe for next time. But pictures of that soon!
I’ve also ordered some insane moss green cashmere coating for my ambitious coat project. It will be underlined with bottle green silk organza….I don’t know about the lining yet. Ideas?
Also bought some muslin for that since it will need to fitted and tailored properly.

Yesterday (Sunday) I made my first project for someone else. My best friend needed some mending work done and I went to help her out. In the process I scored some of her clothes! Win!! In return, I offered to make her some clothes First up was a little 50′s shirt in a cool geometric stripe/plaid/whatevs cotton. It only took 3 hours and was so simple to put together. It looks super cute on my dress form so here’s hoping it fits her! Pic is on my Facebook if you want to take a look!

Other items – I have a princess cut Burda pencil skirt planned, and a bias cut slip.

AND – guess what!??? I’ll be drawing again very soon!! Next week! I’ve signed up to do an 8 week course at the Drawing Salon with the sensational Patsy Fox – I’m so looking forward to combining my love of fashion and art. I’ve long admired her illustrations – the expressiveness of her line-work and stunning use of colour is really inspiring. Watch this space, because Kitty’s Drawings will actually have some drawings!!

On that note, it’s time to hit the hay!

Til the weekend, when I will have polka dots and 40′s for you!
Ciao!

Hi Guys!
EEP – I am really behind on blog stuff! Lots of things I can’t even show you. And little time to take pics of what I can show.

Here’s another item from my wardrobe for the meantime….

I bought this dress from Small Earth Vintage quite a while ago now. It came from the estate of a lady who was a bit of a fashion fiend and she just so happened to be right about my size…at least, the same height and waist measurement. Her bust was bigger, so I’ve taken this in a bit to fit better there. I also have another dress from her collection as well as a shirt or two (I think). It’s from the 50′s by the way…..as if you can’t tell

(look at Boofy strut)

I’m almost certain this is hand made as there is no label and a lot of the stitching gives it away. It’s been well loved and I’ve had to mend it a couple of times but it’s just such a great dress. It’s 100% cotton so it’s light and airy for summer. Perfect for picnics!

In other news….Well there’s a lot of it right now:

I did some more testing for another blogger who has her own pattern line. I shan’t reveal what it was until testing is completed and the pattern is released. All I can say is the pattern is AMAZING….and I finished it in one single day. Wow.

Also, I’m signed up for The Dreamstress’ corset making class at Thread Den which happens next week. Super excited about that! I really can’t wait to learn how to make corsets – I’ve been obsessing over them so much lately.

And, this weekend I’m off to see the Grace Kelly exhibition in Bendigo.  Wow! I love country Victoria too. It’s going to be great fossicking around in little antique shops and checking out amazing dresses. Will be frocking up for that one and I’m hoping it will be cold enough to wear my Lilli Ann swing coat (even with the cat-clawed collar).

Hmm

There’s other news I think but I forget it all now. More later!

Ciao!

Hi All!
Quickie post today!

I’m all sorts of busy making a dress right about now which is very close to done. You might see it next week. Super happy with the fit of it so far and I’m mega keen to make more versions of it. I’ve got so much planned for the next couple of weeks!

Anyways….what I’m showing you today is something I won a little while back. Debi from My Happy Sewing Place had a comp on her blog where you could win a $50 voucher at The Paraders Vintage. Which I won. Heh. This is what I chose out of the many wonderful things to pick from.

I’m thinking it’s from the 50′s or 60′s – I can’t remember what it was on the listing…and it’s a very fine example of a tapestry bag…..something I’ve been wanting for a while. They can range from the exquisite to the hideous depending on your personal taste. Some people’s personal taste being that they are ALL hideous no doubt
I particularly like this one because the colours are lovely and muted and the lucite bar and metal trim at the top is really neat. It’s in very good condition and quite roomy for a vintage bag so I’m super happy it’s mine!

Well that’s all for today. More next week