Vogue 2333 - Diane von Furstenberg Vintage

O' Summer, where are you? So I couldn't wait til summer was here before, but now I have new stuff to wear, so get here already! I finished the dress last night. I had to hand hem the slits, the arms and the hem...whew! I tried to blind hem but the rayon didn't want to cooperate. It looked pretty bad.

I'm pretty happy with the dress. I've had this fabric for two years now and couldn't figure out what to make out out of it. It's rayon so it will be very cool come summer time. It has gorgeous drape as well, perfect for a cowl neckline.

This is my first attempt at a "vintage" pattern. I'm not sure how old a pattern has to be to be considered vintage. I'm guessing this one is late 70's early 80's. I couldn't find a date on the pattern. It's a very simple dress. The bodice is cowl neckline cut on the bias, extended shoulders, no sleeves and the skirt is a simple straight skirt with angled pockets. The waist is just elasticized. This is longer than I usually wear dresses. It hits mid calf and I'm not sure how I feel about the length. I couldn't make it much shorter without ruining the side slits.

I haven't had the inclination to make anything very challenging lately. I'm trying to reduce some stash. I really want to make several simple, comfortable summer dresses to run around in this year. This one however is a bit more dressy and will be a work dress or for going out to dinner.

It looks much better in person. I really don't photograph well.

My first vintage pattern.

I've lusted after vintage patterns for awhile now. I bought one last summer but wimped out on making it. For some reason, I'm kind of a sucker for the late 70's early 80's patterns. This is the one I wimped out on:



Kay Y did a wonderful review of this dress on PatternReview. I'm thinking I might be ready to tackle it this summer.

So, I was perusing etsy the other day and saw this:



I bought it right away. I am on a cowl neckline kick this summer. I love DVF and this looked like a simple pattern to start out in the vintage arena with. Plus, I found it in my size so there were no grading issues.

I have it half finished so far in a fabulous brushstroked rayon from Fabric Mart I bought last year. I am absolutely loving it so far. This will definitely not be my last vintage pattern.

I thought I had a picture of the fabric but I can't find it. I'll update soon with finished pictures.

Onion 1038 - Another Jacket

So the question begs, how many jackets are too many? I'm really on a jacket kick.

I just finished Onion 1038 the long version in a fantastic wool denim from Gorgeous Fabrics. I think she still has some too. It's not a fabric you could do a lot of intricate details with but for a simple lined coat it's awesome.

Review







On top of this and the biker jacket, I made a parka and a wool coat last fall. And now, I'm just itching to make a military jacket. I have three patterns to choose from:
Hikaru jacket from Burdastyle, which also is a Burda envelope pattern, but I can't find the number. I think it's OOP.


Vogue 7764 which is OOP. Reviews seem pretty favorable for it.



And last choice is Simplicity 3628.



I had this pattern out and was seriously considering it when I saw this version. Here's the review.

Review

Check out her blog post. The jacket is to die for!

I'm definitely leaning towards the Simplicity. It seems like a pretty tried and true pattern. I love the extra puff on the sleeves and Lynne's version is really great.

So how many are too many? I'd like to make this one, then maybe another. All of my summer, keep me from freezing in my office, jackets are pretty worn out.

The Biker Jacket is Done!!!

I took my time, didn't sew and drink, and didn't stay up too late sewing ;-) I ended up not having to rip anything substantial out and didn't make any major mistakes. I learned a lot and really built up my sewing confidence by doing this. I love Burda Magazine patterns because without any pictures to go from you really have to think about how things go together and just what the heck they mean.

Despite some negative comments when this was in the muslin stage, I persevered with it. Boy, am I glad I didn't listen to the negative comments. Is a bike jacket the best jacket for my figure, nope, do I care, NOPE! I love it and can't wait to wear it.






I just zipped it all the way up for the photo. I highly doubt I'll wear it like this unless I'm outside and it's freezing.



It's bunching a bit in the back in this photo. It actually sits ok normally.



I lined it with some satin charmeuse from Fabric.com. I'd thought about making a dress with it but thought it looked really cool inside this coat. I still have some left though. It was very nice to work with.



My zipper is short by an inch. My local indie didn't have one I liked in the right length. So, since this picture was taken I added a snap like the others to the top corner.



I added the epulets on to give the impression of wider shoulders.



I was confused by how they wanted the cuffs done. This was the only thing I had to rip out and redo. I cut the cuff the length they suggested but if you put it on there was no overlap to add a closure. I lengthened the cuff by and inch so I'd have an overlap.





One of the versions had zippers on the pockets and another had the flaps. I chose the flap version because I didn't want to have to order special zippers. My local indie has a great selection of wonderful snaps.

Back to the arctic...

Or at least it feels like it anyways. My son and I went to Orlando then on to Tampa this week. So now it's time to play catch up with laundry, sewing, cleaning, etc...

Biker Jacket Progress

I was happy with the muslin so I started on the jacket last weekend. For the alterations I did an FBA, narrowed the shoulders 1/2 inch and raised the armcyce 1/2 inch. These have become my standard pattern adjustments. After looking at the muslin, I also did a 1/2 inch forward sloping should adjustment for the first time. I think that one will be added to the list. I also changed the back pleats to darts. I like them better this way.

So far, I am ecstatic about this jacket. I'm happy the the fit, the pattern, the fabric and can see myself wearing the heck out of this jacket both to work and for casual with jeans.

I attached one of the sleeves tonight and it looks like I may rotate the sleeve back 1/2 inch. In the FFRP, they suggest to offset the sleeve. This will leave the seams offset underarm. As they say in the book, who's going to look under your arm. I'm going to try this with the other sleeve and see how it works. I need to go look at my book.

I still need to put the facings on, the other sleeve, and do the lining. That I'm a bit worried about but I'll just take it a step at a time.

SWAP - Winter 2010

I joined the SWAP on Stitcher's Guild. I had so much fun with the Wardrobe Contest on PR that I decided to do the SWAP. In the fall it really helped motivate me and give me some goals. So, here's the "idea" board. That's as far as I'll go at the moment, because it's just a rough idea with some some inspiration pieces. I have started the muslin on the biker jacket and it's looking pretty good so far. I'll post an update later once I get the muslin done.

And...I'm going to try and do it all from stash, both patterns and fabric!