Laurel

So... I'm not breaking any news by telling that Colette patterns newest pattern is a little shift dress. I have to admit that my first thought was of disappointment. It is a really simple design, after all. And a shift dress? I never wear a shift.

Image from the Coletterie

But I have to say the idea of it grew on me. I never wear shift dresses because they never fit me. If they fit in the shoulders, then I cant pull the dress down over my hips. So I actually do not know if a shift could be a good style for me. I like to showcase and define my waist, but the idea of a more freeflowing garment is very attractive from a comfort point of view. I also quite like the idea of this dress being a blank canvas. I like clothes with simple lines and fun details and this pattern offers me just this. It is the perfect pattern for creative embelishment.

So I ordered a copy. A paper copy, despite the offensive shipping costs, because I avoid having to spend an hour taping together a zillion paper pieces if I don't have to. And a Colette pattern is such a pretty object in itself... It was shipped today, so I probably have a couple of weeks to scheme while the pattern travels from the other side of the world. I have this idea of combining appliqué and cut-out to create a pattern in a contrasting color at the neckline.

I see this as an experiment in style. I'm actually quite curious to see if I can pull of a shift dress, when it actually fits. We'll see!

Scheming

I had something else planned as my next project, but there is a contest over at Burdastyle... It has the most amazing prizes so it seems like it's the perfect way to spark things up in my sewing room! I had ordered the book Sewing Vintage Modern even before it was available, so I'm all set.

Of course, I'm going to go with something 50's inspired, so the Elizabeth dress will be my starting point. I'm thinking a full skirt, fitted bodice and sleeves. I had picked up a few meters of black lace at the sales a few days ago, without have a specific plan for it. Well, now I have a plan! I'll make a litte black dress (I can't believe I wear black all the time and my closet still lacks a lbd!) with the lace as an overlay, and lace sleeves. I have this idea of cutting the lace around the flowers at the hems for a feminine effect. Hopefully, the lace won't ravel and it should work. I put together a Pinterest board (my username is joellestlaurent) as inspiration. 

I have a fair bit of drafting to do to get the bodice as I envision it, mostly around the shoulders. I want set-in sleeves as they will be in lace only. That means I'll have to draft sleeves too... hmm I'm in for quite a challenge!

The bodice of dress will be underlined in black satin, except for the sleeves and the skirt will be lined with the satin so that the lace can be free flowing. I foud a quite nice black satin with a bit of body, which should suffice to get a full skirt. 

Off to my desk for some drafting!

On my sewing table - bra making

In keeping with my sewing goals, I am kickstarting the new sewing year with Amy's Bra-making sew-along over at Cloth Habit!

I did make one bra, once. It turned out that the fit was disastrous... In my defence, I did follow the sizing on the pattern (Merckwaerdigh, BSH10, available on Etsy), but it was totally off. Since then, I learned a lot about bra sizing, and good fit, specially thanks to Kristin, so I feel up for the challenge. I also bought the Classic bra pattern, by Pin Up Girls (through Elingeria), which I believe is a better model, in terms of simpleness and fit. I am really looking foward the sew-along, especially since it will be the first one in wich I actually participate! I have gathered supplies, hopefully I have all that is required. I expect the fittings to be the most challenging (and time-consuming) part of the process, so I am really looking fowards the help we will get through the sew-along.

I plan on posting pictures and notes as I work, and hopefully I can put together a little inspiration post too. I never tire of pretty underthings... hopefully I'll soon be able to make them!

Hello!

Welcome!

I hope this blog will become a way for me to sort through all of my ideas, help me be more creative in my sewing and push me to be part of the worderful online sewing community that i have been witnessing for months now. I see this place most as somewhere to document my crafty endeavours. (Well, that would mostly mean all the dresses I sew. But sometimes I do sew something else, I promise.) I want to have somewhere I can gather and document everything i make, look at them and ponder over them. Somewhere to reflect over my style and gather inspiration. My handstitched files!

I thought I would start this adventure by sharing my goals for the year to come, so that I have something to look back to and remind me of where I want to be heading as I progress in my sewing.

Make things that I will love and wear

That means reflecting on how an item will fit in my wardrobe, what I will wear it with, before making it. And not just sew up a little top just because a fabric is cute. It also means being careful with the finishes, redoing a shoddy zipper insertion, and not cutting corners short. Taking my time planning and making things carefully.

Fill my closet with me-mades

I am not ready to take the plunge and take the Seamless Pledge, but I really want to fill my closet with me-made clothes. There is something that makes me really proud and confident when I wear a garment I made myself, and that is the main reason I make my clothes. Sure, I hate taking part in the mass consumption party of the big chain stores, and it's definetely part of the reason of why I sew. But it's not the first reason on the list. The joy of creating something with my hands, of seeing a garment coming together, the ingeniering of it are just more compelling to me.

Source better fabric / get to know fabric better

Here in Malmö, Sweden, finding fabric is really hard. There is polyester in almost everything i can touch in one of the three stores in town and the selection is pretty restricted. I want to sew with more natural fibres, hopefully of better origins. I really want to sew something in wool, for example, but I don't even know how wool crepe feels. So I need to learn more about fabrics so that I can order online.

And finally, a few thing that I am itching to sew this year:

- a shirt for the boyfriend
- a coat, a perfect, beautiful, wool coat
- a pair of perfect-fitting pants
- a perfect-fitting bra and matching panties
- and dresses, lots of pretty dresses!!


Please join me in this adventure!