A quick update

I finished Dorothy! And I did not take a single picture! This is how crazy things have been! But don't worry there will be plenty of pictures when the show starts. I did all the binding like I wanted and it turned out perfect and a perfect fit! The actress was thrilled.

I will show you the bolero I'm still working on for Glinda to wear. It looks great with the dress we are using. I will take pictures soon. Here is the pattern Burda 7686. It turns out while I have tons of bolero patterns they were all for knits and I really didn't have the time to think about allowing  ease and so on, so I bought one for wovens.

It turns out I won't be making the lion's costume which gives me more time for the 18 capelets I am making for the Poppies to wear to simulate being covered with snow. I will be making view A from this super cute reprint of a 1948 pattern.

Can I tell you what a wonderful chaotic, fun, and exhilarating day I had yesterday? The lady who has the majority of the costumes we use came in and we fitted the majority of the cast (close to a 100!) Later will come adding those details that finish a look and repairing and final fittings. I am very lucky to have the help of another mom who is creative as well as fun and easy to get along with and she can also handle a needle when necessary!

I apologize for my lack of commenting on your blogs, I will have a lot to read when the craziness dies down! I hope that you are all well and creating some wonderful garments for me to admire later on!

Making it my own

So how do you take an iconic character like Dorothy and give it your own special touch? Well there isn't much that I can change but it's all in the details, isn't it?

Dorothy in Weber's production

Before I knew what the director was thinking for the show I started to look for inspiration and I loved what Andrew Lloyd Weber's production had done with the set and costumes.  I now know the director wants a traditional look for the leads.

I love the bias binding and flat piping that the designer incorporated in the dress so I plan to do the same. For the blouse, which in the pattern is not a separate garment but just the upper bodice, I will stay with the traditional look from the movie with the high neckline and I will add rick-rack but still haven't decide where. I found at Joann's some big white very retro looking buttons which I love and will enhance the retro look I'm going for.

I modified the pattern and I'm now ready to cut and do a first fitting on Wed. After Dorothy it will be the Lion and Glinda.

I will keep you posted!

I finally got my sewing mojo back (very excited about a lot of designs in Burda Style magazine!) but life has kept me from sewing. It is the start of the spring semester so I have been attending seminars/professional development/training sessions, filling out paperwork, coordinating schedules and now doing lessons plans. My oldest left for school yesterday so I spent most of my day getting him ready. Also the school musical is moving along and costumes are going to be made. Of course these are just the extras all the regular stuff also has to be kept up =O.

I was feeling a bit overwhelmed yesterday, especially when I realized that we had stripped my son's bed in school at the end of the semester to wash all the bedding and I did not see it at all during the break and still has yet to be found. I'm thankful that I had given an extra set of sheets but mattress cover and duvet cover are missing. Where is the stuff???

So...School musical Wizard of Oz....patterns I will use...

This looks like a bear with the dark color fur!!

I will be making Dorothy's and the Cowardly Lion for now the others have to be decided. We might have a dress that I can add to for Glinda, but I still have yet to actually see what the rentals look like in person.

I requested fur samples and I'm waiting for those and I think I can get most I need at Fabric.com and Joann's.

I apologize that I haven't kept up reading all the wonderful blogs I follow and hopefully once I get into my routine this semester I will be able to keep up again. By the way I had to remove my blog list since it was giving virus alerts when readers using Chrome would try to access my blog, Blogger!! I will have to play with it again and see if it was a temporary bug with Blogger.

Looking forward to a new normal!

Inspired by a Cynthia Rowley top

 Don't ask me why but I saw this Cynthia Rowley top at Macy's and I loved it. I think it was $60 on sale and there was no way I was going to pay that. I instantly thought of the plaid knit you see in my garment,  I bought it from Gorgeous Fabrics a while ago (Ann now has other plaid knits available). There wasn't much left and since placement mattered with this fabric I had left it for when inspiration struck.  The grey knit was in my stash also, no idea where it came from!

For my version I used Vogue 1261 which I have made before as the basis. I added width to the sleeves, which are pretty narrow in this pattern.

 I remembered seeing the Hot Cocoa Sweater pattern in a blog (it's free!) and I had liked how the back was longer than the front but in a gentle curve so I used the bottom of  this pattern to shape my hem and then measured and cut a band to fit. I also added cuffs to the sleeves and cut a wider band for the neckline than the recommended width in the Vogue pattern.

As you can see my version is longer than the inspiration and the neckline not as high. I'm very happy with mine I think my changes make this top more versatile.

This top was finished before the New Year but just got to wear it yesterday for the first time. I'm glad I had it to show you since no sewing has been going on. I have been knitting but I can't decide what to sew next and it has paralyzed my mojo, anyone familiar with this?

Simple Laptop Sleeve

Yesterday I finished the laptop envelope for DS2. DS1 received his at Christmas but my youngest didn't like any of the fabrics I had for his. When I told Andrea that I was having trouble finding a fabric he liked she mentioned she had a dragon print in black, red and gray that maybe my son would like since she knows he is big into fantasy. She sent a picture and he loved it! So I ran to Joann's and I couldn't find it so Andrea, a dear that she is, went to her local Joann's, bought it and mailed it to me!

I used an excellent tutorial over at Sew, Mama, Sew! . The only thing that I did different was to fuse the fleece to the lining instead of the fashion fabric. The fabric for DS1 is textured and the fusible fleece would have crushed it. It is a great tutorial that  can be used for any size rectangular shaped device, she gives a little formula to figure out the panel sizes to cut.

This was a quick and satisfying project, don't forget practical too! I feel a little better that the kids have an extra layer of protection on their computers when they are transporting them.

¡Feliz Día de los Reyes!

Have you seen CBS Elementary?

 While I lay around hoping this cold gets better, I watched the newest episode of Elementary and then started to search for info on the wardrobe worn by Lucy Liu, who plays Joan Watson, Sherlock's companion.

Can I just tell you how much I love the clothes? Love, love, love

 Of course I'm going to sew inspired garments! I already have a top I finished before the New Year and it is waiting to be worn and shared. I'll tell you how that top came to be and although the inspiration did not come from the show, I believe it fits right in.

The one piece I was smitten with is this dress

The dress by designer Yigal Azrouel

On the show Ms Liu wears it with a button down white shirt ( I figured out how to do screen shots!) and it is just perfect. I have never heard of the designer but I am in love with so many of the pieces! I am going to try to reproduce it, with a more modest length of course.

A couple of more outfits

 This site has a lot of pictures and info about the show and  a how-to-get-the-look using rtw.

Anyways hope you enjoyed the ramblings of my congested head ! =)

What I made in 2012

As usual I made more Burda Style and Burda patterns than any other, just love their style and fit.
I left out one Vogue top that came out huge and needs to be worked on to be wearable.

Como siempre usé mas patrones de Burda Style y de los de sobre que ningún otro. Me encanta su estilo y como me quedan al cuerpo. Dejé fuera la foto de una blusa de Vogue que me quedó inmensa así que tengo que arreglarla.

Vogue Patterns

The dress on the left, Burda envelope, was made but never worn, except for the picture.

Este vestido es de Burda pero no llegué a estrenarlo, sólo me lo puse para la foto

 



 Burda Style and Burda

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Simplicity

 

My son loves his hat! 

 A mi hijo le encanta su sombrero!

 

 

 

 

Knitting

 

The pink is a shawl that I finished but having gotten around to blog about it.

 

Lo rosado es una manta que terminé y quedó muy bonita per aún no la he fotografiado.

 

 

 

 

These two skirts from Chritine Jonson patterns were made from leftover fabric from other projects and they have been worn the most out of my sewing this past year.

Estas dos sallas (Christine Jonson patterns) hechas de retazos son muy prácticas y me las he puesto muy a menudo.

This was a vintage pattern from McCalls, inspired by a dress I saw on Mad Men.

Este patón es "vintage" McCalls, inspirado por un vestido que vi en Mad Men.



The most fun I've had this year sewing? Come to think ever! Sewing for Seussical!

Lo más que me he divertido cosiendo fue durante el show de Seussical!

Even though I did not make the outfit on the left I did put it together so these were "my girls"

Aunque no cosí el conjunto de la izquierda yo lo compuse así que estas eran "mis chicas"

 

 I took on the challenge of making a tail grow on stage and everyone was thrilled with the results!

Accepté el hacer una cola crecer en escena y a todos le encantó como quedó!

And the bird girl that just wanted to have fun never looked more beautiful. I accesorized, repaired and coordinated costumes and it was a blast!

Y la chica pájaro que sólo quería divertirse nunca se vió más linda. Creé detalles para completar el vestuario, los reparé y tuve la oportunidad de ser parte del diseño, no solo de de la confección.




One more project finished in December didn't get photographed, it is a cover for my son's laptop. I'm finishing another and then I will share it with you. I had hoped to have it finished by now but I came down with a cold that has me laying around miserable.

Tengo un proyecto más que terminé en diciembre, un sobre para proteger el "laptop" de mis hijos. Terminé uno pero yo he terminado el año y empezado el nuevo con un catarro que me tiene tumbada. Cuando lo termine compartiré con ustedes.



Looking forward to reading everyone's end of year reviews!

Espero leer los escritos de fin de año de todos ustedes!

A walk in the woods

Yesterday after the boys that came for a sleepover left, we decided that it would be nice to walk in the woods while it was snowing. Of course by the time we got everyone ready and we got to the park it had stopped. No matter, we still had an enjoyable walk. These days we are always amazed at our 12 year old beagle who comes alive in these walks. My boys talked non stop as always when they are together and my husband and I had a chance to look around us and find beauty in a grayish winter day.

The water beads on the trees were gorgeous, my phone's camera couldn't do it justice.

I have been doing some sewing so I will have something new to share soon. I don't know if I'll make an end of the year post, still deciding =)

Burda Style 9/2011 109

So this project was planned last winter and when the weather got warmer I set it aside.

This year when I picked it up I realized that the bodice could be washed but because I was using wool crepe for the skirt it would need dry cleaning ( I did preshrink it in the dryer but I prefer the dry cleaner for certain wool garments). I decided anyways that I could still get the look of the dress but have two pieces that I could also use with other garments and so I made a top and a skirt.

Top 108 I had turned into a dress that I love so now I shortened the pattern into a top. Like I did before the neckline is just turned and stitched. The skirt was very easy, just a rectangle with gathers and a waistband. I like the ribbon and button embellishment which I kept but I shortened my skirt to the knee since I will get more use of the skirt at that length. I did not line it since I wanted to reduce any extra bulk at the gathers and I was planning to wear a full slip. I also did not add pockets.

The waistband I made using the instructions in "Easy Guide to Sewing Skirts", it is a book I love and I refer to it time and again.

Both fabrics were in my stash, the knit is a rayon and the skirt is wool crepe from London Fabrics from my PR Philadelphia trip. The ribbon and buttons came from JoAnns.

Pencil skirt draft and sew along

Yesterday I finally was able to enlist the help of my husband to help me take measurements, the first step in the draft along.

While trying to catch up on my fashion reading (oy!) I found this in either the Oct or Nov issue of Lucky Mag.

If you are interested in drafting along you can still join! Just follow the link on my sidebar.

I'm excited!

Almost done with my present project I will share soon!

A sewists get together

On Saturday we had the first ever (to my knowledge) MD, DC, VA meetup organized by Lisa and hosted by Robin. By meeting at Robin's first for conversation and a swap, it gave us the opportunity to relax and chat and get to know each other.

I took with me quite a few patterns and brought back a lovely cut of silk! Thanks to the donor!

Silk on the left, mystery fabric on right from bargain table at G Street

As the party broke some of us headed to G Street Fabrics. I hadn't been to the new location and was curious. I regret to say I was disappointed. The other location had two levels and a fantastic selection of fabrics. The new is one level and the feeling of awe I used to get every time I walked in is gone. I looked through the bargain table that was a huge pile of fabric dripping on to the floor, out of there came the green fabric which I have plans to use for a Paco Peralta skirt.

More pictures of the day and links to all the bloggers are over in Robin's post of the event.

Burda 10/2008 Blouse 118

 We are back to having to take pictures indoors since I won't brave 40 deg weather to photograph a silk blouse. I need to do some research in how to take better indoor shots.

Anyways, this is my first silk blouse. I have been terrified of tackling slippery fabrics and while it will take me a while to recover, I'm so glad I made it!

 I think this blouse looks much better in person, between the indoor lighting and the fact that black is so hard to photograph, I struggled to get some good pictures.

I used covered buttons, it seems like the right thing to do with this kind of garment. As well as doing French seams, quoting Trena "it's the right thing to do with silk". I serged the first pass and then enclosed the serged edge. Thanks Trena!

 The fabric came from Metro Textiles, NYC a few years ago.

I don't know what I'm making next. There are so many things I would like to make that I can't decide what to work on first.

An old dress gets a new life

My 32 year old prom dress made its debut on stage, Thursday this week, as Olivia's wedding dress in the very modern interpretation of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night presented by my son's high school.

My mom made this Vogue pattern in 1980 and I wore it to the prom. As you can see from the picture I accessorized it with royal blue (peep toe pumps, clutch, belt, bracelet, even the orchid!), remember it was the 80s! I don't have the pattern any more but I know it came with a short and long version.

The dress came with me when I moved to MD after college and I used it at least once for a Halloween party, I thought I made a pretty good Greek goddess ;-)

I thought the dress would be perfect for the production so I altered it to fit the actress. She is shorter than me and bustier so I shortened the bodice and added a panel on the left side where the dress fastens to give her more coverage. The skirt length worked since she wore her stage shoes that have a heel.

Doesn't she look stunning?

I took my mom to see the performance today and she was thrilled to see the dress on stage. She happily posed with the actress for a photo after the performance.

Some things are worth preserving, don't you think?