Dreamer. I Am.

Supertramp is one of my favorite bands, and this song gets a lot of airplay... 

And this skirt and all its travails, pretty much sums it up; I dream. A lot. And sometimes it's a long and winding road... But what matters in the end is that I get to the end. If, for nothing else, to start anew.

When this journey began, my plan was quite simplistic. Yes, I did the smocking on the yoke and used dye, but the BWOF skirt was pretty much straight forward. Then mistakes happened, new designs incorporated to 'save' it from the trash can, and the final mistake turned everything on its head:

Seeing the basted pleats on the yoke, it became clear that the yoke color was too blue. Back to dying, this time using thickened water and a lot more dye. So far so good. BUT... after attaching the pleats, trying it on... oh my! Horrifying, beyond repair... The yoke was waaaay too dark, way too neat-o, and super unflattering. See below.

 

It was hard not to panic, not sure how I managed to think clearly. But I tried it on again, this time, inside out... Muuuuch better. The dye was uneven, and the raw seams were right for this skirt. After reversing the zipper insert, I still wasn't satisfied. The blouse color had to be repeated more than just the streaks on the pleats. I cut some bias strips of the habotai lining scraps and ran them over the smocking's joining SA. When the lining was attached,  I decided to keep the uneven hem- both pleats and lining. It's a side of me that comes out now and then- careless, fearless, live now.

If the text is now fixed, it is thanks to Grace, who emailed me the instructions. Thank you Grace!

Dye Oh My- How I Do Love Thee!

Here's the habotai silk lining, dyed with Charcoal Gray, willfully splattered. Check out the sloppy job I did on the French seam lol.

I finished the zipper and attached the insert to the yoke. Both top and bottom need to be stabilized with some hand stitching before I can attached the lining and skirt. I'm just so lazy at the moment, got a cold too. Hopefully I'll get it all done by tomorrow. Want to get started on DD's silver leather jacket. She's so patient- the little one, not the older :-)- it's been months since I made the promise. 

Unfinished Project Calling Me...

Can you guess what's inside?

Sunburst pleats! Oh yes, I've had them for some time now, but got sidetracked. First the Sabrina dress and then the mini wardrobe. Guess that's what happens when you are an eager participant over on Pattern Review...

To refresh your memory; these pleats will go here . I will have to add a piece of fabric to the smocked yoke cause I pulled it too tight. These are the jokes. My solution: Make a beaded zipper, positioned at left side, another bohemian twist  a la  Birgitte...

Also; we didn't have to leave for Chicago today, which is good. I don't like to travel that much, and it's such a long way for just a few days.

Lindsay T would like to know if I'm on stage:

No. I'm only on stage when I do the 'movement coordination'. This show does not require a choreographer, so my job is listed as 'movement coordinator'.  It's mainly the one girl, Elvis' girlfriend, who has to move flawlessly in stiletto heels across the wide stage. Not a small feat in this day and age when no one is being taught how to walk in these things. She and Elvis also have to dance- with romance- so that's what I do. Tough job but somebody gotta do it :-)

Connie B asked if I wrote/produced it:

No. DH is a co- everything on this show; co-producer, co-writer, co-director. He is also the originator of this show, as well as all the others we will be doing. And I'm his partner :-)

Marji asked a question which I myself took a long time figuring out; What is a workshop (in this context)?

A workshop in the legit theater world is when the book is written, the piece is rehearsed over a number of weeks (usually 4), often this is done in one of the many non-for-profit theaters around the country. During this rehearsal period, the book and music can be tweaked if necessary. While the rehearsing is going on, sets are built, lightning and sound contemplated, and finally all is put together. Then the show runs with audience for some weeks. Often these runs are extended, which happened to us both times. This will be our final workshop, and a move-over to a for-profit theater in Chicago is planned for November. A for-profit theater usually has an open-ended run, which means, as long as the tickets are selling well, the show stays.

MDQ (Million Dollar Quartet) is a fast paced, exciting show with people dancing in the aisles. When it's up and running you are all invited!

I guess this post is mostly about what happens "in between" the needle and thread part LOL! 

Smocking done

That was really time consuming, but a bit of fun as well. I put the panels together and will finish the yoke after it's dyed, just in case it shrinks more. Below shows the threads connected in each panel.

All six panels. There's discoloration, think the kitties had some fun with the red chalk :-) Oh those felines, just can't live without them.  The dye will hopefully take care of it.

Today I cut the skirt panels, and the cutting table was really useful here. Warren at A-1 pleating said to bring in half circles, so instead of cutting out the pattern, I marked it with contrasting thread- well, it will be contrasting after the fabric is dyed :-). I didn't have enough for three half circles; the pattern is more like 2 and 2/3. So on the front right half circle I marked the seam line and the center front. Crossing my fingers this will not be a problem...

I'm still thinking about the dye and the design. Probably less is more. I tested a Blue Gray and it looks quite lovely with the blouse. Maybe I'll add just a touch of the color that's in the blouse. Painting the dye on might give some interest as well.

And on a completely different subject: Is it normal to have problems on Blogger- like today, when images couldn't be downloaded for the longest time? Just curious...

One done, five more to go.

The most boring part is copying the pattern to the fabric. Wish I could come up with a speedier way. I'm using a pencil to trace over the pattern, can you spell t-e-d-i-o-u-s... :-(  But I'll be great at basting after this... always look at the bright side.

The pattern is repeated 4 times in each direction, and the finished piece measures 8" long and 6-7" wide (depending on how tight I pull it in.)

I starch the fabric until it behaves almost like paper. I just wonder, if I were to smock on a firm weave fabric (like the author did, using muslin), how would I copy the pattern? Hmm, yet another thing to ponder as I baste away.

Where to put the smocking...

The smocking will take awhile, already giving me plenty of time to ponder what to do with it. I work things really backward sometimes :-) The book had me excited about trying new techniques, so who cares where they go in the end. I'm now thinking it would make a perfect yoke for this skirt, which will give me an excuse to go down and visit Mr. Pleater Man, Warren, 

at A-1 Pleating. The skirt is from BWOF November '07, style 107 A.

And wouldn't you know, just as I was looking up the line drawing, DD sticks her head over my shoulder, "You know mom, that would be a beautiful skirt with this", walking over to my blouse on the dress form. She's six! Guess money well spent buying her a sewing machine.

I think the skirt will look good a bit longer, and extend the yoke  as well. But plans change so who knows. In the meantime this design- and those pleats!- have my heart all aflutter :-) 

Contoured Italian Smocking On Silk Chiffon

This image is from the book "The Art Of  

Manipulating Fabric", by Colette Wolf. It's done on natural muslin fabric.

And this is how my test turned out on chiffon. I didn't pay attention when I combined the pattern, hence the ruffled middle :-) I will use this piece as reference for measurements and lines. And I'll test with dye as well, so all is not lost.

The pencil show where I went wrong. That notch indicates pattern repeat -duh!

It was time consuming yet quite therapeutic in a way. The stitches are simple, and yes; repetitive. And the pattern reminded me of a driving course. Go left, BEEP stop!, turn up BEEP stop... Those little dots are the BEEP stop! signals. The lines represent the thread driving left and up or down :-)

The pattern is enlarged 200% from the original in the book.

Here I'm "on the course", BEEP BEEP, look out!

Now I have to go figure out how to  link to all the fabulous sewing blogs out there. I still miss my iWeb, hopefully this will get easier with time.