Silk Giveaway

I told you :)

This piece has been in my stash for a year or more; a gorgeous European silk metallic constructed of two layers.

Two layers held together with gold metallic thread

The drape is wonderful yet it is perfect for more structured garments as well. I bought this to make a Chanel style suit, something inspired by Chanel's Spring '09 couture collection.

If you have a Pantone chart, the color is close to Pantone Winter White 11-0507 TPX or Cloud Cream 12-0804 TPX.

And that's why I'm giving it away. It has a warm tone which is a no-no for me. This is a generous 3 yards, 52" wide,  plenty to make a stunning outfit cause there's no matching involved. And, you could pair it with silk chiffon as it appears the Chanel suit above has done on the sleeves. I'd even insert silk charmeuse in the front slit on skirt :)
On the other hand, if you're unfamiliar with silk, this fabric is not difficult to work with and could be a great project for a basic suit or jacket, and it won't cost you a dime :), well, almost. I'd still recommend you buy silk thread and silk lining...

The fabric can be used on both sides to create a design effect

If this is a color you can wear or you want to make something for someone special, leave me a comment on this post. I won't be back until August 22 so let's make the drawing Monday August 23.

Silk

Here I am in the latest silk creation, Burda Tunic 02-2009110 and Burda skirt 03-2010-105.

Side zipper and re-beading to complete design

Both fabrics were bought at B&J Fabrics in NYC. The black is silk chiffon with three types of beads: black round and rectangular, and silver rectangular. The tunic is in a super lush silk charmeuse. I made it a bit looser this time to accommodate movement- yes, I wear this when I choreograph :) it has such wonderful drape. I also lengthened it 1".

I had very little of the beaded fabric( $$$ ) so I couldn't make a complete match on the sides, although the left side (see above) comes pretty close. But since this design isn't too obvious I just created new design lines by re-beading. Also, I never wear ANYTHING tucked in anymore so I don't have to worry about the upper part. The skirt also ended up a lot shorter and sits on the hips. I wanted to take more photos, but my camera fell off the tripod! Yes it broke, well the flash broke, so DH is off to get a new one. Did you know we've been married for nearly 18 years? That's a LIFETIME here in Hollyweird...

I did manage to take photos BEFORE the accident so below you can see some of the work  I did.

Daisy asked where I buy my silk fabrics:

The plain white and black I buy mostly from Dharma Trading, and some from the Silk Connection.

Katy mentioned Thai Silks and I buy from them too, they have some lovely prints. Then locally, I have F&S Fabrics five minutes away and Moods is about ten minutes... yes, I know, I have it goood...

I have several pieces in my stash and some I don't think I'll use (wrong colors for me), so watch out :) There will be another giveaway muy pronto! We're taking a little break from the hustle and bustle to spend time on the beach in Laguna, and then we're off to NYC.

And to the last giveaway winners; thank you, I received your mailing addresses and the magnifiers will ship tomorrow.

Dropped shoulder tunic

Another version of one my favorite tops, this time with dropped shoulders, pleated sleeves and contrast details:

Silk tunic BWOF 02-2009-110

This charmeuse print was bought at B&J Fabrics while in NYC, which is also where I bought the metallic tweed for the jacket. The contrast is cut from a vintage piece I had in my stash; black silk chiffon and silver metallic stripes. I made a modesty panel for the front, I think Catbird was the one who thought to do that on her recent gorgeous version of this tunic. Thank you, such an excellent idea! I also closed the bottom part of the top even more than my earlier versions.

Below are pages taken from one of my favorite books, 

Dress Design, Draping and Pattern making,

by

Marion S. Hillhouse & Evelyn A. Mansfield

FIRST PAGE                                                                            SECOND PAGE

My altered pattern

I made an earlier top using this same technique, the link below

Build A Blouse

The details on this tunic is not very easy to see in pictures but I really like it in person. Very understated. I'm planning a black and silver skirt (also from B&J).

It's so much fun adding details. Do you have any favorites to share?

Must Be Dreaming...

... About spring :))

This coat dress happened because the fabric I ordered was not as chartreuse as I thought, more like a spring green. Which does not work for me. Chartreuse is a finicky color and I should have known better. Maybe I'll post a picture later with all the fabrics I now have labeled chartreuse, if I take the picture in natural light it will show how different they all are- ranging from spring green to mustard!

I've wanted to make this coat dress for DD ever since it first came out, BWOF 02-2008-117. She has the perfect figure for it; small upper body and waist, swayback and full hips. The fabric, from Fabric Mart, is silk shantung and the lining is silk chiffon and charmeuse; here's a link, they still have some left:

Cache silk at Fabric Mart

No shoulder pads so it can be worn both ways.

This is not a difficult pattern, but because I lined it- and I wanted her to be able to wear it both ways- I had to change a few things. Most importantly: I used casings instead of shirring elastic at the waist. Quite tricky, but the final result is good. Of course, I haven't tried it on her yet, so we shall see, it will go under the tree. I also didn't have fusible batting, so I used regular, which takes a little extra effort- the walking foot came in handy here. A lot of thread was used for this project :))

Speaking of thread... I left loose tails at each end of each topstitching, which then was woven into each seam... yes, that's a lot of work, but it looks much better this way.

The snaps were covered with fabric and carefully stitched on in the same formation; itsy bitsy details but for me worth the extra work.

The label is on the outside.

And about my coat: It's done just need to attach the buttons, and slipstitch the lining side seam closed. I'm not in love with it but it will work over white jeans. Next time I'll cut a 36, this coat is roomier than I thought it would be.

To all my readers:

Have a Merry Christmas, a Happy Holiday!!!

Thank you for visiting, I so appreciate it.

Hugs and love,

Birgitte

Top- Skirt- Coat

Well, the coat still needs buttons. The top is another tunic, using BWOF pattern 02-2009-110.

This fabric was gifted to me by none other than Richard, the owner of F & S Fabrics. Think I could possibly be one of his best customers? :)) He is a sweetheart, like everyone at that store. Love them all. It is a silk charmeuse printed in panels and no one could quite figure out how to put it together. The panels had words printed next to them, like "Tie band", "Front", etc. but no directions, or a picture of the garment came with the bolt. It was a little tricky to get the layout right, and I had to patch one sleeve at the bottom, and also take in the front pleat by 3".

FRONT

BACK

Next up, the Big Bird skirt :)) I bought this last year as part of the mini wardrobe plan. That plan ended up a mini-mini-plan, I never got around to the skirt...

But I always liked the fun fabric so I took the easy route and made it as a simple pencil skirt, the same pattern I used for the Gucci knockoff: 07-2008-127. I lined it with silk charmeuse... what else, right! I also made this skirt in leftover houndstooth, the same fabric I used for the Chanel trim. Maybe I'll get a picture of that later; it's more of a mini cause I had very little left. But I'm thinking that the tunic would be a wild pairing with that skirt- notice the dash of houndstooth in the silk print ;)

DH just brought me buttons for the coat so I'll finish that off tonight I hope. It's a simple loose coat, nothing special. But it's warm, and that is something I can appreciate right now. When we go to Pasadena in the evening it's really cold, at least for LA, it's in the forties sometimes.

The coat I'm planning to make (as I mentioned in the last post) is a designer (forgot which one) ottoman, really interesting pattern, and not something I ordinarily would pick. But gotta be wild occasionally :)) And yes; the pattern drawing is missing a bust dart- what's with that?...

And I know, I know... several of you keep nudging me to complete the Balmain... And I will. I have to attack the sleeve; my nemesis. That's what's holding me back, just for now. Promise. It will need my full attention, and that's not possible at present. Right now I keep sewing because it's keeps me sane (and I like some new clothes to wear :)

Flounc-ing Around

The flounce on BWOF from 08-2009-117, as done in the pattern, is too wide out on the shoulder so I'm playing with the neck pleat to make it fall more toward the center, along the button band. I'm using a stretch silk charmeuse, flat side out. The flounce edges was hand rolled, and I see that the left and right flounce move differently at the bottom edge so I must have done something wrong.

The bodice is BWOF 08-2009-103. I had to let out some of the front dart because it's very fitted, which is somewhat odd because the back is not. I'll chop off quite a bit of the length as well.

Just got the call from school that oldest DD has flue symptoms... :(

Inside The Suit

The suit is finally done but DD is out shopping (what else?). Here's the inside:

And a construction shot of the skirt:

The quilted lining worked great on the skirt so I'm most definitely going to do that when I make my own Chanel suit :)

Next up will be the blouse. I'm going to try to use the ruffle from BWOF 08-2009-117 with bodice from 103 from the same issue. But first I have to clean up the mess- threads and strands of boucle/ribbon everywhere!

Nice and hot here in LA, around 85 degrees. Not complaining cause this penguin actually LOVES heat :))

Hollywood Bling-Bling

All girls love some bling (myself included) and DD got a good dose of it yesterday. These two pieces came together very quickly and that's good cause I want to get going on a jacket I'm planning. More on that later.

First up: BWOF 06-2008-134

Hollywood Glamour Blouse

This was made by sewing the dupioni and sequins as one. I washed the silk first so it's soft and enclosed all seams. It's best worn layered due to the structure.

Here's the link to the sequined fabric (the dupioni color sold out I think)

Second up: BWOF 05-2008-137

Disco Shorts

These were requested by DD upon seeing the fabric and I think she showed great innovation here. It's a knit metallic, very soft with great drape. It doesn't stretch much though, which is a bit misleading on Fabric.com's website. I had originally bought it for a skating outfit but don't think it would work unless you only use it for details like a skirt or part of the bodice.

Link to disco stretch fabric

Photo shoots are so fun when I'm behind the camera :)) I need to sew for her more cause she just loves modeling for me! I'll share some more shots before heading over to post the reviews. I'm entering the contest on PatternReview which I actually hadn't planned on doing. But then I read the reason for having this contest: To encourage those of us who sew for children to post reviews. I so agree with that, and I'm guilty of not doing it too often. Btw, thank you Trena for managing the contest. I used your slapdash philosophy on the blouse as you will see on the crooked lines inside :))

Love these buttons from F & S Fabrics

More Savile Row than Hugh Hefner

And that's a good thing :)) My dad turns 80 on June 24 and this Dressing Gown will be my gift. It's been a wonderful trip down memory lane this past week as I locked myself in my room to sew. He's been an extraordinary father and I have learned so much from him. It's also bittersweet; just a few days ago he called to tell me he had sold our summer house...

It was too much maintenance to keep up with and I can't blame him. The winters in Norway are harsh so every year painting and other fixes has to be dealt with. And of course the boats. The house is on an island which makes it even more complicated. But it sure is spectacular and I bet the new owners will adore it as well.

My dad is a traditional, conservative man, very well traveled, who speaks the Queen's English :)) I chose to add his initials to a chest pocket, which I made by scanning the patch pocket and downsizing to 60%. I used silk thread since I didn't have the deep blue in the rayon, but I actually like it; works well with the fabric.

And the fabric: Lush woven cashmere with silk charmeuse lining and piping. Below is a picture of the embroidery on left facing:

To my

dear father

From Birgitte

Here is a mini tut on making lined patched pockets with curved corners:

And this is the pattern I used, vintage Simplicity from eBay :)) I really like the Raglan sleeves, they are so well drafted. I added the lining and used a lightweight hair canvas in the hem.
It will ship tomorrow and I'm crossing my fingers it fits. Before I started this project I did a google search and found the below link that made me feel real good- the price I mean :))

Cashmere Gown

Also; apologies for not leaving comments lately; I hope to make up for it soon.

Tunic

A comfortable silk tunic for summer :)) This is my very first one and all I can say is; what took me so long? BWOF 02-2209-110,  silk charmeuse from Thai Silks. I made a few alterations as you will see below, but it was pretty easy to make. 
Imogen, what do you think? 

(for anyone just visiting my blog; Imogen is an image consultant and her blog inspired me to try the empire style due to my H-shape [Rectangle])

Question for Imogen: I am an H, right? Vicky commented that she thought she was a pear and it turned out she's an X... I know the shirtwaist dress looks fine on me, but I'm wondering if it's due to the wide belt which almost reaches up to give an empire effect?

Okay, below are the pictures if you want to see the alterations/construction. I'm off to post a review. And I have more finished garments, jeez this backlog of reviews!! Shame on me :)) I'm also hurrying to make a cashmere robe for my dad who is turning 80. My dad and DH have birthdays 1 day apart... hmmm :))

And Anne; you are funny! Like you, English is not my first language, but that's beside the point. It's your thought process :)) Just love it so please keep on writing, here, there and everywhere :))

All over the place...

That's where I've been, sewing wise. DD's jacket, a dress for her as well, BWOF 11-2008-111, which is almost done. And this dress that I decided it was time to make.

Check out my shoes and nails - gotta bring the dress little more into the summer :)) 

And about the fabric from NY Fashion Center; it arrived the day before yesterday. Almost one month... I'm not sure I love it either. The color is more fuchsia than carmine. It's called silk zibeline and is very crisp, similar to duchess satin but with more of a twill weave. I think it will work for the vintage suit, but now I have plenty of time to decide :)) Bye bye contest, maybe next year.

------------

Thank you for all your praise of DD's jacket. She loves it and will send me a picture of her wearing it. If you go back and read the comments you will find that she actually left me one -a first for her. So proud of you, darling :)) She told me she's even linking to my blog from her Facebook page... 

------------

And the coat... well it's still missing two buttonholes. I'm planning to take it to Warren's - the coat is too nice to fool with a silly buttonhole lever!