Purple Haze

I've made a couple of very simple dresses recently. This one was actually made with some cheap fabric that I had lying around as a practice for a pattern I downloaded. I had originally planned to make this from a nice soft lightweight wool, but wanted to check the pattern first. Funnily enough I ended up liking this one, but sometimes the full block colour is a bit much for me. I'm still getting used to wearing dresses that aren't all black or patterned. Apologies for the grainy quality of some of the pictures, I changed some settings on my camera & am trying to work out how to get back to what it was. :S





What: I'm wearing: Self-made purple dress, Zoe Wittner lace-up boots.
Pattern used: Downloaded from Burda Style - Anda #7969
Cost: Probably about $10-15. I think the fabric was about $4/m because I bought 4m to make various things. I think I used about 1.5m. The pattern cost me $3.50. I also used some black thread & a bit of interfacing.
What I like: The little bits of detailing I decided to add around all the seams. Granted this was largely because I was too lazy to drive to Spotlight & buy thread in a matching colour, but I actually think it worked quite well, particularly with the matching tie belt.
What I don't like: The stiffness of the fabric. I think is pattern is a little better suited to softer fabrics. A lightweight wool, or stretch jersey.
What next: I'm going to make the same dress in a black lightweight wool. I also saw a similar dress in Decjuba recently but the waist of the dress was defined by a braid that brought the skirt & top section together. It was a really interesting design feature & I've been thinking about how I could incorporate something like this into a top or dress myself.

Quick Update

It's been a while since I've posted, work has been hectic, & I've been trying to squeeze in some more ski trips before the season ends & after this week it looks like it might last a little longer!

I've been going to pattern making classes each week & I'm halfway through the course. It's been great, so far I've made a basic skirt block & turned it into patterns for 3 different styles of skirt. This week we made a trouser block & next week we are making it into a pattern. I'm super keen to sew that up, because I've never found a trouser pattern that really suits my body shape so I'm hoping that this one will be better.

I've finished a few of my projects & so will take some photos this weekend & post them.

Blossoms

One of my favourite days of the year often occurs August. On this day, the sky is bright blue, the air is crisp & cool, the sun is out & I first notice that all the cherry blossom trees that line the streets around my house have burst into full bloom overnight. This day always leaves me floating on a cloud. Everything is new & fresh again, things start looking cleaner, the days start getting longer & I start thinking of summer.

Yohji Yamamoto Jacket

This is jacket is fast cementing itself in my wardrobe as one of my favourites. The pattern was a free download from Show Studio. It took quite a while to stick all the pieces of paper I had to print out together, but once done it didn't take too long to sew - there was only two pattern pieces. Here's some pictures of me in the jacket in my messy garden. BTW No I haven't cut my hair, I just pulled the lower layers back to create a faux bob.


What I'm wearing: I made the jacket & pants myself. White FCUK stretch top. Zoe Wittner Gold Sandles. Mimco Hair Clasp.
Fabric used: Lightweight stretch satin.
Pattern used: Yohji Yamamoto for Show Studio
What I like: The draping of the satin, I like the circles & loops created as I move & how they change depending on how I stand. The natural gathering of the fabric. The comfort factor, the jacket looks so elegant & sophisticated and when I wear it I feel like I'm snuggled up on the couch on a Sunday afternoon - the perfect combination!
Cost: This is seriously one of the cheapest things I've ever made, the pattern was free & the fabric was hanging in my closet. I got about 4m of the fabric late last year, heavily discounted, I think it was $2-4 per metre. This pattern only used about 1.5-2m of that fabric.

Pattern Making

I've decided to take a bit of a plunge and enrol in a pattern making course, (eek)! It's made up of six sessions over six weeks, starting next week. I'm extremely excited, but equally nervous. I'm hoping I'll learn a lot & will be able to start altering/creating some patterns.

We'll see how it goes...

A Night at the Movies

Sorry I haven't posted much recently, I've been indulging my 2nd love (skiing) in New Zealand, so posting hasn't really been at the front of my mind... In case you're wondering, the skiing was fantastic, epic even. Here's a couple of photos I took from my new favourite NZ mountain, Treble Cone.



Whilst in NZ though we went to a really cool movie theatre. Inside, instead of normal chairs they had all these cool old couches & even an old Morris Minor filled with cushions. They also have intermissions, halfway through the movie. You can order a meal before the movie starts & when you come out of the theatre at intermission, all the meals are set up on tables for you. It's really fun. The whole place had all these really funky touches too, including these dresses made out of admission tickets. I really enjoyed our night there & it made me wish for a place just like it in Melbourne.