Tuesday 3 June 2014



Pink and green should always be seen.

Following my tasteful cool blue post, here's some hot pink and acid green - especially fitting for a nice summer dress.

Simplicity 5124 shirtdress
Vintage shirt dress Simplicity 5124 

I like vintage prints but ditzy florals are not usually my thing. My friend spotted these two prints in our local fabric shop, and it was love at first sight. The dotty fabric is for contrasting collar, cuffs and belt the other fabric is for the main body. I am planning lurid green button holes. I don't want anyone thinking this is not a handmade dress.

My couture class has recently covered collars. I have quite big issues with collars. Everyone has one area of sewing that they dread tackling and collars are, or rather were, mine.




Above are examples one done before the class and one after. I am sure you can spot the difference...



Right BEFORE - Absolutely shocking. It's horrible and that sludge green is not helping.

Left - happily ever AFTER!  Clean, crisp and properly pointy shaped. Although I can't work out which side the interfacing should be on: my teacher says top, some books say bottom, I just read something on a website that said you can do it either way or both! Anyway I will stick with putting it on the top, use good quality stuff and just hope it doesn't go lumpy in the wash.

My lovely teacher Amy studied menswear, which is quite unusual. Her techniques for collars are quite unusual too. A very mysterious, meticulous process and one she partly made up herself. I wrote it all down and tried it at home where I could concentrate properly, it was fiddly but it all worked.

I feel I have suddenly been allowed into the magic circle of people who can make things properly. I have learned so much on this course and we are only half way through.























5 comments:

  1. How exciting! I wish I could sew well but I really don't enjoy sewing so I am never going to have the patience or interest to learn. My mum can sew beautifully but doesn't actually enjoy it. That may be due to having done it for decades. She won't do it now. I love pink and green together and I agree, they must be seen! I look forward to seeing your finished dress.
    xo

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    1. Thanks so much. Sewer needs passion for sure . I sew out of choice, I like the process, it's fun and I like the thought of teaching my nephews one day. One of them is already really interested in it, they did sewing in school aged 7!

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  2. Now that is a beautiful collar, well done! I hope you'll share more tips from your class, I recently made a men's shirt and the collar was a pain

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    1. After doing my collar class I found a couple of good tutorials:
      http://foursquarewalls.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/sewing-collar-different-order.html
      http://off-the-cuff-style.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/perfect-collar-pointsa-shirtmakers.html
      This is not the method I was shown but has some of good basic principles. There is a technique for stitching collars that includes doing a single stitch at a right angle in the corners, I don't think they use that in these posts but I did and it worked well. As my teacher says there are lots of ways to do everything in sewing, so its a matter of what works for you.

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  3. Certainly, it's a great pleasure to make things right ... the satisfaction of a neck look and enjoy everything is fine .... looking foward to see your progress in this dress .... I am anxious to see ...

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