Dress Form Haiku

She's my fitting friend
My dress form - separate - but me 
:-)
Foam core, woman spirit

L.R. Shimer

Yes, I am working on the Enchanted by Sewing Podcast for the month of September tonight. 

How did you guess?

La Biblioteca de Redwood City/Redwood City Library

Constructed in 1921, the main branch of
Redwood City Library was once a firehouse

I remember when the Redwood City Main Library was the fire station. You still get that old slide-down-the-pole feeling when you wander in through the great big brass and glass doors.

I meet up with my IOS study buddy on the second floor once a week in one of the second floor study rooms. I often feel that the spacious, relaxed surroundings contribute to our study success. The second floor is dedicated to independent and small group study. Project Read has a lot of dedicated space on that floor. New readers of all ages are a special focus of programs at this beautiful library. I've noticed a lot of the middle school students developing their reading skills with graphic novels.

The library is a part of the county-wide Peninsula Libraries. I often log onto the county library web site, and search for books from all over the Peninsula, that I can then ask to be sent to a library within walking distance of my own home, for just 75 cents. I can also return materials from any library in the system to a local library.Wouldn't the development of the internet have been worth it, just to be able to do that?

Jeans Sewing:: Jeans'ing up for my own Blue Jeans Project

Now that I've completed my jeans-style heavy denim skirt I really feel ready to tackle a pair of traditional blue jean pants inspired by Mr. Levi and the California Gold Rush! 

What appears to be involved in creating my own jeans?

Getting the fit right 

The fit for my jeans'y-style skirt had it's challenges. For example the heavy denim hung from my body differently than the heavy twill I used to make a muslin.  But this and other issues, though time consuming, weren't overwhelming. They mostly involved getting the side seams and waistband curved right to support the weight of the fabric, a lot of trying on, pining, basting, repinning and rebasting.....

Getting the fit right on a pair of traditional jeans will be a bigger challenge. So I made the skirt, to get started with just a few jeans'y techniques before beginning jeans.

Learning or adapting sewing techniques that are different from those I use on other types of garments. 

The heavy-weight no-Lycra denim (11.5 oz.) I'm choosing for my first par of jeans, and jeans-style skirt, not only requires a jeans needle, it also feeds  through my machine differently. I've found I need to alter tension too, set the stitch length longer on both regular and topstitching, and consider my choice of thread carefully for each part of the garment. 

I'm also considering buying a walking or jeans foot.

Embellishment and Bling! 

I love the variety of stitching and hard embellishment I see on commercial jeans, particularly on the pockets. I'm on the hunt to try out different types of add-ons, and testing out both the application techniques and the washing process to keep my new jeans embellishment hanging in there. (I 'm working on a post that will be up in a few days, in regards to getting going with embellishment/bling).

Resources

Locating and making the best use of a variety of resources - classes, books, on and off-web articles. Frankly, it's easy to be distracted by too much information, and yet there's a lot of good stuff out there. I haven't found any books specifically on jeans sewing, and I'd like to have one I could just pick up for quick reference.

~ ~ ~

Jeans Sewing - Skirting the Issue - 

Jeans-Style Skirt Terminado! / Done!

http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2013/09/jeans-sewing-skirting-issue.html?showComment=1378743530744#c3428728796407559024

Pinterest is a great way to both search for and save off photos and resources for jeans sewing (as well as other sewing) topics

http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/0-sewing-jeans-inspiration/

http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/0sewing-jeans-techniques/

Illustration Credit for Free Download Image
© Missjelena | Dreamstime Stock Photos &Stock Free Images

Matters Millinery - Making My Own Hats

I created this fabric covered buckram hat
from black silk dupioni in Wayne Wichern's class.
The pink silk band and bow makes  a nice looking trim,
but so far I've only worn it plain.

Have you ever read the fascinating book The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould? The author presents stories about the historical study of phrenology (the Victorian idea of a noble brow is a typical example of phrenology). One aspect of phrenology was that researchers tried to prove that head size was linked to mental superiority.

It didn't pan out.

I'd love to think that my larger than normal head means I have an extra measure of brains. But according to Gould, that's not the case. About the only thing my 24.5 inch head size does for me is make it impossible to find a woman's hat that fits. Gals are supposed to have 22.5 inch head circumferences. Hence the Minnie Mouse look whenever I try on a cute hat. Over the counter hats perch up on top of my curls, making me a perfect cartoon model.

But of course, being a sewist, I can make my own hats and leave Minnie's at Disneyland.

~ ~ ~

You may have read a posting I wrote last fall called "Chewing a Bun with Tuppence" (http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2012/06/caps-off-chewing-bun-with-tuppence.html )  about the first fabric cap I made. I also wrote about another cap I made, using the same pattern a month or so later. I wear one or the other of these caps every single day. They protect my skin better than a regular baseball cap and are a lot cuter too! 

But I wanted to know how to make more than caps. I wanted to be able to make a structured hat.

I like my black silk duping hat plain

I took Wayne Wichern's Millinery class at Cañada College last spring. It was a lovely three-session, weekend class, perfect for full-time workers who want to squeeze in some creative time with recreational and artistic sewing. We had a lot of fun chatting while we stitched away - the majority of this kind of sewing is by hand. By the way, Wayne is not only a fun person, he's also a great teacher.


Most of our time in class was devoted to making fabric-covered buckram hats. I made a simple style in black silk dupioni. I played around with trims for this hat, but mostly I like it plain. It will be easy enough to add trims anytime in the future. I bought the fabric at Thai Silks in Los Altos. If you stop by their shop, ask about special discounts for fashion students and Cañada fashion students. It's a really nice store. They've been there a long time and have a good reputation in the area. They sell online too.

We also learned about the process of making straw hats. We didn't have the resources and room to block our own, but we gave Wayne our measurements, choose colors and styles and he blocked them for us.  We did the really hard part - we trimmed them with ribbons, lace and anything else we could come up with :-) So now I have a straw hat that fits, in addition to my black silk hat!

In addition we made fascinators or cocktail hats. I gave mine to Holly the Dolly to use as a regular doll's hat. I'll put up a picture of that in a future posting.

~ ~ ~

We loved showing off our creations at the reunion
in Wayne Wichern's Burlingame studio

In late summer Wayne invited us to his Burlingame studio for a follow-up party where we showed off our creations. Wayne teaches a variety of workshops in his studio. If you live in the area, or might come for a visit, I can promise you'll have a wonderful time in this sociable setting. Warning! These popular workshops fill quickly.

~ ~ ~

Whenever I see an appealing hat, cocktail hat or fascinator on the web, I pin it to http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/hats-and-other-millinary/

Wayne Wichern Millinery http://www.waynewichernmillinery.com

Wayne's Workshop Schedule - Burlingame CA (San Mateo County, San Francisco Bay Area)
http://www.waynewichernmillinery.com/MillineryWorkshops2012.htm

Thai Silks
252 State Street, Lost Altos, CA
http://www.thaisilks.com

Some People Get the Fun Jobs

Hey Chico Aboard!

Uncle's truck is your playground.

Glad you stopped by.

Draping With a New Retro Friend

Eventually I'll be draping on my own
Uniquely You dress form, but for the first few assignments
we use the school's forms.
I fee very lucky to be matched up with this lovely
lady, created in 1965.

This year I created and began to use both a duct tape, and Uniquely You dress form. These new fitting companions have helped me to fit patterns, muslins, and garments.

I learned so much getting started with these dress forms, that my September Enchanted by Sewing Podcast show, will be about what I've learned creating and using these dress forms. 

Still, there's more to come.

This fall I'm taking the Draping class at Cañada college. There I'll be learning the art of draping, and I can see that it truly is an art. I'm just beginning to develop my eye, use my fingers to smooth the fabric as I drape, and starting to learn where the material is telling those fingers it should go. It's pretty exciting to think that by the end of the semester, I should know enough to draft some of my own patterns - patterns that are made just for me, by me!

We're using the Connie Crawford Art of Draping book. I've listened several times to the Sew Forth Now podcast, where Lori interviewed Ms. Crawford (Sew Forth Now #35: The Industry) and enjoyed the story of how this very experienced woman came to create this book.

The dress form I'm currently using in class (I'll be using my own Uniquely You dress form later on in the semester) is a 1965 model. Just think how many students have learned to drape and sew with her! I compared her with some of the newer forms, and noticed that she is, as our teacher says "perkier". That is, her bust is more enhanced than other more modern dress forms. Yup, shapely chests were popular in the middle of that decade.

I'm so pleased I've been teamed with this retro 60's gal. 

It's sewing companions and classes like this that keep me....

Enchanted by Sewing

* * *

You can find Lori's interview with Connie Crawford on the Sew Forth Now Podcast  

http://sewforthnow.blogspot.com/2008/08/episode-35-industry.html

Aqui Tiene Café - Linguistics Lesson Mid-Stream

Click on the illustration above, por favor,
To enjoy more of the beautiful details

We do fine together. in English- the two men who are adding on 250 square feet to our house. They are totally bilingual. 

But they also share a special lingo. It's one that reminds them they are both comrades and cousins. I feel honored to share it, just un poco, with them, when I fill their water jug with  agua y hielo or bring out café in the morning. I've learned a new idiomatic phrase over the last few weeks - Aqui tiene cafe  (Here you have coffee). 

I provide the drinks, and they provide impromptu Spanish lessons. 

Gracias professores!