I love this time of the year. As someone who greatly enjoys cleaning and fresh starts, the New Year is always exciting. I also find it helps to look over the last year, to show myself how much I have accomplished. It always feels like not much happened until you look through your day planner or calendar. I ended up having a very busy year, and have another one planned! My apologies in advance - this is going to be a very long post!

I started off the year with an easy project- a cute little bee skirt. I look slightly miserable in some of the photos since I was battling an unnecessarily long cold, but I still wear this (and brought it to Germany with me!). 

After that, I had a bustle era obsession, and made a bustle cage and my Through the Looking Glass dress. We took photos of this dress in a blizzard (most of our photo shoots seem to be in terrible weather...), but I loved how it turned out! It is actually for sale in my Etsy here.

And started making a second bustle dress to go with the first... which is still not done (first goal for the New Year? Finish some of theses projects)

In March I went to Germany! I spent two weeks, starting in Berlin, and making my way over the Koln and then Hannover. I had an amazing time, got tons of inspiration, and met some of my family that lives there!

Once I got back to Canada, I finished quite a few things in a pretty short amount of time, starting with my Moth dress. We had a great day taking these photos in Inglewood, in Calgary.

My favourite photo shoot from the entire year! The Berlin Collection is so far some of the favourite garments I have ever made as well. I wear all of them, and the WW2 military style will always be my favourite. We were so lucky to ride in a vintage plane as well. This is up there with Germany on my best memories of the year list.

Lots of 50's styled things this year! After making my In the Mood for Love Dress and enjoying wearing it so much, I decided to make another one in a different fabric. 

I have always admired vintage corset covers. They are so delicate and detailed! So this summer I made myself one for underneath the (still unfinished) bustle dress I was working on. And it was perfect timing! I ended up being able to get photos at a Calgary Stampeded Pancake Breakfast.

The Mexico Collection was my Summer collection this year (can you believe it? 3 Collections in 1 year! I am quite proud of myself). We got fabulous pictures at Drumheller on a very hot day. 

In August we got new photos of my 1930's skirt at Heritage Park (one of my favourite places to go every summer), and made myself another dirndl. Dirndl's are one of my favourite garments, and I have so much fun making them. I also got 2 tattoos in August, which was lots of fun!

September was probably the craziest month of them all! Not only did I start school (I am taking Costume Cutting and Construction through the Olds College Calgary Campus), but I also was a Team Lead for MakeFashion. Last year was my first time doing MakeFashion, and I absolutely loved it. I was so excited to be a part of it again this year! I also started my Etsy account in September, as well as got photos of my Man From UNCLE dress. Plus, at the beginning of the month I released my Fall Collection, Crooked House, where I collaborated with 2 local businesses - DSign Step and Iron Crow Antiques. 

Thankfully, October calmed down a little bit and I only finished one garment- my 1950's romper, which is also up on my Etsy.

In November I actually finished two outfits, but I only have photos of my Canadian 1950's Shirt and Skirt. I also had lots of other things going on in October and November, which cut into some of my sewing and inspiration time. I got psychological testing done in November, and was finally diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. I also turned 19 in November, and participated in the Natural Talent Alliance Model Walk

And finally December! I had some pretty big ups and downs this year, both with personal life and my sewing. I had some amazing opportunities and fantastic memories, such as going to Germany, flying in a plane from 1946, and taking part of MakeFashion again, just with my own design this time. I also spent a lot of time questioning exactly where I want to go in my future (which caused a lot of grief- I really like having a goal to work towards). December ended up being an amazingly calm end to the year. I finished my two final projects in school (a skirt and pair of pants that I will be getting photos of soon), and did a Peaky Blinder photo shoot to celebrate finishing my first semester of school. I also started working out again, and became a brand ambassador for Just Strong athletic wear! 
I also worked on a few things that I don't have photos of yet during the year (such as a 1960's coordinating coat and dress, and vest that I made for a gift, and a few other things), and I made a few patterns for a local athletic wear company, Intuitive.

To sum up the year in logistics: I sewed over 30 garments, released 3 collections, started school, and was in 11 newspaper articles. Not too shabby!
I am so excited for 2019!

​~K

The bees skirt is made from quilting cotton and hand stamped with bees (more photos here), made using a Butterick pattern. The shorts and halter are made using a Simplicity pattern and quilting cotton.

One more post will be up soon of the last few pieces in my Mexico Collection!

~K

When it comes to the books in my collection, I have been extremely lucky. I have been given so many books by family friends and other people who have already gone through a costuming or fashion program. 
Out of all of my books (I have quite a few...), these are some of my favourites. There are so many more that I would like to eventually collect (Norah Waugh and Janet Arnold being some of the authors that I have seen are necessary in a costuming library), but I am so pleased with what I have so far.

The books that I use for inspiration and help fall into a few categories. First are the books that are specifically for sewing. Of those, my favourites have to be the American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking, Corsets, as well as The Art of Needle Craft. The Art of Needle Craft was published in the 1930s, and a beautiful little textbook! It shows different stitch types, and has helped me with my embroidery products. The American Duchess book has been so popular among historical costumers, and it has so much invaluable information! I wish it would have been out when I made my first costume, since it was an 18th century era dress. Corsets is a book about historical corsets, and how they were made. I haven't so far used any of the patterns, but I am definitely planning to use them, and I love looking through the book for inspiration.

The second category would be the books about history. I have tons and tons of history books, since that is something that I am fascinated by and love to learn about. I narrowed down my favourites to the ones that are more about clothing through the eras. One of my first books about this, and still one of my favourites is The Survey of Historic Costume. This books is massive, and has at least a few pages for pretty much every era. It also shows modern designs that are inspired by history. Another favourite of mine, which is much newer, is my Charles James book. I have many, many favourite designers (Coco Chanel, Dior, Zac Posen, Alexander McQueen, and so many more), but right at the top of the list is Charles James. He had very sculptural designs, and the best thing about the book is that it gives a glimpse into what goes underneath the dress. I also have a great little book about the Regency era. Unfortunately it only has a few pages about the clothing, but the book does talk a little about everything. The next few books could belong in a few categories, but I decided to put it into this one because they do have great bits of information in them. I love the books by Megan Hess, especially Coco Chanel. Along with the information, it has beautiful pictures throughout.

Another category is all of the inspiration books that are just pretty coffee table books. Some of these do have costume photos in (I have tons of movie books because I love movies so much), and others have nothing to do with clothing. Out of all of them pictured, I have a few that I look through a little more often than others. One favourite is the Grand Budapest Hotel coffee table book.It has costume sketches from Milena Canonero, one of my favourite costume designers. I also love Amber Butchart's book on how movie costumes have influenced the fashion world. It includes Marie Antoinette, In the Mood for Love, Moonrise Kingdom, and many other favourite movies of mine. I also am often inspired by interior design books, such as Sibella Court books (Nomad is my personal favourite to look through). Her books are fantastic to look through since her designs are inspired by different countries. I have always been fascinated with places like India and Mexico City, and I love seeing little objects from these places. The last movie book that I look through constantly is the one for Crimson Peak.

The last category is magazines. I love sewing magazines (the ones that come with free patterns are the best), but I also read Porter and Vogue obsessively. 

Where you do you get your inspiration?
~K

I filmed a large portion of the process of making the Berlin Collection. To see more photos, you can see them here

~K

I was so inspired by Germany while I was there, by what people wore, the beautiful countryside, and by the stunning architecture and history everywhere. Out of the whole trip, Berlin inspired me the most. Maybe it's because of the difficult near history that the city has gone through (if you know my blog well, you will know that difficult histories are something I try to teach about often), and maybe it's the gritty mixed with elegant that you see so often- Belle Epoque architecture layered with graffiti, a delicate skirt paired with a grunge-styled wool jacket.

Something that I immediately think of when it comes to Berlin is the military. I think of tough, strong women (it is a fact that Germany was pretty much rebuilt by women and immigrants after WW2, since they were all that was left), and resilience. I started to come up with the collection on the U-Bahn, and it grew in my head every time I had empty time to think (mostly on trains). I decided to make a military inspired collection, with feminine touches. After taking into account what I could reasonable pattern on my own or what I already had patterns for, as well as what materials would be easy to find or that I already had, I came up with a pretty solid collection. It includes: a pair of jodphurs, a 1930's styled skirt, a peplum blouse, my 1940's dress (that I blogged about here), and a matching suit jacket.

Most of these pieces are 1930s and 1940s styled, with a touch of 50's flair. These are the eras that interest me the most for the country- in the beginning of the 1930's, Berlin was far ahead of many other countries in terms of acceptance. But I will start before that, after the first world war, to explain the country a little bit better.

After Germany's loss of World War One, their economy and pride was crippled. Because of the Versailles Treaty, which entailed that Germany's borders would be reassigned (losing certain towns to Belgium, France, Poland, etc), they would practically lose their military, completely lose their colonies, and were prohibited access from certain weapons. What crippled Germany the worst was their responsibility to pay for the war, as well as other financial obligations. The country was struggling enough with their debt from the war, so when the Depression hit the US (who was helping them pay off their debts), the ripple was incapacitating. This is how Hitler managed to get in to power- the weak country was desperate to have jobs and pride. However, before Hitler wormed his way in, Berlin was a very open place. This is the city that held the first successful sex reassignment surgery (if you have seen The Danish Girl, that is who I am talking about). This was a very liberal place before the Nazi's- if you are interested in this era, Robert Beachy has a book called Gay Berlin that I have heard very good reviews about.

With my collection, I wanted to talk about all of the strong women in this time. I wanted it to be about the women who rebuilt the country, and the ones who made their way across the Wall even though it was incredibly dangerous, and the ones who rebelled against the Nazi's during the second world war (you may be surprised at how many female spies and resistance members there were).

Because the Nazi's wanted women to be at home having kids and cooking, they didn't quite expect women to be fighting in the resistance. This gave them lots of opportunities that some of the men didn't have. They could smuggle things around the country (such as letters and funds- often hidden in skirt hems and heels), as well as go undercover to find out information. Because it wasn't expected, they weren't caught as easily for a long time. 

There is a story of a French resistance member that I always think of when I think of the women during the war (this is from A Train in Winter, just in case you want to hear more about this woman). She had a letter that she needed to carry from one resistance member to another, and she had to go out into the country to bring it to the next member. On the train, she was sitting beside a Nazi officer, and he took a bit of a shine to her. When other officers boarded the train to search the people on board, he told them that they did not need to search her, probably saving her and the letter in the process, without even realizing it.
There are so many amazing stories like this of peoples bravery during the war. Stories of women walking for miles in high heels and nice dresses to smuggle things around Nazi Occupied territory, and people who helped so many Jewish, Roma, and other people who were being persecuted to get out. Many designers and seamstresses were found to have been housing people to help them on their way out, or sewing in money, photos, and other valuables into hems for them.

If you want to read about some of these incredible stories, or if you are just interested in this time in history, here are some of my favourites: The Librarian of Auschwitz ( a true story that I actually read in Germany), A Train in Winter by Caronline Moorehead (a collection of stories of women resistance members- these stories are amazing), The Scent of Secrets by Jane Thynne, every single one of Elizabeth Wein, but especially Code Name Verity and Rose Under Fire (and also Black Dove, White Raven), Violins of Autumn by Amy Mcauley, Salt to Sea and Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys, and of course The Book Thief. When it comes to movies, I would recommend Generation War (a German mini series, which is beautifully done), X Company (this is Canadian, which I am very proud of!), and The Danish Girl (the movie that is about the first successful sex reassignment surgery). I have spent most of my life reading about Germany, and specifically this era, so if you would like to hear about more books and movies, just ask! I would love to share, and also hear about any of your favourites!

The pictures were taken by a 1948 plane. A family friend owns it and was so kind to let us use it for photos, and we even got to fly in it! Thank you so much Travis and Brenda!
And the shoes are from DSign Step, as always:)

~K

Stay tuned for my making of video!

I am extremely close to being finished a new collection that I have been working on since I got home from Germany- The Berlin Collection. My trip gave me so much inspiration, and as soon as I got home I started with a military, menswear, 1940's styled collection. I thought that while I finish off the last piece, I would share some of my inspiration. I will talk about it more in my post with the photos, but I based the collection mostly off of the resistance and rebels of World War Two, and the women who rebuilt Germany. I wanted to focus on the strong women that I learned so much about while I was there.

I hope you enjoyed a little look into the inspiration for the collection! I can't wait to show you what I have been working on over the past weeks.

~K

The more that I have been working on my sewing, and the more opportunities that I have had meant that I needed a little more help in the studio. After lots of research (mostly done by my mom), we decided on a Janome. My sewing machine is also a Janome, and I love it- I find it very easy to thread and work, and it can sew through almost anything. The sewing machine I have has also last for years- it was my moms before I started sewing. When we went into the shop, I was looking for a smaller machine (I don't want all of the extra details, or a computer panel, just the basics). There was another machine that was a little smaller, and cheaper, but it was a manual threader which is much more difficult and takes more time. This machine (which is the Pro 4DX), is a model that they have been making for years, is very easy to thread, and has fantastic reviews. I am so excited to have this extra piece in my sewing room, I know that it will help me so much! 

Because I got this extra piece, I needed a place to put it. My sewing machine sits on top of a beautiful old sewing machine given to me by a family friend. It is an old Singer machine that I am hoping to get it to work so I can sew some things on this machine (which is from the early 1900s). Unfortunately, I didn't have the table space on it to fit another machine. Luckily enough, we just happen to have another old Singer machine in the house. Ours is a slightly different make, but just as beautiful, and I am so excited to have it in my sewing room (I used to pretend to be sewing on it all the time when I was a little girl, so dreams are coming true here). 

While we were in the city, I also picked up a few patterns. I am so excited about these, as I will be using all of them to build up my wardrobe (I have the hope that my whole wardrobe will be made by me except for sweaters, shoes, and such). I even have the fabric for pretty much all of the projects that I have planned, so hopefully they will be quick to finish!

I have been planning a Mexico dress for a long time, and I finally have a set plan for it! I originally was going to do a tiered skirt with a white blouse (similar to an outfit that my grandmother has a picture in when she lived in South America). When I found this pattern from Vintage Vogue, I thought it was perfect. It has the tiered skirt look that I wanted, but with a twist. I am planning on printing my own cotton to make this with, with the skull (like a sugar skull), and a rose in bright colours.

The next pattern that I got I have been admiring for years. I actually had planned to make this for graduation last year, but I ended up buying something and altering it instead. When I saw the Vogue sale at the fabric store (which is why all of these patterns pictured are Vogue), I thought that it was the perfect time to get this one. I haven't decided what fabric to use for it yet (silk to make it fancier? Or wool suiting for more of a winter style? Or perhaps muslin for a summer suit?), but I am very excited to make it, and I am hoping to make a few different versions of it.

This is another one that I have been planning for a long time, however I had not chosen out a specific pattern for it yet. When I saw this, I thought that it would be perfect! I have been wanting a nice pair of cigarette style trousers for years, and when I picked out this wool suiting from Bhatia, I thought it would make an adorable pair. I had originally planned to use the wool for a cocoon coat, but I decided that I would use these more often. I also would like to make a linen version of the shorts for this summer.

This pattern was a little bit of an impulse buy. 1940's patterns are a bit of a soft spot for me (I love the interested details, and how they managed to use as little fabric as possible while still using interested seam lines and such), plus the dress with the full sleeves reminded me of the Fendi ad that I think is stunning.

The last pattern that I got a few days ago came free with a sewing magazine. This one comes in a few lengths and sleeve lengths, and I thought that it would be perfect for a Wes Anderson styled dress. I chose a coral cotton to make it out of, and was inspired by Suzy from Moonrise Kingdom.

I also have a few patterns coming in the mail- the dirndl dress from Patterns by Gertie, as well as a few Vintage Simplicity patterns. Two of those are 1960's mod styled dresses, one is a 1940's skirt suit, and the last is a pattern for 1930's tap pants and bralette.

Other than shopping, I have been getting lots done. I won't share the majority of what I have been doing yet until I get photos, but I will give you a sneak peak. I also altered my 1930's wool skirt, since it was large at the waist. It was a quick fix, but I have been putting it off for months since alterations aren't my favourite. There are a few more things I need to alter, so I am hoping to do that soon.

~K

This year was a really huge one for me, especially when it comes to my sewing. I started this blog just a little over a year ago with my Special Project in school, and it has grown very quickly with all of the projects that I have been working on. I also started a makeup and skincare part of the blog (and an instagram here) after I started working at a beauty counter to share about some of the things I have learned through training sessions. When it comes to my sewing, I have grown quite a bit in the past year! I started the year with finishing my Special Project, which took me a semester to make. Not long after that, I started working with MakeFashion. I started out just helping, and ended up making a dress with the help of an engineer! It was hectic and crazy and I loved every minute of it. I also got to go to Mexico with my family this year, celebrated a one year anniversary with my boyfriend, graduated from high school, got accepted into Olds College Fashion Program, got a job, made a dress for a televison pilot, and finished 16 projects (some of which I haven't blogged about yet). I would say that was a pretty successful year! Here is my year in photos:

And a quick sneak peak of a project that I haven't posted about yet:

Heres to another great and productive year! I can't wait to see whats in store for me

​~K

I just finished making my 1940's trousers from a vintage Simplicity pattern, and I love them! The pattern came with pieces for a pair of trousers, overalls, as well as a blouse/jacket. I decided to make the trousers, since they are something that I can wear in my everyday life. I also wanted a pair of trousers to bring with me to Germany, so this worked out perfectly!

The pants are made of a light-weight mens suiting wool in grey check. This is one of the fabrics that I got the last time I went to Bhatia, and the sheen to it is beautiful! It also drapes very nicely, so I thought it would be nice for these. They close with 5 vintage buttons that I had in my stash.

I am so pleased with how these turned out! They are super comfortable, and I can see myself wearing them a ton through fall and winter. The pattern was nice and easy to follow, and it only took me a few days of actually working on them to finish the trousers.

These pictures were taken in front of a World War Two era tank that we have in front of our little museum where I live.

Thanks for reading! My next project that I have been working on should be up in the next couple of weeks, although we are going somewhere pretty specific to take pictures, so stay tuned!

​~K

I made my way over to the Bhatia Cloth House for the first time last weekend, and I am so thrilled with the things that I found!

The Cloth House was really beautiful and they had tons of gorgeous fabrics, as well as sarees and other fancy dress. The costumer service was really lovely, and I can't wait to make my way over there again to pick up more fabric!

I do have plans for all of the pieces that I picked up, but the only plan I will tell you about is for the mens suiting. 

Not only did I pick up fabric from the Cloth House, but I also ordered a few patterns not long ago. The 1940s pants are what I will be making with the mens suiting wool, and there is so much of it that I am hoping to also get a pencil skirt or blazer out of it!

Both of the patterns are from Simplicity. I have ordered a few patterns from Simplicity now, and they have always been great. The patterns have come quite quickly every time as well, which is very nice when ordering things online!

And there is more!
My boyfriend just got back from Vietnam, and he brought me back such beautiful things! He had an Ao Dai (traditional clothing from Vietnam) made for me, and I was given the extra fabric left over from that along with another chunk of fabric!

Stay tuned for lots of exciting new projects!

​~K

I filmed the whole process of making my 1940s styled dress from yesterdays post. If you have any questions about the process, or if you want to see more videos like this, let me know! To see more photos of the finished dress, click here.
​
The music is from bensound.com

~K

I have finally finished my wool suiting 1940s dress that I have been planning on for a while, and I am really pleased with how it turned out!

The dress pattern that I used is the Vintage Vogue pattern V9082. The whole pattern fit very well, and the only adjustments that I had to make were to the darts. That was an easy fix to ensure that it fit me perfectly, and the rest of the dress went together quickly.

The pattern called for a hidden zipper, but I prefer to set the zipper in normally because that makes it stronger, and I have had the issue of hidden zippers getting caught.

One detail that I am very proud of is the matched front panels. This happened completely by accident, and I love how it looks.

The sleeves have two pleats in them to create a 1940s silhouette without any padding. 

There are so many photos that I like from the photo shoot, so I will put a break and you can see more if you would like.
​Also, stay tuned for a video about how I made this dress over the next few days!

Since school ended recently (and I am done for good! Until college...), I have been working on a few projects. The first one, which I have brought up before on my blog in my Fabric Haul post, is a late 1940s styled dress with a matching blazer. This one has been a bit weird to work on since its been so warm lately and I am making the set out of a wool suiting. However, I love the fabric that I chose out, and can't wait to keep working on it. This one I am actually going to make a video of me sewing it, so you can see some of my process when it comes to sewing more 'modern' clothes.

Another thing that I have been working on is planning for next years MakeFashion show. The call for proposals is coming up quickly, so I have been drawing out my ideas as well as coming up with a budget. I posted a short video of me working on one of the sketches on my Instagram. I have been using these Artist's Loft Dual Tip Markers, which are blend-able markers slightly similar to Copic Markers, and I am loving them!

I have also finished my regency stays, which I had mentioned a while ago, and I will do a post on them once I have some good photos.

~K

A few weeks ago I picked up a few things for new projects. I have had a gift card from my boyfriend and his family to Fabricland for months now, so I finally got to use it! 
The first thing that I grabbed, which I was originally planning for, was a wool blend for a 1940's pattern that I have been wanting to make since the beginning of the year.

I am thrilled with the fabric that we found, so I will be making both the dress and the matching blazer with it some time in the near future. I also picked up all of the things that I will need to finish the dress: a zipper, belt buckle, and some buttons.

The next thing that I picked up I am very excited about! American Duchess just released their new pattern, inspired by the Red Dress from Outlander. I was impressed by their last patterns, so I didn't hesitate to grab this one. 

It comes with patterns for a separate top and skirt, along with a pannier pattern, which I will be putting to good use! Another thing that I am thrilled to have picked up was a dress form! I have wanted a dress form for ages, so I ended up choosing that for my grad gift. 

The last thing that I got was actually a gift. This is one of the most amazing gifts that I have gotten, and I love how it looks in my little sewing room.

A family friend was getting rid of a few things, and she gave me this beautiful sewing machine! Since it came with all of its extra parts, I am hoping to be able to get it working so that I can sew with it.
I have been working on a few things to get ready for grad lately, but once grad is over, I will start working on some new projects that I have been planning. Also, we went to the Jane Austen ball last weekend, so stay tuned to see some photos from it!
​
~Kate