BLOG
Earlier this year, I made a wool dress or my sisters formal. This dress is made from the same pattern that I made my moth dress, just with the neck yoke. ~K
0 Comments
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
After seeing Angela Claytons hilarious video that she posted a while ago about cooking recipes from the early 1900s while wearing clothes from that era, I decided to do something inspired by that. Unfortunately I am not as brave as she is, so I decided to use only one recipe, and it is one that I knew would work from Julia Child. I love reading through her cook book, and I love all the tips that are for women in the 1950's, so I decided to wear my newest 1950's styled dress and make a dinner using her cook book. I made the Vanilla Sponge Butter Cake with the Butter Cream Recipe from Julia Childs Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The recipe is very simple, and nice and light! The recipe asks for a 10 inch pan to be buttered and floured (if you want to make cupcakes it makes 12), and for a 350 degree oven. First melt 4 tablespoons of butter and set aside to cool. Then gradually beat in 2/3 cups of sugar into 4 egg yolks, and add 2 teaspoons of vanilla. I also added some lemon zest and juice at this point to make it a lemon cake, but that is not necessary. In a separate bowl, whip up 4 egg whites and a pinch of salt until soft peaks are formed. Slowly add 2 tablespoons of sugar and mix until stiff peaks are formed. Scoop a third of the egg whites and 1/3 cup of flour into the egg yolk mixture and fold together gently. Continue with another third of the egg white, 1/3 cup of flour, and half of the melted butter. Finish with the last of the melted butter, the last of the egg whites, and another 1/3 cup of flour. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or 20 minutes for cupcakes. For the Butter Cream Icing, start by rinsing a bowl in hot water. Then place 2 egg yolks, 2/3 cups of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of flavouring (I did strong lavender tea with some lemon, but you could do vanilla, melted chocolate, strong coffee, or pretty much anything else instead), and 6 ounces of unsalted butter. Mix these together until creamy, and place in the fridge until it is firm but still easy to spread. I don't have very much footage of me making the icing in the video because I was only doing half the recipe and math is really not my strong suit... it took a lot of confusion and vague measurements for a butter cream to come out at the end! Let me know how you enjoyed this type of video!
I also filmed a Get Ready With Me before I filmed this video, so I will put that up next week. It shows how I did my hair and makeup for the video. Thanks for watching, ~K I am completely fascinated with moths, and after seeing Crimson Peak, I got the idea to use a print on one of my dresses. In Crimson Peak, one of the running themes is the black moth versus the butterfly. Since watching that movie, I was very interested in moths. I love how hearty they are, and also how beautiful they can be. While butterflies are the well known pretty insect, moths can also have beautiful, colourful wings. My fascination is a little bit darker than them just being pretty and tough. The theme in the movie (if you are not familiar with it) is that the main character is a butterfly, while her husbands sister is the moth- she is the villian in the movie. I loved the theme, and also the visuals of the giant black moths on the walls of the mansion. I also love the scientific illustrations of insects, and specifically of moths and bees. This is where I got my idea to stamp the fabric with moths, and I got the pattern from the wallpaper in Crimson Peak. Guillermo del Toro wanted the main theme to be throughout the whole movie, even where you don't notice it. So the moth is on some of the wallpaper, engraved on chairs and furniture, and in many other places, such as embroidered on clothing. I liked how it was there but not completely obvious, so I took the pattern from the movie to stamp onto my dress. We went into Calgary to get the pictures, so while we were there I picked up another pair of DSign Step shoes (since I love my other pairs so much). We went into Inglewood to get the pictures for this dress, which is the oldest area in Calgary. The dress is made from a Vintage Vogue pattern from the 1950s, and the fabric is a cotton blend. Stamps and photos by Veronica Funk ~K
I finally finished my 1950's styled bee skirt. I printed the bees onto a striped fabric for this project quite a few months ago, however I did not get around to making it until Christmas time. This was made with the same McCalls pattern as my scissors skirt (photos here) and a cotton fabric. This is a very simple pattern, but I love how it looks, and it is easy to figure out fit. ~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 finally finished editing my video on the In the Mood for Love Dress. I filmed pretty much the whole process of me making it, from cutting it out (using a pattern from Patterns by Gertie) to the fnished product. The music is La Valse d'Amelie by Yann Tiersen and Chris Snelling. If you want to see more of my youtube videos, my channel is here Thanks for watching! I will put up more photos of the finished dress in a post next week
~K I have been filming the current project that I am working on, which is a cotton dress inspired by the movie In the Mood for Love (I talked about this movie in my Movie Recommendations post). The pattern that I am using for it is one from Patterns by Gertie. Because I am filming the process, I do not have tons of pictures of the dress as I make it, but I do have a few behind the scenes pictures while I film myself cutting the pieces out. I will post my video up here once I'm done, and as always, I will have the pictures up here as well. I can't wait to show you the finished dress!
~K I had the most incredible opportunity recently to make a costume for a film made by an Albertan director. I worked with Mitchell George from Crooked Cinema to make one costume for their new film Highway Patrolman. I was so thrilled to be able to be a part of this, especially since my goal is to be a movie costumer! You can check out their website here. I made a 1950's styled diner dress for the film, which was great to do since I love the 1950's and have had a bit of an obsession recently with the era. I used the same Burda pattern as I did for my 1950's Blue Dress with a few alterations to it. I made the dress in about 3 and a half days, while working on the side a bit. It was a bit of a tight schedule, but luckily enough this was an easy style to make, and I was able to find the right colour of fabric very quickly. The collar, cuffs, and apron were self drafted, and the dress was based on the Burda pattern. The dress was done mostly on the machine to save time, and finished by hand (button holes, cuffs, and collar were all done by hand). I got quite of few progress pictures of this dress, so this will be a very photo heavy post! I am so thrilled with how this turned out, and with the fact that I got this opportunity! Be sure to keep an eye out on Crooked Cinema, and for when Highway Patrolman comes out!
~K I made this dress using a vintage-inspired Burda pattern. I used a patterned cotton, and I would love to make this pattern again, just as a blouse with a peplum. The pattern includes many different types of sleeves as well as collars and other additions to the dress, so you could make many variations of the dress, which I really appreciate. The collar of the dress was really difficult to figure out, but after doing it once, I think it will be easier next time. I would recommend the pattern, but be aware that the instructions aren't very clear all of the time, but with the drawings and some common sense, it is possible to figure it out. ~K
For this skirt I used a McCalls pattern. The pattern came with a few different variations for the skirt, and a petticoat pattern. I added 5 inches to the pattern to give it more of a vintage feel, and used a cotton sateen. The pattern was very easy to cut out, since it was entirely made out of rectangles, and quick to put together. I will definitely be using this pattern again. As you can see, this pattern features a side zipper. I love side zippers, and I think they add a special touch to a piece of clothing. The next time that I make something with this pattern, I would like to play around with pleating or gathering. For my first time using it, I went with the markings that are given on the pattern pieces for the box pleats, but one thing that I really enjoy with this skirt is how easy it would be to make some slight adjustments to how the skirt is gathered onto the waistband. It would be an easy change, and it would make the next skirt look quite different. ~K
|
EtsyArchives
April 2020
Categories
All
|