simplicity 1755 Leanne Marshall shirt dress

As I am still in a pickle over the Carven dress finishes I decided to leave it be for a few days and give myself a rest with this little beauty:

I am using view B with sleeves with a couple of alterations: no fabric belt with bow; the sleeves and dress are in the same fabric (grey spotted lawn from Bangkok fabric haul) and finally I have cut the collar in a white cotton lawn as well as the sleeves turn ups. I'm not lining the bodice either. I will post pictures this weekend as it's coming along at speed. Instant sewing gratification for my last weekend of freedom!

Carven style holes dress

In the middle of packing for move I am still struggling with my Carven dress holes and how to finish them. I do like the 3d rose tulle but is it right for this dress. I have hand sewn it in place and this is what it looks like on the dummy:

I am not sure at all....

Spotted dress, bovver boots and bicycles

And I am in full lust mode

Mumsy or sickly sweet

I'm going to have a bit of a moan so stop reading now if you don't want to feel offended.

The resurgence of interest in sewing is all well and good but I wish there was some stylish sewing media and inspiration available. Stopping by WH Smith 'craft section' is a depressing experience. There are 3 choices available to you:

1) What I call the 'academic' magazines : sew today (english version of vogue sewing), threads, Sew ... informative but tend to be on the dull side.

2) The German Magazine, yep i'm talking Burda  style here... what can i say? what i want to say is they should take out the word 'style' from the cover cause Karl Lagerfeld it ain't.

3) My worst nightmare: the cutiepie overdose magazines with pseudo trendy amateurish projects nobody in their right mind would ever want to make let alone wear. the names alone bring me out in cold sweats : mollie makes (i want to parody the song mollie, mollie wtf is Mollie), Crafty, cloth... and the worst I saw was something called 'homemaker'! come on ! somebody is taking the proverbial piss here with a name like that , we are in the 21st century. There's loads more all as bad as one another.
I think the publishers of those rags have read Marie Claire Idees at some stage and aim to reproduce it for the British market. But it doesn't work and lets be honest 100 idees was a lot better than MCI. 100% BETTER.

I just wish somebody would come up with a new 100 idees concept which doesn't serve cheap feeble projects . but that's not going to happen

Candyfloss Jacket project

As my new job and move beckon I am reviewing my wardrobe. I am in need of a smart in-between seasons jacket and I have a hankering for a tweed Chanel inspired number.

A project like that isn't cheap but if you look at it as an investment and think of the cost of an ordinary mass produced jacket versus a Chanel you are making a wise investment.

I spent £55 on my supplies

first I selected the following pattern:

The Threads and Simplicity collaboration patterns are great, you've got a capsule wardrobe that is on trend yet classic all for £9 including postage

The fabric requirements are economical and I can see myself making all the items eventually. I particularly love the peplum blouse.

When you talk 'Chanel style' jacket you think Linton tweeds and I fell pray to this beauty:

£26 a meter is a big Ouch but this come in 140 cm wide and the Simplicity only requires 1.20 meter

I am not a big fan of the bling jackets with shiny trimmings and gilt buttons but I have a couple of meters of this cute gros grain velvet pompom ribbon in my sewing stash . I got it from French haberdashery website Mamzelle Fourmi. I will use it to trim the jacket:

Yes, it seems my brain has been taken over by candy floss.

And as I hate sewing buttonholes I ordered some furriers hooks and eyes from McCulloch & Wallis to discreetly fasten edge to edge.


 And now for some more pink:

La quintessence de Dior comment Christian Dior envisageait la haute couture

McCall's 6986 Wine Dress and assorted banter

I have to pre warn my potential readers that major changes are afoot which might disturb the flow of posts: I have been offered the job that I have been wanting for the last month.
At first it was just a rumour of a job, then there was no job , then it was on again and finally they offered me the interview I had been wanting and they liked me! So, in 2 weeks time I will be no longer one of the great evil, unwashed foreigners who are such a drain on the long suffering British taxpayer, I will be one of the tax payers myself ; albeit a non British one.

Well; that was a nice bit of controversy (let's just hope I've got no daily mail readers lurking in my readership). To be near my work I will be moving with the BF to a town in Wiltshire which has got more than 1 street! Woohoo!

So there might be less sewing in store for a few weeks and less blog updates.
Anyway as the Vogue cut out dress lace trimming is lost somewhere in the post, I thought I decided to squeeze a new project in between:

This is as far as I've got with it.

I picked up this cotton sateen in Fabricland and I loved the colour and the slight stretch which I thought could come in useful as I know vintage patterns tend to be on the snug side. If it says on the envelope it's a 28 inch waist you're not going to get 30 as it goes on modern patterns. The downside of the fabric is that it's not top notch quality but then again as with all Fabricland stuff it's very good value for the money (£3.99 a meter in 150 cms width is fine by me).
I have a couple of vintage 1960's buttons in a similar colour and I am debating which will make the best match:

so far the top one has my vote, but it could change.