The rest of it….

Alright….  here are the rest of the photos…  They turned out really nice I think and it’s going to be sooooo hard to choose which ones to use for my portfolio…  I need to choose 1 full frontal shot and one close up of each garment.  Krista did such an amazing job that it’s going to be impossible….

Another teaser…..

Here’s another little taste…  This is the blazer that I made…

 

Sneak peak

So…  after a lot of work and stress…  sweat, blood and tears (literally)…   I finally finished my 3 pieces for my portfolio…  My friend Krista and I did an amazing photo shoot today at 1 Spadina Crescent…  Old, surely haunted building..  Here’s a sneak peak…  Check out her blog too fogelphoto.wordpress.com for more of her amazing work!!!!

 

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So it’s been a long time…  I have to admit I’m having a hard time keeping up on this thing…  anyways…  here is the beginnings of my next project:

I bought some white organic jersey….  it’s so soft…. and dyed it using procion mx dye.  A mixture of teal, black, and yellow to create this desaturated turquoise.  Then I draped this design with some cheap jersey… as seen in the first photos below.  (note my crappy duct tape arm…  and my later much improved muslin stuffed arm… )  I created a mixture of dye and this stuff called sodium alginate to thicken the dye into a paste that I could paint on stamps and then stamp the fabric.  This allows the stamp to be set into the fabric as a dye instead of on top of the fabric like paint…  So you don’t get any of the stiffness that you do when you paint on fabric.  The numbers are actual train numbers of CP and CN freight trains.  The ones that pass behind my house every day.  The top band is cut on the bias so that it drapes over the arm….  next I am going to start draping a blazer…  I think it will be a mustard yellow wool that I will dye myself.  It will be inspired by old train conductors jackets and will again have the stamped numbers.  I am thinking the inside will be lined with silk that I will dye with rusted metal that I find on the tracks.  It’s going to take a while though so be patient.  I will try to motivate myself to add photos throughout the process this time instead of at the end.  Wish me luck!

 

Moving On

So I finished this dress weeks ago…  but I feel like I have moved on in my mind from these previous designs… I am very excited about what I am embarking on.  Let’s just say for now that it involves dyeing material, ink stamping, and creating my own textiles for my next project which is inspired by cargo trains.  In any case, I will publish the photos of this finished dress so that you can see what I have done and so it’s forever documented (for better or worse).

Been working on this one for awhile

Here’s my newest project.  I have finished draping it… which is what the pictures are of and now I will make a pattern and a tuille.  Which means that I will sew the whole thing in an in-expensive muslin to make sure that it fits.  The finished product will be two different kinds of chiffon…  a patterned chiffon for the majority of the dress and a cream coloured georgette for the under layers and the lining.

Finally finished

Well I finally finished it.  It took much longer than I wanted but it’s done.  The main fabric is a silky satin, the sleeves are chiffon and the edges are all bound in the same chiffon.  Enjoy.

Full front

Front close up

Side close up

Getting there…

So this new dress is proving to be harder than I thought…  Raglan sleeves are far more difficult than they look and working with chiffon is a nightmare sometimes.  I have reworked the pattern several times now and am glad that I always make test garments before trying the patterns out on the fashion fabric.  Here are a few photos of the steps I have taken.  I think I have the pattern figured out now and will hopefully complete the dress in the next few days.

 

 

This is the tiny sketch I did in my tiny moleskin

 

Here I am draping the design on the dress form

 

Close up of draping

I am altering the pattern for a third and (hopefully) final time

Close up of the sleeve patterns and my instructions...

 

 

Coming soon….

Material that I am going to make a fun spring dress from.  Excited.

Fabric

Close up

Finished this today …

I finished this skirt today.  It’s made of the same wool/silk as the last one and is lined with the same hot pink.  I made these two skirts to wear while volunteering for fashion week.  That is why they are black.  I think they might look better in a different color.  Maybe I’ll remake them…  The zipper is on the left and I put in a tiny pocket on the right to hold my cell phone and money while I’m working.

Front

Back

Back Detail

Front Detail 1

Front Detail 2