Saturday, October 26, 2013

Plans and action!

my sidekick
I've been doing a lot of sewing, and it sure does feel good! I've only actually finished one thing though: Cation Design's free dolman top pattern, which is AMAZING! I've already worn it so much it needs a wash before taking blog photos... 

Right now I have unfinished on or around my table:
  • A Vogue designer dress I started before the gown thing happened
  • A "quick" silk blouse that gave me trouble with the hem before being cast aside in favor of the Cation top
  • An Archer that needs snaps and cuffs stitched down from the spring
  • A black double-knit dress started last Sunday
If I focus I could finish all of these projects easily this weekend. However, I really want to make another Cation top and I just got a stack of Sewaholic patterns in the mail, including the Renfrew. My small office is dressing up as one of our coworkers for Halloween next week, and I need a black and white striped tee. I'm just going to see what type of stripes JoAnn has when running errands this morning... I have a feeling a Renfrew is meant to be this weekend!

***The following is no longer relevant. I stopped by Ross when running errands, just too check, and I found a gown! I'm free! It's black, boring, and made out of some horrible polyester knit that will never, ever wrinkle. It's perfect! In other news, I did not find a single black and white striped knit, except for a few zebra prints. Why is that classic combination so elusive??

I'm feeling pretty great about all the sewing going on, but there is a cloud on my horizon. I found out last week that our Holiday Event is black tie this year and I need another gown. I just can't face that again yet! I may buy something, and the thought of David's Bridal actually crossed my mind a couple times. I'm also thinking about this dress, which is just a summer jersey maxi dress. What do you think? Does black make it formal enough? I could make a beaded belt or and add some beading at the neckline. Again, I'm working not attending, so no one's really going to be looking at me and comfort is first priority.

Any ideas or advice on this one? I want the next gown I sew to be black and simple. Something that could be worn for any formal event that pops up like this.

9 comments:

  1. Kitteh looks so big now! The Cation Dolman top is one of my favorite patterns! I've made quite a few - just wore one of them the other day! Excited that you're jumping on the Renfrew bandwagon also. You're going to love it!


    Ugh - I hate attending black tie events because I never know what to wear. What is formal enough? I just don't know - I'm not a very fancy person! But I think you're smart to just buy something rather than put yourself through the stress of making another gown so soon. I hope you get some better advice from more fancy ladies than me!

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  2. Yay for moving forward on your sewing projects! The dress you linked to is really pretty, but it sounds like you found an alternative at Ross. I saw some striped knit fabric at Stonemountain in Berkeley recently -- not sure if you want to go out there, but it may be worth a call to them.

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  3. I'm so into knit tops right now! So quick and easy to wear. I got super lucky at Ross yesterday too, and found a gown! I'm free!

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  4. Eh, not going all the way to Berkeley for a Halloween costume... I have something that will work :) I really feel liberated! I can just sew whatever I want with no deadlines, yay!

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  5. For how popular stripes are, it is impossible find good quality knit striped fabric! I feel you.

    For the gown, go to Ross or TJ Maxx. They have tons of dressy/formal dresses and the price won't break the bank (particularly at Ross). I sometimes stop and reflect on how much work special occasion dresses are for 3-4 wears *at most* over the lifetime of the garment. What I should really be putting that meticulous care into are every day clothes that will be worn 50 times before they leave the wardrobe.

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  6. That's awesome! You'll have to show us what you ended up with!

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  7. First, I love the Modcloth one, it's beautiful and it looks formal enough to me but I don't often (read: never) go to black tie events so I am maybe not the best judge. Second, if you are thinking about a knit, what about the Tiramisu or Red Velvet dress from Sewing Cake patterns? If you found a really beautiful knit fabric and lengthened the skirt on one of those, I imagine it would be at least as elegant as the modcloth dress. There's a Red Velvet sewalong coming up in mid-Nov. which you could join and you'd have a dress by Thanksgiving. And all of her patterns have pockets. :) I just bought the Red Velvet pattern so I could join the sewalong which is why it came to mind. :) That said, it sounds like what you really want is a classic LBD and I always think of a simple black sheath dress when I think of making an LBD.

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  8. I did find a gown at Ross! When I scoured those stores at opera ball time they had nothing, but Ross came through this time, thank goodness. I'm so relieved! I want to make a few nice gowns soneday, but not under pressure.

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  9. I'm glad you found a great dress! Your sidekick is super cute too :)

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