Reconstructed Patchwork Duster

 The dress became a duster!  

The polyester ruffled skirt has just enough body to make the gathers look fabulous but not so much as to add bulk to the body.   The duster is a tad big but with all the layering possibilities, I'm OK with the size.  I love this!  I can pair it with my jean skirts, tiered skirts, jeans, another dress; just about anything.  I ended up defining the waist just a little above my true waist.  I really didn't want to cut off too much of the blouse.  It's an eyelet fabric with the printed leaves and I like it very much!  Yea, feeling motivated now!  :-)

Have a Creative Day, Y'All! 

Reconstructed Dress: Changes and Modifications

I just couldn't get the skirt and top to work together on the Reconstructed Dress 5.  What was supposed to be quick & spontaneous was, quite frankly, giving me a headache and taking too much time.

So, I separated them into 2 projects which will take more time eventually.  Yes, I can see the logic in that decision.  I'm intuitive like that.   But, hopefully, the designs will be stronger or better or at least different. Or, I'll like them more.  Or, something.

As I was working on them separately, I had this very sad feeling come over me.  It's a feeling I've been experiencing quite a bit this summer as I work with fabrics I've had a long time.  I realized most of my life I've made design choices based on other people's likes.  Very seldom did I take a strong stand and say I wanted something.  Even my final decision was a compromise.  It's been liberating, in a sense, to sew these clothes exactly like I want with exactly the fabrics I want.  It makes me want to keep them all.  And, I just might.  They tell my story and I don't think I can sell them.  Yet.

Snafu:  this blouse is not my size.  It's too big. If I keep this dress, I'll need to figure the size part out.  

I took off the collar and replaced with a strip of raw edge fabric.  I left the ruffle edges raw too.  I like both of those features.

I'm not sure yet about the waistline--where to put it.  Presently, it's at the end of the blouse for a dropped waist but I might make it higher.  Any ideas?

The skirt fabric is a vintage woven polyester.  I bought it in a 2nd hand store in the Hill Country when I was on a golf outing.  While everyone golfed, I poked around the town's shops.  I love the colors and the natural motif.  I like the addition of the green to the dress's look too.  

I haven't decided on the skirt's length but it won't be full length.  At least not today. 

I just have these skirts pinned to the tops to give you (and me) a vague idea of how they might look.

This top is too large for me too.  (I see a pattern here . . . . ) but I can always use this as a jumper and layer a top underneath it.  I like layering a lot and have started doing it more and more; with scarves, jewelry and clothes.

Again, I am undecided about the waistline here.  I hate cutting off most of the shirt but it may need to happen.  That will also affect the ruffle placement.  So much for spontaneity.

I bought a full tiered skirt with ruffles.  Very pretty and my intent had been to use the ruffles as is.  When I removed one of the ruffles, I changed my mind and decided to send it through the ruffler for a  more full ruffle.  It didn't work at all.  The fabric was so sheer and fine it didn't ruffle.  I tried various settings but no go.  So, I hand pleated the fullness.

I've started adding more patches in some of the blank spaces.  Because, well, who wants blank spaces?  Certainly, I don't!

I have to leave all this fun alone for a few hours.  I have 3 small quilts to bind and one to quilt & bind for tomorrow. 

Have a Creative Day, Y'All! 

Reconstructed Dress 4: Finished

I finished this dress/tunic late last week.  I learned a lesson or two about the style.  I added the sleeve section and it immediately added width to the bodice.  Too much width for me so I think I have my 1st Plus Sized Tunic for my upcoming clothing line debut.  Secondly, I may transition to more rayons and polyesters to experiment with the drape so this style doesn't appear to add bulk or feel boxy.

Having just said that, here is my next project and yes, it's predominantly cotton.  Oh well!  It's all in fun.  I won't be removing the sleeves and adding to the width of the bodice so I can anticipate a bit more accurately how this will look.  (Or not.)

I am experimenting with ruffles on this piece.  Fun ruffles.  I love ruffles.  

Here are the sections of the skirt laid out on my worktable.  I can't wait to get sewing on them today! 

With any luck, I'll have this completed by day's end.  

Have a Creative Day, Y'All! 

Reconstructed Dress: 4

Following the success and my love of the previous Kimono Styled Reconstructed Patchwork Dress, I've decided to stay with this silhouette for awhile.  I'll spend some time working on variations.  There's a lot that can be done to either the bodice or the skirt.

Toward that goal, I pulled out an older blouse of mine that I have always loved.  I had planned to use it as it was and just add a skirt for a quick dress; but, as I was examining it, I saw a stain on the sleeve cap.  Well, that wouldn't do!  So off came the sleeves.  Then, I had to rummage around for a new sleeve.  At the bottom of some box I unearthed a very old thrifted denim blouse.  I'm sure I bought it for the denim, the embroidery on the front corner and the nice metal buttons.  It's not even close to my size.

All of a sudden I have either an oversized top or what might be the beginning of a dress for someone else.  I typically don't wear oversized clothes but this will have a lot of favorite fabrics so I may give in this one time!  

My goal for these clothes is to do as little sewing as possible.  I'm trying to let the pieces I use from the manufactured clothes be the bulk of the dress.  So changing out buttons isn't on the short list but the buttons from the denim shirt were much better than the blouse buttons.  So, I'll swap them.

The proposed skirt will be vertical patchwork.  I had intended to gather it but since the bodice increased so drastically, I think I'll stay with a flat skirt.  Here are some fabrics laid out that I have in mind.  I'll probably add more strips of the light colored circles so it moves around the skirt well. 

My original skirt for the dress was going to be this nature themed check.  My goal is to use some of my very favorite fabrics from my stash.  I've had this piece for awhile and there isn't much left.  Once I gathered it, it was too small for the top; but, it will make a darling skirt on its own.

The bottom section of the skirt will be this butterfly fabric.  I may add some other accent pieces too.

I had my new beige Patchwork Gathered Skirt laid out and ready to wear yesterday to my stitching group meeting.  I slipped it on & it was Too Big.  Not just a pin it over a little too big but a take the waistband off & cut it smaller too big.  What?  I'm not sure how that happened.  I did measurements.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.  

Have a Creative Day, Y'All! 

Reconstructed Gathered Skirt

Several years ago I happened on a group of size 3X cotton hawaiian print shirts at Goodwill.  Recently I deconstructed them and used the backs for a pieced back on one of my strip quilts.  The fronts remained.  They seemed to be calling to me lately so I designed a vertical patchwork that I could gather into a skirt.  I'm in love!  So cool and summery for the Houston heat.

The gathers which are really tiny pleats were sewn with a ruffler.  I had to get out my Janome 6500 because the 1600P won't take the ruffler attachment.  It's been awhile since I've used my 6500 but I'm glad I have it for garment sewing. 

In lieu of a zipper I made a button placket.  I harvested the wood look buttons off something else earlier in the year.  Those 3 buttons which is exactly how many I needed were waiting on my cutting table for this skirt!  The buttonholes were stitched on my embroidery machine in less than 1 minute per buttonhole.  I love that!

Now I'll need to design a creative top to wear with my gathered skirt!

Have a Creative Day, Y'All!

Reconstructed Dress 3: Modeling

The sun was brutal everywhere I stood.  

This is about as good as it got! 

Reconstructed Dress: no. 3

This patchwork dress took a few turns before it was finished. The 1st skirt was nixed when I decided I didn't want to cut off a long skirt into a short skirt.  I think that fabric may have another purpose that has not presented itself to me yet so I didn't want to waste it.

The 2nd skirt came out so lovely that I decided to finish it as a standalone skirt.  I'll post it very soon.

This 3rd skirt makes me happy.  I've had the shirts I used for the skirt about 20 years.  What I used here is the tail end of them.  So it's nice to have something I have loved in my fabric boxes for so many years now sewn into a dress I can wear and love.  The whole dress used 1 woman's blouse and 3 partial men's shirts. I tried to let the manufactured parts do the bulk of the sewing work for me.

I love this style!  I can see so many variations on the theme here.  I'll be sewing for a long time!  This is the 1st prototype for my upcoming Poshmark store.

Have a Creative Day, Y'All! 

Reconstructed Dresses: 2 & 3

This was a quick sew!  I'll be wearing it today to the Mission Stitcher's Meeting.

I stalled out at the skirt on this dress.  I ended up with a decision but then I was too tired to sew.  The hardest decision was whether to cut the scarf in half for the ties!

Have a Creative Day, Y'All!