Debra's Projects: Studio Dress

After my blog post yesterday I scurried right over to my clean work table & decided right then and there to clutter it up again!  Ha! Ha!  What good is a clean table in a studio?  Who works like that?

The pink hoodie presented some problems.  I like problem solving.  It's good for my brain.  Because I am working with thrifted clothes (think: "one of a kind"), I like to plan & plan again before I cut anything.  I'm also interested in Zero Waste.  I don't want any unnecessary scraps or hard to rework for something else leftovers.

My plan:
1. Cut the hoodie as wide as possible
2. Cut the sleeve and some of the body off another sweatshirt
3. Sew them together
4. Add a front & back panel for length

BUT, obviously I don't want the pink hoodie, the gray sweatshirt and the black sweat pants (cut for the panels) to be sewn together & left like they are.  Oh no, I want to cover them with the t-shirt pieces.
And, the gray sweatshirt is a bit nubby inside so I plan to line the whole Studio Dress as I am now calling it.
And and, I want to use the longarm for the freestyle patching.

Here's the uncut mock up of the Studio Dress.  The sleeves are too long and the width may be too wide.  I can adjust after I patch them.  I can also add pink cuff ribbing using the bottom band of the hoodie. 

This is a leftover piece from memorial pillows I stitched.  It's very soft and supple with an appropriate amount of stability.  The patches are overlapped and stitched from jersey knits.  I would patch the hoodie like this sample.

My solution:
1. Piece lining from some jersey knits.  Load on longarm.
2. Sew the sweatshirt knits together but leave the side seams open.  The piece should open and lay flat on the jersey lining.
3. Pin the hood out of the way.
4. Freestyle piece patches all over the surface.  I won't be able to patch on the hoodie with the longarm.  If I decide to patch it, I'll use my domestic machine.
5. At the neckline, I can topstitch around the placket and neckline with my domestic machine.  Then trim the jersey away.  It won't ravel and if the edge needs to be neater, I can add some ribbon or trim.

I do like my reconstructed clothes to be neat and well planned.  I have a formal clothing construction background so messy sewing (even reclaimed) makes me very uneasy.  I like freestyle patches but I want my garment seams finished appropriately.  😎😎   (If you are wondering, yes, I finished all the seams on my patchwork robe.)

Just as I wrote my notes with the steps for my Studio Dress, I looked up & there was a nice big patched piece of yardage staring at me.  Ahem!  Squirrel!  Shiny Things!   I took it down from the shelf.

If I stitch another yard of 60" wide patched fabric, I will have enough for another Studio Dress or a Patchwork Coat.  This yardage is sewn to a coarse lining so I pulled some jersey clothes for a slinky lining.  I'll piece them into yardage and then quilt this yardage to the lining in the opposite direction (but more widely spaced).

Look at this Lusciousness!  

I love working with these knits.  The colors and patterns are just fabulous.  I don't have anything like them in my quilting cottons.  I think that is contributing to my boredom with my current cotton stash.

I also like the prices.  As evidenced by the tag, I bought this full length skirt for $1.67; that's a lot of fabric for the price.  And, on a much bigger scale, it's reusable and saved from a landfill or a return trip to India.   And, really, how cheerful will it be to open my coat to see all this luscious color?

That, Friends, is how one project quickly morphed into two projects! 

I'm secretly happy Houston had a little cold spell.  It has motivated me to execute some ideas I've had stored in my "someday" file. 

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