Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Pictures- A little later than the wee small hours


Yeah... I went to bed...

But here it is. The mannequin, whose name is Esmerelda, is not my size anywhere, but she totally did an amazing job as a stand-in. The wrinkles are filled in on me, for the most part. I actually have to add a bit thru the ribs and bust because I underestimated.

The dress falls around mid-calf, if not a little above it, and I'll be adding at least an inch to the bottom of everything when I cut it out.

Okay, the back.



Only one side has the flap that will be done in an accent fabric you havn't seen yet... But it will be symmetric, I promise. The back detail is making me think more and more about putting the zipper in the side, especially after reading a set of posts about side zippers on Pins and Needles.

The skirt is pretty fun too... it has 8 godets, one at each seam... They are each twelve inches at the bottom, so I'm pretty excited about that.... I'd still have a full circle in the skirt if I took 2 out, so this will definately be a fun dress to twirl in.

Which may or may not clarify my lining questions... I am pretty sure I am going to line, but do I need to do a lining with 8 gores or would a circle work?

If I did a circle for the bottom, attatching a petticoat ruffle would be a snap... I could do something fun in a contrast, or even mix colors of tuelle, add to the swish of Taffeta...

Okay. Really, that paper is not gonna write itself! Thanks for all of the advice so far! I can't wait to hear what your reccomendations are.

4 comments:

  1. It's not strapless, so I see no need for boning.
    Check out the review I wrote for a princess seam dress with godets, for how I did the lining. Review on PR
    If you line like I did and stitch the lining to each godet then your skirt will swing freely and move with you.
    If you put in a full petticoat then your godets don't need to swing, so a full one piece lining would be fine.
    Check out the reception dress that Brooke made for her wedding here She made a full skirt with petticoat.
    And of course, Summersets projects will give you lots of good ideas.
    I look forward to seeing what Summerset says here.

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  2. Alright, Marji, I'm here! Let's see, it isn't strapless, so it doesn't have to have boning. I wouldn't put it in unless you're going to actually do a corselette/attached foundation complete with separate closure, cups, etc. I'm not sure you want to go there. A good strapless longline bra with boning is cheaper and less troublesome. Besides, it is a wardrobe item that everyone should have even if they rarely wear it (just my opinion!).

    I would make a full one piece lining for the skirt as Marji said. There is no need to go to the trouble of cutting and inserting the godets there. You could add a petticoat ruffle to the lining which would be between the skirt and lining, or several tiers of ruffles and you wouldn't have to worry about the netting being scratchy. The only down side to this is that you won't have a separate petticoat to wear with other dresses/skirts. That might be a project for another time. To really make those ruffles stand out, get petticoat netting. It is much stiffer than tulle with slightly large holes and usually only comes in black and white. Not exciting, but you can always layer it with colored tulle if you want a color contrast.

    A side zipper is a good idea if you don't want to mar the back view with the zip. I would recommend inserting it so that it ends at the armhole. Most vintage patterns with a side zip have a small side seam between the armhole and the start of the zipper. It is much easier to get into a sleeveless dress if the zipper ends at the armhole. This, of course, would only work for a sleeveless dress, but I have versions of both side zipper positions and right up to the armhole is best for sleeveless.

    Hope that helps - I know it was long, but there was a lot to say.

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  3. Wow - it's coming out beautifully! I can't wait to see the final result. I'm glad that really experienced sewers like Marji and Summerset are chiming in - you can't go wrong by following their advice! :)

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  4. omg its coming out!!! i like it so far.....! :)

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