project sewn: signature style

The last challenge! I've made it to the top three of Project Sewn and I can't thank you all enough for voting for my looks and being true sweetheartz. I hope that the whole series has inspired some of you to sew more for yourselves or start creating in general, as that's what it's intended to do. What has been your favorite theme so far?

The guideline for this week's theme "Signature Style" was: "Design a look for yourself that is all you---your look, your style, what you love to make and wear." Perfect. I love making and wearing things that I love to make and wear. 

As you probably know, I kinda only wear dresses and skirts (see here, here and here for evidence). Casual dresses mostly, made in solids, stripes/plaids or geometric prints. Feminine silhouettes but nothing frilly. No embellishments, no ruffles, no ric rac. Pink is limited. Kinda preppy and modest, but also kinda cool (maybe?). Fitted waistline required, fitted skirts discouraged (less so lately, though). Must be beltable. Must pair well with a cardigan or cropped jacket. If it's not neutral, it's probably blue, red, or something in that color family. Must be able to be cut, sewn and finished in about a week or else I'll get bored. If it's not office-appropriate (i.e. knee-ish--length and cardiganable), it must be appropriate for my low-key social life that involves going to a lot of ethnic restaurants, drinking beer at microbreweries, sitting in my friends' living rooms, and walking around parks or whatever.

I've never written out my style requirements before, but it's easier to do now that I've made it most the way through my first Me-Made-May. Seeing the weekly collections of photos and hearing the feedback in the comments gives me a better understanding of what kind of clothes I most like to wear and how other people interpret my style. 

This dress seems to hits all my key style points. I love it, anyway, so that says something. Is it epic enough for a Project Sewn finale? Maybe not, but it's going to get worn and enjoyed a helluva lot. I started with Vogue 8665, a pattern I made recently in red ponte knit. I chopped it at the waistline and added a quarter-ish circle skirt. For more stripey fun, I added a 3" thick band of horizontal stripes at the hem. I was worried about how the straight grain of the band would interact with the off-grain circleness of the skirt, but it didn't freak out too much and actually added some needed structure and weight. It swings like a bell when I wear it.

The fabric is pinstripe chambray from the Michael Levine online fabric store (found here). It's labeled as black and white, but altogether it looks gray, of course, which is exactly what I wanted. Gray looks great with yellow belts, and red belts, black belts, and even brown belts. I think I'm set.

I lowered the back neckline by a few inches because the only matching zipper I had wasn't long enough otherwise. It probably would have been fine as is since the skirt is full, but I do like the look of the lower back.

I used a regular zipper but decided to hand-pick it instead of fiddling with trying to get straight machine stitches all the way around. The little hand stitches sank into the fabric so they're basically invisible, even if the zipper itself is not.

I didn't re-read the pattern instructions so I don't remember how it has you finish the neckline and armholes, but bias tape made the most sense to me. Of course I used red bias tape. Of course!

So that's my final look! If you're feelin' it, please head over to Project Sewn and vote. This is my final solicitation for votes, I promise.

Thanks everyone!

project sewn: 80s challenge

Three challenges in! I'm thrilled to have made it to this point of Project Sewn, so thanks to those of you who have voted for any of my outfits. Today is the reveal for the next challenge, for which we had to sew something inspired by the fashion of the 1980s. I'm excited to see what my fellow contestants have come up with for this one, because there are so many routes you can take. 

I decided to go with a jean jacket, a colorful slim-fitting fly-front denim skirt, and a graphic top. I almost can't believe I finished this whole outfit by the deadline; come Thursday, I had only started the jacket. I was in a cold sweat, scurrying around JoAnn's after work on Thursday, hurling bolts of cobalt blue stretch denim and interfacing at the woman behind the cutting counter yelling "Chop, chop!" Just kidding. I don't use fabric cutting puns out loud.

All of the Project Sewn challenges so far have been difficult when it comes to settling on an idea, but this one was the hardest by far. I don't personally remember fashion from the 80s, since I mostly wore diapers and onesies back then, and there's a fine line between an 80s-inspired outfit and an 80s Halloween costume. I admit that it was extremely tempting to make a sequined Tina Turner dress since I actually had an excuse, but I decided to go for something that was a bit more practical. Man, there were some scary silhouettes in 80s fashion. I just couldn't go dramatic with it, I'm sorry.

For inspiration I watched some clips from teen movies such as Sixteen Candles (1984), Secret Admirer (1985) and St. Elmo's Fire (1985). I even watched some early Cosby Show but those women sure liked their oversized clothing. I eventually returned to an old idol of mine, Kelly Kapowski from the teen sitcom Saved by the Bell. It's a little bit of a stretch because Saved by the Bell first aired in 1989 and ran into the 1990s, so I singled out her earlier style that still had an 80s hangover, like her denim jackets, slim skirts and fluffy hair:

source

I've been wanting a jean jacket anyway, so I thought this was the perfect time to make one. I'm not a fan of the acid-washed look, so I used this dark denim from my stash since it's a bit more modern. I used a Burda PDF pattern, the cropped denim jacket from 02/2010 (here). Luckily I had extra yardage because I completely forgot to add seam allowances when I cut all the pieces out the first time. Genius. Burda magazine patterns are insane. How would any beginner know where to start with them? For this jacket, there were three different style patterns printed on the same sheets, but I didn't know that until I realized there were extra pieces that didn't actually go with this jacket. Plus there are no illustrations for the steps, and adding your own seam allowances means a higher risk for inaccuracies. Anyway, I like the jacket for the most part. The buttons are kinda big, though.

For the skirt I used the Grainline Studio Moss Mini Skirt pattern, omitting the pockets and lengthening view A by 4 inches (I wanted the length but not the hem band of view B). I topstitched all the seams, though it's not called for, just to get a more casual jean skirt look. I wanted it to sit a little higher than intended so I cut a size 4 in the waist and graded out to a size 10/12 at the hips. I used a denim/lycra blend for the skirt -- which creases and wrinkles like crazy, btw -- but if I used a non-stretch woven I'd probably go up a size further so I could comfortably sit. I really like this pattern and will probably make more. Getting tired of all my work-appropriate skirts and having nothing to wear out on weekends.

The top had no pattern... I just improvised a baggy wide-neck kimono-sleeve tee like Molly Ringwald wears on her birthday in Sixteen Candles. I know I should have layered it  over another tee but I can only make so many pieces in a few days' time, people! This jersey was a local find I already had in my stash because it's awwwwwesome. Lucky break that it had an 80s vibe with the colors and geometric shapes. Huxtable-approved, I hope.

I swiped Corey's sunglasses to use for these photos since they're clubmaster style, actually from the 80s. I think he found them on eBay.

Be sure to check out the other 80s looks on Project Sewn today and vote for your favorite by Thursday! If you vote for me, I'll be like:

David Byrne #big suit

Thanks everyone!!

project sewn: sundress challenge

An enormous thank you to everyone who voted for my outfit for the Black & White theme on week one of Project Sewn. I actually won the first round! The first challenge was certainly nerve-wracking, as I had no idea what to expect from my fellow contestants and didn't know how the readers/voters would respond to our different styles. Well, I still don't have a clue, but that's the fun of it, yes? I'm just doing the best I can. I really appreciate your support!

So onward we sew. Here is my entry for round two. The challenge was to sew a sundress.

It sounds more straight forward compared to the theme of "black and white," since we only had to sew one specific kind of garment. But geez, the process of deciding what kind of sundress to sew was still a doozy. This is one of the 1,000 reasons I would never aspire to be on the real Project Runway show (besides the fact that, yaknow, I'm not a fashion designer): it would be impossible for me to decide on a design and fabric in the 30 or whatever minutes they're given. For this challenge I spent a minimum of three evenings frying out my eyeballs on Pinterest, Burdastyle, fashion blogs and online boutiques, trying to find inspiration but mostly getting over(or under)whelmed and frustrated.

Once I finally came up with the pintucked bodice design idea and figured out how I would do it, I then agonized over fabric choice. At one point I was just sitting on the floor of my sewing room, buried up to my waist in different dress-weight fabrics, whining with indecisiveness. It was actually my boyfriend Corey who immediately pulled out this vintage floral cotton and said I had to use it. I rarely wear florals so I didn't even consider it, but I'm glad he convinced me because the fabric really is quite beautiful and I think it's a successful look overall. It was part of the large vintage fabric haul I received from the generous woman who was cleaning out her mom's house (story here). That stash has served me well. 

To make it, I started with the bodice lining pieces of Simplicity 2250, a Cynthia Rowley dress pattern, because it had the princess seams and subtle sweetheart shape I was looking for. I first made my pintucks on a large rectangle of fabric, and then cut the middle bodice pattern piece from that. I really love this detail, though I know it gets a little lost and disjointed in the busy print. It's pretty effective in real life, though, so I stand by it. I may try it again on a solid chambray or something...ooh.

The skirt portion is made from --what else-- the Colette Beignet skirt pattern, altered in my usual way to eliminate the button-up front. It definitely took some tweaking to get the princess seams of the Simplicity bodice to align with the skirt seams, but I'm pretty happy with the fit overall. I was tempted to make a big floofy circle skirt at first, but the fabric and bodice shape was already pretty feminine so I decided to make a sleeker skirt to help balance it out. And now I'm protected from gusts of wind! Believe me... I love my floaty skirts, but it is no fun to have to keep those in check when you're trotting down the stairs as the subway comes rushing into the station. I feel like I owe the fine people of Philadelphia a public apology for my ongoing circle and wrap skirt indecencies. And the city of Philadelphia owes me an apology for having a particularly windy Market Street.

The dress is fully lined, which I kind of made up as I went. The skirt portion is rayon bemberg with French seams. I hemmed the skirt shell with red bias tape and a hand-sewn blind stitch. It's super invisible on this print!

I couldn't get the dress fully zipped on my mannequin, even with the smallest torso set, because her cup size is bigger than mine. RUDE, Singer, rude. 

So that's my sundress! Check out the rest of the entries in this week's round of Project Sewn and be sure to vote on your favorite. Thanks again, sweet peas.

project sewn: black and white challenge

Allo allo. It has begun! To catch you up (if needed), I am one of six contestants in a new online sewing challenge called Project Sewn for women who sew clothes for themselves. During the competition, we sew outfits for a chosen theme each week, with one winner determined by votes and one blogger unfortunately knocked off each go-around.

I present to you my outfit for the first theme: Black & White

At first it was difficult to settle on my strategy for the first challenge. Should I try to wow everyone out of the gate and make a dramatic silk ballgown or something, or should I stick with my usual aesthetic and make something more wearable and practical? Well, since I can't make an epic ballgown in a week while working my normal full-time job (nor do I want to), I went the latter route and I think it was probably the wise choice. Plus, I think that's what this challenge is about --- inspiring women to sew for themselves and add pieces to fit into their existing wardrobe. So! Here are the three black and white pieces I made, topped off with a red belt of course.

My inspiration for these separates was actually Stanley's winning design for the Marie Claire editorial challenge on the most recent season of Project Runway (see here). He sewed an open leather jacket, drapey white culottes and a black and white graphic tank. I knew for this challenge I wanted a gathered skirt with draped pockets, a fitted tee or tank or some sort, and a white blazer to top it off. The pushed-up blazer sleeve is all the rage, I've observed during an intense Pinterest/Kendi research sesh. No tea-length culottes here, though. 

Think she's taller than I am?

For the blazer I modified New Look 6013 quite a bit. (FYI we are allowed to use patterns for Project Sewn.) The shell fabric is a stretch cotton sateen that was stained on the selvedge so I got it for $1.99/yd like a boss. As for changes to the pattern: I added a full lining, cropped it at the waistline and added a rounded peplum for some shaping, de-pleated the sleeve caps and added contrast black lining just to the rolled up sleeve part.

The skirt is pattern-less, made from ikat printed jersey. I've always loved ikat prints but I think this is the first time I've actually bought some. I actually first intended this fabric to be the tank top and the black pleated fabric to be the skirt, but the jersey is so extremely lightweight that my machines ate it alive when I tried to bind the neckline and armholes. I then realized it deserved more attention anyway, so I made it into a gathered skirt with a thick knit-interfaced waistband instead. It's lined with black rayon bemberg and hemmed with the aid of fusible hem tape for stabilization. I gathered the fabric by zig-zagging over a long strand of dental floss. I highly recommend this method, as it's much smoother and faster than stitching three full lines and yanking on the thread. 

The cap-sleeved top is made of some sheer accordian-pleated stretch fabric. To make it, I traced the Sewaholic Renfrew pattern front for both the front and the back, deepened and widened the neckline, left off the sleeves and sized it down severely to accommodate the stretch of the fabric.

So that's my entry! If you feel inclined, please head over to Project Sewn and check out the other contestants' entries and vote, vote, vote for whatever inspires you the most for this particular theme. Voting ends Thursday evening at 8pm MT (that's Mountain Time. I could use some Mountain Vacay Time. Can you hike in a white blazer?). Thank you in advance if you decide to vote for me! And thanks for following along. Hope to see you with another look next week...

project sewn: here we go

Ahem. Please pardon my quaking voice and trembling hands, but I'm here to officially announce my participation in a new sewing contest on the blogosphere that's hopefully gonna blow your mind. I, Andrea of foursquarewalls, wee little awkward blogger in a tiny corner of Internetland, am one of the six contestants in the new Project Sewn series hosted by the two talented and fearless multi-tasking women behind Simple Simon & Co. and Project Run & Play. 

If you're active in the online sewing community, especially if you sew for your own kiddos or enjoy reading about other people who do, then you most certainly know about Project Run & Play -- the ongoing series of contests where bloggers sew an outfit for their children based on an assigned weekly theme. Readers vote on their favorite design, and one person is "sent home" at the end of the voting period until there are three designers standing. They've also added on a sewalong, so readers can sew with the themes and post their projects to a link party for a chance of their own to win a separate prize. 

Now there is an adult version! Well, not adult as in that kind of adult, but adult as in, grown women who sew for themselves. I am incredibly amazed and honored (and a little confused, tbh -- I thought they had accidentally e-mailed the wrong Andrea) that I was asked by Elizabeth and LiZ to join in Season 1 of Project Sewn. And my competition is seriously fierce. I am definitely the babiest of bloggers among these creative forces of Internet sewing wonder: 

Jess from Me Sew Crazy

Sophie from Cirque Du Bebe

Terra from Mama Says Sew

Caroline from Sew Caroline

Sabra from Sew a Straight Line

Am I right or amirite? I'm prepared to sew like a mad woman and bring my A-game, though. My sewasaurus rex is aroar. 

The contest and voting officially begins on May 7th. If you're interested in seeing the themes and following (or sewing!) along, head over to the Project Sewn site. And be sure to enter the grand opening giveaway for practically an ENTIRE SEWING STUDIO -- including a Singer sewing machine, adjustable dress form, like a million spools of thread, rotary mat & cutter and some fat quarters to top off this big fat prize. What's stopping you now, geez? 

How excited are you now about Project Sewn? As excited as I am nervy? Wish me luck...