Thursday 17 February 2011

Rooibos take 2 and a dressmaking first

Hello! On a roll with the Colette Rooibos, I had another go using a grey gabardine and floral cotton. I think it turned out pretty well, have a peek!


excuse the silly picture, I hate having my photo taken!


collar detail






pockets!

I cut this one a size smaller than my previous version and I think it worked much better. I also took more care when fitting the bodice side seams, getting Matt to help me pin it evenly and mark where the seam should go. Moral of the story: if you take your time and do things carefully, they turn out better. Who'd have guessed?

I have to admit it was hard to sew something in grey, purely because I have an overwhelming love of bright patterns. But I wanted to sew something that would be nice for work, and I think this is perfect for a "worky" dress. The gabardine feels lovely and makes the dress feel that bit more expensive, although it was a bit trickier to sew with than my usual cottons as it's a bit slippery and pulls out of shape more easily. 

So what's this "dressmaking first" I hear you ask? Well, I actually wore this dress to work! All day! And the bust seams didn't burst Babs Windsor style, and the hem didn't unravel and the world didn't end. It's the first time I've ever worn one of my self-stitched garments out to meet people (as opposed to just wearing it wandering around Crouch End where no one will really be paying attention to me). I have to admit I was really nervous, particularly as I knew my friends at work would know it was self-stitched and therefore pay more attention to it than they perhaps otherwise would. But it was all fine, phew! Do you get nervous wearing self-stitched stuff too, or does it pass?

I have a few days annual leave now, so I'm hoping to whip up an easy Butterick dress in red. 

9 comments:

  1. Love it! That collar is perfect, so pretty.
    And I'm pleased the dress worked OK in public. I still get self-stitched nerves but it is silly. If you look at any cheaply produced garment you'd wear out without thinking about it, it's no different to your own work, in fact it's probably had far worse construction. Here's to wearing your hand made clothes!

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  2. Looks good!! I have no fear about wearing self-made garments out in public but I'm a student and I can't look any worse than some of the scruffy students I see wandering around :) Is the Butterick dress the 5305? I look forward to seeing your version!

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  3. Hoorah! It looks fab, lovely colour (I'm biased) and I'm so glad you wore it to work. You probably feel really self conscious the first time but that soon goes! x

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  4. It looks great, well done! I still get so nervous wearing the clothes I make, I'm terrified that there is going to be a hugely embarrassing 'wardrobe malfunction' in my future.

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  5. It's lovely! Very work-like but also very cute. I bet your colleagues were dead impressed - go on, admit it, they were, weren't they?

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  6. It's a fab dress and you should feel proud to wear it out! I know what you mean though, I've made two dresses and worn each one only once! I felt so self concious wearing them. I'm hoping that the more i wear them the less self concious i will feel!

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  7. Great work on this one! It looks amazing!! I might have to add this pattern to the list.

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  8. Love this! I am in awe of people who can sew. I have a long-standing battle with my arch-nemesis, the sewing machine. Threading it? I can do. Sewing in a straight line? Managing not to snap the thread every four inches? I cannot.
    Good work! :)

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  9. A million congrats! The dress is gorgeous, and fits you so well. It's such a revelation isn't it, that clothes you make really can function as clothes?! xxx

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