lladybird: fall/winter 2010

20 Oct

i originally started this blog to post pictures of my clothing line, lladybird (hence why the blog is ‘lladybird’ and not something clever, witty or, at the very least, involving my name somehow). lately, though, my poor clothing line has become my bastard child… much like this blog, actually. HA!

ok ok, so anyway, i made a cute new little collection and had it photographed last month by a lovely photographer, shea! this shit was legit – we even had hair and makeup done!

photos are under the cut because uhh there are a lot of them.

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bound buttonholes – my first, second, and third attempt

6 Oct

i haven’t been updating much on the lady grey progress, mostly because i’ve been slogging through the boring stuff.

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i cut out my pattern pieces…

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serged all the edges…

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and marked each one with a small note so i would know which piece was which (since i need all the help i can get!).

i am actually not finished with the cutting yet… i still have to cut the pieces for my interlining (lightweight flannel) and i have more interfacing and hair canvas that needs to be cut. cutting is the worst!

last night i worked on bound buttonholes for the first time.
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME BUTTONHOLE PRON????
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i officially hate vogue sewing patterns

29 Sep

vogue released their winter line of sewing patterns today – pretty early, if you ask me, since most of us are just dipping our toes into fall weather clothes (it was 100* here in nashville last week!). normally, i loove vogue sewing patterns. i love the extra touches that are included to make your finished garment more “handmade” than “homemade,” like french seams and foundation corsets and fun things like that. i love that they make patterns based of major designer’s looks so you can rip them off and save yourself $1000 in the process. i love the smug satisfaction i get from sewing an ~advanced~ vogue pattern because it makes me feel smart and knowledgeable.

I DO NOT LOVE VOGUE’S NEW PATTERN LINE, THOUGH.

i hope you are not eating when you proceed.

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completed: vogue 7313

22 Sep

haha you guys… i actually finished this *almost* a year ago. why didn’t i post it? BECAUSE THIS PATTERN IS SERIOUSLY FLAWED, THAT’S WHY.

anyway.

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vogue 7313, circa 1988
i *love* how dramatic this pattern is. eventually, i would like to try the full skirt with the suspenders (too much? oh well). the pants i could live without, but clearly the previous owner was all about them. i bought this pattern at my favorite secret thrift store for 25ยข are you jealous

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completed: mccall’s 5971 in red

20 Sep

i already made up this pattern in navy wool crepe. this is a super cute dress that i think i deserve two of, y/y?

so i made a red one!

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completed: vogue 1192

14 Sep

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well that’s done and completed now. i actually started this pattern over a month ago, got frustrated when it was 3/4 done and threw it in a drawer to stew and think about how bad it had been. i’m still not happy with the outcome, but i am happy with the fact that it is finally finished and i don’t have to look at it anymore.
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lady grey sew-along!

23 Aug

just popping in to let everyone know i will be participating in the 2010 lady grey sew-long, as instructed by gertie’s new blog for better sewing. i couldn’t be more excited – i was thinking about taking the plunge into coatmaking/tailoring, but a little apprehensive. plus, i am in loove with this pattern:

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aren’t you in love, too? ๐Ÿ™‚

anyone who wants to participate is welcome to join! you can follow along at gertie’s blog, or just click the badge in my sidebar.
for a limited time, colette patterns is offering 20% off the lady grey pattern for anyone who wants to make their own! use the code GERTIE20 (it is case sensitive) to take advantage of the discount. code expires on september 30, 2010.

NOW. what color should i make mine? turquoise? yellow? pink? deep purple?
ooh the decisions!

completed: vogue 1086

22 Jul

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vogue 1086, a tracey reese design

it only took 2+ weeks (i had a lot of distractions, k), but i’m finally done! yay!

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vogue 1161 – work in progress – + flea market finds

28 Jun

so i started trying to hammer out this vogue pattern over the weekend:
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vogue 1161
i know it doesn’t really look like much, but there are a lot of neat design lines (WHY would you style the dress with leopard print fabric that hides the seaming and details? WHY?) that i thought would make a hot little cocktail dress. you know, for all those cocktail parties i don’t go to.

anyway, the fabric calls for something slinky and silky, so i went with this rich orange silk:
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also, btw y’all, i hate sewing silk and i really am going to swear it off soon.
reasons why i hate silk:
– it unravels worse than anything i’ve ever seen before. just during the process of cutting and marking my fabric pieces, i have probably lost over 1/2″ on all seam allowances due to the silk unraveling and being a bitch. this dress prob won’t even freakin’ fit by the time i am done with it AUGHHH!!
– it is a bitch to cut – it shifts and slides and hates on me. i tried cutting on paper, i tried cutting one layer, i tried pinning the everloving hell out of it… it must be some kind of shape-shifter because it would NOT stay in place. the only thing i didn’t try was my rotary cutter – because, 1. i hate my rotary cutter; 2. the blades are dull; and 3. i hate my rotary cutter bc i don’t actually know how to use it – but my scissors are pretty freakin’ sharp soo i don’t know. anyway. cutting sux, y’all.
– ironing makes me sad. i learned very quickly that, even though my rowenta has a “silk” setting, it wrinkles and puckers the crap out of my silk and apparently i need to use a press cloth. whoops! the iron isn’t hot enough to totally flatten those dang seams, which is a bummer because i am an seam-pressing fiend every other day of the week.
– i had to buy a marking pen because my wax ~tailor’s pencil~ was too hard and bore a tiny hole in the fabric, crap.

but you know what? at least it is a pretty silk.

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vogue 1174 – complete!

22 Jun

well, i finished vogue 1174 aka the ~cynthia steffe~ strapless dress, just in time to wear it for a wedding over the weekend! boy am i glad to be DONE with it!

pattern review and many many (don’t say i didn’t warn you!) pictures under the cut!

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