10 Things to Know About Making My Own Wedding Dress (WITH PHOTOS!)

Recently I got married. What that really mean is, I recently had an excuse to make an epic dress for myself. YES,  I MADE MY OWN WEDDING DRESS!  And here are 10 things you might like to know about it.... 

1) Shopping for and trying on RTW gowns was a good idea.

Along with my sister and my MIL, I brought two level headed friends who know me and my personal style well. I tried on 5 dresses at Kleinfelds with the help of their wonderful sales associates and was able to determine which silhouettes looked best on me and I got an idea of what dresses in my “budget” looked like. (The “budget” was 6 times what I planned to spend on materials) This helped keep things in perspective later as I decided on a pattern and purchased materials.

2) I couldn’t commit to making my dress and going to the gym every day.

I decided that having a dress that fits me perfectly was a more reasonable goal than trying to lose 15 lbs and squeeze my chest into a ready made gown. I wish I’d realized this sooner because I would have started making the muslins a lot sooner as well!

3) The design process took a lot longer than expected.

I had a lot of design inspiration and a stack of commercial patterns to choose from. I knew that I wanted a slim skirt with a puddle train, long or ¾ length sleeves and as much lace as I could afford (not much). Originally I thought would combine design details from several patterns but the early muslins where not encouraging. After making muslins for 3 different patterns I was getting a little nervous because I didn’t know what my dress would actually look like. Then at what seemed like the last minute I found a new dress pattern by Simplicity (1909) that pretty much nailed my requirements and I wouldn’t have to change the design at all. I paid full price for the pattern and got right to work cutting a muslin with substitute lace and everything.

4) It helped to have a sewing-savvy friend to be a technical consultant.

My friend Sara is a recent Parsons grad and a knitting buddy. She comes over weekly for TV and wine so she was the perfect person to help me with the fine tuning of the pattern fit and to go with me to try on commercial dresses. She knew precisely what I was going for in style and fit and she knows quite a bit about sewing. It was immensely helpful to have her check in and see the dress progress on a near weekly basis. My coworker Julisa was also able to provide similar advice when needed. I work in the fashion industry as a technical designer and I did most of my pattern corrections and all of my fabric cutting at work on the large cutting tables. Julisa was often there to confirm my layout and cutting methods as well as help fit some of my first muslins.

5) I kept is simple (as much as possible).

I wisely picked a design that would not be a too complicated. It was a fitted but not overly structured design well within my experience level. I think the pattern choice was perfect. I researched couture sewing methods, but I wasn’t afraid to take make time saving choices about construction. There was one point when I started to make it into more of science project than necessary…While shopping for organza at Mood I ran into a coworker who was a contestant in Project Runway Season 10 and specializes in evening gowns. I told him about my plans briefly and asked him if he had any advice. He said something along the lines of “The foundation is everything! Use sew-through boning on your foundation!” Well, a corselet was not an original part of the pattern design, but Susan Khalje and half the wedding dress sewing blog-averse made them so I went ahead and purchased sturdy cotton muslin and all the boning and hook/eye tape I would need, but in the end I didn’t love the restricting fit and it was causing a bit of construction order confusion. Another friend asked if a corselet was truly necessary and wisely suggested that I leave it out in favor of good foundation garments. I took her advice and it got me back on track.

6) DIY Accountability.

While I was working on the actual sewing, I instagrammed pictures on my cell-phone and posted them on Twitter (@restlessgrace) and Facebook. This prevented a lot of repetitive stressful questions about progress and it also garnered a lot of positive feedback and encouragement from friends and family. One of my twitter friends (@FleurHoare) regularly re-tweeted my posts which gave me a boost of confidence and pride. My coordinator Shanelle checked in with me periodically to monitor my wedding planning progress. I could tell she was a little concerned that I was making my own dress, but she was fully supportive and kept me focused on all the wedding details.

7) Making the dress was stressful.

For the last 3 months I almost couldn’t think about anything other than the dress. It was the last thing I though about at night and the first thing I thought about when I woke up. Every wedding nightmare that I had was about the dress not being finished or looking like a hot mess. That it was stressful isn’t really a surprise, but it was something I was in denial about the entire time. I kept a tight grip on my confidence and miraculously I never faltered. I did secretly worry that it would be completed mere hours before the wedding and that it would be a wretched train wreck, but I think having perfected muslin that I could try on anytime that I felt my confidence flag was my saving grace.

I love this muslin!

8) Timing is super important.

I thought that my 10 weeks estimate was a generous amount of time in which to complete it, but I gave myself 14 weeks just to be safe. I finished the dress just 7 days before my wedding! I should have been more disciplined about sticking to my dress making schedule (see above: stress), but since I gave myself a few weeks extra I made it in just under the wire.

9) I saved money making my dress.

Having control of my materials meant I could have a gown in whatever price range I was comfortable with. I kept a spread sheet of my purchases to keep an eye on the mounting cost of the dress. I’m going to be open; I bought $757 worth of materials (including the veil and fascinator materials), but the materials that I actually used in the dress totaled $449. Bottom line; I made a gorgeous silk dress that fits me perfectly for the bargain price of $608 (factoring all dress materials purchased) and a beautiful veil and fascinator that cost $148. For comparison, all the dresses that I tried on were in the $1600~$4000 range (before fitting). There are a lot of materials left over that I definitely will use as well. With the extra silk and lace I plan to make some luxurious lingerie.

10) It was all totally worth it.

Making The Dress was the most satisfying part of planning my wedding. The day of the wedding went by in a fast blur, but I will remember making the dress for a very long time.

Going to Church

My mom looked so lovely.

We memorized our vows!

Borrowed my BF's pearl necklace

3 bustle points - ribbons inside

less structure = more dancing!

Love

Bonus Fancy Dress Making Tips: 

1. Practice everything, even if you’ve done it before. You want to know what the results will be like this time before you commit to each process.

2. Material is precious and expensive; protect your investment: Do not let anyone else touch your fabric/project. No one knows the financial and emotional investment better than you and no one will take as much care with your fabric as you. Clean your sewing room and don’t bring the dress outside the room!

3. You risk marring your fabric with excessive handling. When using silk crepe, test press a square of your silk with dry heat to see if it shrinks. If it doesn’t, consider skipping a pre press.

4. Press well and often. This is no time to skimp. Cover your ironing board with clean muslin. Better yet, also cover the ironing board legs with clean muslin. If your organza press cloth somehow got fusible glue on it from a previous project, don’t use it! Test the heat setting so that you don’t get seam impressions.

5. Sewing hook and eye tape is easy! There is a great tutorial here.

6. Just because Susan Khalje does it in her couture wedding dress book doesn’t mean you have to. In other words, a corselet is not necessary if the dress is not strapless and doesn’t have a heavy skirt.

7. Stay organized. Keep all your notions together, eliminate extra stuff on your sewing table, and keep all the muslins together and all the pattern pieces together. I spent an hour hunting for my modified pattern pieces one night, terrified that I’d thrown them out.

Extra: My wedding pinterest board with all my wedding inspiration pins.

Stay tuned for the epic wedding dress making detail post!

Current Obsession {Donna Karan Coat}

The heat wave finally broke here in NYC and we are enjoying a few days of deliciously cool weather that has me looking forward to fall. What better time than now to start planning my fall sewing list? This season I'm going to try to stick to filling the holes in my wardrobe. One item on my "need" list is a new winter coat and I have my eye on this pattern:

V1321 via voguepatterns.mccall.com



V1321 via voguepatterns.mccall.com



V1321 via voguepatterns.mccall.com





 Here's the runway version:



Donna Karan F2011 RTW - via style.com



Donna Karan F2011 RTW - via style.com



Donna Karan F2011 RTW - via style.com

This promises to be an intersting and hopefully easy coat since it won't involve a lot of tailoring. It's unlined and made of melton or boiled wool. Based on the runway photos it appears that all the seams are lapped. Soon I'll be visiting my friends on 39th street (Chic Fabrics and H&M) for some camel colored wool. I'm hoping to find something soft and luxurious... perhaps a little cashmere. The pattern takes 6+ yards, but without all the intereior fabrics and trimmings I think it will be very economical.

Why McCall’s (Big 4) “Printable Patterns” Aren’t

1) Price: I almost never buy a Big 4 pattern for over $5. I wait for their seasonal sales and buy around 8 to 15 patterns in one full swoop. I am a loyal customer in this regard. Occasionally I will pay full price for a pattern; if it is out of print, discontinued, or I NEED it (like when I was making my wedding dress) but these are the exceptions.

Now, the slightly elevated price for the “printable pattern” isn’t astronomical and is competitive compared to indie pattern companies with digital patterns, and I don’t mind paying for instant gratification and convenience from time to time. Price shouldn’t be an issue here, except that it is…


2) The pattern isn’t a download. It’s not a PDF that you can save and use over and over as many times as you like. What you are purchasing is the right to print it 3 times in one year from a single computer. THAT IS ALL YOU GET. That is why it’s a “printable” pattern and not a “downloadable” pattern, and that makes the price a little much to choke down.


3) This business model is clunky, inconvenient, and ultimately didn’t work!

First, when I added the pattern to my cart it listed the wrong pattern size. I wasn’t going to pay a non refundable fee for the wrong size, so I fired off an email to customer support.

About 24 hours later I got a response that answered the size question but created more questions. A couple emails back and forth between customer service and I finally went ahead and ordered the printable pattern.

About a half an hour later I got an email from a third party company (PrintSew) with the link to the pattern, only when I followed the link I learned that I needed a password that should have been in the previous email but wasn’t.

Another phone call to McCalls customer service, a phone call and an email to PrintSew’s customer service and another 10 minutes later I got call back from a PrintSew customer service person who reset my password. While I had them on the phone I was able to login, and that was when I discovered that I had to download and install a plugin to my computer that would secure the pattern (from me, the purchaser!) in order to print the pattern. Well, that is impossible because I don’t have a printer at home I print everything at work or at FedEx Kinkos… places where I can’t install anything.

Did I mention that the pattern is nonrefundable? Well, McCall’s made an exception in this case, after another phone call of course. I haven’t actually received the refund yet… that should be forthcoming in a week or so.
So yeah… McCalls, Butterick, Vogue, Kwik Sew “printable” patterns aren't printable. Has anyone out there ever successfully used one?

My Alabama Chanin Beaded Blue Bolero

My latest Alabama Chanin style masterpiece!

This is a beaded bolero from the Alabama Studio Sewing & Design book.

It's made from a single XL 100% cotton t shirt that I bought for $.99 at a Salvation Army. I placed the sleeve hem on the original sleeve hems. It's made from a single layer of fabric and stencilled in white fabric paint with the Paisely stencil that I downloaded here and stitched with silver lined bugle beads in two lengths and seed beads. I used the cretan stitch with smaller bugle beads to apply the binding. I also added a few swarovski lochrosen on the smaller dots in the paisely pattern.

I was inspired to make this project late last June as a run up to the fourth of July. I was seeing a lot of stars on blue clothing and liked that idea so I was originally thinking of using the star stencil, but in the end I thought that was a little too on-the-nose. I'm so happy with the way it turned out. It's very sparkly but the cotton makes it easy and comfortable. It's going to be a dress-up-or-down kind of garment. I can't wait till tank top weather to wear it! 

Some more info on the process:

The oak tag and mylar stencils used on my last projects where a PIA to cut! It took too long and hurt my hands.  I can confirm that the purchase price of a stencil from Alabama Chanin is totally fair and if I didn't want them all I would consider buying one. Alas, I can't afford them all so for this stencil I decided to try another material. I spent some time researching "pennant felt" as it is described in the books. I searched all over the interweb and was only able to locate it on the AC website. I figured "pennant felt" must be a term that they use to describe a product that is available under another name but I haven't found it yet. I did purchase some craft felt from Dick Blick but it turned out to be very soft and thick; too fluffy to be a good stencil. I don't like not having options, but I do like supporting Alabama Chanin so I caved and bought 1 yard from them.

It's thin and firm and easy enough to cut, although still fairly time consuming. It's also fairly wide so I'll be able to get 2 stencils out of the one yard. The first one is the paisely stencil and I'm still deciding on the next one. I was going to cut either Anna's Garden or the Facets but now that the lovely Heart stencil has been added to the resource page I am even more conflicted! Let me know if you have a  favorite.

The cheap spray bottle that I used to stencil my first projects was starting to sputter and splotch and I knew that I wanted to make more stencilled garments so I went ahead and purchased a Badger Airbrush.

It's a little strange to use at first but I'm getting used to it.  I will need to get a larger bottle though because the bottles it comes with are quite small and I had to refill them twice for a corset sized project. Yes, I have an embroidered corset project in the works!

Unfortunately (or fortunately??) I need to focus on my wedding dress at the moment so it won't get any work until this summer so look for it later this year!

More pictures on my Flick set.

Sewing A Blazer

Order of Operations

- Bulk Fuse self pieces (except sleeve - fuse hem only).

- Cut Self and Lining.

- Mark button/hole placement on fronts with basting sts.

- Stitch fronts, back, shoulder, under collar/stand, sleeves as unit.

- Apply sleeve head and shoulder pad.

- Stitch top collar/stand, front facing, back neck facing together as unit.

- Stitch facing unit to body unit, breaking at the notch. Grade, & clip SAs. Under-stitch front, collar & lapel.

- Sew Jacket Lining completely; Serge body seams, serge finish the sleeve seams separately. Leave one sleeve seam open.

- Stitch sleeve hem to lining hem.

- Stitch lining to facing.

- Reach through lining sleeve seam to stitch bottom hem. Close sleeve lining.

- Stitch button holes, sew on buttons.

It should go without saying that one must press as you go.

Most Helpful Links:

- Sewing a notched collar: Threads This is not the method I use, but it looks pretty good. I should probably blog my method since I haven't found it's equivalent.

- Bagging a lining: Grainline , and Threads
  - Sleeve Vent: Pattern Scissors Cloth, Sigrid

Jacket Blazer Pattern Drafting Tips

Important things I learned about drafting jacket patterns:

• The basic block rectangle is drafted using the CBL, and the bust measurement (wearer’s measurement +2~3” ease) divided by 2, +1”. Much of the excess ease will be drafted out when style lines are added.
• Back HPS is 1 ¼” above CB neck.
• Front HPS ¾” above CB neck, unless you are drafting for a larger than “average” bust. When doing a classic FBA adjustment length is usually added to a CF pattern piece. This can be avoided by raising the front HPS. I raised my front HPS to 2" above the CB neck. 
• Shoulder slope is usually ½” lower than CB neck. adjusted front shoulder slope will differ accordingly.
• Curve the shoulder seam toward the back for a nice shape.
• The back shoulder seam gets 3/16” extra length than the front. This is in place of a shoulder dart.
• The front armhole is longer than the back armhole by about ½” ~ 3/4”. About 5/8” excess is usually removed from the front armhole to achieve this, but the exact amount varies (ie: fuller or flatter bust).
• Under lapel darts are used to eliminate the excess in the armhole for simple styles. They are not necessary for all styles.
• Square collar stands are harder to sew than curved collar stands.
• Seam allowances: neck/stand: 3/8”, stand/collar: ¼”, collar/lapel/front edge: 3/8”, AH/seams: ½”.
• Pressing is VERY important to construction. When pressing the seam closed (prior to pressing seams open), steam can be used to stretch the seam allowances. This eliminates the need for clipping subtle curves and narrow darts.
• Add 1/8" to collar and lapel points on front facing and top collar for turn of cloth (more depending on the thickness of the fabric). Blend to 0 at the notch and to the lapel break point. The top collar should also have 1/8" turn off cloth along the fall edge.
• The Lapel should have 3 notches: the break point notch, 2" above the break point, and 2" bellow the lapel point. The facing should have corresponding notches, but the notch above the break point should be shifted up 1/8". This builds extra ease in above the break point to help the lapel roll correctly.
• Do not tape the roll line if it is not needed (if the jacket does not gap) as this may cause the front to be shorter than the facing which can cause excess fabric (wrinkles) in the lapel roll line.

10/1/13 ETA: Sleeve Ease:

• Top sleeve back seam should be +3/16" (longer) than under sleeve seam.  Ease top sleeve onto under sleeve when sewing; top sleeve on bottom. 
• Top sleeve elbow seam (front seam) should be -3/16" (shorter) than under sleeve seam. Stretch top sleeve onto under sleeve; top sleeve on top.

Drafting a Personal Fit Jacket – aka Pattermakers Block

I have been taking a patternmaking course at FIT this fall specializing in jackets and coats. Every week, we practice drafting the jacket block for a standard size 8 and learn how to create different jacket styles by changing the style lines. The class is from a production point of view, so there are lots of patternmaking details, tricks and methods to remember that will help make the construction more efficient and how and wear to adjust the fit when making pattern corrections. It’s been great. The weekly practice of drafting the block has finally sunk in and I sewing up the half muslin in less time each week. Practice makes better!

So now I’m starting to work on my final project and I have immediately run into a BIG problem. The final has to be of our own design, include the complete production pattern (w/ separate lining pieces, fusible, and templates) AND be accompanied by a full garment sample (we are allowed to employ a sample maker if we like). It’s also due in exactly two weeks. The amount of time and the scope of the project isn’t the problem. The problem is that we are allowed to use our own measurements for once, and of course if I’m going to go to all that effort I want to make the final sample wearable for myself.

Why is this a problem? Because I have a massive bust circumference (43”) and I carry a large portion of it on the front half of my torso. My front bust circ is 5” larger than my back. When we draft a block for jackets we place the side seam directly in the middle, which would make the back too big and the front too small, and give my a badly shaped back armhole to boot. This was never a problem as long as I was drafting for a size 8 (which apparently my back is). I am stumped on how to proceed and time is ticking away. Do I move the side seam closer to the back? Or do I draft the block based on my upper bust measurement and then adjust the bust as I would the hips when I add in my princess seam style lines? The later is closer to what I do with commercial patterns, but is a bit of a work around and defies the concept of drafting from scratch. I feel that there must be a right way of drafting this particular fit problem.

I was hoping my boss would be in the office today (he's also my professor - gotta love FIT) so I could pop into his office and ask him for 2 minutes of advice but unfortunately he is not here today, which means I am wasting another day that I could be working on the final.