Happy Accidents
I love happy accidents. There’s no avoiding it: things never go exactly as planned. With something with as many variables as a totally custom dress, at least one of those variables is liable to throw you for a loop. But, in my experience, this dilemma has always turned into a springboard for something even better; […]
Pattern Corrections
Pattern correction always creates an interesting conflict of interests for me. The fewer corrections you have to make, the closer that the dress is to being perfect, but one of my favorite tasks of dressmaking is pattern corrections. I really enjoy taking the garment from the fitting, with all of its pins, cuts and marks, […]
First (and only!) Fitting
A custom dress always requires multiple fittings. I first make the hand-drafted pattern into a sample garment that we try on first. We can fix any kind of fit problems and make design choices using this garment, without any risks to the actual dress. We can cut and pin and draw all over it. I […]
Butterfly Bouquet
I’m not just a dressmaker. When people ask me “what do you do?” Sometimes I list my professions, but most of the time I just say “I make things”. Pretty much, if you can think of it, I can make it. One of the ‘add-ons’ that I offer my brides is creating custom accessories. Jill […]
Mocked-Up
I’ve taken my paper patterns and made two sample jackets, or mock-ups, for Jill to try on when I see her for her fitting over the Christmas break. For the mock-ups I used an inexpensive fabric that had a similar weight to that of the real fabric we will be using. The mock-up fabric that […]
I love flat patterning.
For custom garments, there are two methods to create a pattern: draping and flat patterning. Basically, draping is when the patternmaker pads a dressform to the measurements of the wearer and uses a inexpensive fabric to “sculpt” the design directly onto the form, pinning, cutting and drawing as needed. This fabric “pattern” can then be […]
Flat Patterning without Measurements
As you know, I am making this shrug for my cousin Jill at a great distance. One of the biggest challenges I had to try to overcome is the measurements process. Normally for a dress, I take about 40 measurements. I insist that I personally take these measurements. I know exactly where I place the […]
Sketches
I worked up a couple of sketches for Jill to see based on all our previous conversations, questionnaire and swatches. I snail mailed her samples of three choices for the main jacket fabric, a beaded overlay fabric, and two trim choices that I thought she would like. I labeled each of her swatches with a […]
Fabric Swatching
Jill and I decided that it would be perfect if I used shades of purple in the jacket, rather than the traditional all-white bride (not to mention that it will look incredible with her red hair!). She also really loves lace, beaded overlays, and beautiful textured silks. Mixing these elements together could create something really […]
