Getting Into F.I.T.

Something interesting has been taking place at my studio in New Orleans. A prospective Fashion Institute of Technology in New York contracted with me to teach her to sew while working on her three garment submissions. I must admit that I was a bit leery about taking on such a project, since the time frame was rather small, about two weeks, and I had not seen her sketches. I have seen many design sketches from budding designers and frankly, the designs were conceived by someone who had no sense of garment construction. They usually tended to look a bit avant garde and quite complicated to construct so I was a bit worried whether I could actually be of help to her. I decided to make an appointment for the very next day so we could discuss the details.

Upon meeting India Barnett for the first time, my initial impression was of a young girl who possessed confidence and willingness to learn. I questioned her about her sewing skills and paid close attention to her personality traits so I could decide whether she would be a good apprentice. Her sketches were quite extraordinary; nothing avante garde about them but still very stylish and fashionable. She also brought in the fabrics she had previously purchased in New York and surprisingly, not only were they the appropriate choices for the designs, but they were of good quality. She impressed me as someone who had an innate sense of how fabrics work without ever saying so. She seemed unaware of her abilities and listened intently to my suggestions; in essence meeting all the criteria for an apprentice candidate so I decided to take on the job. With no time to spare, we left immediately for the nearest pattern store.

I learned instantly that she had never used a pattern in her life. She didn't know even the basics such as notches and grain line or even how to read a pattern envelope. I heard myself explaining how the pattern companies gave fabric suggestions for each pattern, listed in order of preference. Inside my head I heard a tiny voice telling me to run away as fast as possible and another telling me to jump right in and enjoy the ride. I tried to ignore them both and proceeded with my instruction for choosing the correct pattern for the design. As luck would have it, we managed to find three patterns that I could make work with her sketches and as we left the store, I secretly celebrated my bravery, or idiocy whichever the case. There would be no turning back now.

Back at the studio, we wasted not a minute of time as we proceeded to cut muslin for the first sample, a school-girl like dress with closely fitted bodice and full skirt with inverted pleats. She had chosen a wool and silk blended mini plaid for the dress with a black tulle underskirt beneath. The neckline was scooped and there were no sleeves. I decided that India would do all the sewing with my guidance in cutting, pinning, and fitting. The muslin fit almost to a "T", with minor alteration to the underarm.

The next sample was to be a strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline made of faux leather. She indicated cutout slits in both sides of the dress and an over sized exposed zipper on back. The hem of the dress would be lined with safety pins placed approximately one-half-inch apart. The muslin was constructed and surprisingly the exact same alterations were required as the first sample. The pattern alterations and design changes were made to the working patterns and a master pattern was drawn onto doctor's paper for each garment. We were ready to begin.

The very trendy faux leather dress with cutouts and safety pin laden hemline. India chose to line the bodice with purple silk dupioni.

The schoolgirl mini plaid dress, which ultimately grew to be my favorite of the three samples, featured a full mini skirt with inverted pleats and a funky black illusion netted tutu skirt. the bodice was lined but the skirt wasn't.

The next day, I decided to have India learn about how to work with plaids. Because this plaid was so diminutive, matching wasn't as critical but I still wanted her to learn how to match so she would be ahead of the game later. Unfortunately, fabric was at a premium so we had to contend with that problem as well. After positioning and repositioning the pattern pieces, she finally managed to fit all the pieces perfectly aligned. We both cut out the pattern pieces and marked them accordingly. We also cut out the pleather dress, which went rather quickly without having to worry about nap or matching. We both left for home feeling weary and triumphant. Tomorrow would be another story.

Allowing a full week to construct the two dresses, India began working on the most difficult dress first: the plaid. With every stitch, her confidence grew and soon India was busily sewing away while I worked on checking seams and pressing. The entire dress took only two days, leaving the rest of the week for the pleather dress and for finishing details such as zippers and hooks. The tutu was already made having only to add a few more streamers to the waistband. This being my first tutu, I was a bit perplexed about the way it was to work with the confinements of the dress skirt. Luckily, I didn't have to worry about that; there were bigger fish to fry. We allowed a full week for the final dress: a red satin ballgown.

Here is India modelling her adorable schoolgirl plaid dress and matching tutu. I love the juxtaposition of the innocent plaid paired with the edgy tutu. Those booties are the perfect complement to this precious design.

This is the back of the schoolgirl dress. The fit is perfection!

We began the final week with the construction of the infamous red dress. First, the muslin. I cannot overemphasize the importance of making a muslin shell before cutting into your fashion fabric. The muslin is the best way to get out all the kinks so you can feel confident to cut and construct the actual dress quickly and without fear of it not fitting. Once the muslin was completed, corrections were made to the sample pattern and a master pattern was drawn on doctor's paper. This dress was the most complicated to draft as India wanted to add a train to the skirt and I was not overly confident in my abilities. Thank goodness India has a casual attitude about jumping into the deep water towards life. She figured it out mathematically and the pattern turned out amazingly. We decided to leave the cutting for the morning.

India's lovely sketch of the infamous red ballgown with its pretty red net rose appliqued train. The dress was constructed of crepe back satin and lined in red satin lining. The overskirt (train) is made of red netting.

The next day, we cut out the entire dress and began to strategize about the lovely rose appliqued netting she chose for the train. It was decided there would be no hem on the netting but cutting through the roses was to be avoided. Once the train was cut out, I had India unstitch the roses in the path of the seams and along the edges. We left the rose in tact if more than half was remaining on the edges. By Wednesday evening, the dress was completely assembled with exception to the hem in the skirt and final handwork. It was such a wonderful feeling to have reached the end of our lesson with three completed garment samples, well before the deadline of January 22nd. I sent India home to make final preparations for her departure to New York and I completed the handwork on the final dress. In the end, we decided not to put the safety pins on the pleather dress and we eliminated the huge rosettes she planned to put on the flounce of the red dress.

A gorgeous gown for a gorgeous girl! Not bad for someone who learned to sew two garments before.

 

 



This view shows the beautiful rose net train India insisted on adding to her ballgown. What a lovely choice!

Here, the full sweep of the train is evident. The two train halves were sewn together in the center using my technique for the tiniest French seam. It was almost invisible.
 

India has received a provisional acceptance to F.I.T. in the fall based on her academics. She will soon find out if her sample garments earned her a place in F.I.T. I have no doubt of the outcome.

Holiday Decorating with Buttons

This year, I have been determined to spend more time creating projects that allow my creativity to blossom. Of course sewing and embroidery of all types feed my creative need, but there's something about doing a project for the sheer pleasure of creating, if for no other reason than to celebrate the season.

When my sisters and I were young, my mother came home with a bag of shiny ribbons of varying widths, sparkling sequins and beads, richly woven trims in myriad of rich colors, and dozens of Styrofoam balls. She then went on to explain that since we didn't have the money to purchase ornaments for our tree, we would make them instead. Then, she proceeded to dump a mound of old Mardi Gras beads onto the dining room table and encouraged us to find our favorites among the glittering finery.

This ball was made with swirls of bright white shell
buttons alternating with swirls of dark shell buttons,
all held in place with white pearlized pins.
The red silk satin ribbon was added after.

In those days, Mardi Gras beads were constructed of beautiful mercury glass and polished beads from Czeclosovakia so they were treasured for their beauty and collectibility and rarely thrown out. Some necklaces were created with crystals in monochromatic colors while others jumbled combinations of beads with no compatibility except for being grouped together in the same strand. Long sections of tubular glass beads strung together with round glass baubles were plentiful but fragile so few survived the day intact. I coveted those necklaces with multiple strands of seed beads in a single color that invariably became the crowd favorites too and were highly sought by all parade goers. Mardi Gras, or Carnival as it is known to native New Orleanians, was quite a different event then and the "throws" were much more appreciated than the inexpensive plastic examples of today's beads.

The wreath begins with a small round styrofoam ring.  Three-fourths of an inch wide silk satin ribbon was swirled around the ring on the diagonal and pinned in place. To mark the position of the buttons, I used a dark color thread and wound it around the ring, then taped it in place. It was easy to re-adjust the position of the thread when necessary. Lastly, shell buttons were placed along the thread with pearlized pins (1" length), and then the thread was removed. The bow and streamers were added last.

The homemade ornaments we created turned out to be our favorites for years to come and the time spent creating with my sisters and mother will never be forgotten. So, this year, I sat down to create my own rendition of homemade Christmas ornaments and invited my niece to join in the fun. I decided to use buttons and ribbons, of which I happen to have amassed large quantities. Here are the results.

Editors note: This holiday season, I hope you take a few moments to create memories with your loved ones while creating special heirlooms to enjoy for years to come. The important thing to note is that my mother let us choose the colors, beads and ribbons WE liked and didn't interfere with our designs, allowing us to enjoy creating entirely on our own. Her role was feeding us inspiration to create.


This ornament began with a solid layer of ruby red buttons covering the surface and held in place with red pearlized pins. Brighter buttons of red, pink and fuschia were added and held in place with red and light pink pearlized pins.
 

Begin this ball with wide silk satin ribbon pinned around the widest point, then add shell buttons to the surface with pearlized pins. Heart pearl buttons are sprinkled on top of the round buttons inside the gaps with pearlized pins. Irredescent sequins were added to the small gaps and attached with sequin pins. The bow was added last.

 

Cyber Monday Sale

Are you enjoying all the Cyber Monday emails you have surely received in your mailbox today? Well, I for one always check to see what type of promotions my favorite vendors are running so I can stock up on my stash.

We have decided to offer a special Cyber Monday savings to our best customers this year, and I want to extend the invitation to you. If you did not receive an email from me yesterday and you would like to be added to our email list, please drop us a line at orders@wendyschoen.com. We will be using this list of names to notify you of our class offerings, current events, newsletters and special promotions.

Color Block Baby Dress

In just one week, we will all be going to the polls to elect our next President of the United States. To show my patriotism, I designed this cute dress. The dress was one I recently taught and I wanted to offer it to everyone. The version I taught was made with hemstitching along the applique bands, but this version features Point de Paris stitch by machine. We are featuring this project on our site as the Kit of the Month, along with a special price. The kit contains beautiful Ulster Linen gingham checks and grid handkerchief linen and comes in sizes 1 to 4. It is also available in blue and white.

This is the first time I have joined a Madeira Applique band cut on the bias. Let me tell you, it was quite different as the band kept stretching, making measuring tricky. Below is a mini tutorial for joining the contrast bands.


The completed Color Block Baby Dress made in the red version with Ulster linen and grid woven handkerchief linen.

Antique buttons were used to accent the pleats. These buttons are included in the kit, too.

Back of dress features shoulder bands that snap together for ease in dressing.

The contrast Madeira Applique hem bands.

Pin and then baste the applique band to the dress, matching up the seams. Mark the placement on the band where the seams meet. It is better to align the seams than to match checks.



With right sides together and edges even, pin the band together.



Sew the band together at the marked position. Trim away excess seam allowances AFTER checking the fit of the band.
 

Open out the hem band, place it in position on skirt and baste securely in place, turning under the edges along the stay-stitches. Press well, then stitch via machine with the blanket stitch function (Point de Paris or Pinstitch), L=2.5; W=1.5.
 



Beginner Tote Bag Class

A few weeks ago, I hosted my first adult beginning sewing lesson. I chose a cute tote bag made of pretty black toile and hot pink pique fabrics as the project. My students, whom I had never met before, were determined to start sewing and needed a bit of assurance and instruction to get started. The class was broken into two sessions, each lasting three hours. Working from 9 am to 12 noon over two days, allowed a bit of relief inbetween to avoid possible "gotta finish or else" jitters. It worked out so well that I've decided to reschedule the same class again. Hopefully, I'll get more students next time.


The completed tote bag.



Cristaine works diligently on her totebag. (See Cris' second project, Witch's Trick-or-Treat Bag in the previous post.)



The beginner students displays confidence while working on her totebag.

When Jamie completes her hand sewing on the lining, her bag will be completed.

Witch's Trick-or-Treat Bag

Most of you are aware that I'm best known for my fluffy white linen dresses with hand embroidery. Lately I've been going back to my roots and taking on sewing projects that I normally don't do. Frankly, it's a lot more fun doing what you want rather than need to do. This is a class I taught last week in Wendy's Sewing Studio. The project was the student's choice and idea and I provided the pattern and instructions for the lesson. This is a gift she made for her daughter, who is enjoying her first Halloween in the States. What fun!

The completed Witch's Bag. This bag is constructed of crepe back satin in black and purple for the basket. Channels are sewn and stuffed with fiberfil. A large piping cord keeps the rim and handle stable. The legs are constructed of striped quilting fabric and the shoes are appliqued on, using the same fabric but inverted so the dull side shows outward. Pompoms decorate the shoes. Although you can't see the sparkles, the netting is glittery and perfect for Halloween.

The legs are sewn with tiny zigzag stitches to prevent tears in the seams. They are stitched into the bottom section of the bag, which will eventually be hand stitched onto the outside of the basket.

A bias loop is attached to the gathered rim of the basket.

The lining of the basket is shown above. Purple was chosen, rather than black to enable tracing lines to be visible.



The leg pattern shown with the skirt already gathered and ready to be sewn onto the bag.

Sewing Room Class is Huge Success

I have been so busy lately that I have not had a chance to check in with you all. Last week, I just returned home from Birmingham, Alabama where I taught a lovely group of ladies at the loveliest shop, the Sewing Room. My hosts Patsy and Billy Smith graciously invited me to teach not one, but two groups. The project they chose was from 1996, one of my very first class projects. Needless to say, the handout needed serious updating, which started me on a quest to revise ALL of my handouts and class project instructions. This is a serious undertaking, to say the least, but now that my schedule is not as frantic, (no Martha Pullen School) the timing is perfect. I also have been working on updating the graphics on my site, but that has been a lesson in patience and preservation. Of course, Jane is doing a ton of the work leaving me to the photos and photo banners.

Just because I'm not included on the schedule at the School of Art Fashion in Huntsville, doesn't mean I'm going away. Quite the contrary, as I now have the time to truly think again and I'm coming up with a ton of new ideas to share with you. For the time being, they will have to remain a mystery, but you will be the first to know when I'm ready to spill the beans.

Here I am with Patsy Smith, owner of the Sewing Room in Birmingham, Alabama.

Here are a bunch of students looking very intently at their tracings.

The Boudoir Bow Pillow class project. If you would like a kit or pattern of this project, please let us know at wendyschoen.com.

Group 2 busy at work tracing their designs.