ahhhmazing.

Another Colorblock Frock

jessica — Sat, 26 May 2012 18:25:25 +0000

i had been working on a silk caftan dress for the better part of the month of may, having purchased gorgeous and massive amounts of blush and nude color silks… and the finished product left a bit to be desired. not a massive fail, but definitely not something wearable. so after pouting for a week or so about my lack of sewing skills, it was time to get back on the horse and sew up something simpler to boost my confidence. so with that, i present a simple color block shift dress!

this was fun and easy… and i can’t help but to fancy how clean my lines look with this one, and how the asymmetrical part turned out just perfect. some of the process is captured below. first, prepping for the sleeves and neckline:

sleeves and neckline secured but unfinished:

after some pressing and finishing the edges with a topstitch, the end product looks like this:

bottom part of the dress before attaching it:

and a close up to the asymmetry (yep, that does need some ironing!):

happy to have this one done, and quite pleased that it’s a wearable frock which i may have to repeat again in the future. quick and easy!

Color Block Dress Completed!

jessica — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 20:38:11 +0000

this one took a while… but i’ve completed another frock. this one was based off of a burda style pattern. first, some of the process. with this frock, i was able to practice doing sleeve/arm holes along with bust darts:

the skirt portion was a pretty simple A-line. to add a little flair to it, i’ve paired it up with a nice chunky belt… and so here’s the finished product!

probably needs a little ironing, ha! but this is definitely motivation to keep sewing. all i need to find is time. onward to the next project! (belt courtesy of j. crew.)

New Project: Color Block Dress

jessica — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 23:11:06 +0000

orange has long been my favorite color – so a tangerine hue being chosen as the pantone 2012 color of the year made me happy as can be. i picked up some amazing wool mix in that great color a while back and i finally have a project to use it for. here’s the start of my dress with the bust darts done:

i’ve decided to pair the orange with a black wool mix… and despite the halloween-ish feelings this color combo might conjure up, i’m going for it. color blocking is also a trend i’m excited about. color combo below on the left – and the start of the back side of the dress on the right.

fun! excited to see this dress come to gether!

Color Me Crazy!

jessica — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 03:05:42 +0000

i’ve neglected this lovely little blog of mine. the new job is keeping me occupied and i’ve been making an effort to hit the gym a bit more. i’m itching to sew though. i’m taking a break from the pants i was working on and am going to switch gears and go back to making a dress again. and this time, i’m going to for some color blocking. i fear it’s still a trend… but i really do love color blocking. i love the unusual color combos that designers have been pairing and it’s inspiring me to be more creative with my attire… so please don’t go out of fashion!

here are some examples of color blocking that are inspiring me right now:

OMG! My Cape Dress Dress! Zara Now Sells One!

jessica — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:23:31 +0000

so this project is a month or so old now… but my cape dress. my no-pattern, i’m messing around to create a dress on my own, cape dress… i was clicking around on zara.com and found… they are now selling a dress super similar to it. OMG! their dress:

and my dress:

crazy and so neat!

time to get moving on my other projects… so tired lately because i’ve started a new day job. soon, soon though! back to the sewing soon!

Side Project: Something New & Something Blue

jessica — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 20:23:32 +0000

i’ve had to take a break from my pants project to focus on a side project for an in-law who is getting married in a few months. the goal was to create a belt/sash/ribbon of sorts to compliment her dress. we wanted blacks and blues (love!), a mixture of textures, an unfinished but polished look… and the bow had to be juicy and full. no one wants a limp bow.

i started by securing a bunch of organzas in black and blue that were stiff enough to hold their own. i found a mix of cotton and silk organzas both that i loved. from there, i started playing around with layers and such until a concept started emerging. some of the steps along the way:

after a whole lot of experimentation and… hand sewing, i’ve come up with something that looks pretty cool. i hope. the bride to be has yet to see this in person though so there may be more tweaking. i will also try to come up with an additional prototype. here’s where i’m at though:

love the black and blue color combo. so chic!

I’m Making Pants – Progress!

jessica — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 21:44:15 +0000

i’m making pants. i had to go for a lovely blush colored fabric i have instead of the lovely tangeriney orange i was thinking about… too sheer for pants.

my pattern is complete and i started to pin and cut:

and i moved pretty quickly to then do darts at top panel of the front and back, then i started sewing the legs:

amazingly… when i pull the legs onto… well, my legs, they actually fit! a little tight at the thigh, and they’re a little long and but i definitely intended on them being slim/skinny. i’ll have to crop them to an ankle grazing length, but these pants are coming along! i suspect the next step will be the hardest though – the bum, the front zipper, and the waste line. eek.

Printing Patterns From Ze Web.

jessica — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 17:34:03 +0000

i’m not in love with a lot of the patterns that are out there by sewing’s classic brands like mccall, vogue, butterick… so i’m going to play around with a print-at-home pattern from burda, a sewing community i tap into occasionally. what this means though? printing out 20+ pages, cutting, and taping massive amounts of paper together:

kind of a pain… but i’m hopeful the pattern is a bit more hip and modern than what you’ll see in many fabric shops. here’s what my end goal will be after all the cutting and taping:

i’m making pants! and if this doesn’t work… i may have to finally sign up for a pattern drafting class to learn how to make my own. hmmm. one step at a time though.

Crazy Busy, But Let’s Shop.

jessica — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 16:02:25 +0000

i haven’t been posting much because i’ve been CRAZY busy of late it seems. winding down my job of five years. making a quick trip to freaking WHISTLER for MLK weekend to hit double black diamonds. (double black!!) getting ready to start a new gig. eek! life is nutty right now but it’s a wonderful, amazing time. on my sewing to-do list though are two items – skinny wool cropped pants in a neony tangerine, and a ribbon/sash for my cousin-in-law who is getting hitched in march. i’ve got some sewing to do!

but i’m actually more in the shopping mood. especially starting a new job… it’s just natural to want to refresh your wardrobe a bit. so of the few sales i’m going to take advantage of this weekend - 30% off of our whole purchase at Ann Taylor. they’ve complete re-freshed their look and feel – and i thought it was pretty cool to see kate hudson join the lineup of new faces for the brand:

also on my list are a new pair of shoes… and i also received a $50 credit from rebecca minkoff! wooohoo!

Sometimes Online Shopping Stinks, Except with Zappos.

jessica — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 03:27:21 +0000

i have experienced unfortunate outcomes in recent months with some of my online shopping adventures. and it’s been with a few retailers. imagine. you find an exciting item. you place an order. you receive an email confirmation and you even have your credit card charged. you get very excited about your soon to be delivered goodie… and then weeks go by with your order held in limbo. then, you finally receive an email saying your order can’t be fulfilled – sorry!

i don’t get how retailers allow for this to happen. who, you ask? nine west. target with their missoni line. bloomingdales. get your act together people. it makes me not want to shop online with you. EVER.

who does get it right? always? like ALWAYS? zappos. just got these new boutique 9 shoes today… shipped overnight for free as a zappos VIP member. and i was alerted to them because they were out of stock but offered to email when they were available.

love ya, zappos. you’re the best.