For the 'Maids

Hello little neglected blog.

Most of my update-mojo has been absorbed by the wedding blog and flickr... but I wanted to post a little something I've been working on. Okay, I totally rolled my eyes at myself typing the words "little something." In actuality, I have been designing, drafting, grading and sewing up dresses for my three beloved bridesmaids (i.e., not a small endeavor).

Anyway, here are some visual anecdotes of this process.











The bust darts are a little pointy. I think I'm going to open them up and steam them flat, as recommended in Gertie's post on French darts.






You can see more of my wedding inspiration in this post on the weddingblog (wedlog?) and more sewing goodness in this flickr set.

This is SO cool.

The Victoria and Albert Museum site has a really cool image-to-patchwork pattern maker.
The way the program abstracts the image can vary by degree of pattern difficulty and the amount of colors you like to use, which in turn effects how closely the pattern reflects your orginal image. I actually prefer the abstraction.

Here's what I came up with using this original photo (taken of a peacock at the Buffalo Zoo)

With 10 different colors and on medium difficulty, the patternmaker generated this pattern

View the details and download my pattern here.
Look at the galleries and make your own pattern too!

I'm getting married

You can follow the madness here:
http://gabbyandjoe.blogspot.com/



In addition to documenting the planning process, I'll be posting most of the wedding-related craft/DIY projects there.

A Grand Undertaking

This spring, I designed, drafted, sewed and embellished a fitted, formal evening gown from the ground up. I am beyond proud of myself. In fact, I feel as though I have crossed some kind of designer/seamstress threshold.

It started when my little sister asked me to create a dress for her to perform in (she is a mezzo-soprano studying at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music), as she had been chosen as a soloist to perform with the Marin Symphony Youth Orchestra. Inspired by her selections for Carmen, Lakme, and Samson et Dalila, we opted for a full-length, flowy, and somewhat phoenician-inspired look.

It might be best to show you the process in photos:




Had to address some fit issues between the cups. But that was pretty much it.








The guts. I was really happy with the finishing inside.











(Click to enlarge all photos.)
It was a learning experience, for sure. But I've become so much more confident in my drafting skills and my ability to interpret initial ideas into a final piece. Now I am totally set on making my wedding dress. It's going to rule.

Project 365

I'm about 2 1/2 months and 70 photos into my Project 365 efforts. I started it on my birthday this past February, and surprisingly, it's been easy to keep up with (unlike this blog). I've gotten some pretty nice shots, too. These are some of my favorites.

(Click to enlarge.)

You can see the entire album over on my flickr.

The Ladies' Hand Book

I recently came across an absolute gem in the stacks of my college's library. The Ladies' Hand Book of Fancy and Ornamental Work, "compiled from the best authorities" by Miss Florence Hartley. The copywright date is 1859, and a handwritten inscription from the original owner, Lillian, is dated 1880.

I thought the conclusion was quite funny, and it definitely speaks to the context in which the book was published:

"In taking leave of her readers, the compiler of this volume cannot refrain from offering a few remarks on the importance of needle work as a branch of female education. She cannot but regard it as essential to a woman's happiness, not less than her usefulness, in accomplishing this mission of her life. If Providence has placed her in a humble or middle station of life, the ability to use her needle with skill in useful or ornamental work, enables her greatly to promote the well being and comfort of her family, and to gain and preserve that peace of mind which results from the consciousness of being useful. If she is place in a more elevated station, her leisure hours may be passed, not only with profit, but with pleasure, in executing those beautiful fabrics of the needle, which contribute so largley to the adornment of her person and her dwelling. She should by no means neglect the cultivation of her mind, by reading and study. But there are many hours in the day when the mind recoils from this species of employment, and turns to those in which the hands are engaged, while the thoughts are free; then the needle is the grand resort, and skill in its use becomes the source of unalloyed happiness. Thousands of ladies of the highest birth and fortune, can bear testimony to the truth of this remark; while others, who scorn the needle as the badge of drudgery, seek in vain for quiet pleasure, and are consumed with ennui and listlessness."

(click to enlarge images)

I guess it's good to know that I'm keeping up with my "female education."

I'd join this Carnivàle

I am gradually coming down off of a week-long high of two seasons of the HBO series Carnivale. The story is over, because the show was canceled, unfortunately. But I am still stuck in the fantasy of this Depression-era circus subculture.

Joanna Newsom's new album, which I got ahold of in the midst of my Carnivale binge, really seems to create a similar world, supplying music and lyrics befitting of this sad, beautiful imagery.

I can't wait 'til the weather warms up here... so I can don some bias cut dresses and low slung heels, and wait for the carnival to come to town.

Here's Lola - ta da! - to do
her famous Spider Dance for you!
Lighten up your pockets!