14. Fitting #3

Sunday, November 11th, was our third fitting. I asked Dorothy, a friend of mine with much more sewing experience than I have, to join us and give an honest critique and any helpful advice that she could.

After my mistake last time, I was feeling a bit anxious about this fitting. I really wanted to show Susan that her faith in me is justified.

You may remember that, for our very first fitting, I didn't follow the actual dress assembly instructions, but rather completely assembled the lining to a size that I thought would fit, but left the outer dress pieces separate. I had Susan try on the lining - it was too big - and then I quickly assembled the outer dress pieces to a smaller size and had her try those on.

To prepare for this fitting, I took all of the pieces apart, re-marked them all to the smaller size, and then assembled the dress according to the instructions (minus the boning). So, Susan tried on the "full" version of the dress - lining and all. It was a major success!

I'm still going to take in the sides and under the bust just a little bit more, but we are very, very close to having the fit just right. There are a few wrinkles across the bodice back (running parallel to the floor), but I think that those may go away when the boning is added.

I also still have a bit of work to do on the inner corset. But it is really coming together! It was so nice to have Dorothy there - both for the suggestions she made for improvements, and for the reassurance that we were on the right track!

Here is a picture of the 3 of us:

13. Diversions #2

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've posted. My digital camera died and it just seems to me that posts in a sewing related blog really need photos...

My camera was over 3 years old (i.e., ancient by digital camera standards) and the warranty had expired ages ago, but its recent death was due to a known defect, and so Canon replaced it for free with an upgrade, albeit a refurbished camera. I was hesitant because I had really liked the original, but the new one seems to be quite nice! So, no more excuses... ;)

Since my last post, Susan and I have had another fitting and I am making real progress on the muslin! But, before I provide an update on my progress, I wanted to quickly mention some of the other sewing projects that have been filling the small open gaps in my sewing time. Working on Susan's dress requires that I have a real block of time available and am mentally at the top of my game. I'm making enough mistakes under those circumstances - the last thing I need is to try to work on it when I'm tired or distracted!

However, there are some easy and fun patterns that I can bang out in a spare hour here or there, and over the last 1.5 months I have squeezed some of them in. First, I made my husband a second Hawaiian shirt from the other piece of fabric that he picked out while we were in Hawaii. Here is a picture:

Next, I used the fabric that I picked out in Hawaii and made myself a simple button-up-the-front shell (a shirt with no collar or sleeves). The cool thing about this is that, inspired by another blogger, I made it a reversible shell!

I wish I could give you a link to the other blog, but it seems that she has taken it offline or changed the url, because I can't find it anymore... She was blogging under "bluemooney".

Here is a close-up picture of the shell, showing off the 2 different fabrics.

If you'd like to read my full review of this project click here.

Finally, a sewing friend of mine, Dorothy, is about to become a great-grandmother for the first time, and I made a couple of cute little baby buntings for her. This pattern is as easy as they come! Here is a pictures of 1 of the ones that I made:

And, of course, if you'd like to read my full review of this project click here.

There is really only one other mini-project on my sewing plate between now and Christmas - I've promised to make a couple of chalk bags for some climbing friends. Other than that, it will be full steam ahead on the dress. We're closing in on a good fit for the muslin, and shopping for the real fabric will be coming up soon!