Sunday, April 18, 2010

Inspired by Melissa

Yesterday late in the afternoon I was skimming the blog posts in Google reader, heavily frustrated by trying to buy a dress for an event I will attend in two weeks time. No luck in that! I’ll have to sew one.

The past week there had been less time for sewing than hoped for, so the muslin I intended to make was not even cut yet, and I was not too sure of the suitability of the pattern I had in mind.

I read quickly through Melissa’s review of last months Knip modes and then there was a lightbulb moment when I read this sentence: “And as long as they keep producing these origami dresses, I will keep on loving them”. At that moment I realized I had bought the November issue with a dress I loved, but at the time thought I wouldn’t have an occasion to wear. It too has some folding, which Knip Mode has done a lot in their patterns recently. And like Melissa, I like that.

I almost immediately shut down my computer, took the issue from the shelve and traced the pattern.

These are the pieces for the front, looks pretty complicated, but it isn’t that difficult. The drafting is very good, all pieces fit very well together.

The muslin in its current state, back and skirt still need to be attached.

And apart from the importance of fitting, the muslin shows something that can be changed: the pleat that goes to shoulder level is very narrow at the end and there is a lot of bulk in the seam there. I think I will stop the pleat a bit more down the neckline so there won’t be a very narrow pleat at the top, and less bulk to deal with.

Closing this post with a few inpsiration pictures from this November issue.

23 comments:

  1. That muslin looks great. I can't wait to see the fabric you use.

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  2. A very nice and interesting patterns! I'm curious about your dress.

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  3. That is really a wonderful dress! And the pics you show were my favorites in that knip issue, too.

    You'll look so great in that dress!

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  4. Wow. I love the 'fabric origami'!

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  5. Wow that is an amazing muslin. It is going to make an awesome dress. I've been calling these architectural dresses, I guess orgami is a better name for them!

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  6. I also have is issue (bought after eading Melissa's review) and love the shirts in the origami feature. I can't wait to see the dress made up, it's so unique.

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  7. This is going to be amazing!
    I love the blue top at the bottom of your post, too.
    Happy sewing!

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  8. I love the way internet works, one minute you open someones blog and the next minute you are full of inspiration again! The muslin looks great already.

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  9. Perfect! I think that this is just the thing for the wedding and will look gorgeous on you.

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  10. This is a very neat pattern, can't wait to see your dress.

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  11. Sigrid - it looks pretty complicated to me! (I can't wait to see the finished product...)

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  12. The muslin looks amazing so this dress will be beyond gorgeous..I can't wait to see it.

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  13. What a fantastic dress! Wish I could get my hands on an issue of Knip Mode. Can't wait to see your version because the muslin is coming along nicely.

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  14. You could wear the muslin, it's beautiful.

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  15. Wow, that is an interesting dress. The muslin looks good

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  16. Interesting pattern. I can't wait to see your version!

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  17. That's going to be an awesome dress. Do you know of a source to purchase KnitMode?

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  18. I love the dress - the muslin bodice already looks fantastic.

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  19. Sigrid, your muslin looks wonderful! What a beautiful and different pattern! I'm looking forward to the final version - have you decided won the final fabric?

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  20. oh, OUCH! I love the look, but -cutting- each piece separately? That's not origami at all, it's masochism :-). Yes, I'm sure it looks better with all that subtle shaping, but wouldn't it be possible to get the same -idea- with folding?

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  21. oh my gosh! I'm so pleased I could inspire you! I love, love, love your muslin and you've really made me want to get some fabric for my own now (especially knowing it all goes together so well!). I can't wait to see your finished dress.

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  22. Wow, I think I would have given up when I saw the pieces. The muslin is fantastic! It's going to be amazing in the real thing.

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  23. What a beauty! Even your muslin is a showstopper. What fabric will you make it up in?

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