SWAP

I've decided to join the Timmel SWAP contest. I read about this SWAP before and this week read about this new contest on the blogs of Carolyn and Laura.
I'm fascinated by the idea of sewing a wardrobe. Earlier I published my own storyboard for a personal wardrobe plan for this autumn.

Regarding this contest I thought it would be too much work and planning, and I decided recently to stop buying fabrics from so far away as the US (or Canada in this case) as the shipping charges to Europe are high.

But after considering the fact that you are allowed to make two things before the official start of the SWAP on January 1, I thought this might be done. As it has to be finished in April, this means that it must be a late winter/early spring set of clothes for me. Seems so far away!

And as to not buying from vendors located outside Europe, I'm allowed to make an exception to my own rule :-).

Which colors to use? I have no idea yet, but would like it to be something original for me, as I tend to use the same colors over and over again.

Looking for inspiration I found this site: FashionTrendsetter:

From this site is the colorscheme on the left. One color I will NOT use is what is called Freesia. I can't wear yellow, and always avoid it.

But I like the Snorkel Blue, that might be one of the colors to start with if I can find fabric in that color. (Does Snorkel mean in English the same as in Dutch: a way of exploring wildlife the water?)

If you click Color trends >> Pantone Fashion Color Report for Spring 2008 >> Preview colors for Spring 2008 you'll find all colors predicted to be in fashion next year in a pdf file.

Also nice to visit:A museum site on different designers:

http://cooperhewitt.org/EXHIBITIONS/fashion_in_colors/site/

This is going to be fun!

Vogue 8323 does not work for me

Saturday late at night I cut view A of Vogue 8323, view A and sew it together swiftly. Some weeks ago I made view C and had some fitting issues, which I described in my review on PR. All in all I considered that for this fabric (mentioned in my earlier post in which I described my personal SWAP) I should use size 12 for the shoulders and 14 for the bust, and not doing a FBA. This was a correct decision.
So far so good.


Not good: the pattern for view A. On the envelope it gives the idea of a high neckline, but do the designers really think that the height from the base of the neckline to the top should be 13 cm (5 inch)? I did not think of this when cutting, only afterwards of course.

On trying this was the result: the first picture shows the top as it is using the pattern, strange wrinkles in the neck area. In the second picture I folded the neckline to see whether this would help. Could be, but the seamline of the shoulder came too far to the front, plus the drape of the fabric did not work anymore. Very angry at myself for not trying this on another fabric and very sorry to loose a fabric that I am very fond of I laid it down.












But today I just thought of the fact that the center front has a lot of fabric, as it is folded double and saw that it is possible to make view C instead. So I just had coffee and the 8 o'clock news together with this top and a seam ripper and cut the front part out. Grrrr. It was all serged! Took a bit longer then the 8 o'clock news. To be continued.....

A personal SWAP

On PatternReview.com and some other sites there's a lot going on about SWAP. I certainly like the idea, but the rules for the contest do not suit me. Recently I have added quite a few fabrics to my stash that can be combined together or with clothes I already have. But not all fabrics match together. To make a new plan with 11 garments all to be combined is too much for me now.

My personal SWAP containes the following fabrics in the white/blue colors (to be combined with a dark blue jacket I have).

The white is a linen that will be the BWOF pants 109 from February 2006, it has a special closing on the waistband. I want to use the piped buttonhole technique for this from the class with Kenneth D. King I followed this week.

The "pucci" print is from EmmaOneSock. Beautiful drape and very suitable for Vogue 8323, view A.











This stripe I bought in a local sale, it has a fine metallic silver stripe in it that is not visible at the photo.It also has a bit of stretch and the stripes can be used vertical or horizontal.
I'm not sure yet which blouse I'll make from this. Might be a classic shirt (vogue 2634 with short sleeves), but not sure yet.

To these 3 I want to add a dark blue capri pants, but I'll have to find pattern and fabric yet.




This dotted black will be Burda blouse 127 from the March issue of 2005
I bought it to combine with the skirt I made from a Gorgeous things fabric with large dots a few weeks ago (see review of this skirt) but it can easily be combined with the white linen pants.





















Another combination is with beige (tan?) colors.

This is a beige linen that I will make into either a skirt or capri pants.
The blouse is a cotton stripe that is my next project. Burda March 2006, 104.
It can be combined with dark blue, turquoise (I do have pants in that color), light brown or green or dark pink (not really my color though).



This cotton stretch will combine with white, beige, brown, grey and black of course. Also for this fabric I have no definite plans, it will be a tee of some sort.