The Wild Side Pencil Skirt

Let’s start this out with a wardrobe confession: this is my first pencil skirt ever! Not the first one I’ve made, but the first one I’ve worn (or even tried on)! I love the silhouette on other people, but I worried that it wouldn’t do any favors for my rectangular shape. But when I spotted this sweater knit at Mood, I knew it had to be a pencil skirt! I didn’t have much time to sew this month, and really didn’t want to tinker with fit and muslins, so I used the skirt portion of my vintage McCall’s 5995 pattern […]

Read More >>
20

A Border-Print Skirt

  I don’t usually sew skirts during the winter months.  When I first purchased this fabric from Mood’s NYC store, I was actually thinking of making a blouse with it…especially since it’s a beautiful, lightweight silk charmeuse with the border print going down the center of the fabric. Then I saw this skirt from White House/Black Market… …and after seeing it, a light went off in my brain and I decided that I should use my new border print fabric to make my own version of this skirt. Of course since the silk is lightweight and a little flimsy, I underlined the […]

Read More >>
17

Of Feathers, Frocks And Fabulousness

The feathers, they are done. DONE! I scream from the mountaintop. I am Captain of Mount Accomplishment! Never has Ruggy been so inundated with my trumpeting! On occasion, I know if I begin a hairbrained project, it will turn out the way I expect it to. In this case, I had a completely botched muslin of a wiggle dress, made from a stashed medium weight satin, I believe. This thing was overworked to death. For weeks, I thought I could wrangle it into a skirt and get something out of all that work, but the idea of measuring and slicing […]

Read More >>
22

Black is Back in Wool Satin

Sorry for the homespun photography. I am working on it! Black is one of my favorite colors. Alexander McQueen’s Dante collection in 1996, and Helmut Lang’s 80’s minimalistic designs in black leather made me yearn for strong black pieces in my wardrobe. With the revival of the 80s and partly 90s styles, minimalistic black clothes have become quintessential this season. alexander-mcqueen-pre-fall-2012 alexander-mcqueen-pre-fall-2012 So, why postpone the urge to create something that sober and strong. Walking in the wool section of the Mood, I found so many different blacks – all very enticing and rich. Yet I was drawn to a beautiful black wool satin. It has some […]

Read More >>
20

Paneled Pencil Skirt

I absolutely adore sweaters and pencil skirts.  It’s such a great way to quickly look pulled together and polished. The sweater is from my closet.  And the skirt is Vogue 8603.  I originally made a denim pencil skirt from this pattern a few years ago. When I bought this sweater knit fabric from Mood Fabrics.com, I had something else in mind for it.  But as it turns out from time to time, an online fabric purchase isn’t exactly what you thought it would be.  [Editor’s note: Mood strongly recommends getting a swatch before you make a purchase.] I wanted to […]

Read More >>
22

My Mood in October: Swingy Stripes

I’ve been in the mood for stripes lately – swingy stripes. For my big project this month, I wanted to find the perfect pattern to pair with a lovely striped wool jersey from Mood (sadly, out of stock, but here’s a similar, albeit narrower, stripe in the fetching combination of navy and pea green) that I bought with my Mood Sewing Network allowance. I was imagining a full, gathered skirt to take advantage of the beautiful drape in the fabric. When I was contacted by BurdaStyle about doing another guest post, I jumped at the chance to make their Swing […]

Read More >>
12
By:

I’m in the Mood for Basics

Basics are the backbone of a good wardrobe and they give you the opportunity to get dressed every morning without having to stand in front of the closet going, “I have nuthin’ to wear!”  The two garments featured below are part of my “The City in Winter” Collection, the 13-piece wardrobe that I’m currently sewing.  The first garment is a gored skirt with a tulip hem that’s made from Simplicity 5194. Stats: Fabric ~ Wool crepe from Mood Fabrics – purchased in the NYC store but you can find some on the website, here. Notions ~  9″ brown invisible zipper black […]

Read More >>
10

Making of the Godet Skirt

Soaring temperatures and humidity in New York these past days are not particularly stimulating to start working on a fall wardrobe. I must admit, usually, fall pieces lounge on my work table waaay past winter months. So, actually, I am quite happy I had an early kick-start, and here is the latest project, made after a month-long holiday break. With the help of Susan Khalje – founder of the Couture Sewing School, author of Bridal Couture, and contributing editor to Threads magazine – I made a couture version of the Godet Pencil Skirt from the August 2012 issue of burda […]

Read More >>
8
Page 10 of 10« First...678910