Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Project Run and Play Week #3 "It's All in the Details"

Candy Striper Couture


Well I fell off the planet last week and didn't get my outfit sewn.  I was stuck on the outfit I was going to do for the chevron week though and decided that I would alter it and make it for this week.  

I had a collection of a set of two pink striped pillow cases, an off white women's skirt that would have fit my left thigh, and a pair of girl's 14/16 leggings in a pink and gold leopard print.   For some reason each piece seemed to fit together and scream out to me......make something with us. 

Recently, I drafted a new pattern.  I fell in love with the Oliver + S Roller Skate Dress pattern but reality is that the pattern is $15 dollars and I just don't have that kind of money.  So looking at it I thought, hey I can make that pattern myself.   Famous last words......

Well I played around with the pattern a little bit and ended up making a dress that was great....but too big in the shoulders.   So I started to play around with the shoulders doing a folding detail and it came out super cool.

So I decided to use the same pattern for this dress that I made.....with the intention of duplicating the same look in the shoulders. 

I decided to add an insert into the front of the dress that incorporated all the different fabrics.  As I was playing with the insert I realized that I had 2 different colors of piping, and 3 kinds of bias tape in my stash that matched the outfit.  So I decided that they would play up the detail.

FYI.....I don't sew with piping.  The last time I tried it was a disaster.   But as they say on Project Runway...you gotta take a risk.  So I went for it.  It went better this time. 

I put the piping throughout the patchwork on the front and included it in the casing on the sleeves.  Also I used it along with bias tape  around the neckline.

I played with the folds on the sleeves as well and created a neat and different look.   The bias tape around the neckline kept it from being as clean as I wanted.  Next time I will do the seaming first and then the bias tape.  I added some vintage buttons to the sleeves to add even more details.

To finish the outfit, I used the leggings to create a pair of leggings for my 5T daughter.  

Overall, I love all of the details.  The outfit is way more detail oriented than I am normally, but I really like the effect!  The end result looks a little bit like a candy striper outfit, but the details bring it to a whole other level.

8 comments:

  1. The shoulder's detail is my favourite thing about this dress.

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    1. Thank you :-) Some of my favorite details to my outfits start out as accidents!

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  2. Love the colors. And the pipping and buttons are super sweet.
    What a happy little accident you had with your pattern. We are always making our own patterns because so often the patterns are too expensive, not what we really want or too boxy. Our patterns have come a long way since we first started, if it is something you enjoy keep it up! When we do by paper patterns we look through patterns online (from Simplicity, Butterick and McCall) and pin to pinterest so when Joann's or Hancock has a pattern sale we know which ones we liked.
    With Love,
    Scary
    We would love for you to come over and check out our site:
    shaffer-sisters.com

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    1. I do that as well....dollar patterns are my favorite. I will usually buy a pattern for one piece like a sleeve, bodice, or accent and use it on other patterns.

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  3. good job working with what you had! I used that same bias tape on mine. The piping looks great!

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  4. This outfit is so cute! I love the colors and those sleeves. Well done!

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  5. What a sweet outfit. I love the shoulder details, and the piping really helps it to stand out. =)

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