Even St. John

Coco-inspired? I think so.

Pin tucks and special buttons

Nancy - Pin-tucks for Embellishment
Nancy demonstrated her lovely, puffy pin-tucks that we all admired on her shell.  A pretty way to add a couture detail to your garments.

Susan -- Stacking Buttons for a Unique Look
Susan brought a supply of buttons to play with while the group discussed the key points to a successful pairing of buttons.  Stacked buttons (or buttons and beads) add an extra dimension that can make that jacket, vest or cuff "sing".

Ginny -- Chanel buttons -- Metal buttons with fabric "Piping"
Ginny demonstrated how to create buttons that exactly match your jacket by "upholstering" a metal button with your jacket fabric, lining or accent fabric.

See pictures from show 'n' tell via Flickr at right.

Special Hand-crafted Gifts

Plush Bear

bag from jacket sleeve

Tatting and pintucks

checkbook clutch

card holder from tie

So many ideas, so little time. City-wide Couture provided us with so much inspiring sewing of little gifts for very special friends and family. Included here are a cleverly woven coaster, holiday napkin that folds into a tree, a plush bear, a bag made from a blazer sleeve, chrysanthmum omiyage bag, card holder made from a silk tie, felted wool wrist pin cushion, tatting and pin-tucked artwork, tatting ornament, checkbook clutch, sashiko Christmas stocking and a sashiko glasses case.

Collars with Collar Bands

VIP tools and book

VIP sewing of the collar band for perfect results

Insert the finished collar into the top of the band - MAGIC!

Lorraine led us through a very thorough tutorial on best practices for collars and collar stands. She makes all of her husband's shirts and it shows! Her skill is something I can aspire to. Her instructions make it look so easy, I now believe I might be able to do this too.

Her handouts, samples, descriptions and step-by-step instructions were wonderful. Thanks, Lorraine!

David Coffin wrote THE book on shirt-making (see picture above). Others have adopted and adapted his techniques. Some of the important aspects of perfecting this include

• choice of needles
• stitch length
• order of construction - insert collar into band after attaching band to the shirt
• choice of fabrics
• careful trimming combined with proper stitch length

PS - I'm sorry but I will not be able to post more pictures due to operator error (maybe the flash was off?). There were some fabulous show 'n' tell items, including kimonos from Hellenne's recent class for us. I might try to post these later but then everyone at CWC may insist that I remove them all!

Martina: Drafting and Grafting Collars

At our most recent neighborhood group meeting, Martina gave a presentation on the subject of drafting and grafting collars. First she went over the technical aspects of adapting a collar from one pattern onto another. Then she dazzled us with some of her trim collection - lots of inspiration there. Thanks so much, Martina. You are a talented teacher!

ASG Atlanta Events July, August, & September 2011

Mary Ray in a Couture Quilted Jacket

In our meeting today, I mentioned three upcoming events you may want to attend:

Mary Ray's Lecture: Friday, July 29, 7 PM, St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church, Atlanta ($15)
Mary Ray's Workshop: Sunday, July 31, 1-7 PM, also at St. Dunstan's ($60 price includes Friday's lecture)

***See examples of Mary's work at Mary Ray Designs.

Sample Kimono by Hellenne Vermillion

Hellenne Vermillion's Oh, Kimono!: Saturday, August 20, 9:30 am - 3 pm, Trinity Lutheran, Lillburn ($50)


***See examples of Hellenne's work at Vermillion Art. Be sure to check out the silk piece that sold recently.






Fashion Show: Saturday, September 3, 2 PM, St. Aidan's Episcopal Church; Deadline to enter your piece in the show is August 1. Send pictures and descriptions to Martha. NOTE: let me know if you do not wish to model your piece. We can hang it for people to peruse OR I can find someone else to model it.

BTW, I will post pictures from today's fabulous lecture on collars by Martina as soon as I receive them from Shirley.

Croquis References and Notes from June meeting

Good References for Making and Using a Croquis

Martha and Ginny’s Class for Sew Incredibles, August and September 2009

Jenny's Class for City-Wide Couture,  June 2011

• Discover the Best Proportions and Styles for You.  Nancy Shriber. Threads Magazine:  June/July 2006, pp 51-55.
• Fantastic Fit for Everybody.  Rodale Press, by Gale Grigg Hazen, 1998. pp 15 – 27.
• Test Style and Fit Before You Sew.  Gale Grigg Hazen. Threads Magazine; June/July 1996, pp 52-56.
• Fashion Sketching for Untrained Artists.   Jennifer Sauer.  Threads Magazine; February/March 2003, pp 54-55.
• Flatter Your Figure. Prentice Hall Press, by Jan Larkey, 1991.
• Figure Flattery.  Jan Larkey.  Threads Magazine:  April/May 1991, pp 44-47.
• The Long and Short of Flattering Neckline Choices. Jan Larkey. Threads Magazine: December 1993 /January 1994, pp 44-47.
• The Golden Rule of Proportions.  Sandra Ericson.  Threads Magazine:  February/March 2009,  pp 37 – 41.
• The Triumph of Individual Style.  Timeless Editions, by Carla Mason Mathis and Helen Villa Connor, 1993.

Make a Terrific Croquis! It’s Your Personal Fashion Tool

Notes from Jenny

Your croquis is a terrific sewing tool allowing you to see how the proportions of a pattern fit and flatter your body before you ever sew a seam. To get good results when shooting your picture for a croquis, here are a few tips.

Croquis Do’s	Croquis Don’t
Wear close fitting clothes that don’t alter your shape.	Avoid shape wear, panty lines, panty hose and other clothing that compress your body.
Wear a scoop neck top and pull long hair up so you can clearly see your neck and shoulders.	Avoid obscuring any part of your body or masking your true proportions.
Use a white background to create contrast behind you and underneath your feet.	Avoid anything in the background that will make it difficult to copy and trace your silhouette.
Put a tape mark parallel to your vertical backdrop on the floor, align your heels to it and keep your body parallel to the camera.	Don’t lead with your dominant side. It makes you look heavier on one side.
Hold your arms away from your body so you can clearly see a space between your torso and arms.	Don’t hold your arms too close to your body. It makes tracing your image much more difficult.
Stand with feet shoulder width apart.	Don’t stand with your heels too close together or you will lose insight into your leg proportions.
Mind your posture!	Don’t slouch or stand stiffly erect.
Smile! In this day and age of digital images, you’ll be able to have a higher resolution croquis if you choose.	Let how much you hate having your picture taken in your underwear show. You want to be attracted to your croquis so you can get the most value out of it.
Put a mirror across the room when you shoot your croquis so you can see your pose.
Check your lighting so you don’t get shadows around your body. Light from the top, sides and back if you can.	Don’t add visual pounds by allowing shadows to creep into your picture.
Shoot several shots so you can choose the best one.	Don’t try to get it right in one take. If you can view your images on a computer after you shoot them, you’ll be able to make adjustments for the best croquis.