Dec 30, 2018
I think we (myself included) often give up on the old year too easily. In our haste to get done with the imperfect past, we tell this year not to let the door smack it in the behind on the way out, and launch into the hope of a fresh start… maybe too quickly. I wonder whether we’d be more effective if we took time to rest and reflect more consciously, celebrating what went well AND learning from what didn’t go so well this year? I tried this on for size in the nearest journal today…
Dec 20, 2018
That time of the year is coming… when a more prolific soul than you or I will post a list of the sixty-five fabulous projects she completed this year. And lo, most people will look at her edited highlights, and compare them to their backstage mess, and feel inadequate.
Ugh. Doesn’t sound like fun.
So let’s release some of our stuck creative energy right now, and release ourselves from 2018 like an arrow departs from the bow.
To begin, let’s release procrastination.
Nov 22, 2018
Remember the Edwardian chemise I made earlier this year?
Well, if you keeping hunting around in the Metropolitan Museum archive, you’ll come across a matching pair of drawers (top of page). They’re part of a set containing an identical chemise to mine – the lace is unmistakeable. So obviously I have to make the drawers too.
Oct 18, 2018
You’ve heard it before, I’m sure: you need the right foundations to get the silhouette right.
Sometimes you need them even when you re-purpose historical dress as everyday modern dress, and discard the corset.
I’ve been working on an 1890s wool skirt to just wear around the house this winter. I drafted it from an original set of instructions in the Keystone Jacket and Dress Cutter, with a smooth front, and a back that explodes in acres of gorgeous pleats. I should have guessed that this plan led to an engineering snafu…
Oct 4, 2018
I love wearing vintage, but sometimes I feel bad about wearing really old clothes… especially if an accident happens. ????
My favourite vintage dress shirt has been hanging in my sewing room with a 3″ L-shaped rip for months… and I finally decided there was only one thing to do… mend it the same way its original owner might have done…