Cape Redo

No good deed goes unpunished...Maggie brought the cape up for "adjusting" after it's debut in the desert. Too long, interior pockets too slippery, hood doesn't stay on head. 'Kay. Took some pix while she was here for Christmas:

Today, I cut off 3 inches, re-attached trim on bottom, added patch pockets on the front, re-hemmed (grrr). I couldn't figure out what to do about hood without ruining "the look". Called on Shams, my go-to-guru, and with her suggestions, came up with a "skunk stripe"; a 4" wide strip of the wool fabric, on the inside of the hood.

It looks ok, and, most importantly, it WORKS! It's off to the Post Office in the morning, and I can start on my wardrobe for Ethiopia; we leave on January 14th!

What the Elves Made

Our Christmas gift-opening is over, and now I can share what the elves and I have been working on in the studio!

I made a faux Persian Lamb jacket for my daughter; I used CLD Anything But Ordinary, lengthened, zippered and lined, and a Purple fabric from Emma One Sock.

                                      The buttons on the collar are vintage carved mother-of-pearl which belonged to my mother.

I made a plaid shirt for my husband, using McCalls 4079 and a poly/rayon twill from my local store.

 I also made a cardi from Marcy Tilton's V8430 for a friend; I used a remnant of Leopard-Printed Ponte knit from EOS.

  And here I am in a lovely merino/cashmere turtleneck, a gift from my husband;

 I hope your holidays were bright and happy!

                                            

The Cape in Action

My studio has been taken over by Santa's Elves, so no reporting till after Christmas. However, here is a picture of Maggie, dj-ing in her cape!

She's bringing it up next week to be shortened, so I'll try to get another picture.

Happy Holidays to all!

Once More, with Mirrors!

I finally finished my fancy jacket to wear to a party next Thursday. It is another iteration of Marcy Tilton's Vogue 8620, this time in a fabulous embroidered, sequined, mirrored black silk dupioni from Hyena Productions, a wonderful source for incredible silks.

I've been to India seven times, and each trip I fall in love all over again with their over-the-top use of mirrors. I have them all over my house, both inside and out. Now I'll have them on my body!

I'm wearing the jacket with a pair of flame-colored silk velvet pants I made many years ago.

This was also an opportunity to use my new labels!

While waiting for the Swarovski rhinestones to put on the reverse-that-shows zipper (a great idea from Shams, at Communing With Fabric), I made a quick tunic, Vogue 8542 OOP, View B. I used a black and gray knit from Marcy Tilton, and, because I didn't order enough, a black ponte knit from JoAnn's for the neck and sleeves.

A very productive week!

Style Arc Linda Pants

I've joined the bandwagon and become a fan of the Style Arc Linda Pant. Everyone seems to love it and now I see why!

I made these out of a strange black stretch denim from EmmaOneSock. There are red flecks in the black fabric, although from far away, it almost looks maroon. I have noticed this in many red/black fabrics and I'm not fond of it.

I cut the pants making only one change, to add to the front waist, and I shouldn't have bothered. The pants fit perfectly, although I needed to make a 3" hem instead of 2".

I'm wearing them with a beloved vest that I got second-hand last year;

and also with my TNT McCalls red sweater jacket

I am almost ready to share my mirrored and embroidered evening jacket...I'm just waiting for some Swarovski rhinestones to arrive so I can finish it off!

It's been a good week for sewing!