Erin’s Mockup Fittings
Though I sketched Erin’s custom wedding dress using her unique silhouette and I used an extensive set of her measurements to create a Size-Erin dressform when drafting her patterns, there’s still plenty of work to be done before moving into the real fabric when making something one-of-a-kind. I created a mockup dress out of inexpensive fabrics […]
Diane’s Ensemble: Underlining, Cutting, and Using the Grain
Once we were finished with all of the work on the mockup versions of Diane’s bridal ensemble, it was time to start prepping the real fabric for constructing the real garment! I started with the pants and vest. The fabric we chose for Diane’s pants and vest was a beautiful Carolina Herrera silk faille. Faille has a rib […]
First Fittings by Mail
Loula lives in New Orleans and I live in North Carolina, and since she is my best friend, I tried some new ways to handle long-distance fittings for her custom wedding dress. I started out creating a basic no-design draft of Loula’s measurements, whipping it up in muslin with a big zipper up the back, […]
Fit Week pt. 2 – Fabric Shopping/Mockup #2
Between the first and second mockup fittings, during the few days that Lila Rose was still in town, I did pattern corrections, made the second mockup, and we went fabric shopping! Since fabric shopping is the flashiest, I’ll start this post with fun our trip to Mulberry Silks and Fine Fabrics in Carrboro. The fabrics […]
Fit Week pt. 1 – First Mockup Fitting
As you may remember, Lila Rose is from Boston and I am located in North Carolina. When I have an out-of-town bride, I do my best to work around her schedule and to make the most of visits in order to keep them to a minimum. My dresses ain’t cheap and when you add the […]
Working from the Inside Out: Underlinings and Linings
One of the techniques that really makes a garment couture is the use of underlining. Though it adds many hours to the dressmaking process, it adds elegance, control, and the ability to hide all of your stitches from the outside of a garment. I find it an invaluable technique and I am happy to share […]
Fitting and Shopping with Mom
I love it when my bride brings her Mom to the fitting! Especially when she is as fun as Greta’s Mom. (I love it so much and have so much fun that I often forget to take photos for blog posts. I must get better about that!) Greta and her Mom came to my studio […]
Mockup Madness
I’ve been working like mad on Greta’s mockups! I have found that I often get so wrapped up in the dressmaking process that I neglect to blog about it. To fill you in, I will share with you the few photos that I took while working on Greta’s mockup(s).
Pattern Corrections and Fitting Prep
My patterns are now corrected and pinned to the side of my table. I’ve talked about this before, but I love to do pattern corrections! The problem-solver within me really enjoys getting down to business with a ruler, french curve and pencil to figure out the incredible puzzle of how to make flat pieces of […]
