Good Behavior: The Beginning

I first started sewing in my high school fashion class and ever since then, sewing has had a special place in my heart.  I took an eight-year hiatus from sewing when I went away to college and then was in the Air Force and stationed in Germany.

When I was pregnant with my second child, I rediscovered my passion and started all over again.  I remembered little things here and there from high school, but I buried myself in sewing books, and Google'd and YouTube'd my little heart out to reinforce the basics and refresh my memory.

And then I decided to apply to fashion school.  What I learned there was that I definitely appreciated design and trends, but it reinforced my ultimate love of construction.  I thrived in my patternmaking class as well.  That's the stuff that makes sense to me.

I've rolled around many ideas in my head and considered starting a children's clothing line.  And I have finally taken the first step.  Enter: Good Behavior.

My dear coworker, Lauren, was having tea with me one evening and during conversation I uttered something about 'good behavior.'  She said, "Nicole...that is a great name for a childrenswear label."

So, now here we are.  I've taken the first steps, and I'd like to share my first WIP with you.

I am proud to say that this each piece thereafter will be 100% me-made from draft to dress!  This is what I am very proud of.  I made a couple different sized slopers (3/4, 5/6, & 7/8) to start off with.  The clothing will mostly stay in this size range for sanity's sake.

I ordered a whole role of pattern paper which I just keep in the corner.  One of my best investments that was long overdue.

These are the two books I refer to the most.  The top is purely for children's clothes and has great tips.
This book below is the drafting bible.  This was one of my school text books and one of the most comprehensive patternmaking books I have ever seen.  I believe it runs about $90-$100, but it is sooooo worth it and I would recommend it to anyone interested in patternmaking.

Here is my first muslin...

And here is the near-finished product!  This dress is make out of Dupioni silk and is completely lined with Kona cotton.

The silk has this beautiful texture to it as well.

And here is my tag...

I have to hem it and put in the zipper and I have already started on my next project!  It's a sweet little wool cape.

Thanks for all of your kind words and sewing support!  I truly think the sewing community is like no other.  Don't you?

Simplicity 1803

I made this dress for my last CHRISTMAS PARTY and I'm just now blogging about it.  I bought this pattern right when it came out and decided to make it out of green silk.  I bought some beautiful dupioni and then decided to wash it and see what happened...It came out very soft and of course, a completely different sheen, but I like that it is a bit muted.  This is my only action shot from the party.  I wore a little black patent leather belt and a black slip underneath.  The dress came out very short, but the slip looked really great peeking out from the hem.

 One of the most challenging parts of the dress construction was getting the top bodice piece to lay juuust right.  I had to keep pinning and repinning.  It still gaped a little, but I was happy with the result nonetheless.

You can see the change in sheen and texture from washing the silk in these pictures.

I used a regular zipper instead of an invisible one to add strength.  I definitely felt more secure because the bodice was quite tight.

I decided to make the inside as pretty and fun as the outside so I found some gold bias tape for the armholes and hem.  I love how it turned out!

The bodice just had facings, so I lined it was well.

This pattern was really quite flattering and I loved how it turned out.  I'm looking forward to breaking out the dress again sometime this winter!

Action Shots

 As promised, here are some shots of my Simplicity dress.  It's a little wrinkled from the work day, but you get the idea.  Cool and comfortable in our 90 degree humid heat!  Yes, people.  Connecticut gets hot in the summer!

 (My middle girl, whining about something...what a face.)

 (My youngest took this one.)

 (Another headless shot by my little one.  At least the dress is in the picture this time!)

Gelato for my little sweeties

Simplicity 2176

This is the first project I've completed for myself since December...it's about time.  I finished Simplicity 2176.  I love a good action shot just like everyone else, so I'm sorry for my dress form model, but I'm planning on wearing this dress to work tomorrow and I'll get my coworker to snap a few for me:

I chose the version with the cute bodice flap and lined the whole dress.  I made a size 8.

 The straps were very difficult to place, but I ended up setting them much wider than the pattern indicated.  I think it's much more flattering on a woman with wide-set straps.  I also chose to use a button to hold each strap.  There is nothing worse than putting so much effort into placing the straps, sewing up the dress, and then having the straps buckle in weird place because the placement isn't PERFECT.  The button allows the strap to move and turn into the perfect position.

 I was only going to line the bodice, but I used a very lightweight chambray and the skirt needed more body.  So the skirt lining is a 45/55 cotton/linen blend. 

 Originally I had the hem band sewn to the skirt, but ended up taking it off because I felt the dress was too long.  I hemmed the lining 2 inches and the skirt 1 inch, and used pink hem lace.

 You can see my hand sewing stitches here...

And I used a metal zipper.  I like the look of it and it feels sturdier.  WAAAY easier to put in rather than an invisible zip, too.

Like I said, action shots to come.  I'll leave you with a perfect Saturday afternoon activity that my girls enjoyed yesterday.  Shots of the planted flowers to come as well:)....

Hope you had a great weekend!

Wedding Dress Part 2

Yes, it has been a while, but I would love to post an update on my first completed wedding dress.  Caitlin (the beautiful bride) completely spoiled me with her calm demeanor and was heaven to sew for.  She basically just gave me the reigns and I didn't look back.  Here are some more shots of the dress with fine detail:

 I added this original button for the bustle in the back.  The overlay was all salvageable, thank goodness.  It save me many hours.  (The total project totaled 24 hours of work)

 This is the extension I added to the built-in slip.  I originally took out the slip because it was too small.  Caitlin bought several slips, but nothing was even close to the opaqueness of the original, so I put it right back in and added about an 1" strip on both sides of some handkerchief cotton I had used for the interlining of the new bodice. 

 (My sweet tag.  I got it on Etsy.)

 I added bra strap holders to both shoulders.  I would recommend this detail for any formal dress.  There is nothing worse than a bra strap slipping off the shoulder, and it gives the dress a more "couture" feel, don't you think?  I found these in the Garment district for $2, if I'm not mistaken.

Ta-da!!  The beautiful bride.  I would post more pictures of her, but I can't seem to save photos off the pesky password-protected photographer website ;)

Thanks to everyone for the patience on my update.  I'm sure we all have blog lapses, when life just seems to get the better part of your time.  Thanks to all my followers who have checked in with me, and I hope you enjoyed these 2 posts as much as I enjoyed the experience of making my first wedding dress!

Here are a couple photos of my current WIP.  It's Simplicity 2176 and I'm using a taupe chambray.  Very summery and it's looking great so far.

 (Ugh..my messy sewing corner.  Pay no attention...)

And what's summer without a picture of my sassy little girls???  Beach Day!!!