Ballroom dress blog along

[CANI]

I have two presents for y'all today!

Thank you, mindputtee!! Greatly appreciated. I've never been down this path, but I've got the thread bookmarked should I do so in the future!

Qualities not great, I was sketching in class on notebook paper and took the picture with my cell phone camera.

And here is your rhinestone bracelet video tutorial!

Sketch is beautiful -- looking forward to seeing the end product! Will watch the tutorial in the future -- thanks again!

 

[mindputtee]

I finally got time to both take and post some pictures with skirts. Sadly the in progress pictures didn't save so I'll just have to give a text explanation of what I did.

The skirts are 3 half circles per layer (there are two layers) that's just been sewn together using my wonderful serger and then hemmed with crinoline (again, using the serger.) If you are planning to do any appreciable amount of sewing I highly recommend getting a serger. They are amazing and save you so much time. In the process of fitting the skirts though I realized I had a problem: I want the skirts to sit just above my hips so that means the opening needs to be smaller than my hips, but I also am not putting a zipper in so the problem is getting the skirts over my hips so they will stay. My solution is to put in a snap closure so that it can be open while I slide the dress on and then discreetly snap shut under the bodice and be hidden out of sight. That's the next step followed by actually attaching the skirts to the bodysuit.

 

[Joe]

I prefer not to use my serger until the seams are complete, because it's much easier to rip a sewing machine seam if you made an error. If you've serged it, it's harder to rip, plus you're stuck with the exact amount of ease that's been trimmed by the blade.

 

[3wishes]

I'm with Joe on that one. I use a straight seam first then my serger. (off topic) currently making superhero blankets for my 3 texas grandchildren for Christmas (watch out Jet Blue!Superhero power will be flying this holiday season). Love the serger for the blanket finishings!

 

[mindputtee]

Perhaps my serger is different (it's incredibly old and weighs a ton) but I find the serged seams way easier to rip out. I can just run my seam ripper down the horizontal threads and the seams pull apart, rather than my machine with a straight stitch where I had to go every few inches and rip more little threads. I used my machine with a straight stitch for the bodysuit and will use it for the bodice too, there's just a lot of room for small errors in the skirt due to the nature of the cut, not to mention they're pretty much just straight seams and pretty simple to sew.

I am by no means an expert on any of this by the way, I'm just sharing my experience so I welcome the wisdom of more experienced dress makers.

I've been thinking more and I think I'm going to have to break down and put in a zipper to get the right fit. ::sigh:: I didn't want to put in a zipper because I always find zippers to be prone to failure, plus it's a pain to actually sew one in.

 

[NonieS]

OK I have rudimentary sewing skills at best and I have to ask, what is a serger? I have heard the term used before, but actually have no idea what one is.

Did I just reveal the extent to which I am an ignoramus when it comes to sewing? Probably....

 

[3wishes]

Nonies, A serger machine does lock stitching, the type you would find on the underside and seams of ohhh your blouse, swimsuit, pants, tablecloth...it uses up to 4 spools of thread and interweaves the "loops" to lock the stitching in. It also has a blade that as you feed the fabic through - it cuts the extra fabric off...so don't make a mistake on the seam allowance. It saves oodles of time and gives a wonderful nice finished seam to just about anything. You can You Tube clips of serger machine lessons and usage to investigate further.

 

[NonieS]

Thanks for the info!

 

[Joe]

Perhaps my serger is different (it's incredibly old and weighs a ton) but I find the serged seams way easier to rip out. I can just run my seam ripper down the horizontal threads and the seams pull apart, rather than my machine with a straight stitch where I had to go every few inches and rip more little threads. I used my machine with a straight stitch for the bodysuit and will use it for the bodice too, there's just a lot of room for small errors in the skirt due to the nature of the cut, not to mention they're pretty much just straight seams and pretty simple to sew.

I am by no means an expert on any of this by the way, I'm just sharing my experience so I welcome the wisdom of more experienced dress makers.

I've been thinking more and I think I'm going to have to break down and put in a zipper to get the right fit. ::sigh:: I didn't want to put in a zipper because I always find zippers to be prone to failure, plus it's a pain to actually sew one in.

I don't think I've seen too many recent ballgowns that have the topskirt above the hips (those with separate skirts). Almost all I've seen are below.

Unless the tension in your seam is too high, you can usually just pull on one of the threads and have several inches of the thread pull out, if not the whole thread. Sometimes you do need to clip a stitch every few inches to continue.

 

[mindputtee]

My machine might just need some adjusting then.

As for the skirts, they're going to sit just above the hips. I know a lot of the latest ballroom fashion is to have a lower waist with skirts that sit below the hips, but that has a tendency to make your hips and butt more pronounced. I've seen quite a few recent dresses though that have a skirt that flares out higher up closer to the hips. I think it's a more classic look than some of the other styles.

 

[Joe]

As for the skirts, they're going to sit just above the hips. I know a lot of the latest ballroom fashion is to have a lower waist with skirts that sit below the hips, but that has a tendency to make your hips and butt more pronounced.

Perhaps, but I really don't see that as a problem for you...

 

[NonieS]

but that has a tendency to make your hips and butt more pronounced

LOL As a girl with no hips and a small rear end, I thank that style for its brave and courageous efforts in making me look like I have some semblance of curves.

 

[mindputtee]

Perhaps, but I really don't see that as a problem for you...

I've had a couple of lessons that have gone like this:

"You're sticking your butt out. Stop sticking your butt out."
"Ok, I'm tucking my butt in."
"No you're not, you're still sticking your butt out!"
"No I'm not! I can't tuck it in anymore, that's just the way my butt is!"

I might end up holding off on finishing the skirts/committing to one way or the other until I get a chance to try on some dresses with a drop waist and see if it's really as bad as I think or if I'm just making it up.

 

[smidra86]

I've had a couple of lessons that have gone like this:

"You're sticking your butt out. Stop sticking your butt out."
"Ok, I'm tucking my butt in."
"No you're not, you're still sticking your butt out!"
"No I'm not! I can't tuck it in anymore, that's just the way my butt is!"

I might end up holding off on finishing the skirts/committing to one way or the other until I get a chance to try on some dresses with a drop waist and see if it's really as bad as I think or if I'm just making it up.

I tend to have a lot of lessons where I'm told the complete opposite, that I should stick my butt out... but I guess that's the difference with smooth sometimes.

But I do love how the dress is coming out. I saw the design and really like it. I'm terrible with making complicated designs so my stuff is usually simple. It could also be that I don't have a dress form and make it by constantly putting it on and taking it off.

 

[AStarDanced27]

I've had a couple of lessons that have gone like this:

"You're sticking your butt out. Stop sticking your butt out."
"Ok, I'm tucking my butt in."
"No you're not, you're still sticking your butt out!"
"No I'm not! I can't tuck it in anymore, that's just the way my butt is!"

I might end up holding off on finishing the skirts/committing to one way or the other until I get a chance to try on some dresses with a drop waist and see if it's really as bad as I think or if I'm just making it up.

I've had many lessons go like that