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Just thought of something so here is an addendum for homework seeing there are a full 2 weeks between classes!
Homework addendum: record model’s measurements right on the master pattern for future use, draft the Empire cut using personal measurements please. You know what they say; practice makes perfect!
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Another great class today, Snow notwithstanding! Well it snowed overnight making everything white when we got up, the weather report was for snow later in the day but thank goodness it held off until we got home.
Today everyone was fit with the strapless top and the class did a great job! The tops were kept on for a while during all of the fittings and they stayed up even with no boning or zipper, they were only pinned at the back. I asked if anyone wants to make a corset as outerwear and one of students almost fell off her chair as she raised her hand so fast! I love that kind of enthusiasm! In the end the class decided they would make a corset, it will be in another semester as the syllabus for this one has been set out plus for that project they will get to each draft their own and sew it. I asked what the most important thing the class learned from the exercise of using different measurements and they agreed it was the importance of the mock up to see how the garment will fit. Some thought it was how to address the body issues, in the end seeing the differences in body shapes is the key to learning the fitting process. The second half of the class was dedicated to drafting an Empire cut dress, the students passed the measurement charts they used last week on to another student so once again they are working with a new set of numbers\issues. This is the best way to learn how to address body issues to work with them as a study tool in a controlled environment with no pressure because mistakes are normal and part of the process and a learning tool rather than being frowned upon as a sign of failure. The Empire cut dress tends to bend the brain a bit with the waist moving up to under the bust, the catch is not only is the waist moving up but the bust also has to have enough fabric to be entirely covered with no pulling or gaping so the class needed to take 2 extra measurements; 1) from point A to under the bust going over the apex; 2) from the waist up just below the apex to see where the bottom half has to be separated from the top half. You are probably saying to yourself "what is she talking about?"! Well one can always register for classes to find out exactly what it is I'm talking about! Homework is to sew a mock up for the Empire cut dress to fit the body next class November 21, 2019 at 12:30 pm. We will be drafting the asymmetrical top on page 71 for the second half of the class. January 16, 2020 been agreed upon for the skirts workshop from 9 to 4. Well let me tell you this was one super FAST class!
I always try to challenge my students and today was no exception! The class was to draft a strapless dress so we started off by analyzing the pattern in the instruction book, seemed very clear at the time LOL! No one had any questions, "yup I understand", "no problem", "I got this" were the responses to my query "are there any questions?" Then I handed out blank measurement charts and had the students write their names on them, re-arranged the seating arrangement and asked them to hand their sheet to the person on their right. They would be drafting for each other using each other's measurements, seems simple enough but when the numbers change the whole process takes on a whole new life as the class found out! We do become quite complacent when we are not challenged to think a little harder so it's the teacher's job to do just that, challenge the students, a job I take very seriously as all my students can attest. Today they did not even get a demo on how to draft the strapless top! I felt they were ready to figure it out on their own and they did very well. By the end of the class everyone had a master pattern done complete with markings. A mock up will be cut and sewn at home and be brought to class for a fitting of the “models” next time. We will also be working on the dress on page 75 next class.
The next class is November 7, 2019 at 12:30, which is one week away instead of the usual two weeks. Great job ladies! So the projects that I started on Sunday are complete plus a new top and pants! The top started off as a plain asymmetrical top but I wanted to have a bit of a flare so I doctored the pattern to reflect that; kind of like a semi circle skirt with a simple top except there is no joint at the waist! I slashed and spread the pattern without cutting through the edges. Sneaky huh! Once that was done I figured I should do something to the sleeves so I did a semi circle attached at the elbow, to give some more interest I added a border using the pants fabric! I quite liked it and then did the same treatment to the neckline.
The mock up turned out quite nice and can be used as a bathing suit cover up or a robe or over some leggings and tank top as someone pointed out to me! Below are some social media connections for the Le Grand Chic family of pattern makers please feel free to join in pictures and comments are always welcome! Like us on Facebook: Le Grand Chic Italia School of Fashion in Canada Join the group Pattern Makers of Canada Instagram @legrandchicitalia Well it's Sunday and there is lots to do seeing I took the day off yesterday by going to the gym in the morning and going out in the afternoon. This doesn't happen often but it's one of the privileges of being one's own boss!
The beauty of tailoring is that it can be done anytime nothing will go bad it will be there waiting for when the tailor is ready to work. This really works for me because I can map out everything in my mind before going ahead with cutting or sewing especially if there is a problem to be solved. I think it through, run possible scenarios in my mind with solutions already in place which often leads me to find a more simple solution than I had originally planned :) Today I have to finish a top for a client, alter a mock up for another client or create a second mock up to be sure when I cut into the fabric the jacket will fit perfectly and if there is any time left at the end of the day I will finish my homework assigned to the Bradford class! I think this will keep my busy for a bit this afternoon. After all this is done then I have another cooking video to edit and post on Youtube on how to cook chicken breast so it stays moist and flavourful. This morning I'm going to try something different for lunch, a rice dish that has the same ingredients as "arancini" or rice balls that are stuffed with cheese and pasta sauce, shaped then fried; this recipe is made in a bundt pan and baked instead of fried. Keep you posted on the outcome. It's actually a practice session for next Sunday when we have our annual family ladies day get together with 30 of our most intimate family! LOL yes 30 or so... everyone brings something and we have a great day full of bonding between the generations/family members. I look forward to it every year, eventually it will be my turn to host when my name is picked out of the hat. Talk soon Well another great class! It was all sewing yesterday, when it's sewing the class feels like we get there, work 5 minutes and it's time to leave! In fact 3 hours pass in no time flat!
Students are working on finishing book one so are now building on the skills they have already learned in previous semesters, this means I get to push them a little harder :) This week's sewing class consisted of
Homework is to
What a lot of hard work yesterday! I push these ladies to the extreme and they deliver! Yesterday we drafted a coat dress with patch pockets, front overlap, self-facing, wing collar and a specific sleeve with an inverted V design feature at the hemline! This was all in 3 hours!
We analysed the pattern extensively then proceeded to draft, in the midst of all this there was also a pop quiz on how to prepare the armhole so the numbers can be used to draft the sleeve, they aced it!!! But there is homework Homework is to sew together the dress only, the collar, self-facing and sleeves will be sewn in the next class to finish the mock up
have a great couple of weeks! We had a great time sewing up a storm yesterday with the mock princess cut mock ups! In only 3 hours the class sewed together the mock up with princess seams from the armhole, no easy feat around the bustline, and fit the body. Some even made adjustments to the mock ups after the fitting!
For the most part the mock ups fit very well, there was one student who got a lesson on the importance of sewing at the actual stitching line rather than deciding to leave 1 cm seam allowance instead of 2 that was allocated, LOL, can you guess the outcome of the mock up in this case? Tell me you answer in the comments... Another student figured out she had to take the high hip measurement as well and re-draw the hipline to reflect her findings, not at all unusual as the body changes with time, even a short time, also even though the measurements all match in the master pattern that may not necessarily mean the mock up will fit perfectly either. Remember the pattern is made on paper and the mock up is made from fabric they each have their own characteristics and may fit differently than expected. This in no way is indicative of anything that is being done incorrectly as is always the first assumption of students, it is merely indicative of the way the fabric behaves when stitched together so my advice to students is look at the garment objectively and see where and what the issues are. The last thing I want to hear from my students or anyone for that matter is "my body is weird/misshapen/add any other superlative". Your body is your body, learn to love it it's the only one you have, so dress it with comfort and put your personality into the garment's design to feel like a million bucks! Homework is to
Have a great 2 weeks! I have said many times to my students when they receive an assignment to set a soft deadline for completion that is at least one week in advance of the due date and another hard deadline for completion that is at least 3 days prior to the due date. For the most part students have listened especially after I said to them that they are to consider the due date a wedding date and I am the bride who needs her gown for the wedding! I think this really hit home with all of them, no more extensions on assignments after that.
An assignment is just that an assignment and if it is not done on time it's not the end of the world but in the real world out there with ACTUAL deadlines one must adhere to them without fail, I consider this part of the training program to prep students for working in the field. So I must practice what I preach. This past while I have had the privilege of making some jackets for a very nice gentleman pictured in my previous post, the jacket he is wearing in the picture was one he wanted made just because with no real occasion to wear it to so I could take my time and work at it in between other things. He picked up the jacket in the middle/end of August and ordered another for a specific occasion this coming weekend in gold and black (I will post pix after he picks up the jacket) with a funky lining. I set myself a hard deadline of September 18, even though the occasion is on the weekend, why would I do that to myself, take away almost a week of time? To be sure that I am finished and it is perfect that's why! In fact in my head I set a soft deadline of September 17 to be extra sure. Well I'm happy to report the jacket was finished by the soft deadline, well ahead of the actual due date, so I can relax and wait for him to pick it up :) I'm feeling kind of proud of the fact that I had a quick turnaround time for a men's jacket among many other things going on and still managed to get it done on time and on budget!   Soooo here are some projects I worked on this summer; this jacket was pleasure to work on, gave me back my mo-jo it was a real challenge match the print, made my brain work to create the trim on the lapels. I had to come up with a tool to make the trim to put on the jacket! The rivets would not go through the lapel to put directly on the jacket, so plan B it was! I'm just glad the client (above) is very easy going and agreeable to whatever will work to complete the task. The shoes were the inspiration for the jacket, the colours as well as the trim were important to him, the fit and finish were important to me, as you can see the jacket fit very well. I forgot to take pictures (I can see Denise rolling her eyes LOL!!) of the inside with the the red piping joining the violet lining to the black facing. The red piping is to honour the red soles on the shoes and the rivets are to match the tops of the shoes. Whew!!! It was a job, so rewarding in the end. Now I'm working on a second jacket in black and gold... keep you posted! Check out instagram @legrandchicitalia for more pix  Here are a few things I did for me! We had a wedding this summer so I thought I should make something new. The one on the left was supposed to be for the ceremony but then was worn once already, plus the morning of the wedding the zipper slider just fell apart when I went to zip it up!!! Thank goodness I had made the dress below right so I had something to wear! On the left is the evening dress I made plus I altered the dress my daughter is wearing among other dresses I altered this summer. Along with having the grandkids up for a week at a time a couple of times I have stayed out of trouble LOL! We also took a quick trip to Halifax, picture on the left, there are only a few weeks in the summer as it is, it's no wonder it flew by!
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AuthorMaria Calautti, "Jack of all trades" Archives
November 2019
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