Fabric Shopping and This Week's Plans

Today I needed an excuse to go to the fabric store (and buy something more than zippers, just to feel as if I had accomplished something). So I cut a sample of my cobalt/multi Vera Wang boucle and set of on a mission to find something that matched it.

I had decided that I wanted to use it for Vogue 1127, a Badgley Mischka skirt, jacket, and shell.


I wandered all over the store looking for matches, and noticed that in the silk brocades and silk dupioni that I always have to stop and pet that there was a an iridescent gold that matched the gold specks in the boucle very well. The silk was woven in gold one direction, and hot pink in the other, that made for a bronze/orange color that was very striking. Here is the dupioni with the boucle. The flash is making the dupioni really glow, but the color is fairly accurate:


While that had the shell taken care of, I still needed to locate a lining for the jacket and skirt. I found in the formalwear a lining in a yellow that looked fairly good:


This photo was taken without flash, so you can see what the fabric looks like without the flash blasting the dupioni. I am actually pretty excited to get started on this project. I am not sure whether or not to attempt to wash the silk. Silk Road Fabrics mentions on their web page that:

Dupioni is marked 'Dry Clean Only' but it can be washed IF you wash it before you cut it out. Silk dupioni loses much of its stiffness when washed, and just a bit of its sheen, but it still looks great. It will shrink up to 12% - 5 inches (13 cm) per yard - when washed, but it is very difficult to wrinkle after that. And no dry cleaning bills! Pre-made or lined dupioni garments should most likely be dry cleaned.

Today I also traced a pair of Burda pants that I would like to make. I really like the interesting seams. The back also has a curved yoke, and a seam down the center of the back of each leg. I used my Burda TNT pants for the alterations, but with all those seams going every direction, the alterations were MINDBENDING. I hope that it turns out...I anticipate making more than one pair to get these right! But, I'll be sure to make a complete accounting of the alterations if they turn out well, since I really had to stare at these for a while before figuring out what to do with them:
I have a gray twill as well as a khaki twill that would work equally as well for these. I may use the khaki and make them with the cargo-pockets, and then if it works well make a second pair with the gray, sans pockets and flaps.

If I get a few moments this week, I will at least try to get the Vogue pattern fit and the pants started.

I hope everyone had a good weekend, and I will keep you updated!