Graduation Outfit

💚 #sewing #lace

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on May 29, 2016 at 10:54pm PDT

I have a love-hate relationship with this outfit. I ADORE the white dress (which I started sewing just hours before I needed to be wearing it, and technically didn't have enough fabric). The green slip underneath however...not sure how much I want to talk about it. 

I think I had really big dreams for this ensemble. I had a very specific mental-image of what I wanted it to be, and I mostly achieved that. But I only achieved that because you can't see any of the slip except the color. 

I tried draping the bodice of the slip on my dress form, and that went...actually I'm not sure where it all went wrong. I had to adjust the darts once, but I'm not sure if the pattern never fit, or I didn't use the right sewing techniques for the silk, or I was cursed by an archaic sewing entity because of my sewing revolution. We may never know. 

So here's the only pictures you will get of the green slip: 

So let's just forget about the green slip and move onto the white dress...

The pattern is the Xerea Dress from Pauline Alice Patterns. I had to reduce the width on a lot of the pattern pieces because I was a little short on fabric. 

The plain white linen is from Fabric Outlet during a 40% off sale (of course). 

I picked up the white eyelet from La Droguerie in Paris when I was there last summer. It came in a little bundle and I loved it at first sight! I was saving it for something special and I'm really glad I decided to use it for this project. 

I just adored the seam lines on this dress pattern. 

I used French seams on both the slip and white dress, and I think it turned out fairly well for my first major attempt at french seams. The white dress has great seams, but the green slip is a whole different story. But we're not gonna talk about it. 

You can see a hint of the slip in this photo. Here are details I am willing to disclose: V-neck and bias strips for the straps. Everything else is strictly need-to-know. 

And there's an extra little peak at the French Seams. 

Hotlanta, here I come! #gt2020 #graduation 🎓 (that dress is a pattern from @paulineyalice and the fabric is from @la_droguerie)

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Jun 5, 2016 at 9:12pm PDT

I generally don't get a lot of photos of myself wearing stuff I made, so here is one!

And since this outfit was for my graduation, here's a picture of my friend and I wearing our caps:

My cap is on the left and Cam is on the right...It's the first few lines of our favorite book :)

Hope everyone else is enjoying their summers!

Taft WK

Prom 2016: A Personal Rebellion

Honestly, I feel like sewing is my own personal rebellion. When I make something, I don't have to listen to anyone else's instructions or ideas about what clothes should look like, how they should fit, or what sizes mean. It's so liberating!

So in continuing with bucking societal expectations, I decided I was going to attend a formal event in pants with pockets. Here's a picture of my original sketch: 

It changed a lot during the process. 

I wanted to draft my own pants, but when I found this pattern in an old BurdaStyle magazine, I figured there was no point in reinventing the wheel, especially when that wheel is free and your time is limited. 

The pattern has an invisible zipper, integrated hip pockets, front pleats and back darts. 

I made a mock-up and got some beautiful ivory satin at Britex Fabrics. 

Honestly, I am beyond happy about these pants. They're comfy as hell and have so much room in the pockets. I could put my phone in them and it wouldn't look weird! Success! 

Here's a close up I posted on Instagram: 

Currently in the works #sewing #fashiondesign #diyprom

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on May 4, 2016 at 7:57am PDT

Mom helped me pin the pants (this works best when you can be more eye-level with the hem, hence me standing on the dining room table). 

I didn't get any process photos of the top. It changed a lot from the original sketch. I made a mock-up of my first idea, but realized it wouldn't be flattering with the fit of the pants (shout out to the fashion croquis for not looking like real people at all). So I drafted/draped a new top pattern, which was a fitted halter top that tied at the neck and back. 

However, I decided to make it using the fabric I originally purchased for a very loose and drapey top. Obviously, that didn't go well at all. So I had to start over with some satin left over from last year's prom outfit. Yay for reusing! (Which is actually code for "Yay for not spending more money!")

(Mom did that really great braided hairdo!)

Here's the back. The neckline and sides of the top are finished with a bias binding that are extended at the neck and back to be ties. I really should have taken better pictures. I do have a picture of the bias strips that I posted on Instagram: 

✂️ #sewing #fashiondesign #diyprom

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on May 10, 2016 at 9:18am PDT

The top tucks into the pants. I think my favorite part of this outfit was the graphic contrast of the ivory pants and black top. As well as the fact that I got to flaunt the fact that I had pockets all night. 

So anyway, have I talked about how comfortable and freeing this outfit was? Didn't need to carry a purse cause I put my phone in my pocket. Didn't worry about being cold because yay pants! I could do all types of dance moves, like this:

Photo taken by Lauren Hom

I crashed the People-In-Suits photo to make it a People-In-Pants photo. Seriously, could you pose like that in a floor length dress? Nope. Nor can you crash photos like this. 

Down with the gender norms I say! You can wear whatever you want I say! Sewing rebellion I say!

-Taft WK

My New Obsession: Lace Tatting!

I don't 100% remember how I found out about lace tatting - I just know that as soon as I did, I was fascinated by it. I really like lace, but often run into the problem that it doesn't look modern enough for my taste. So I just figured I'd try to make it myself. 

You might have seen my first attempts on Instagram: 

Low-budget lace tatting with materials scavenged from scraps 😂 #lace #tatting

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Mar 17, 2016 at 1:18pm PDT

When I saw "materials scavenged from scraps," I'm very serious about that. After finding the pattern/outline of a shuttle in a book, I realized I could make my own without spending *any* money. And as someone who frequently has a net worth of less than $15 due to her fabric store spending habits, this was very appealing. So I found some scrap MDF in the Physics classroom, and cut out the shape on a bandsaw during Engineering class (not what I was actually supposed to be doing during class, but whatever). Then I found some tangled up string on the ground, a friend helped me un-knot all of it (shoutout to her, she's a true MVP), and started working!

Lace tatting was simultaneously easier and harder than I expected it to be. The entire motif is made of just two different kinds of knots repeated over and over again, but keeping track of them all is so difficult! And so was worrying about thread tension, front vs. back, the picots...

But I persevered! And spent more money at the fabric store!

My first tatted creation, finished on BART 🚈 #lace #tatting #lacetatting

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Mar 21, 2016 at 8:16am PDT

I got yellow and gray crochet yarn - so I was starting to be a little bit more legit than my free materials ;). You can imagine my dismay however, when I found out the yarn was not actually 40% off like the rest of the store. This was a slight setback in affording other materials. I was still working with the MDF shuttle, which was okay. Because it didnt have a sharp point, joining picots was hard, so I also had to carry around a pin to pull the thread through the loops. I spent a little more time than my friends would have preferred walking around with a pin in my shirt because there was no where else to put it. Oh well! 

So I called about 4 stores around San Francisco, trying to find one that sells lace tatting shuttles. After many answers of "What even are those?" I finally found a store that did! I started cheering and the lady on the other end of the phone thought I was a little loony. I guess teenagers aren't supposed to get this excited about oddly specific crafting supplies. 

But the saga continues: A few weeks later, my net worth rose above $10 and I could finally afford the cheapest shuttles they sell at the knitting store! Yay! I would have ordered them online, but shipping costs money, which I didn't really have. Welcome to the life of a broke teenager. 

I got a pack of two small shuttles, and I also treated myself to some beautiful yarn. I learned that thicker yarn is easier to tat with, so I found some nice light-blue stuff that was a little bit bigger than the crochet yarn I already had. 

The design of the blue yarn is also the first motif I designed myself! I had previously been teaching myself from this book (shoutout to the SF Public Library): 

(Here's a link to it's Amazon page) 

I love all the little motifs in this book, and that's where the rest of the designs in this post are from. 

So as the resident un-sponsored pitchwoman of vanishing crafts, here's why I love lace tatting: 

My new favorite travels-anywhere project #travelingseamstress #lacetatting

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Apr 12, 2016 at 1:52pm PDT

1. It travels very well!

2. Once I bought some yarn to start, I haven't spent money (on lace tatting supplies specifically) ever since! 

 

3. Even if you're super cheap and using yarn scraps, the motifs still look cool when they're just half-finished!

4. Three words: Netflix and Tat. 

5. When you say "I've been tatting," it sounds like you're a tattoo artist and then people think you're waaaayyyy more badass than you actually are. 

6. You will discover your inner hoarder as you make all these little things that you can't get rid of, but don't really know what to do with them. 

7. It's good exercise for your hands! (I think? I have to take breaks every once in a while because my hands cramp up from trying to maintain the yarn tension.)

8. It's never-ending. 

Well, that's the end of my listicle, but please let me know if you would like to start a Youth Lace Tatting Club or have any questions about how to craft on a budget of basically zero dollars. 

-Taft WK

Winter Formal Dress 2016

It's back! And, it's the least-procrastinated Winter Formal post to date! (You can also read about what I made in 2014 and 2015).

The theme this year was Black and White. Very classic, so I decided to go with a classic shape and find some nice fabric. I wanted this dress to be something I could definitely wear again. 

This is the fabric I found at Fabric Outlet. I got it during a (hang on, you're not going to see this coming)...sale! Yup, 40% off! I also posted a picture of it on Instagram:

Loving the texture of this fabric from @fabricoutlet that I'm using for my #winterformal dress! #sewing #fashiondesign (edited with #acolorstory)

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Feb 10, 2016 at 3:18pm PST

My overall design for this dress was a fitted bodice and full skirt. And, of course, a pocket only big enough for my phone so I could make all of my friends jealous. Priorities. 

It looks like a mess, but math ✏️ and sewing ✂️!! My two loves 💕 #sewing #math #patternmaking #burningmidnightoil

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Feb 4, 2016 at 7:57am PST

I started with a BurdaStyle bodice sloper and spent a lot of time altering it to achieve the exact fit I wanted. 

V-neck, waist darts, and a band at the waist. 

There's also waist dart and a v-neckline in the back, so the front and back mirror each other. 

The skirt (seen here with the mock-up bodice, sorry about bad lighting) is a double circle skirt. SO MUCH FABRIC. I love it! 

Here's the bodice made in the final fabric (and it's lying on top of my quilt!).

The fabric is a brocade, so it holds its shape very nicely. 

After that, I attached the lining, which I had interfaced and sewed the skirt to the bodice. I topstitched the lining down by hand, using little tiny stitches that are (hopefully) hardly visible around the neckline and armholes. I also blind-hemmed the skirt, which took forever. I accomplished a lot of Netflix while hand-stitching on this project. 

So...ta da!

(please ignore the dress form's bra straps...)

Invisible zipper on the side seam. 

A dress with a pocket! My favorite thing!

Here's my brother, helping to demonstrate the sheer volume of this skirt. I loved how it moved, the skirt was always lying differently and making different shapes. 

6 hours of hemming and 1 lecture about being fashionably late later... #winterformal #sewing

A photo posted by Taft Weber-Kilpack (@taftisseamstress) on Feb 21, 2016 at 1:13am PST

Here's a picture from the night of! My dress was comfortable and fun to dance in - a huge success!

On a side note, I will be switching back to a post every other Wednesday for the next couple months. Hopefully I can start posting more often after that. 

-Taft WK