HS Graduation and Mad Dash Sewing

Last Monday I was catching up on blog reading and read a post by Debbie Cook. She had posted about making a graduation dress in the nick of time, and I thought, "Oh my gosh! I have nothing to wear for DD#1's graduation!" So the 'ol noodle got a hummin' about what's in the fabric stash.

Last year I bought a nice black/green/white ITY print from Spandex World for my maxi dress pattern but it never got made. So I pulled it out and thought about using it for a dress from my CJ Wrap Top pattern from last week. The top was such a nice fit and style that it seemed a natural for a dress.

Here is a full pic of my dress and a closeup:





This was truly mad dash sewing! I cut out the pattern on Thursday night by lengthening the pattern 15 inches and adding an inch at the front and back side seam from the hipline down. I created princess seams for a better back fit and a CB seam in case I needed a slit (not necessary). On Friday, I worked on it for about 45 minutes right after the boys got on the bus, but had to stop for Bring-Your-Pet-To-School day. (BTW, Jake was okay with it, but doesn't particularly care for dogs.) Then I picked up DD#1 at the high school, had a snack, took her to the mall for her last-minute-Susie activity of picking out a graduation dress and shoes. I got home at 12:30, ate lunch, and worked on my dress from about 1:30 - 3:30. Then I had to go out and pick up pizza and take her to CVS for mascara.


The total sewing time for the dress was about 2 1/2 hours. I lost time in the morning because my machine was fussy with skipped stitches. I switched needles, then switched to Mettler thread which worked like a charm. It was truly the fastest dress I've ever made, and yes, it was hurry, hurry, hurry! The neckline and armholes were turned under and coverstitched. That really saved heaps of time. I put in a temporary hem for the evening to make sure it was a suitable length. I pegged the hem on each side seam, but will probably peg it a little bit more. In the next few days, the permanent hem will be coverstitched.


Some people thrive on sewing on a deadline. I find it somewhat stressful. However, it was truly sewing like my sister. When I was a kid and she was in high school, I was truly in awe how she could wake up, know she wanted a specific garment, cut it out and sew it up to wear that evening by 6 p.m. My own sewing has never been like that. So it was really nice to know that I could pull off this mad dash sewing like my sister did many years ago.


This dress is really one of my faves. I love the style and print. The only thing about the print is that it hides the wrap and gathering detail. Do you know what my thoughts were on this? Maybe black piping down the princess seams would give it an edgy look. The seams and gathering detail get lost, but I don't think it detracts from the dress, but a contrast piping would enhance it, at least the princess seams that is. What do you think dear readers? I'll probably try that when using a print next time around.


On to DD#1, we have our first high school graduate! One down, three to go. It was a lovely graduation, perfect weather, and here are some pics from the event. We are so proud of her! She will be attending school in Philly as a Pre-Med Major. You can see in her pics she is wearing her National Honor Society cords, her Summa Cum Laude medal, and Student Government sash. She has a long road ahead of her in her preparation for her goal of becoming an Orthopedic Surgeon, but I know it will happen. It's an exciting time for her! It will be a long road, but I told her to savor every moment of the journey. It will have its highs and lows, but in the end it will be well worth all the hard work.


My only rants about the evening were:


1. You wait 18 years to hear your child's name announced when they receive their diploma. The microphone had issues for about 7 or 8 kids and mine was one of them--ugh! All the audience heard was her last name.


2. In the graduation booklet, they forgot to list National Honor Society next to her name. They also forgot to list her friend's scholarship. I'm sure there were errors for other people, but it's annoying when kids work so hard and there are little mistakes like this.


Here's a video link and pics for the last moments of graduation. The formed the traditional Blue and White Line at the end of the ceremony around the track. She was in the last group of 5 girls to exit the field near the center podium. It's sure to bring back memories of one's own high school graduation. She graduated on the same day and date as me, same time 26 years later. Even identical right down to the weather.


Here is a pic of her before leaving for the Graduation Ceremony

Here are the SGA group students, 2nd row of students to enter the field. DD#1 is second in from left. The valedictorian is on the right, salutatorian is second in from right.

DD#1's in her spot and looking!
Partial view of the graduates on a beautiful June evening:

Right after the ceremony and ready for pics:

Final seconds of graduation video:

To end this post, here's a few pics of our little boy Jake. Oh...how we love him so! So soft and cuddly. He's growing and sleeping more like an adult cat. His August birthday is fast approaching, and it's hard to believe little Jake is going to be 1. He's sleeping, but we really know he's begging for hugs and kisses. Or maybe a soft belly rub.

S4074 In Action!

Here's the Simplicity 4074 wrap dress on the proud owner :) ! I really like it, although I don't find it to be the most flattering. Wraps are supposed to be slimming, and I was hoping for that type of silhouette. Perhaps it is the Slinky fabric. It's hard to see the diagonal and vertical lines of the dress so maybe that's it. Also, I had to take in the waist 2" and it could probably use a bit more. We'll see how the dress shapes up with version no. 2 in a velvet knit.



Here's the back, virtually wrinkle free:


IMO, Slinky is a dressy, yet sporty, fabric. Therefore, I did double needle topstitching on the neckline, sleeve and dress hems as shown here:


I also tacked the front to avoid overexposure. The weight of the Slinky is always an issue for me. Facings were also omitted--turn and topstitching was quick and easy.

The only thing I don't really like about the dress? The neckline on the sides of the neck is very close and curves slightly up. The result is a broad shouldered look, and I'm anything BUT broad shouldered. Narrow shouldered to be exact. I can overlook that though, because overall the fit is really nice. The nature of Slinky at work...very forgiving ;) . And lots of alterations/blended sizing to make it work just right.

Please, don't talk about my shoes LOL! Ugly flats for sure. A bit of heel would do a lot for the total look. Gotta get myself some nice, *comfortable* black heels. Where the heck do I find those???

Off to work on a tutorial...

Simplicity 4074

This is a much improved version from my purple wrap top which was a muslin. The purple top was made from a crappy knit, really awful, which couldn't hold a press and was so flimsy. I much prefer "beefy" knits with some texture.

Here's the pattern:


Here's my version:

It's made from a lovely Slinky print, not without the woes from my previous post. Namely a major fabric snag in the fabric that I didn't realize was there when cutting. It really did look like a tiny crease. However, the fabric print kind of hides it so it shouldn't be too noticeable. I lightened up the photo so you can see the print. The fabric is kind of a shimmery grey shade with a navy blue raised design. The print has kind of a velvet feel.

I'll try to do a review soon and model it. The fit is superb on this one, although I don't think Phat Chick (ETA--as in my Phat Chick dress form) does it justice in her overstuffed fiberfill bod. Also, it's amazing what moving the bust fullness will do, isn't it? I thought that was my major fitting issue on the muslin so I adjusted the bust fullness and voila! There's a lovely purple velvet type of knit in my stash from PR Weekend 2006 so a second wrap dress is in the works. The pattern ties were omitted because, well, I just don't like ties.

More later.