Thoughts

Marital Test

Rachel — Mon, 26 May 2008 05:09:27 GMT

Okay, this is hilarious. Fashion Incubator mentioned this and I just had to pass it on. This test was given in the 1930's for men to rate their wives in their marriage. I guess it was supposed to scientifically help troubled marriages.

The test was designed to give couples feedback on their marriages. Either husbands or wives could take the test, which rated wives in a variety of areas. For instance, if your wife "uses slang or profanity," she would get a score of five demerits. On the other hand, if she "reacts with pleasure and delight to marital congress," she would receive 10 merits. The test taker would add up the total number of merits and demerits to receive a raw score, which would categorize the wife on a scale from "very poor" to "very superior."

I definitely would have failed this test.

Love, Rachel

Sewing Butterick 4790 Walk-Away Dress - Don't Waste Your Time!

Rachel — Sun, 25 May 2008 06:40:38 GMT

Butterick 4790 has been voted one of the top patterns to sew this year. PatternReview.com sewers highly recommend this pattern and they aren't alone. This pattern has become very popular and is know as a quick, easy, and beautiful sew. It's been called the most popular pattern ever produced:

In 1952, Butterick Pattern Co experienced a phenomenon it had not known since the 'Garibaldi Suit' of the late 1860's. They released pattern #6015, and dubbed it the 'walk-away' dress, because it was so easy you could "Start it after breakfast... walk-away in it for luncheon!". It's simple yet flattering wrap design and easy construction were what made it so popular.

It may have worked for some people but I thought this pattern was a disaster.

Technically, the idea is very simple and rather clever. It's one long piece of fabric that you pull over your head and the front two pieces hook together around your waist in the back and the back skirt wraps around and hooks in the front. Just like that. Done. It's a very quick sew, so it's also a great pattern for instant gratification... if it happens to fit you.

I made this dress for my good friend and daughter's pre-school teacher, Maggie Putnam. Maggie is a beautiful woman and her figure is very slight. She is petite, small busted, and has a slight concave in her upper chest. I cut the size appropriate for her measurements and made adjustments accordingly. Everything was going very smoothly and Maggie was very excited.

Here she is for one of her fittings. I was not pleased with how the bodice was laying on her. I ended up making a solid princess seam from shoulder through center bust point connecting to the existing fitting darts; this gave the bodice a nicer fit. Luckily the pattern is a bit busy, so the seams blended in well. I lowered the neckline a bit as well to open up her chest a bit. It really seemed to come together quite smoothly.

Here is the finished dress:

Maggie felt so very beautiful in her new dress. She wore it for the pre-kindergarten Valentine's day. I peeked in on her bustling around the children and getting things together during the party and our eyes met. I was completely mortified when I saw the dress and rushed out the door with tears in my eyes. "Why?" you may ask. "It looks simply beautiful! And she looks absolutely adorable in it!"

"Yes," I would concede, "but that's when she is standing completely still."

Sigh. I went home and my mind could not get rid of the picture of Maggie trying to get the food, crafts, and games together with one hand glued to the front panel of her skirt to keep it from riding up dangerously high.

"Well, she should've worn a slip," you might say.
She did wear a slip.
"Well, maybe she wore the wrong slip."
No, she wore the right slip.

So, the question at hand is, "WHAT WENT WRONG? HOW DO I FIX IT?"

So, why was the skirt riding up? Her carefully fitted bodice looked like a baggy mess on her.

The back was equally ill-fitting. The print on this fabric makes it a bit more difficult to see, but believe me, it's all there. Where on earth are the shoulder seams?

This dress calls for 4 3/4 yards of fabric -- most of it being used for the back circle skirt. That is a lot of fabric and a lot of weight back there. Maggie does not have the curvy shape up top to keep the bodice and shoulders in place. All weekend I fretted over ways to fix this problem. I'm a professional! And this is a really easy dress! What is wrong with me??? The worst was when Maggie told me that her fellow co-workers were consoling her during lunch and coming up with solutions for her to fix the dress. How awful! She was embarrassed, very uncomfortable, and felt really sorry for me.

I thought about putting weights in the front of the skirt hem. No good. You shouldn't wash them and how annoying and very impractical to have to take them out every time you wash.

I thought about putting a 1" grow-grain ribbon doubled to make an "inside belt" along the waist for extra stability. What can I do to keep the waist and therefore the shoulder seams in place?

In the end, I did none of those things. I needed to think about Maggie first and I knew how very uncomfortable she was in the dress. She did not feel secure in the garment at all. If I made the belt, it might have been a quick fix that maybe would've worked, but my goal was to make her a dress she felt beautiful and confident in. I ended up taking my big scissors and chopping off the bodice from the circle skirt. It was sad, but the right thing to do. I put a waistband on to finish it. It would still wrap around the waist and fasten in the front.

I found another re-printed vintage pattern, Simplicity 3673.

I chose to make her the straight shift to be the base dress under the circle skirt. With this option, she would feel very secure in the garment and still get the look and feel of the old dress. Not only that, but if she wanted to wear the dress alone and be more stream-lined, she could do that as well. Maggie chose a solid red for the straight dress. To keep the design flowing with the previous fabric, I piped the neckline and armscyes in the black and white print and also made a belt out of the print for when she wore it without the overskirt.

The changes I needed to make to this pattern were minimal. I did make a muslin mock-up and I needed to take out some extra-fullness in her upper-chest. Besides that, it was a perfect fit for her. When I saw her face light up, I knew it was the right thing to do. She wore the red dress without the circle-skirt to the end of the year Spring Program. Her husband requested she wear it that way probably because she looked like a little hottie. She looked and felt absolutely beautiful. These are some poor shots from the Spring Program.

(You will notice that the belt has slipped down in the front as well as the back. It is supposed to rest on the seam right under the bust. I noticed this during the program and sewing some quick belt-loops on the side seams should take care of that.)

You maybe would also laugh when I tell you that I was sewing the belt that very morning during the "practice program." Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of the dress with the original over-skirt. I will get some shots this week and amend this post.

IN CONCLUSION: How do you fix the Butterick 4790 "Walk-Away" Dress? I don't have any clear definite answers to give you regarding the pulling and sagging dilemma. After I sewed the dress and encountered the problem I talked to my sister Megan who had also sewn the dress some years ago and had the same exact problem. Hers was a bit worse because she made the dress reversible--twice as much weight in the back! She is small busted as well and never really wore the dress.

It's a problem that hasn't been discussed on the internet so I decided it was time that someone did. I question whether this pattern can really result in a good fit. Many people say they've had success with this pattern...I'm definitely not one of them.

Love, Rachel

AMENDED #1 Kathleen from Nova Scotia emailed me about having this same problem. She has indicated that she would like to try and fix the dress. This amendment could give you some ideas to kick around.

"WELL, I'M GOING TO FIX IT ANYWAY!" Good for you! If this is the direction you would like to take with this garment, you could try a couple things that might help a bit.

First of all, you really need to make sure that the dress fits perfectly on your body. That means the shoulder seams are exactly in place, bust seams line up perfectly and the most important is that the back waist seam is EXACTLY on your waist as well as the front. Sew a 1" grow-grain ribbon along the front (exactly where it should hit your waist) and fasten it tightly and securely in the back with a solid skirt-hook. They use grow-grain under ballet costumes to keep them secure and in place. I know that you'll see the stitching on the front of the garment--it shouldn't matter since you'll be pulling the back skirt over to the front anyway.

NOTE: In sewing the front "inside belt" there will most likely be a part of the belt around the back of the waist that WILL NOT BE ATTACHED TO THE FABRIC. Pay close attention to the curve that wraps around to the back. If you just simply sew the belt onto the fabric, the front skirt will not lay smoothly.

Attach the grow-grain to the back waist as well stitching right in the middle of your seam. The idea behind this is to completely stabilize the waist and try to keep things from moving. Hopefully this will reduce the movement to a minimal.

In addition to this, another thought could be lining just the front part of the dress, while keeping the back unlined to give the front a bit more weight.

I'd love to hear from you on this topic! Did you have any problems? If so, what did you do to fix them?

Love Again, Rachel

AMENDED #2 - A POSSIBLE SOLUTION!

You've made the dress, love the dress, and want to make it work so you'll actually wear it. This could be the solution:

Cut the bottom of the front dress panel at the waist plus 1/2" (for seam allowance). Construct and sew a full pencil skirt and attach the waist to the front original remaining dress panel. You can also put a waistband on. This could be a great solution. The front skirt will not move and be completely stabilized. The weight of the back skirt could actually be a positive by pulling the upper bodice smoothly into place. You can still pull the dress over your head and wrap the back circle skirt around your waist.

Anyone want to make it???

Idea of a pencil skirt you could use.

Rough sketch of the new flat of the dress with a full pencil skirt with kick pleat.

Love Again Again, Rachel

Breathing A Sigh Of Relief...Or Am I?

Rachel — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 03:47:55 GMT

Whew! The Summer Line for Mamma Made is done and it's live and I am about to breathe a deep sigh of relief. But why aren't I? Things are great, the weather is beautiful here in San Diego, school is almost over and summer is ahead of us...I think I'm just tired. Too tired to even sigh. Tired and yet my mind is still buzzing with a million different things that won't let me let down and just BE! Let me be!

Do you ever go to bed completely wiped out and yet you lay there for an hour or two just thinking about stuff? Random stuff that really doesn't matter at all? Well, I feel like I'm living that thought process but throughout my days. What can I do? Hmmm. Hot tea!

Yes, this is a stolen flickr image. There are some really funny ones when you type in "hot tea." If this were me, I would have tea leaves. Yes, I'm a bit of a tea snob if you will.

Well, super cool news today! My daughter Ellie took her first steps today! Yay!

Here she is lurching around with a magnet in her mouth. That child cannot keep things out of her mouth!

After a graceful fall, here she is quite proud of herself.

I'm ready to regroup and write some new technical posts. If anyone has some suggestions on what they might like to learn in regards to sewing/construction or anything in that general department, give a shout out.

From my scattered brain to yours....

Love, Rachel

Promised Projects

Rachel — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 23:37:54 GMT

Do any of you have a list of "promised projects?" I do. It drives me crazy that I think I can do it all--all the time. I can't. Well, here is one of my promised projects. Thinking about the many "promised projects" I have inspires me to write about it.

Easter was yesterday (Hope you all had a wonderful Easter!) and my parents had a really cool Easter tradition that I want to continue in my own small family. We didn't get much candy, but we would get a small chocolate bunny and a small token gift. They would hide our baskets somewhere in the house and depending on how much time they had to put into the game, we would have a scavenger hunt or play "hot, cold" to find our baskets. It was always a lot of fun to hear the shrieks of success when a basket was found in the top of a closet or the dryer. My little Galloway family has had a hectic couple of weeks, mostly being consumed with sickness. (Crazy sickness this season!) Well, my plan for Easter was to finally finish the girls doll dresses that match the historical garments that I had already sewn for them: Dress Rosemary Dress Esther. This was to be their "token gift" inside their basket along with their small chocolate bunny. And...okay, I got them a couple peeps too. I was suckered.

I believe I promised this to them in January 2008 and have yet to make good on my word. But...Easter! Great opportunity to get things moving! Well, it didn't exactly happen. This is what they got in their basket:

Okay, I DO realize that these are clothes pins with a copied head and scraps of fabric glued on them. What's worse is that this is a double promised project now. The pressure is on. Well, after a wonderful and crazy weekend of constant family partying, today has been a delightful down day and during Ellie's nap I decided to make good on my double promise.

Happy girls instantly found their matching dresses as well as a renewed love for their dolls. They didn't even mind me snapping some quick pics.

Only now when I saw Esther put on her dress did I realize that I had grabbed the wrong solid fabric for her doll's dress. No matter. I didn't mention it and she never noticed.

Okay, now it's time for your confessions. How deep have you gone in the "promised projects?"

Love, Rachel

How do you get things done?

Rachel — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 06:14:30 GMT

I decided to write a quick little post on this question because I've gotten so many emails asking me just that. I do have three little girls under the age of 7-- one of them an 8 month old infant. Because of this, I do all of my work in the evenings. All I have to say is this....BEDTIME IS 7:30 AND 8:00!!! SHARP!!!! Of course I don't get very much done during the day but my evenings are packed full of fun! On the evenings that I am simply too tired to create, I am trying to still do something for myself. Read a book, take a bubble bath, etc. I am trying very hard not to turn the TV on out of habit because my brain is simply too tired to do anything but vegetate. And you know what? It really works. Just taking a bath and spending that little time on yourself is so very empowering. You feel like you did something incredibly productive--and you did! Here's a list of things I'm trying to do for myself in the evenings. It's so very good and healthy to remember that you have a name other than "Mamma."

Bath

Read a book

Knit Doll Blankets (Elin is teaching me)

Play my ukulele

Write

Sew/Design

I would like to take a Photography class some evening.

What do you like to do to relax and fulfill your creative side?

Love, Rachel

Trial and Disappointment in the Easter Lamb

Rachel — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 16:49:48 GMT

"Why haven't you posted Rachel?" you may ask. I have been bummed. In my last post I was very excited to have "perfected" the Easter Lamb art work. I cut out my two bodices and was determined to have perfect lambs embroidered on them by the end of the evening. This is what transpired instead.

I set up the two bodices in the real fabric for the "perfect" lamb embroidery. I was very excited to see the real colors on the fabric. I set things up very carefully and walked away while it was embroidering the white body. This is what it looked like when I came back.

This lamb is definitely extra fluffy. Here's a close-up.

For some unknown reason to me, the tension was completely off. When something is set to "auto tension" and works perfectly for a couple years and in one sitting looks like this, I get so very frustrated. I messed around with it for awhile and I don't know what I did or didn't do but somehow it was fixed again. Well, okay. At least the purple one will be perfect.

Except is wasn't. The outlining that I had so carefully fixed and proved that it could be perfect with a sample decided all on it's own to get off track again. Guess what I did at this point? I went to bed and started to think. I'll let you know what I came up with tomorrow.

Love, Rachel

Inspiration

Rachel — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 23:40:15 GMT

Where does inspiration come from? I may be inspired by a color I see, a print on a fabric, a beautiful child, a melody that won't leave my head, but most of all I am inspired by the gifts of the people around me.

I am going to share some very special pieces of pottery that my extremely gifted sister-in-law Elin made. She's beautiful too!

As some of you may or may not know, Elin is my brother Daniel's wife. She has the most hauntingly beautiful voice, can knit anything she sets her mind to perfectly, and is an amazing potter. (Is that a real word?) I am so blessed to have her as my sister and I am continually inspired by her creativity.

Jon and I would fight over the mugs if there weren't two of them.

Isn't this simply gorgeous?

It's a shame to put something like lemons in this beautiful bowl.

This bowl has a place on my table. It might even be my favorite piece.

I am trying to convince her to put some of her pieces up on the Mamma Made site. I would love to see her amazing pottery there.

What are you inspired by? And what do you do with that inspiration?

Love, Rachel

Exhaustion

Rachel — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 02:26:55 GMT

I am finally home. Traveling really sucks the energy out of me--especially with an 8 month old baby girl for ten hours. I am sad to leave my family and yet excited to get back into my home schedule. As I walk through my door, I notice the house has been picked up and little candles are glowing throughout the house. My husband Jon has been holding the fort down for a week trying to juggle work and school for two little girls. My hero.

Along with coming home comes endless laundry, deep cleaning, and organizing. I dread this part--getting things to a place where I feel they are under control so that I can start working on my creations again.

I'm excited for a couple things: Daniel and I are collaborating on an Easter Dress called, "Easter Lamb." My brother-in-law's sister Melissa is going to be taking photos of Mamma Made garments for Spring and she is simply brilliant. Jon and I are going to work on more recording projects together. Elin, my sister-in-law, is teaching me how to knit and I'm going to make doll blankets for my girls. That's all.

Ahh...........I did get a long leisurely bath last night and read my book. That's on my list of things to do. Clean, clean, clean. When my house is clean, my head will clear.

Love, Rachel

Little Circus Design

Rachel — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 15:35:04 GMT

I absolutely adore this print. It is made by Little Circus Design and it is a limited edition entitled, i*heart*you. Go and check out all of the prints here from this designer. They are absolutely amazing and inspiring.

Love, Rachel

The End of One Season and the Beginning of Another

Rachel — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 03:57:35 GMT

Whew! What a wonderful whirlwind of a holiday season! Family, friends, and so much joy in so many different ways. It's exciting to see the start of a new year and yet I always feel a bit of sadness to see the end of the old one. Here are just a couple of pictures that make me smile and remind me of the joy we need to remember each and every day.

There is more than one thing about this picture that is funny.

Homemade Games

Scuba Santa at the Aquarium

Do I need to say anything? Nope.

Delighted smiles.

Happy Children.

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas holiday and may you have a very blessed New Year!

Love, Rachel