How to behave at your alterations appointment.

I work in the alterations department at a bridal salon. I have seen things you wouldn't imagine. Here are my pet peeves.




#1. "Well I sew a little bit aaaaand......." With those words you have ruined the day for me. I know that I am in for an hour or more of nit picking, whining, and general nastiness disguised as "concern for the bride". Brides leave the crafty people at home for your alterations appointment. Now if you are truly a seamstress and know how garments are constructed I don't mind. Because then you will understand when I say, can't be done, my hands are tied by the company.



#2. We don't stick you with pins! When someone is pinning you there fingers are between the pin and your skin. I have only accidentally pricked one bride and she was twitching so much I could not see where I was pinning. (she stopped moving after she got pricked, lol)





#3. Yes *eyeroll* we steam your dress. Its included in the price of your alterations. And YES *double eyeroll* Your dress has been steamed. Does it look wrinkly? And no, I am not talking about the tiny tiny almost invisible wrinkle on the waist from where you bent down to put your shoes on.





#4. "So how much is this going cost?" I honestly don't know until I have examined your dress. If you have an expensive dress chances are you will have expensive alterations. There are up to 8 layers in a wedding gown, that means I have to take in all 8 layers and then sew them back together. That takes a while. Since our alterations are priced at $1 a minute I have to complete the alterations in the minutes that corporate says it can be done in. (I think they employ elves)





#5. NO Alterations are *NOT* included in the price of your gown. We have no clue how the dress is going to fit you after you get it in from the warehouse. We don't know what you want done to it. Alterations are a separate price because every bride is different. Don't look at me after I have quoted you a $250 ticket and say "I was told that alterations was included, what did I pay for?" Um you paid for a designer dress and half of your dress price was a name. That is not my fault, and you were clearly told when you ordered the dress that alterations were a separate cost, and when I called you to confirm the appointment you were told that. No excuses.



#6. Don't cry. Just don't. When you put on your dress in my room, its been in a box for 6 weeks or more its not steamed, and it wont fit just perfect. THAT'S OKAY. Its okay for your dress not to fit. That's what I'm for. Because as women we are all different, and different is good. So please don't cry, I can fix it. I promise.



#7. That little pudge between your arm and your breast? Everyone has it. Size 2 has it. Size 24 has it. Nobody cares.





#8. I hate it when people are late to appointments. And you all seem to show up at the same time. So I have a bride on my platform, and 2 in rooms waiting with their dresses on waiting for me to finish with you. And then I get complaints that you feel "rushed". If you would show up for your appointment, or even call to say you will be late you wouldn't feel rushed because I have a time just for you!



#9. "The lady down the street could fix that!" First of all wedding gowns are a completely different kind of sewing than quilting and dressmaking. I know that the techniques used on wedding gowns are vastly different from regular clothing. (jeans, shirts, dresses) And the lady who does repairs and hems out of her home does not have the equipment that we have available to us.



#10. Shave your armpits! You can not believe all the nasty armpits I have had my hands up in. 99% of people need the side seams taken in. So my hands are in your armpits. PLEASE shave and deodorize before you come.



Well that's all for now but I'm sure I will come up with more as our busy season begins.

LOA

I am going to take a pause from sewing for a while. I got a new job at a bridal store and
I dont have a machine that works at the moment. So goodbye for now!

Purple Dress

So I went to JoAnns for the Labor Day Sale and picked up a new pattern See & Sew B5478 and a beautiful purple fabric with shiney thread running thru it. 
So here it is!

Front and Side views

Unfortunate back view, I don't know why there is a pucker at the end of the zipper, I have tried to steam and iron it out but its stuck.

I had some issues with this dress:

The neck is way to wide, I don't have football shoulders so the dress is almost falling off.
The neckline was too low for me, but I think a wider seam on the shoulder will help that.

Lets take a look at the inside.

Zipper that I am so proud of. It turned out perfectly!

Lining.

Hand stitched understiching on the armholes and hem.

Well that's all for now, I have to make some jackets for work!

Some exciting news!

I am starting a job at a wedding dress store this week, I am super excited. I think that my skills will improve so much, and I am happy to be doing work that I love.

I went on a little trip with my In Laws and husband and Miss Emily up to Indianapolis. I saw a Hancock's and decided to hop in and see what they had. I don't usually shop at my Hancock's (shame on me) because I am on a tight budget and they are known in my area to have some of the higher prices. But when I walked in this Hancock's you could tell that it was vastly different from mine. At mine its mostly quilting fabrics and huge piles of fleece, here they had the dressmaking fabrics front and center. It was clean and well spaced. The staff was very nice, and there was always someone at the checkout and the cutting table. At my Hancock's you have to wait for someone to finish cutting and come to check you out. I was so happy with the store and Miss Em was behaving like an angel so I broke down and got some flannel for a pair of pj pants, 1 1/2 yards of an on sale purple print for a dress for Miss Em (with pink flower buttons she picked out herself) and a Halloween remnant.

Here is the skirt I made from leftovers from her zoo shirt and the Halloween remnant.

It looks so good with the zoo shirt and she enjoys wearing it!

Well that's all for now but I am trying to catch up on the stuff I have sewn in the last couple of weeks, so expect some more posts!

So little sewing...

I haven't been sewing much this year, I don't know if its because I am not inspired or my daughter isn't asking me for a new dress every other day. But whatever it is I am glad to finally feel like sewing again.

I made these shorts for Emily's friends at church.

I also made a few things for Miss Em this week but have yet to take pictures because my camera needs to be recharged. Hope to see y'all soon!

PS.  Before I forget, Happy Birthday to my wonderful Aunt Driddle http://personalsideeffects.blogspot.com/ Who always comments on my posts! Love you!

Project Project Runway

Challenge #1 – “Come As You Are”



You can use either the clothes your model is currently wearing OR a 10″ x 10″ square of fabric similar to your own pajamas. On top of that, you can use a handkerchief worth of white cotton or cotton-ploy blend fabric. The standard woman’s handkerchief is 10″ x 10″. You can manipulate the fabric anyway you want with dye, fabric paint, etc… You can also add things like buttons, velcro, and trims.



Time Limit – 18 hours (spend no more than that amount of time working on your design)


Okay I started with some pajama pants that I wanted to make into shorts anyway, and a 10x10 square of pillowcase fabric.

I then made the little pleats for the top of the dress and the jacket out of the pillowcase, and the main body of the dress out of the pants. And here is the final look!

Getting back in the swing.

Summer has been a fun time filled with swimming and playing and not much sewing. But I just registered my new 1st grader and I am eager to get back to sewing! I am planning on re-creating a look from Pushing Daisies.

And this is the fabric and pattern for my version.

Well here is hoping that it will turn out well.

Project Project Runway!

So I was so excited when my Aunt Driddle linked me to This project.  So I sent off an email as quick as my little fingers would go! I have my challenge for this week. I cant wait to get started!

Quilt Fever

I love to make quilt tops but unfortunately I hate the actual quilting part. But my daughter was wanting another play quilt to tote around with Elizabeth and Samantha so here it is.

I got the 2 pink fabrics and batting in the remnant bin at Hobby Lobby. I had this really light almost white purple fabric from my aunt that I made the binding with. Total Cost: 12$
I tied it with embroidery floss.

Front

Back

Close up

Busy, busy, busy

So I made my stepmom a dress for her wedding to my Dad. She chose a lavender silk satin from my stash with ivory accents.

Front and back views, sorry for the crappy lighting the camera is not very good.

The Happy couple!

My Stepmom, Brother, Sister and Daughter.

Graduation

So one whole year of Kindergarten is gone. Sigh when did she get so big. Anyways back to the sewing stuff. I made this dress and it was waaaay too short. So I went to hobby lobby and got a remnant of this pink that matched perfect!

I am so proud of my little munchkin!

Play Clothes

Just a short post today because I have laundry to hang up on the line. I made a set of play clothes for Emily today. Its the same pattern I used for the Zoo shirt. I was afraid that the pants would be too big but they fit just right!

It's Clearing Up!

So tomorrow Emmy and I will be going on a field trip to the Louisville Zoo! This is very exciting for me because the zoo is one of my favorite places! I remember waaaaaay back when Aunt Driddle, Mom, NeNaw, Uncle Monkey and my brother and I would pile into our pile of junk and go to the zoo.

Of course I am the one with my tongue sticking out. I am super classy.

So Emmy has to wear an orange shirt to the zoo. And can she wear just any shirt? NO! I just had to make her a brand new one!

Am I the best mommy or what?
So Driddle sent Emmy some shades of purple fabric and said that it might look good as a fiesta skirt. Well here it is!

And I will never make another until I get a ruffle foot!

Well I started this on Thursday, but its now Friday. I have to go to bed cause tomorrow is the ZOO!

Its starting to clear up!

We have had a full day of sunshine here and I have celebrated by opening the doors and windows and sewing!
 I sewed this pattern up and unfortunately it is way too small for me. Anyone a size 8-10 out there?

`

Well I found out yesterday that some of the kids at school were making fun of my daughter's clothes. So I made her up this little dress last night to make her feel better. Its dark pink her favorite color.

And I went fabric shopping today! here is what I got!

Poka Dots Are Raining Down

I whipped this dress up in about a day and a half. I used this pattern from my Great Grandmother Martha's stash.

I am afraid that she might have been a bit heaver than I am at this point because the bodice was larger in the bust and waist than her other patterns. I took in about 2 inches on each side but I didn't make it more fitted because I like a little room to move around. I think i will call this dress 'Poka Dot Addiction'.

Easter Dress

This year like the past 3 years I have sewn my own Easter Dress. Each year is different and I usually find some kind of fabric that yells at me that it would be the perfect dress for me to have Easter morning. Well I was going to wear Martha this year. But my lovely husband took me to the opening of JoAnn's here in my town and I fell in love with this blue with white polka dot seersucker. And then when I got home I found the best pattern to make it with, they just screamed to be together.

View B is the one I fell in love with. Isn't she so cheerful? Anyway here is the finished product:

Close up of the bodice:

I think the red belt, bow and shoes pulled this outfit together so well. It rained on Easter but I felt like it was a sunny day in this dress. How can you not feel sunny in a dress this cheery?

Rain!

So I have finished my Easter Dress this year, but I am waiting to post about it until I have good pictures with my hair all done :)  But I have finished a simple sundress with 2 yards of fabric I picked up at Walmart the other night.

I am going to call this one my "Sunny Dress for a Rainy Day".  Easter Dress is coming and a a new dress i have yet to name.

So I have been a super slacker when it comes to keeping up with this blog! I had a big burst of sewing at the end of February, mostly hemming and getting ready for a trip stuff. But I did do a dress because my Great Grandmother Martha passed away. I used a pattern that she had given me when she went into the home.

Pretty huh? So I sewed it up to wear for her funeral I thought it would be a fitting tribute to her. I added a belt, but other than that this dress is sewn up with her pattern and her alterations. Its just a bonus that it fits me like a glove!

That's all for now. I will try to get my sewing groove back soon.

Valentines Day Dress

It's a little early, but I was looking at the dresses my daughter has and I realized that she doesn't have any winter dresses. So I got some stash stuff and made a simple dress. If it wasn't for all that pleating I would have been done ages ago!

Well I'm tired I'm going to bed Night ya'll!