belle epoque

You’ve heard of the seven year itch? Well, this isn’t as scandalous but from a crafty perspective perhaps a little bit embarrassing. It is of course perfectly acceptable to spend two years on a quilt, blanket or intricate knit sweater. But a simple blouse? Well. I have my excuses– namely that I cut it out and marked/sewed the darts in the spring of 2007 right before I found out I was pregnant. Which of course scuppered any chance of my wearing a fitted blouse anytime soon. In the spring of 2008 I had a colicky baby who wouldn’t sleep, nixing any chance of sewing when I might catch some shuteye instead. So finally, in the spring of 2009 I can present to you the Two-Year Blouse!

It is Simplicity 4077, which was all over the blogosphere, surprise, surprise, two years ago! I mightn’t have written about it at all but two crafty ladies complimented me on it and said that I should. I highly recommend this pattern– it is relatively easy (wouldn’t take you two years except in extenuating circumstances) and turns out a good looking blouse that is VERY comfortable to wear. I’ve already worn it and washed it twice since finishing it. I used a $1 a yard quilting cotton from Joann’s that I had no high hopes for, and it actually turned out fine (even after washing and not ironing). I thought the bright pink buttons would save it from being too froufy and Laura Ashley (not that I have any objections to either, just that I wanted to add a little zing). I have another blouse in mind that I hope won’t take me two years!

I am so pleased to host the illustrious Heather Ross for today’s post! Below you’ll find her thoughts on the Power of Hemlines, and other pressing style questions. Enjoy!

The Style Power of Hemlines
by Heather Ross

I am one of those women who believe wholeheartedly that the trick to dressing yourself well is knowing what looks good on you in terms of proportion. Were I to make a list of the best dressed women I know, it would include both barefoot bohemians and southern belles, a friend who can wear a wear a floor length dress to breakfast and get away with it, and my grandmother, who wore a dirndl every Christmas and a Mexican wedding dress to her 50th anniversary dinner. Perhaps the only consistency among them all would be the fact that their clothing fits. I’m not just talking about the fact that they are wearing the proper size, mind you, I’m talking about the fact that their clothing works on them proportionally. Their clothes give them confidence because they play up their own best features, and if properly chosen and tailored, look like they were made especially for them. I once owned a skirt that made me feel short. I couldn’t say exactly why until a teacher of mine solved the mystery for me. “You wear that skirt a lot, but it makes you look like a dumpling, which is pretty tough to do to someone who is 5’9” tall”, she said. I felt like someone whose best girl friend had just told her to dump her cute but cruel boyfriend. “You could do better.” she said. “The hemline ends at the fattest part of your calf”, she explained, “and it starts too low on your hips. The combination makes your legs look about 6” long, which makes everything look out of wack”. Later, in my studio, I stood in the mirror pulling the hemline up and down, realizing that she was completely right.

If you look closely at your own closet, you will probably find a few dresses or pairs of pants that, like my skirt (and my ex-cute but cruel-boyfriend) are almost perfect. They fit through the waist and hips, but somehow, once they are on, the just don’t make you feel… quite right. The good news? This is all so fixable!

My students are always a little horrified when I tell them to take their dresses and skirts to the tailor for finishing. Hemming, I explain time and time again, is a job for two. Before heading to the tailor (or a sewing friend) with a big pile of skirts and dresses and pants, do a little research. Stand in front of a full length mirror in your skivvies. Try folding a bed sheet or large piece of fabric at different lengths and wrapping it around your body to see what length works best for you. This, by the way, is basic fashion design “draping”, and is actually similar to how some designers make their patterns.

You will likely find that the best hemline for you is at one of three points: just above the knee, just below the knee, or just above the ankle. These three points all have one thing in common: they are all typically the most narrow point on the leg, which is why they work. Beware the dangerous zone that is your calf muscle. I like to call this length ”Sister Wife”. It is perhaps the most unsexy, unflattering, unfeminine, and undeniably boring hemline that exists, as every designer will tell you. The only style icon who managed to wear this length with some success was the late Caroline Besset Kennedy, who pulled it off with such grace that for exactly one season every major US label tried to force it on the rest of us, which was an epic failure. The lesson here is that unless you are six feet tall and able to accessorize with a man as handsome as John F Kennedy Jr.and have your lower body conveniently blocked from sight by paparazzi…. don’t even try.

Hems on the dresses and skirts in Weekend Sewing are meant to be customized. Take for example the All Weekend Sundress, pictured below in four very different lengths.

Same dress, four very different looks. I hope that once my readers get the hang of making simple clothing, they will start to discover my favorite thing about sewing clothing: That its about developing a sense of personal style and a means to looking and feeling great. A great dress should make you feel good. It should make you feel confident. It should never, ever make you feel like a dumpling.

I think I’ve said before that I’m a huge fan of Heather Ross. So of course when a copy of her new book Weekend Sewing appeared in the mail I dropped everything (well, not the baby, but everything else) and dove straight in. Not only is it beautiful- flipping through it is like taking a vacation to the perfect summer place- but it is full of lovely, breezy projects, delicious recipes and great tips on making sewing easy and fun. There is a lot to say about it, but off the top of my head, three sewing-geek things I love about it:
*How few pattern pieces each project has, especially for garments that fit and drape well.
*Her clever technique of using bias tape instead of facings
*The way her projects showcase the fabrics you choose
From reading other blogs, I gather I was not alone in choosing the Summer Blouse as the first project to make

I’ve had this toile-print cotton voile in the stash FOREVER, saving it for the perfect project and this was it! It came together fast and I’m looking forward to wearing it on one of the rare steamy days in the SF summer. I also have the fab wrap skirt and shirt dress all traced and cut out of pattern paper, ready for the next babysitter day!

So, given how much I love the book and admire Heather, I couldn’t be more thrilled to tell you that she will be visiting here on her Blog Fest! Next Wednesday (March 18), Heather will be chez belleepoque (virtually) sharing pearls of wisdom about Fit and Style. I am a big believer in tweaking patterns to flatter, though I’m usually blundering about in the dark when I do it, so you can bet I’m looking forward to hearing what Heather has to say! You’ll also have a chance to dash away with a copy of this gorgeous book. Don’t worry, I’ll remind you again before Wednesday.

I’m hoping to have a tutorial for the Tea Party Girls up by Monday, but in the meantime I’ve been cooking and baking a lot. A subscription to Everyday Food has inspired me to try new things beyond my old standbys of roast chicken, chili and marinated chicken. Most of the time Martha delivers, for example the Lighter Pulled Pork Sandwiches from the Jan/Feb issues were fantastic. I have no pictures as it isn’t something that lends itself to an artful photo (unless you want to see me with an orange face after eating it). I made the pizza crust from the same issue, which takes a pretty picture but wasn’t as yummy.

It was ok- a bit gluey and too yeasty, I think. I’ve come to the conclusion that if one is going to make pizza at home a pizza stone is a necessity. I have enough rarely/never used but wonderful kitchen gadgets (I’m looking at you mandoline!) that I really can’t justify it. Maybe when HMB is older we’ll have a pizza party and I can splash out on one knowing it will be used at least once.

And thanks to Arwen at CRAFT I was compelled to try this delicious looking Olive Oil Almond Cake recipe. Holy Moly. It is ridiculously good. I only bake with what I have on hand, and amazingly I had everything this recipe needed in the house! I used some delicious sweet blush oranges for the zest and juice which I think made a difference. I did not glaze it and I quite like it this way as a not-too-sweet treat with coffee or after a meal. Yum.

Our friends and family were very generous to Miss S on her birthday! As this is a crafty blog, I’ll share the handmade/crafty gifts that I’m particularly excited about and thought those of you with kids, or kids to buy gifts for, might be interested in.

I’ve written about Shelly’s work before– she makes the most amazing blankets. Her baby blankets were in daily rotation when Miss S was brand new and being wrapped like a burrito basically all day long. I try to order one (or more) for every baby born to our circle of friends and family. She joined us at the party and made a special, toddler-sized one with HMB’s name on it!

A dear friend who couldn’t make the party sent along this beautiful onesie from Little Lark–it is soft organic cotton and hand-screened, plus came in that adorable little bag.

And finally, have you seen the Rosie Flo coloring books? Gah! HMB is still a little too little for them, and I will be hard pressed not to start in on them myself. And those crayon rocks are amazing too– they’re from stubby pencil studio, and I think I heard about them at Soulemama. She tries to eat those, so they’ll have to go away for a bit too…hopefully not too long because I’m excited to draw together!