Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Week of December 12-18
Friday, December 10, 2010
Life of a seamstress
Today I worked on two wedding gowns and a bridesmaid dress. All were purchased at Moments to Treasure Bridal in Mukilteo, Washington. I've been working with them for three years.
For my work credit in school I worked at a sewing shop. The majority of her work was bridal, and I swore that I wouldn't be altering gowns for a living. ( Be careful that you never say never.) After I finished the Apparel Design program, I got a job working at Pacific Fabrics at Northgate. I liked working with fabric, and helping customers, even though it was a constant temptation to buy fabric. One day a woman came in and the subject of bridal alterations came up. I told her that I'd been to school, worked at a alterations shop, and all she really needed to do was show me how to do something and I could do it. About three months later she called and said she needed help. I worked with her during wedding season (May-mid September) for two years. Then she told me that she wanted out, and the shop she worked with had offered me the position of seamstress. I went in and talked to the owner of The Bridal Garden, Tonya, and she hired me on the spot. I worked there for the next 13 years.
Well here I was doing what I said I would never do. I had a lot to learn, and God bless Tonya for her patience with me. The day I learned how to set a bustle I had a fever and felt like crud, you know the feeling, like you would prefer to be in bed instead of out in the cold nasty world. But I bucked up and went to see how to set a bustle. That was it, I was off and running in the big world of bridal alterations.
For the past 14 years the majority of my business has been bridal alterations. So I plan to talk a lot about that subject. I don't know that I' d call myself an expert, I still have plenty I could learn. But I know enough to be confident at what I do. I learned about what will and won't work in altering, what brides look for in fit, and a lot about what NOT to say.
I've seen everything from high end couture, to really rotten, made by Aunt Soandso. I'll give some advice to brides, go out and look at the bridal shops. There are many, many dresses out there. Try them on and take some one with you. Look at the condition of the samples, because it can say a lot about a shop if the samples are old and dirty. Ask friends where they got their dresses. If you want to have your gown made, be sure that the seamstress can do the job. The fabric you want can be expensive and hard to find. It's easier to alter a ready to wear garment than to have one made. Just be sure that you buy from a reputable shop. Right now, I don't have an absolutely favorite shop, but I do have one that I won't alter the gowns from if I can avoid it. It starts with D and is a nation wide chain. I know they're cheap, but any where is better than there.
I plan to go to the shops in Western Washington and check them out for you. This will be from my point of view, so take it or leave it, but I'll be honest about what I see and offer advice for any one about to get married.
Thanks for reading
For my work credit in school I worked at a sewing shop. The majority of her work was bridal, and I swore that I wouldn't be altering gowns for a living. ( Be careful that you never say never.) After I finished the Apparel Design program, I got a job working at Pacific Fabrics at Northgate. I liked working with fabric, and helping customers, even though it was a constant temptation to buy fabric. One day a woman came in and the subject of bridal alterations came up. I told her that I'd been to school, worked at a alterations shop, and all she really needed to do was show me how to do something and I could do it. About three months later she called and said she needed help. I worked with her during wedding season (May-mid September) for two years. Then she told me that she wanted out, and the shop she worked with had offered me the position of seamstress. I went in and talked to the owner of The Bridal Garden, Tonya, and she hired me on the spot. I worked there for the next 13 years.
Well here I was doing what I said I would never do. I had a lot to learn, and God bless Tonya for her patience with me. The day I learned how to set a bustle I had a fever and felt like crud, you know the feeling, like you would prefer to be in bed instead of out in the cold nasty world. But I bucked up and went to see how to set a bustle. That was it, I was off and running in the big world of bridal alterations.
For the past 14 years the majority of my business has been bridal alterations. So I plan to talk a lot about that subject. I don't know that I' d call myself an expert, I still have plenty I could learn. But I know enough to be confident at what I do. I learned about what will and won't work in altering, what brides look for in fit, and a lot about what NOT to say.
I've seen everything from high end couture, to really rotten, made by Aunt Soandso. I'll give some advice to brides, go out and look at the bridal shops. There are many, many dresses out there. Try them on and take some one with you. Look at the condition of the samples, because it can say a lot about a shop if the samples are old and dirty. Ask friends where they got their dresses. If you want to have your gown made, be sure that the seamstress can do the job. The fabric you want can be expensive and hard to find. It's easier to alter a ready to wear garment than to have one made. Just be sure that you buy from a reputable shop. Right now, I don't have an absolutely favorite shop, but I do have one that I won't alter the gowns from if I can avoid it. It starts with D and is a nation wide chain. I know they're cheap, but any where is better than there.
I plan to go to the shops in Western Washington and check them out for you. This will be from my point of view, so take it or leave it, but I'll be honest about what I see and offer advice for any one about to get married.
Thanks for reading
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Life of a seamstress
This is a blog really about what it's been like to live as a seamstress. The ups and downs and the lessons I have learned. It's a place to share my love of sewing.
On my 7th birthday I remember being given a Mary Poppins sewing kit. I suppose you could say that sewing has always been a part of my life. Both my Grandma's sewed. Grandma White made an entire wardrobe for my dolls. And Grandma Francisco had a sewing machine in the kitchen. I can see it in my mind's eye, a black singer with the gold motif on it. The first thing I worked on was learning to knit a scarf, and it turned out terrible, but having made it myself, I felt ever so proud. At 13 my step mother showed me how to cut out a paper pattern, and the importance of lining up the grain line. I made some small projects over the next couple of years, but one day my sister was working on a dress. She couldn't put the sleeves in, so she handed it to me. I put them in perfectly the first try. That was when the passion clicked, and I was hooked. From there, through many trials and errors, I have created a wide variety of projects.
I went to the Apparel Design program at Seattle Central Community College in September 1993 and finished the course in June of 1996. Any one thinking about a career in fashion should definitely look into this program or a similar one. Of course knowing how to sew is a great advantage. Many of the programs require the student to design and create clothing. Once a person understands construction of a garment it is easier to see quality, or lack there of, in ready to wear clothing.
Recently I altered a Coco Chanel suit. This was the first time I had been able to open one up and look inside. Every seam was finished with a serged edge. And of course all of the thread was silk. Every detail had been given the utmost attention. And the chain on the hemline of the jacket was 14 karat gold. The lining had the entwined C's woven into the design of the fabric and was a medium weight silk. The shell fabric was a mid weight wool. It was a pleasure to work on it.
Of course I would not be here with out my many many customers. I have altered approximately 3,000 wedding gowns. Most of them from my 13 years with The Bridal Garden in Kirkland. Many a day I went to work feeling a little tired, but after the first couple of fittings with brides, I always seemed to perk up. There is a joy in fine tuning the fit of such an important gown. And the store has a special place in my heart and the time there, though often stressful and hectic, I fondly remember.
I hope to use this forum to talk about Bridal gowns, Bridal shops, sewing tips, fashion, from reenactment attire to steampunk and every day wear. I hope to give advice and ask advice about projects. I hope it's a place for lonely seamstresses to find company. I'm not sure where this will go, or how many people will read it, if nothing else it allows me to vent, share and maybe even inspire any one wanting to sew or design.
Thank you for reading.
Material Magician
On my 7th birthday I remember being given a Mary Poppins sewing kit. I suppose you could say that sewing has always been a part of my life. Both my Grandma's sewed. Grandma White made an entire wardrobe for my dolls. And Grandma Francisco had a sewing machine in the kitchen. I can see it in my mind's eye, a black singer with the gold motif on it. The first thing I worked on was learning to knit a scarf, and it turned out terrible, but having made it myself, I felt ever so proud. At 13 my step mother showed me how to cut out a paper pattern, and the importance of lining up the grain line. I made some small projects over the next couple of years, but one day my sister was working on a dress. She couldn't put the sleeves in, so she handed it to me. I put them in perfectly the first try. That was when the passion clicked, and I was hooked. From there, through many trials and errors, I have created a wide variety of projects.
I went to the Apparel Design program at Seattle Central Community College in September 1993 and finished the course in June of 1996. Any one thinking about a career in fashion should definitely look into this program or a similar one. Of course knowing how to sew is a great advantage. Many of the programs require the student to design and create clothing. Once a person understands construction of a garment it is easier to see quality, or lack there of, in ready to wear clothing.
Recently I altered a Coco Chanel suit. This was the first time I had been able to open one up and look inside. Every seam was finished with a serged edge. And of course all of the thread was silk. Every detail had been given the utmost attention. And the chain on the hemline of the jacket was 14 karat gold. The lining had the entwined C's woven into the design of the fabric and was a medium weight silk. The shell fabric was a mid weight wool. It was a pleasure to work on it.
Of course I would not be here with out my many many customers. I have altered approximately 3,000 wedding gowns. Most of them from my 13 years with The Bridal Garden in Kirkland. Many a day I went to work feeling a little tired, but after the first couple of fittings with brides, I always seemed to perk up. There is a joy in fine tuning the fit of such an important gown. And the store has a special place in my heart and the time there, though often stressful and hectic, I fondly remember.
I hope to use this forum to talk about Bridal gowns, Bridal shops, sewing tips, fashion, from reenactment attire to steampunk and every day wear. I hope to give advice and ask advice about projects. I hope it's a place for lonely seamstresses to find company. I'm not sure where this will go, or how many people will read it, if nothing else it allows me to vent, share and maybe even inspire any one wanting to sew or design.
Thank you for reading.
Material Magician
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
The Whidbey Seamstress
I'm starting a blog. This is my first entry. It will be about sewing and sewing-related matters, including my current projects and products. Like it so far?
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