Things I've Learned

What kind of ponte is the best seems to be a common topic on the boards.  Marcy Tilton says that rayon nylon lycra is the best recipe for high quality ponte.  It's more money, but is it ever worth it.  The problem and the allure is that interesting textures and prints in ponte are almost never this lovely mix.  I bought a rayon nylon polyester lycra ponte from emmaonesock.   It looked lovely, I made a pair of pants and wore them frequently because they held their shape.  But the more I wore them the more they pilled. All over, not just at the usual wear points like the inseam.  I had made a pair of ponte pants a few months before these with the magic mix.  They still look better than the newer poly blend. The poly is only 30% of the mix; not like its only poly and lycra.  It wasn't cheap either.  It's a damn shame since this blend doesn't bag out at the ass or the knee, but it's just not wearable anymore.  I've tried de pilling and it's useless at least with the tool I have. It's all over the place. They are not wearable except maybe to clean in.  What a shame.

Moving on:  I've made a bunch of things, I just haven't photographed them on me. Maybe I'll do a photo shoot on my dress form? We'll see how time goes this weekend.

The Dress:  Anyone who follows Burda on Pattern Review knows that the Russians post the newest issue well before it's out on their website and lo and behold March is wedding dress month and there is a dress similar to the Burda we picked for Alex but with a much better skirt. I am going to use the top of the pattern we have I think, and this new pattern for the skirt.

It has strange 'wings' on the back. There is no back view, but from the front they don't appeal at all. You can get a better view of the dress on the model I think but it's hard to see how the bodice is shaped.  The first pattern has a princess seamed bodice with a bias, shirred overlay.  I may make both up to see which we prefer. However, it does look like the waist is raised slightly, as the first pattern is. Alex has a tiny waist and we lowered the waist to reflect that. I am going to trace and make up a muslin as soon as the issue comes. I am unfortunately in a time crunch. While she will be here about 10 days, I will be on a Grand Jury starting February 27th.  In case you are not familiar, that's a 4-6 week commitment. It's not like regular jury duty where you call in every day to see if they need you.  I already used up my one postponement and when I picked the time I could show up   I picked February thinking that it would start at the beginning of the month!  At least I only have to go to Riverhead (30 minute drive).  Years ago a friend was assigned to Federal Grand Jury in Brooklyn.  Ah, well, such is life.

This is the original dress

The skirt is prettier, don't you think?  Very much in keeping with what I've seen in RTW bridal wear.