Archives for April 2021

All About Bustles: Single French Bustle

April 28, 2021 By Leave a Comment

Up next in our bustle series is another French Bustle, however, a slightly different version from our previous french bustle blog. Here we have a Single French Bustle. Dressmakers also refer to the French Bustle as a Victorian or Under Bustle.

The bride we worked with came to us with an A-line style wedding gown. This type of silhouette works very nicely with a single french bustle. A-line wedding dresses usually have a more fitted bodice paired with a voluminous skirt that flares out from the waist. This combination paired with a single French bustle is very charming! Other great silhouettes for Single French Bustles are the modified A-line and the ballgown silhouette.

This particular single french bustle created a beautiful mirrored image in tandem with the low back scoop of the dress. A great example of how every bustle is entirely different from the next. The dressmaker and bride may want to compliment the silhouette, the patterning or embellishments on the gown, the design and cuts of the gown, or they may want to make a bold statement with the bustle. It truly will always vary between the desired aesthetics and the gown. Bustles are the moment to add that final touch, the cherry on top, to your dreamy gown!

Pictured below is a past bride we worked with in her beautiful gown she found at a sample sale. Check out our past blog about finding affordable gowns at a sample sale! Here you can see how the single french bustle elegantly suits the style of this wedding gown. For more bustle ideas visit our past blogs in the All About Bustle series. Happy Bustling!

Filed Under: Bustles, Dressmaking

Mālama Maui Nui’s Art of Trash 2021: Featuring Sophia Gallegos

April 21, 2021 By Leave a Comment

Our Sewing Assistant Sophia Gallegos participated in Mālama Maui Nui’s Art of Trash Virtual Trashion Show this year! She received ‘Honorable Mention’ for her fabulous College Junk Mail Paper Dress. We chatted more with Sophia to share some background about her outfit, her inspirations, and her reflections. The virtual event runs from April 3rd through the 30th via malamamauinui.org/ArtOfTrash. Check it out to see all of the other trashion outfits and vote for your favorite one!

 

Q: What was your trash art created out of?

A: I made my trash dress out of all of the college junk mail I received. I had a huge stack of it and I didn’t want all of the paper to just be thrown away so I used it to make a dress.

Q: What was your inspiration for creating your trash dress?

A: I had a design for a dress in my head that I wanted to make out of fabric but I didn’t really have the time to actually create it so I just did it out of paper.

Q: How did you go about creating this dress?

A: I basically just stapled everything together and the ruffles on the sleeves were definitely the most time consuming because they were like little paper pleats that each had to be stapled on in a row over the shoulder. I started with the bodice though, to make sure I got the fit right and then then the skirt was just a lot of accordion folds.

Q: Did this trash art fashion show inspire any future projects for you?

A: Yes! It’s so much fun to make dresses out of paper because it takes way less time than the actual thing and I already have more ideas, but I’m not sure if they will become reality or not.

Q: Is there anything else you’d like to share?

A: I made this dress when I was bored and because I didn’t want to waste trees, but I think it’s important to mention that recycling is an easy way to help the planet and one of those things that’s not a huge lifestyle change so I would encourage people to recycle and be a bit more aware of what they buy and what kind of trash it will leave behind. 

Thank you so much Sophia for sharing more about your paper dress with us! We can’t wait to see what other trash art you create in the future! And we hope this inspires others to be more environmentally-conscious about their trash and purchases. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the trash art at malamamauinui.org/ArtOfTrash and cast your vote for your favorite art piece and trash outfit!

Link to Virtual Trashion Show Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbqp7dY0d3s&t=152s 

Link to Sophia Gallegos Dress – https://www.malamamauinui.org/artoftrash-276951-252496-978123-421526-135714-681980-486088.html 

Link to vote – https://www.malamamauinui.org/artoftrash.html

Sophia on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/fierce_fashuhn/

Filed Under: Dressmaking, Q&A, Sophia Style, Studio Style, Sustainable Fashion

Sewing Tips + Tricks: Creating a pattern from your garments

April 14, 2021 By Leave a Comment

Introducing our newest blog series, Sewing Tips + Tricks, where we will share with you various sewing secrets and techniques for the absolute beginner or the more experienced. Starting off the series is a method for creating a pattern to replicate your favorite garments!

Our sewing student, Akari, had a sari top that she adores and she wanted to try and copy the top in her sewing lessons. Jennifer started teaching her how to copy the sari top by using the draping method. The draping method is an excellent and friendly way to gather the intricate details of your garment and create a pattern. It is typically done using muslin. 

To begin, you drape muslin over the top while it is on a dress form. Then, you build in all the darts, seams, and design lines. You can use a pen or pencil, and some sewing pins here. This is where you want to be as precise and meticulous as possible in order to truly capture the original garment. Take your time and try to mark every detail of the garment. After, take the muslin off the dress form and turn your muslin copy into a pattern. And.. Voilà! You are on the way to successfully replicating the pattern of your favorite garment. 

The next step in replicating your garment will be cutting out the pattern in fresh muslin and sewing it up as a test garment. Afterwards, you will be creating your final garment. We will share more sewing tips + tricks on this process as the project progresses with our sewing student Akari. Stay tuned for more! And have a go at creating your own pattern in the meantime!

Filed Under: Sewing, Sewing Tips + Tricks

Discovering Your Style

April 7, 2021 By Leave a Comment

Have you ever wondered what type of style you have? Or maybe you just feel like you don’t have a style? For some, personal style comes easy and naturally. There is an intuitive trust to follow what speaks to one’s creative heart. But to others, clothing is more practical and perhaps clothes are more about functionality not necessarily creative expression.

Discovering your unique style is another outlet to let your personality shine through every inch of your being. Once you begin experimenting with what aesthetics make your heart sing, you will find the pure joy and playfulness in creating an outfit each day. As we get older, we forget to play, we can take life too seriously and forget the fun that can exist in the most mundane tasks. Getting dressed in the morning can be a task of creating, painting, coloring your outfit for the day. Finding what speaks to you; what combination of fabrics, shapes, patterns do you want to merge, what vibe do you want to portray, who are you today?

If you don’t know where to start or you want to explore your style further, then you are in the right place. Here are some of our top tips for discovering your unique style and continuing to explore it:

    • Re-discover your own wardrobe – when we are in a rush in the mornings we often just grab a ‘go-to’ outfit or something simple. Set aside an afternoon to just revisit your clothes and PLAY! Put garments you have never put together before, combine colors and patterns, layer your clothes, or just randomly put together a few outfits. When you find some outfits you love, then take a picture of it so you can remember it for the future.
    • Create a Pinterest board – you can search endlessly on Pinterest for different fashion styles and ideas. The best part is that pinterest will start to give you suggestions for your board. Start to build a collection of images that inspire you, maybe its a particular aesthetic, or maybe it is multiple aesthetics and styles. This is great! You are building your own style.
    • Be bold – don’t be afraid to stand out from the crowd. As you become more comfortable with your style, you will begin to feel more brave and bold in your choices. Challenge the current trends and norms of fashion. For all you know, you may be starting the next fashion trend!
    • Thrifting! – visit a secondhand store for even more fashion inspiration. Finding some vintage clothing is always a great way to revive your style and find some very unique pieces. 
    • Repeat & Restyle – If there are garments you adore, then great! Repeat! Wear these again, but find a way to restyle it! What else can you pair your favorite pants with? Can you create an entirely different aesthetic with a different top paired? 

We hope this empowers you to explore your own personal style further! And for even more fashion inspiration, tune in to our social media accounts every other Friday to catch our Studio Style Day. Our Sewing Assistants Sophia, Lisa and Elaine model their style and share their favorite outfits. Catch their previous outfits on our Facebook and Instagram! 

Filed Under: Restyling, Sophia Style, Studio Style