Old Plaid Robe Dress - Project Runway Remake Challenge

Here's the final cut, so to speak! This was my final submission for the Project Runway Remake Challenge Presented by Rowenta.

Stalling for time

So today, instead of spending an hour writing a new post, I'm just going to share a nifty video clip with you and I'm going to get back to sewing on the old man dress renovation project because I only have 2 days left! Gah, time crunch! I have to get that baby shortened and the sides taken in, holes mended, and God knows what else. Thanks so much to those who facebooked me with suggestions!

The Old Man Dress Renovation

I am currently attempting to finish a dress for the Project Runway Remake Challenge
on BurdaStyle.com. The point is to take a garment you already have in your closet and turn it into something else completely, using as much of the original as possible. For my entry I'm using this great old silk plaid men's bath robe from the 20's or 30's and I'm turning it into a dress. 

The robe was way too big for me, and not warm enough for mike to wear, and has a few holes so it mostly just hung on a hanger in the closet. That is sad. Turning it into something new, is happy.
This is stage on with the sleeves painstakingly removed (the original seamstress was GOOD at her craft) and the plaid carefully matched up to close most of the front.

I'll be adding buttons at the collar, refinishing the sleeve edges and I'm debating whether or not to add a waist band to it. I'll of course be hemming it just below the pockets, which I'm keeping. I took the breast pocket off because it threw off the symmetry and in the process shredded a bit of the fabric (oh no!). Good thing I think it's a nice spot for a dart!
Any suggestions on future alterations as I go?

The Uniform Project and the LBD

It seems that most women have a 'go-to dress' tucked away in their closet somewhere. The little black dress that always fits, always looks good, and is appropriate for nearly every occasion is a wardrobe staple. But what if your LBD was also your every-day dress?

If you haven't heard of The Uniform Project, you should know about it. It has completely put everything I thought about re-wearing a dress out the window.

Pretty Little Jammies

Now that I'm feeling more back to normal I'm sewing like a fiend. Not only have I finished the tap pants but I sped my way though the burda young fashion pattern #7997. It's a camisole and shorts for sleepwear and it came out great. The shorts fit like a dream and the camisole, after some much needed embellishment came out so pretty!

I edged the bust with some cream metallic ruched trim and used a vintage length of cabbage rose lace for the front. The straps are vintage seam edging lace.

The Satin Tap Pants of Death.

So I finally finished this horrible little cutie after hours of swearing, drinking, and even a broken needle or two. And what did I learn? Mike says they just look like a divided skirt. Poo.
They look just lovely laying on my desk, so neat and pretty, but when I put them on (yeah, like I'm going to post that on the internet) they look just like a skirt with a nice little lace flutter.

Here's where I went wrong: I decided that the 40's high-waisted pin up look would be silly on me so I adjusted the pattern to sit a bit above my hips instead. This was stupid. When I gather a handful of the waist and put it at my waist line where it was meant to be, not only is the silhouette lovely, but it makes my tushy look gorgeous.

Sick and sewing just don't mix.

Blue: I think I forgot my panties again...

Black: Every time I look in a mirror, I'm haunted by knickers!

 It's true, sick and sewing just don't mix. So I've had the flu and have hardly made a stitch in a week. The lovely vintage lingerie pattern (simplicity 2693) arrived in the mail and I had started to attempt the tap pants in black satin as a test. Today I'm feeling somewhat better and gave myself the unhappy job of picking out a waistband seam that I had sewn on them very poorly indeed.
Picking the seam out of polyester satin (yes, much to my horror, I still use the stuff to test a pattern before I try it on one of my precious silks) is the devil. It really shouldn't be picked out in the first place as the fabric will have permanent holes from the sewing needle but it had to be done. The pattern had instructed that I use a piece of bias tape to finish the waist edge of the 'panties' as they were called.

Where did my sewing time go?

Ah, the woes of having a job. You have to get up early, be on your feet all day, you have financial security, and get to buy pretty things. Speaking of which, there's an AMAZING sale at Modcloth and I got this!

It would take me years to sew one of these!

Really, just, really?

I am sad. I bought a 'pattern' pdf online the other day that was advertised to be a pattern for two different 1920's bras. Sadly, I don't think the seller had any idea what a pattern is because I was emailed a scan of an old 20's magazine with an advertisement for a pattern. Grrrr...
I'm hoping there's more to it, and I'm waiting to hear back from the seller, but sadly, I think I'm right back where I started, minus my stupid $5.

Where the hell do I get tape? (courtesy of threadsmagazine.com)

So the hunt continues and I'm considering designing my own pattern instead. Since mail takes about a year to get to Norway, it's going to be a while before my purchased pattern gets here and my fingers are just itching to sew. So I'm going to attempt a project runway and tape out a pattern design on my dress form and make a muslin pattern from there. I've never done it before but hey, a bra has to be the easiest thing to start with, right? (insert vodka here) Now if I can only work around the fact that my dress form's boobies are twice the size of mine...
Let hope it doesn't turn out like this:

Image courtesy of etsy. com and regretsy.com