Creating my first outfit - Pants and Top

Once my fabric had FINIALLY arrived I got to work cutting out the trouser pieces.

My near complete trousers. I've decided to leave the cuffs till last so they can fit decent model correctly. I found the fabric easier to work with then I initially thought. I'ts worked fab!

Next was my top for this I've chosen to use a bright tangerine cotton jersey.

The pieces cut out ready to be sewn. With this fabric I did realise it tended to curl at the edges which made it difficult to sew at times.

The hood was the fial piece to be made and sewn on. With this I had a last minute change of plan and was debating weather to have the patchwork silk material on the outside. However I though it would of been a bit too much with the pants being all made up in that material so I stuck to my initial idea of having it line the hood only and not the front panels.
I did find it hard to sew the two fabrics together as they kept moving and slipping out of line.

Completed top. I've also decided to add a drawstring along the bottom for a casual feel and fit.

Playsuit Toile

Due to the delay in my fabric (which I was'nt happy about!) I decided to begin to make the pattern for my playsuit using the created block. I forgot to put the front darts in so it looked a little frumpy however I was happy with the length. After a debate and deciding i did'nt want a front and back seam instead wanting a middle seam which would be gathered I started again using a dress and trouser block.

Creating My Top Toile

My top is a croped vest top with a hood. I used the jersey dress pattern block cut it off at the waist shortened the shoulders by 5cms and lengthened the arm holes to 15cms.

My initial made up toile in jersey

After this I decided to lengthen the armholes and the split by a further 5cms each.

The hood was quite simple and straight forward a rounded off rectangle shape with a diagnal edge.

After making a hood I decided to add another 1cm for more cover.

Finished toile

London!

I went to London with fellow classmates Sam, Kayleigh and Emily to do several shop reports and see many exhibitions. We were only there for two days so had to make the most of it! Camden had loads of relevant shops for my shop report and projects. One was an Indian fabric sop which had loads of patchwork fabric! I bought a pillow case to bring back and because its patchwork for my FMP and Indian is perfect for the Miss Newcastle project.

The Pillowcase I bought

My favourite exhibition though its not really relevant to any of the work I’m doing was 'The Enchanted Palace' exhibition its running right through till January 2012 so everyone has plenty of time to go and see it! The exhibition takes you on a quest to discover 7 princesses whom lived at the palace when they were still alive. Each room tells a tale and has clues to who that princess is. It was all very cynical and quite twisted but I loved it! Shame that it was the only part of the palace open to the public at the time as i was hoping to see the Princess Diana dresses collection. I learnt quite a lot from going to see this definitely worth while going if you are reading this! 

Unfortunately I could'nt take any photographs so I've had to search the internet for some and here they are.

Princess Diana dress in the room of 'The Dancing Princesses' She wore this to dinner at Buckingham Palace.

Princess Margrets Tiara she wore to her wedding. This display is also in the 'Dancing Princesses' room next to Dianas dress. I'm not 100% sure why they would be in a room titled as that.

A view of the room

Another room was Queen Victorias bedroom where she woke up at the age of 18 to find out she was to be Queen of England

The Gallery Of Dancing Shaddows. This room featured all seven princesses

The Diana portrait with two workers from a local theatre company.

A display from the room of sorrows featuring Princess Mary

A collection of leaflets, brochures and guides I collected whilst there.

Patch It Up!

Ive decided to look into patchwork and use elements to create my capsule collection. It can be done in several ways. The traditional way of squares or random sized pieces zig-zag stitched together straight stitched or feather stitched.

Section of a patchwork dress from the 1960s.

A later on cardigan from 1982

Alternative loud twist 'crazy' patchwork outfit

Catwalk Collection

Alexander Burke in a modern sheer patchwork dress

Pam Hogg

I stumbled upon this rock chick singer/fashion designer whilst looking into 90s patchwork. Looking more into her i discovered she has supported Debbie Harry (Blondie) in 1993 and designed for many famous people such as Kylie Minogue for her 'Two Hearts' video. Her catsuits were also very popular during 2008. Her website is under new construction at the minute however theres information on her on vogue.co.uk and style.com. I love her quirky use of colours and fabrics.

Making my Trouser Toile

As you can see the chiffon leg lies well the material gives it the right shape and volume I was hoping for. Especially adding a cuff on the bottom.

After making one leg out of the chiffon I needed to create the other but didnt have enough chiffon left so had to use callico. It is only to see what the crotch and waist lies like. The tape above shows where the band will be.

I made up an elasticated band and attached that. Now I can see what my pants will look like. After this I realised I needed to lengthen the top again but crop the bottom so I added 12cm to the top and took 5cm off the bottom.