Look Mom- I'm In the N.Y. Times! Blazer to Peplum Jacket Refashion

Oh wait, Mom, so are you. In fact, it's the whole fan-dam-ily!

A few weeks back, my crazy fun family descended on Cape May N.J. for a fun filled wedding weekend in celebration of my older sister Jessica and her husband Alex's big day. The New York Times covered the event for it's Vows section.

It was a magical day, and therefore completely apropos that my sister arrived at the ceremony by unicorn. Don't believe me? See for yourself.

Photo Credit: Jessica Kourkounis for The New York Times

The wedding ceremony was on the beach, in March, in N.J. at 5 p.m. Holy flying unicorn, it was cooooolllllddd. I was raised in Maine, and I still froze my fanny off. Well, my powers of deduction are strong, and I knew it was going to be cold, so I decided 3 days or so before departing for the wedding that I needed a pretty jacket to keep me toasty on the beach. That didn't happen- I would have needed to make trench coat out of a sub-zero sleeping bag to stay toasty in that gale. Still, I looked nice! And you can't really see the frostbite in the photos.

Oh wait, yes you can. And damned if my husband didn't get a single full length shot of my dress and jacket. I don't fault him though; it's hard to focus when your eyes are frozen shut with happy tears. Luckily, I had taken several terribly lit before and after photos in my sewing dungeon.

Here is the before.

I knew I wanted something white, preferably wool, and also fitted or cropped. I browsed all my favorite thrifty spots, but didn't find anything. So, of course, the next logical thing to do when you are just about to leave for a 5 day road trip is to begin a major refashion project with no clear plan. And that's exactly what I did.

 I decided to focus on fabric, so for $3.50 I bought a lambswool blazer at Goodwill. It was quite large for me, so there was a lot of extra material to work with. Somewhere along the line I decided I wanted a peplum jacke because that sounded cute and formal and trendy. I really had no idea where to begin, but I didn't have very much to lose, so I forged on fearlessly.

 First, I removed the pocket. I unpicked it, shaved it. Yes, that's right, shaved it with a leg razor, and then lint rolled and steam pressed it. Buh bye pocket.

See, it's gone! Like magic! Alright, I know. Who cares?

See? Still gone! 

 Okay, moving on. Next, I removed both sleeves, marked the waist, and cut the jacket bottom off about an inch below it. It's easy for me to forget things like leaving seam allowances, so I took it really slowly.

Next, I harvested the fabric below the welt pockets for my peplum. I just measured from the bottom so it was even and cut straight across. Alright! I was moving and grooving! Except I still had to make this potato sack fit up top. The goal was fitted peplum, and this late 80s early 90s horror was fitted for my husband. And that is certainly not his look! 

I played with the bodice, pinning out here and there for a while. I knew I needed to keep the grain intact, but wasn't sure how to pull it off. Then I had a light bulb moment and .......

 unpicked the shoulder seam to add a dart there for shaping. This also pulled the front armscye closer to where it should be on me. Alright, okay, this might work out........ I basted the darts and everything else I did initially so that I could remove it and try something new if I flubbed up. 

I started to reattach fabric for the peplum. I pleated it for flare at the hip, and hid any seams in the pleats.

I ended up leaving the back and side seams of the peplum open. Stitched shut, there just wasn't enough fabric to keep it from hugging instead of flaring.

I ended up opening the back seam up later too. Remember, I had not yet frozen my fanny off at this point. 

I recut the sleeves at a  bracelet length using a sleeve from a pattern I had recently used, and I cut away the extra fabric at the armholes using the same pattern as a guide. This is the only part I don't love. I had to work with what I had, but I prefer a sleeve head with some loft. Still, they turned out better than I expected, and I ended up with a wearable jacket. Actually, I ended up with a jacket that I rather like. I have already worn it since we've been home, and I like it with jeans too!

Without further ado, here is a photo that was so poorly lit and  unflattering I had to crop off the top of my head.

I made a decorative stick pin to use as a closure. I just couldn't decide on a button, so this was a good non-permanent solution. I chose a pretty button, put a long ball topped pin through the shank, and used super glue to stick them together. Also, I prefer to wear it with the lapel unrolled, but maybe that's just because I was freezing and needed that surface area covered. Actually, I think it seems right for this style.

So, here is a before and after....

and here I am with my sis the lovely bride, a unicorn, hubby and the kid.

Photo Credit: Alex Smith

I love this pic, but brrrrrrrrrr! Even Pebbles the Unicorn looks cold!!!! The things we do for love!  

I Did Actually Sew Those Dresses....

You know. The ones I talked about sewing a gazillion years ago? Okay, well, in January. No one can say that I am not thinking ahead. Ahem. Anyway, I said something about cranberry dupioni silk. Yuk yuk yuk. I ended up sewing a Matron of Honor dress for myself and a cute little dumpling dress for the baby using, get this, acetate taffeta. So I plan ahead, but I have more money in my fantasy life than I do in real life. Actually, I decided it made good sense to use less expensive material, as I probably won't wear this dress over and over again- I'll want to sew another one!  Here is the low down on the hoe down:

Simplicity 5343 copyright 1963

Simplicity 5343- My Version for 2011

That's my big sissy Jessica and I walking together as Matron and Maid of Honor

Yeah, it was "snowing a little down south" as my MIL said they used to say back in the day. Or, in other words, my crinoline was showing. Whatev. I won't beat myself up over that, and it's good it didn't show any more than that, as it was a last minute Franken-petticoat I made from netting from an A-line wedding slip and an old half slip.

Speaking of last minute, did you know that once people know you can kind of sew, they will show up places and expect you to make dress repairs and alterations at the last minute?

Brat! Me 'n my little sis pre-ceremony. Ain't she cute?

Here we all are in our Ladies' in waiting glory....

All of these beautiful ladies are my sisters.
 I have 5! Aren't we lucky?
Yes, my dress looks like a different color. That is because I am the only one in  shiny, shiny taffeta

 And here is the pattern for the baby's dress- Simplicity 9191 copyright 1970. It is the same pattern I used for her Easter dress. I knew it fit.

And in the year 2011 it looked like this...

Her dad put her hair up, but she pulled out the ponytail in a nanosecond.  Later she decided she'd had enough of tights. 

And here is the Couple of honor, my other lovely sister and her husband.

Dashing, aren't they? 

I successfully sewed two formal dresses, one rather large, and one very small. Now for the dirt and details on the construction...in other words, if sewing isn't your bag, you are gonna wanna dip out now.

The fabric: I wouldn't say it was "from hell," but it certainly didn't come from that other place. It was a pain in the tush. It creased badly, marred easily, and it was difficult to press because of water spotting and changing color. And it was slippery. But on the upside, it cost me under $35 bucks for the fabric for these two dresses, and I still have some left. Tha's pretty sweet, right?

Adjustments: I made a size 16. I shortened the bodice by one inch and removed an inch at center front and center back at the neckline only, tapering to nothing at the waist. I have since made sense of the seam method for pattern alteration- the waist on this one was short because I removed the fabric at the waist instead of over the bust. I think I've got it now, doh.

Pattern Instructions: I have gotten pretty bad about reading these at all. I did refer to them many times to figure out those tucks. Those blasted tucks. Those tucking tucks. Shucks, those tucks were a pain.

So, I winged it. Wung it. Something like that. I underlined the bodice in a tricot interfacing. This worked very well. I used the glue method Gertie blogged about here to no ill effect. It was fast and the result was a less creased and wrinkly bodice. Actually, underlining made the fabric behave very nicely. I also lined the bodice with self fabric. I hand picked the zipper. I serged all seams, and I did a narrow hem. I wanted a deep hem, but I would have had to underline the entire skirt to hide the stitches. And I didn't do that. What I did do was mark my hemline, serge it, and turn and stitch it. Not the traditional method perhaps, but it worked out fine.

Problems: The blasted tucks. Did I mention the tucks? And the creasing. Wah wah wah! Actually, that was the biggest headache. I flew with hubby and baby to Maine for my sister's wedding, and I packed a separate, hard sided vintage suitcase for our dresses. I stuffed them with tons of tissue, and I wrote a sweet letter to TSA begging them not to wrinkle them all up.

What I love about it: I conquered that fabric and pattern. It was not easy, but I did it. I also practically applied my hobby to save us a good deal of money. Bridesmaids dresses are often expensive and ugly. Nuff said there. I got to make and wear something special and personal to a most special and personal occasion. You've got to admit- that does rock. And I learned a ton. I don't get sweaty palms thinking about slippery fabric. I made my own cording for the waist. And underlined. Oh, and I made those little flowers on the front from scraps and pearl beads.

What I would do differently next time: sew with a fabric I can press and steam like we're on a train to hell.

Me and my man on the dance floor

That's us at the end of the night, and this is the end of this post! That was fun, but I am tuckered (DOH!) out! Goodnight all!