Pop Cowl-ture and Muse-Zig

Some t-neck inspiration from a 1960's/1970's TV icon, "That Girl" Marlo Thomas:

Legendary temptress Raquel Welch makes a T-Neck look oh-so-seductive.  She certainly knows how to use her appeal and still be fully clothed...

I just finished my second version of a mid-late 1970's classic (1977?), a Butterick See & Sew pattern, featuring Shelley Hack:

Here's my original post that includes my first attempt with this pattern and photos of  this still gorgeous former fashion model and Charlie's Angel on a 1969 Simplicity pattern envelope and other nostalgic photos of her:

http://groovy60ssewing.blogspot.com/2012/05/see-and-sew-some-seventies-style.html

After adding an additional 3/4" length to the sleeves and 5" to the length of the pattern that I originally traced onto a zig-zag printed jersey knit from fabric.com:

My first version:

We just came home from Thanksgiving dinner at my parents' home.  After some shopping today for bargains (hopefully we will not encounter the dreaded crowds), I plan to "work out" to some "HAIR-raising" tunes by The Beatles, Madonna, Diana Ross, and Cher. I will take their music, any day, over that of Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj, to name a few.

I added a belt in the same fabric to pull in the sides of the top.   With only three pattern pieces and less than two hours of sewing time, a third top in the near future awaits!

Twiggy going ziggy and zaggy in the 1960's

Didn't Peanuts character Charlie Brown trend the zig-zag before Missoni did?

Abbey Rhodes, Pinky Lane, and a Fine Fab Four

My daughter, sister-in-law (my brother's wife), and I recently attended a musical theatrical performance (more like a high quality concert production), "In My Life" starring a fabulous Southern California-based Beatles cover band called "Abbey Road Tribute":   http://www.inmylifetheplay.com/index.php?id=82 

"The McCall Miss-tery Tour 1967 revived in 2012"
 I wanted to wear a dress that captured 1960's flair  I sewed a dress (view "B") from this 1967 pattern, McCall's 8990. The sleeveless sheath with options for a "cuffed" collar. or a bound ruched neckline appealed to me.    Special thanks to etsy seller Fragolina for having this pattern available to purchase from her etsy store and for its quick arrival in my mailbox (along with two other patterns): pattern from Fragolina's etsy store

Description: Misses dresses from 1967.

Fabric: Stretch cotton woven

I Want To Sew Your Plan

Directions: They were fine.  I ignored them due to not using the collar and facings.

I used a 22" zipper and a helpful tutorial to attach it: http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2011/10/sewing-tips-installing-a-basic-zipper.html  .  I machine basted the back seam before "taping" the zipper.  I turned the dress to the printed side out and stitched the zipper from the outside, being careful not to touch the zipper teeth.  It has been awhile since I sewed a zipper to a dress. After removing the basting stitch with my handy-dandy seam ripper, I was satisfied with the results. 

I made two versions: the first version in rayon knit and the second in stretch cotton woven with the psychedelic print.  I prefer it in the woven.  The knit dress was subdued and drapy and looked suitable for lounge wear instead of for an evening out.  I was confident about me in my   "psychedelic" dress that evening, until...I saw the photos the next day.

During the intermission of the show:

After the show, at home:

Stitching in My Sew-Where Land...

Modifications/Alterations:
I omitted the facings in favor of bias tape to finish the neckline and armscyes. I did not like the blue bias trim at the neckline, making the dress look "apron-ish".  Getting into the "fringe frenzy", I cut a rectangular strip 1 1/2" wide  along the lengthwise grain.  The ridged and fringed selvage added a unique "edge" to the dress. I also shortened the dress several inches so that the lower hem would land just above my knees.

I made my typical petite adjustments above the waistline, narrowed the upper back by taking in the upper center back seam by 3/8".  I could have gotten away with a tad more, because I still encountered extra fabric below the back of my neck.

Get Back

Sheath Said, Sheath Said
This sheath dress was very easy to make, because I used two main pattern pieces, the front and the back.  It came out more as an a-line dress instead of a fitted one as depicted on the pattern envelope.  The back darts were essential to take in the excess fabric above and below my waist and enables the dress to be more flattering from the side views.  However, from the photos taken at the auditorium lobby, I am not fully satisfied with the sheath's look on me.   I appeared frumpier than I thought.   A dark solid would seem to provide a slenderizing effect.   I was hoping that after already losing 8 lbs, I would have been able to carry this style nicely, but instead I became discouraged after looking at  the photos.  I'll stop with the discouraging thoughts about body image for now.

 Returning to our seats, after the intermission

After the show, here we are photographed at the lobby of the performing arts center. The majority of the audience already had vacated the premises.  My daughter insisted that we situate ourselves by the front exit and a lower entrance to the auditorium and wait patiently for the musicians/singers.  Being skeptical, I motioned that we leave the building and walk to the car.  It was nearing 10:30 p.m  Then unexpectedly a little entourage (celebrities and security) ascended from a few flight of steps coming from our right side as we were photographed here, walked passed us, and headed towards one of the tables. The four stars of the show sat at the table in a row, looking like young dignitaries ready to meet, greet, and sign autographs.

 

Coming together with the members of "Abbey Road Tribute" for autographs and a photo opportunity. I definitely recommend seeing "In My Life".  It is like experiencing as close as you can get to hear  the Beatles' live.   I  complimented them personally on their sensational performance.  I originally thought the gentleman who played "John" is the cutest of the four. Now after seeing them after the show up close and personal,  I think "Ringo" played by Axel Clarke is the cutest "Beatle" doppleganger, especially with those twinkling eyes.  Axel seems to be the friendliest and the easiest to talk to and I can also relate to him better because he is also a teacher.   Heather, my daughter, also likes Ringo also because of his sense of humor during the little skits.  My sister-in-law has a crush on the guy that plays George Harrison, the tallest and lankiest of the "mop-tops".

 Heather really wanted to shake the hands but became frightened.  She, however, insisted that we have a picture taken with the lads to have a photo taken.  After seeing other fans getting their photos taken with the fab 4, my sister-in-law did not want to let this opportunity to slide by, especially when they were in front of us and there was a dwindling number of people at the lobby.  She was able to ask some young lady who was about to exit the building to take our photos with the Abbey Road Tribute Band.  The four gentlemen pleasantly acquiesced to having a photo of them taken with us at the autograph/meet/greet table.  Although the photos were not clear and focused as we had hoped for, they were cool souvenirs of what seem to performers closest to The Beatles whom we would ever meet.

All in a fun day's night!  By the way, the current popular British  pop boy group "One Direction" adored by my daughter was non-existent that evening.

 

Drawstring and Big Sleeve Delight

I searched high and low for the date of this pattern.  It looks like it is from the mid 1970's.  

I used 4 of the 6 given pattern pieces (front, back, sleeve, drawstring).

The SLEEVES came out much more inflated than what was illustrated.  By looking at two of my favorite style icons of the 1970's, it seemed that those sleeves were  the trend.

Two of my favorite style icons in their 1970's boho attire,  former Charlie's Angel and current K-Mart spokesperson Jaclyn Smith,

and glamorous singing diva Cher

Modern day version from Michael Kors, originally selling for $695, now $312 at saksfifthavenue.com

I recently sewed my version of Butterick 5714's  view "A", without the ruffles in a Libery of London Tana lawn fabric.  Oops, my arm raised a portion of the lower hem!

Modifications/alterations

*I replaced the buttohole opening with a "keyhole" opening for the passage of the drawstring tie.  I did not cut the front of the blouse at a center fold.  Instead, I added a seam allowance and cut the front as two pieces for creating a "center seam".  I stitched the center front seam, leaving a  6" vertical opening at the top for a keyhole opening prior to stitching the neckline casing. For the formation of the keyhole opening, I turned the raw edge under 1/8" and sewed a 3/8" topstitched hem

* Made my usual 1" petite adjustment at the waistline

* Removed 1" from the width of the upper back (taking in the center seam 1/2"), tapering to 0" at central back (still noticeable ease on the back!) I also sewed at the back 2 long vertical darts (1 cm at the widest part) starting from a point an inch below my shoulder blades to just above the lower hem of the blouse.

 *Added some shaping at the sides due to it billowing out like a "pillowcase" when I tried it on after sewing the initial side seams.  I took in the side seams at most 1 1/2" for a total of extracting 6" of additional ease!

*Added some transparent beads at each end of the drawstring tie.

Conclusion
I like my blouse, but am not too enthusiastic about it due to feeling like a hot balloon ready to take on the skies at any moment. After a few alterations on the pattern, I  plan to make it again in a silky fabric.

Special thanks to Adele Bee Patterns in etsy for having the patterns in her on-line store!

See and Sew Some Seventies' Style

Flower Power goes full force in 1969

Do you recognize the model in the middle?

Fast forward ten years later to 1979, playing crime fighter Tiffany Welles

Yes, she is Shelley Hack, originally from Greenwich, Connecticut.   She simultaneously radiates  natural glamour, wholesomeness, and confidence.  Now, at the age of 64, she still does.  Not only did she model for such magazines as Seventeen and Mademoiselle, she also was a cover girl for sewing pattern envelopes such as this "See & Sew" by Butterick dated circa 1977 (as guessed by a blogger of a fan website: shelleyhack.blogspot.com)

 Special thanks to Adele Bee Patterns in etsy for having the patterns in her on-line store!

I liked the cowl neck, cap sleeves and ease in construction.   I used an ITY fabric that I recently purchased at fabric.com.

The hem came out "bell-shaped" on me. 

Back of envelope.  This is when patterns retailed at 99 cents.

I deducted about 1" from the cowl's top edge, before topstitching and attaching to the neckline, right sides together.  Here's my collar after folding the fabric to the inside and adjusting "the roll" for a "draped" effect. 

Shelley with a pair of buddies, sporting a cowl neck sweater.  This seems like one of her signature looks besides her 1970's outfits in the Charlie perfume ads.

Now, "back" to my green and white top.

You cannot go wrong with just three pattern pieces, front, back, and the cowl collar.

That Girl from 1977 and These Girls from 2012

That Mod Girl Marlo Thomas looking chic in a red peacoat and her flip hairdo.

Marlo during the early and mid 1970's was creatively fun and free in a wide collar and zig zags. Zig zag trims seemed to go beyond decorating Easter eggs. I wonder how many odd stares she would receive if she strolled in this outfit today.

Flashback to 1977, the year there was an outbreak of Saturday Night Fever.  1977, however, was not all butterfly collars, platform shoes, bell-bottoms, and slinky disco dresses a la Studio 54.  I found this rare jewel from ebay and liked the sleeveless dress with a folded, cowl collar.   The description on the back of the envelop was  a "high waisted, back zippered dress has cowl collar, ties included in front darts. A, B has bib and sleeves gathered into buttoned cuffs."

I sewed view "C", the sleeveless version.

Sizing:

Although a size 12, bust 34 is printed on my pattern envelope, all the pattern pieces were for a size 10, bust 34.

Heather and I enjoying the Sunday sunshine after Easter mass. 

 

Indoor pic

Instructions

They were clearly written and supplemented with helpful diagrams.

Fabric

Cotton rayon jersey from EOS.

Favorite Features
*Cowl neck style created from a "collar piece" that encircles the entire neckline. Just in the past year, I have noticed a vast selection of dresses with varying degrees of "cowl".

*The unique construction of the tie belt: Each tie is originally basted to the front at the location of a front dart. During the construction of each front dart, the "raw edge" of the tie end is "sandwiched" between the layers of the dart, and thus becomes "hidden" from view. The belt makes it possible to either wear the tie loop at  the front or the back.

*Sleeve and dress length variations.

The only thing I disliked was what seemed to be an inordinately large "collar" piece that is cut on the bias. On a cotton jersey that I was using, the collar "bunched" and draped. On a woven, I could easily imagine a rigid scarf type of a neckline, where the collar is turned to the inside along the lengthwise "half fold", until the edge meets the inner neck seam (where the collar was sewn to the notched edge of the collar, right sides together).

Pattern Alterations/Modifications
*Eliminated the back seam for zipper attachment.

*While cutting the back bodice, I pivoted the pattern piece about 10 mm, swinging the center back downwards to reduce the "extra fabric" just below the back of neck and at my upper back. After trial and error, I have had much success on several tops with this adjustment.

I found this helpful blog post, referenced by a number of fellow bloggers, detailing and differentiating adjustments for swayback,  adjustments for petites, and specific types of adjustments that get mistaken for being those for swayback.  The method I am referring to can be seen after scrolling the viewing window downward and looks similar to the "pivot" one that I am familiar with.

Sherry's "Pattern, Scissors, Cloth" blog
Many thanks to Sherry, the owner of this blog, for her post.

*I skipped my typical petite adjustment at the waist (3/4"-1") due to the "high-waisted" style of the dress. The bodice-skirt seam landed at the waist instead of just below my bustline (or an empire waist style), which I anticipated would have happened after a petite adjustment.

*Due to using a knit, I omitted the back zipper and sleeve facings. I turned in the raw edge of each armscye and topstitched a 5/8" hem.  If I used a woven, I would have lined the entire dress which would dodge the need to face the sleeve edges for a sleeveless dress.  The attached collar piece for the cowl neckline would have to be taken into consideration when lining the dress. 

*I sewed a center back seam, for the collar/cowl piece. I additionally took in the central seam to compensate for my "back pivot adjustment" that shortened the width of the neckline.

*I removed approximately 8" from the lower edge to shorten the dress to a smidgen below my kneecap.


Future Use/Recommendations
I plan to use this pattern again after finding the ideal fabric with it ("soft" fabrics such as challis, crepe de chine, etc). If you could find it, I recommend it. The "carefree" patterns in general seemed to produce stylish and enjoyable outfits with minimal challenges in construction. Although the pattern's recommended fabrics included challis, surah, synthetic crepe, and matte jersey, I did not encounter much problems with cotton rayon jersey.

This is the third pattern from the "Marlo's Corner" series and so far, I have had lots of luck in terms of style compatibility and fit. 

Wearing a crochet cardigan with bell sleeves.

Happy Easter and have a lovely spring!