My French Jacket Takes A Journey

The suit is off my body and out of my hands, on its way to an adventure without me. I originally posted about this jacket here, and here.

As I packed the jacket and skirt, I took pictures, just to remember. So pretty, even if I say so myself. 

And oh so much work. All the channels of quilting, all the hand sewn seams.

 The beautiful chain that holds the hem in place so well.

Such pretty buttons from a lovely sewist who suffered far too much from breast cancer.

The skirt was folded and placed in the box first.

 Saying goodbye to my jacket. Oh my, it's difficult to see her in a box.

All packed now and on her way to a glorious adventure. Have a wonderful time little suit!!
I'll share more when I can. Isn't it funny how when we really need something wonderful to happen...it does.

Fashion Show Recap, Two

When I first posted the pictures of my French jacket, I couldn't believe how much everyone liked it. Thank you for all of your wonderful compliments. Many of you said that you really wanted to see me in the jacket. As I've shared with you, the past few weeks have been a bit of a blur, so pictures of me in anything was just not going to happen. So here you go, just as you wished for, a picture of me in my jacket.

Please forgive the wrinkles in my skirt. I've been in the suit all day.

I do love this outfit. It's so easy to wear and the jacket looks just as good this afternoon as it did when I put it on this morning. In fact, I'll confess that when I returned home on Sunday evening, all of my clothes landed on a chair in my living room and that's exactly where they stayed until this morning. I thought that the jacket would need a little steam, but no, it was ready to go.

 A view of the back.

I made a little halter top with a draped front to wear with the jacket. The skirt is silk. In fact there is a sad but rather sweet story about the skirt fabric. I told you that the buttons came from the estate of a member of Haute Couture who died a few years ago. The skirt fabric also belonged to her. As wrinkled as the skirt is, it is less wrinkled than it would have been had I not underlined it. In her things was a piece of China silk that matched the fabric perfectly. Before she died, she gave me two beautiful pieces of fabric and told me that she knew I would make lovely outfits from the fabric. So I think that she is somewhere smiling about what I have done with her fabric.

A little interior shot of my skirt. I used the silk ribbon I used to edge the jacket to finish the waist of my skirt.

And as you can see, I used the silk charmeuse to line the skirt. It feels as good as it looks.

So there you have it, me in my French jacket. I can't wait to make another one!

Channeling Chanel, Part 2

A year ago this June, Susan Khalje came to Chicago and taught her Couture Sewing Class. In this class, you are welcome to work on whatever project you would like. I really wanted to get a taste of what goes in to making the French jacket.
After a week of working very diligently, I left with my jacket looking like this. You can see my original post about this jacket here. There is a LOT of work involved in this jacket.

So, best laid plans, I had every intention of getting it finished right away, but as you know, life gets in the way and other projects take center stage. The poor jacket remained folded up in a bag, just waiting. Well, nothing like being pushed to get something done. The Haute Couture fashion show is quickly approaching and we will have a segment where our French jackets are showcased.

The finished jacket!! I just love it.

The trim is a mix of two different materials. I was in San Francisco last year and I thought I would have no problem finding a trim for this fabric. No such luck. A little thinking outside of the box, and I came up with the silk ribbon, but it needed a little something more. They are so helpful at Britex. The woman who helped me took one look at what I wanted to do and lead me directly to the crystal trim that is running down the center of the ribbon. Perfect. It picks up the crystal thread that runs through the fabric.

While at Britex, I bought some lovely buttons. They are glass and they pick up on the crystal theme of the fabric, but once I got the jacket together, I wanted a little something more. A friend of mine had given me the buttons you see in the above picture. There were eight, so I could put three on each sleeve and have two pockets rather than the typical four. Fine by me. The buttons have pearls in the center and are surrounded by rhinestones. What a wonderful gift! These buttons would have cost a small, and maybe a large fortune at Britex.

If you do decide to make one of these jackets, I highly recommend two things, take the time to sew in a chain at the hem, and buy the chain from Susan. She really takes the time to find the most perfect chain that she can. You can find her website here. I think the chain is just about my favorite part of the entire jacket. It is such a lovely chain and it made such a difference once it was sewn in. The jacket stands out so nicely and holds it's shape so well.

A peek at the quilted lining. I found the silk at Vogue here in Chicago. I feel like I was really lucky because the blue of the jacket is not an easy color to match. I really love the lining fabric. It's such a happy lining!

In this picture you can see the hooks sewn along the center front edge.

A little steaming and the jacket will be ready to go. I can't wait to wear it. Why did I wait so long to finish it????? Now on to the next project, a blouse and a skirt to wear with it.
By the way, I just saw this morning that Claire Shaeffer has a new French jacket pattern on the market.

You can see the information here.
Have a wonderful day!

Channeling Chanel

This past June Susan Khalje was in Chicago hosting her Couture Sewing School Class. It was such a wonderful week. The class is quite intense, 6 days from 9 in the morning until 6 in the evening with one longer day where Susan will stay as long as needed.If you have never taken one of her classes, I HIGHLY recommend doing so. Susan is such a lovely person. She takes such a personal interest in the project of each of her students. But there is something even more special about Susan, she takes a personal interest in the person as well. Susan's website is just as lovely as she is. You can check it out here. Her week long classes cost $995.00. She requires $295.00 as a deposit and the balance is not due until 30 days before the start of the class. Very nice.

Last year I went to Nashville and worked on my "Bride of Elvis" dress with Susan. As I said, the week is quite intense and after sitting and working on the dress and looking at it so intently, I began to have second thoughts about wearing it. As Susan walked by my table I stopped her and I asked, "do you think I am going to look like the bride of Elvis?" Of course laughter ensued, but Susan assured me that I would not, and I didn't. But a year later, Susan remembered and the dress is now entitled "The Bride of Elvis Dress!!" You can see pictures of the dress here.

There were three women in the Nashville class who were working on the French Jacket. It looked very interesting to me. When I discovered that Susan was coming to Chicago and the class fit into my schedule, I thought, why not?

I didn't want the traditional jacket. I had a Vogue pattern that is now out of print that I really liked so I decided to use it. The neckline is what I especially liked. The fabric I had purchased some time ago from Vogue Fabrics in Evanston, IL. The fabric was actually in the remnant area. I just love it. The fabric reminds me of the ocean and it has a lovely crystal thread that runs through it.

While I was in San Francisco, I went by Britex Fabrics to look for trim. If you are ever in San Francisco, whether you sew or not, the store is worth a visit. Such beautiful fabrics. I thought for sure that my quest for trim would easy. It wasn't. At first I was so disappointed, not one piece of trim worked with my fabric. Then I heard the words of John Koch, "think outside the box," so I decided to just look for anything that would match the color of my fabric. Like magic, this silk ribbon appeared before me. Perfect. I immediately thought of gathering it and putting something down the middle, but what. Everything I was finding was okay, but not great. When all else fails, ask for help. When I showed the saleswoman what I wanted to do, she immediately took me to this wonderful crystal trim. Perfect. A stop by the button counter produced clear glass buttons that match the crystal cord. Done.

A look at the interior of my jacket. You can see all the lines of quilting that run through the entire jacket. As I said, a lot of work goes into one of these jackets. Although I am not finished, I must say that I am VERY happy that I took the time to take the class and make the jacket. I just love it. The lining fabric is a silk charmeuse that also came from Vogue Fabrics. I bought enough to make a dress to wear with the jacket. Once I have the jacket finished, I will post pictures. Get busy, right?   

If you are interested or just curious about the French jacket, Susan did a wonderful article for Threads magazine. Her article is in the October/November 2005 #121 issue. If you go to their website, you may be able to buy back copies. If not, check out Ebay. I've been amazed at what I have been able to find on Ebay.

I love learning new things and of course I love pretty clothes. So often I hear, "I just don't have anywhere to wear something like that." Create your life. What do you like to do? Do you enjoy the opera? You can actually buy tickets to Lyric Opera performances for as little as $39.00. Many universities have incredible theater programs, the tickets are very inexpensive and the students need your support. So yes, create your life. You only get this one chance.