Bias Cut Blueprints Giveaway/The Perfect Way To End a Sew Along!

This is a first!!! A giveaway at the end of a sew along!

Julianne Bramson, the designer of The Magic Bias Dress and Fashion In Harmony Patterns, would like to say a special thank you for making the Magic Bias Dress sew along such a success, so she is giving away one of her books, Bias Cut Blueprints. 

The book is a fabulous workbook for anyone who enjoys bias cut patterns and would like to take a stab at drafting a few of their own.

The book begins with an explanation of the bias garment, how to take measurements, how to calculate yardage, and many other very useful bits of information.

From there you are taken into the project section. Constructing bias tubes is discussed and very clear layouts are given so there is no guess work. 

The projects begin with very simple shapes.

Once you have mastered the simple projects, you can advance into the more complicated.

There is even a section devoted to combining techniques and designs.

 

You will also find templates for necklines and armholes, so as I said, there is no guess work with this book. Every aspect of creating a beautiful bias garment has been thought of.

Due to postage costs, this giveaway is only available to U.S. residents. So sorry, but there will be other giveaways in the very near future that will be open to all.

So if you would like a chance to win the book;

1. Leave a message on this blog.
2. You must be a follower of this blog.
3. You must have a U.S. mailing address.

I will announce the winner next Tuesday, May 17, 2016.

Good Luck!!!
Rhonda  

Adjusting The Fit of The Magic Bias Dress

Good Morning All!
I received a question about how to adjust the fit of the Magic Bias Dress from Fashion In Harmony, and I was asked if there are side seams for adjusting. I decided to do a special post to answer the question as I thought an explanation might be helpful to many of you who are making the dress.

Just as a review, there are 3 main pieces to the dress. 2 sleeve patterns are included, but of course the sleeves is optional, the 3 main pattern pieces of the dress are not. 
There are no side seams in the dress. Look closely at the picture below. The largest pattern piece is the main body of the dress. You see the armholes and the back neck which are angled to the side. The smaller pattern piece in the top right hand corner is the front inset and includes the front neckline. Then there is a long triangular pattern piece. The long triangular piece is your key piece for adjusting the fit of the pattern.

A few notes on bias garments;
Remember that the bias grainline has the most stretch of the 3 grainlines in a piece of fabric. Typically, when a garment hangs on the bias, due to the stretchy nature of the bias grainline, it is not necessary to adjust the fit. With that said, bias garments look best if there are 4" to 7" of ease at the hips, at the VERY minimum, 3" of ease. Remember, we want the garment to skim the body and not cling or appear tight. 

If your shoulders are quite narrow compared to your bust and hip measurements, then it would be best to adjust the pattern. If your shoulders are quite narrow, choose your pattern size based on your upper bust measurement and then make adjustments to the pattern.

The key to adjusting the Magic Bias Dress is the triangular pattern piece. Simply draw a line down the center of the pattern piece. Cut down the center of the pattern piece. If you need to adjust for a larger bust measurement, spread the top portion of the pattern piece the amount needed to obtain the desired ease for the bust. Also spread for the hips. If you need to adjust for an even larger hip measurement, the spread may angle out at the hip area. 
If the bust is fine, but you need more in the hips, cut down the center of the pattern and then keep the top portion of the triangle pattern piece together but spread for the hips.   

So now you see more of the "magic" of this pattern. A bias garment that's cut on the straight of grain is revolutionary. The fact that you can adjust the pattern by simply spreading what seems like a rather non-important pattern piece is ingenious! 

If you have any other questions about the pattern, please ask and I will do my best to answer. 

Meet Julianne Bramson, Master Mind of the Magic Bias Dress Pattern

In 2009 I was asked to help judge the Association of Sewing and Design Professionals/Threads Challenge. The challenge that year was all about seams. Judging was blind, meaning that the names of the contestants were removed from the final garments, only numbers were attached. For the judging, we were supposed to have a dressform, but none was available, so guess what!!!, I became the dressform! It was such a great experience and I loved seeing the creativity and ingenuity of the garments. The garment that stood out to me was a bias cut garment with mesh inserts. I was amazed by how beautifully the garment fell over my body and the precise execution of the seams, and especially the mesh inserts. There were a number of garments that made it to the final cut, but I fought hard for the bias dress. The mesh inserts and the precise execution, I felt, deserved the Best Overall distinction. A picture of the dress is included below. 

I was not able to stay for the evening fashion show, so I had no idea who the bias dress belonged to. It wasn't until a few years later when I attended a workshop in San Francisco hosted by Sandra Ericson that I met Julianne Bramson of Fashion In Harmony. I still had no idea that she created the bias dress. At some point during the workshop, something was said about bias garments and Sandra brought up Julianne's dress. It was then that I was able to put a face to this beautiful design. What a pleasure it was to finally meet her.

I was all the more excited when Sew News accepted my recommendation to include the Magic Bias Dress in this year's line up of sew along patterns. I think you too are going to enjoy the simplicity and elegance of this dress.

I am especially pleased to have the opportunity to introduce you to Julianne and let you take a peek into how her mind works.

From Julianne,

My primary source of inspiration for all of my designs is the pioneering work of Madeleine Vionnet.  Her designs, most especially those that utilize geometric shapes placed on the bias, have been a constant source of inspiration for me since I was first introduced to them by Sandra Ericson at the 2006 Association of Sewing and Design Professionals conference in San Francisco, CA. Below is the garment that started my obsession with bias cut garments.

Ironically, I studied Vionnet in college and even based my senior project on a Vionnet inspired design, but it was the math, the geometry that drew me into Sandra's class.   

The 2009 Association of Sewing and Design Professionals Threads Challenge was all about seams. I wanted to make a dress that would have mesh seams so it would look as if it was held together by air, by nothing.  I wanted seams that were sturdy, but in no way hindered the amazing drape of the velvet fabric.  I knew that making the dress on the bias would put the seams in interesting places.  My first dress was of a cream print silk charmeuse with ivory mesh for the seams.  I had planned to use nude mesh, but thought it looked a bit too "lingerie" for my taste.  The ivory was better, but the way I attached the mesh did not result in the professional look that I desired.  And, the whole dress ended up looking more boudoir and less evening. By the time I decided it was a dud, and I needed a new approach, I was running out of time.  That is why the velvet dress is constructed of several different fabrics, I simply did not have time to purchase more fabric.  As a result, I think it is much more interesting.  I love how it looks with the bright orange slip. Necessity truly is the mother of invention!

Below is the dress, featured in thread's Magazine.

The seaming in detail. 

As to the design of the velvet dress, it is all geometry.  I was inspired by two different patterns I found in my obsessive hunt for all things bias-cut and geometric.  One is a page from a vintage magazine about making a bias-cut slip using squares and quarter circles.

I used that for the inspiration for the squares at the waist and also for the skirt, although I instead used half-circles.  The upper portion of the dress was inspired by a pinwheel top pattern I found in a weaving magazine. 

I omitted the triangles at the wrist and turned the triangles at the waist into full squares to create seams to attach the skirt pieces.  It is an amazingly simple design.  What I love about it is how it fits so many different shapes and sizes of people. Bias cut garments truly are amazing and magical!

Thank you so much Julianne for sharing your design process with us.

Remember, I will be giving away a Magic Bias Dress pattern tomorrow, March 31, 2016. You have until tonight at midnight to get your name in for the drawing, so don't delay! If you would like a chance to win the pattern, leave a message HERE.

One last treat, if you are making the Magic Bias Dress, but would rather a different sleeve, you can find a free downloadable pattern for a Flitter Sleeve on the Fashion In Harmony website. Just click HERE.  

Enjoy!

Rhonda

Enter To Win The Magic Bias Dress Pattern

It's a cloudy, rainy Thursday here in Chicago, but I can hear the cardinals singing outside my window, so all is well :) 

Last week, I announced the give away of the brand new April/May issue of Sew News. If you have not thrown your name in for a chance to win 1 of the 3 magazines that I have to give away, be sure to go HERE and get your name in before midnight tonight.

The announcement of a new sew along wouldn't be complete without a chance to win a pattern, so here's your chance!

The Magic Bias Dress from Fashion In Harmony. Fabulous pattern.

I always prefer to see a line drawing as it tells me so much more. The dress looks to be quite complicated... 

 but this is it! Just 3 pieces, and as I told you last week, what makes it magical is that the pattern pieces are all cut on the straight of grain. That's MAGIC!!! in my book. No trying to make sure that your pattern pieces are really on the bias grain.

Again, the dress I made for the magazine. Funny little note, my husband rarely visits his Facebook page. So I was rather shocked when he said that he saw the dress that I had posted, and then said, "I really like that dress." Believe me, that's quite a compliment coming from him :) 

So here's the drill;
If you would like a chance to win The Magic Bias Dress pattern,
1. You must be a follower of this blog
2. Leave a message on this post and let me know how you follow the blog.
3. Leave a message by midnight Wednesday, March 31, 2016

I will announce the winner next Thursday, March 31, 2016.
Next Thursday I will also have a wonderful guest post from the designer of Fashion In Harmony Patterns, Julianne Bramson. I think you will really enjoy having the opportunity to get inside her mind and see how she thinks.
Until then...
Good Luck!