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Monday, July 6, 2015

Walter Worker (SPG) Part 1

My latest commission involved replicating one of the Walter Worker dresses (Steam Powered Giraffe) for a fan.
From http://steampoweredgiraffe.wikia.com/
I don't listen to the band myself, but I've got a couple friends who are into it and the premise is interesting. You can read more about the band and the Walter Workers in particular here.


I started off by making a muslin base to fit on my client. Since she is local, I was able to do a bit more nitpicky fitting than I normally am able to.


I draped the bodice and mathematically drafted the sleeves.



My client needed a few tweaks, as there'd been a change in size since we originally measured her and when I was able to actually start sewing. (This is why I always try to get my clients to give me their measurements as close to start time as possible.)

I also switched from side darts to full princess seams.


I then took the muslin apart and transfered the measurements to paper patterns.


Stitching it all up!


 We worked it out so that I saw this client two days in a row, and could test the body of the dress right away and make a few further adjustments.


BTW, the fabric is five yards of a bridal satin I found on eBay.


Very simple collar.


I then put the zipper in to make it easy to put the dress on and off the dress form, as opposed to having to pin up the back each time.


I was quite generous in the hem allowance, to say the least!


The fabric was a bit fussy to work with, and I went with my blind hem foot to eliminate as much puckering from the hem seam as possible.



Sleeve time! The first time I cut out the sleeve puff, it was too small. :(


So I cut it again and added some tulle to the inside to help accentuate the puff shape.


Much better!

Sleeves, buttons and an apron in Part 2!

1 comment:

  1. I'm sorry to hear about your fibromyalgia. I have a friend with it and I know it sucks. I can imagine sewing would be pretty unbearable.

    ReplyDelete

Welcome to the discussion! Please note that due to chronic illness, I am no longer taking commissions of any kind.

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