What's so funny is that yearsssssss ago when I was a newbie sewer a situation like this would've sent me into a "tail spin". My first line of action would've been to toss the dress out entirely. I would've panicked, gotten frustrated and gotten frustrated to the point where I'd threaten to give up sewing LOLLLL---well that last part only lasted a minute and I was back to sewing LOLLLLL! And trust me , although I'm way more experienced now, I still may be prone to toss something nowadays if it doesn't turn out exactly as intended and isn't worth the effort. But it's nice to be at a place where I know how to make modifications in my sewing that can transform clothes to my liking. Situations like these don't frustrate me and I recognize my options.
In Short, here's what I've learned about how to handle a garment on "Life Support"......
1. Don't panic---when does it ever help??? LOL
2. Evaluate the garment's "stats"--- is there a strong heartbeat or a flatline? Does it seem like something you can save or not? If a flatline then let it go, toss it out and work on something else. If a heartbeat---or the possibility that you can make it work then proceed to do so. Put it on "life support" and do everything you can to save it! It's in these time that you find your true creativity and test your ingenuity in clothing construction/design! I've had my best ideas in these moments!!!
3a. Proudly wear your garment if the save is successful!!! You deserve to! You fought for it and made it work---CONGRATS!!!!
3b. If not then it's ok to take your garment off life support. You gave it your best shot but sometimes you can't save every problematic garment! Learn the lessons and move on. They will make you a BETTER sewer! It's that simple and technically that's the best part!
So I'm going to do my best to "save" this dress! I've got some great ideas in mind and not much is needed to correct the fit. Of course I originally intended to add a tie belt (not pictured) and will make some other changes. We'll see how it look. If all goes well I'll be delighted and will post soon! So my question for you is how do you deal with your garments that end up on "life support"---do you usually toss them out or work to fix the problems???
Great post to read. Gave me some comic relief as I'm in my sewing room,lol!
ReplyDeleteMany of these relative garments are in a comatose state (UFO). My dilemma is deciding whether to toss it or go ahead and stitch it up and bless somebody with it. I hate to throw anything away, lol!
Meg from mccalls made this in a voile as a beach coverup. It looked amazing.
ReplyDeleteThat is soooo funny. I know exactly what you are talking about. For me, it is all about the fabric. If I love it - it's worth saving. If it is a bit blah - out she goes!!!! Yours looks like it is definitely worth the effort - pretty fabric.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Ms. Victoria, very timely and funy too! I love this dress and truly hope you can save it! I recently had one f those projects that was on life support! It was a dress I was trying to create from an old skirt I had in my closet. It was inspired by Daniela Tabois and I really wanted it! I had to take it apart 3 times! I was determined because I truly loved the fabric and did not see myself tossing it! My hard work paid off and I now have a great tunic (had to scrap the dress idea!). I will be posting it soon, but won't go into all the gory details! Good Luck with your dress!
ReplyDeleteI am a newbie. I was extremely frustrated last week. I took a 5 day break and last night I returned to my product. I'm slowly learning to let it roll off my shoulders.
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