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Time for Project Runway
These miniature fashions are under 6" tall and will attach on your books or anything else. Get ready for back to school or college and have a good time. All it takes is cardstock, glue, scraps of fabrics and trims. You will be the designer.
The words Haute Couture mean High Sewing in French.
Learn to make a removable fabric cover that fits any book, including books for school.
Follow this link.
Just about everyone in this country has watched Project Runway and young girls and women particularly like the idea of designing their own fashions. However, you have to have good sewing knowledge, machines and help to learn how to make the real thing. This project however is easy to do, although takes a lot of patience. If you have teenage girls who love crafts and decorating their things, then this project will be right up their alley.
Start simple. All you need is cardstock and paper to make the basic fashion plates.
How to make the patterns
The grid method. Years ago any craft book you bought had small patterns drawn on grids. I wasn't into experimenting in those days due to lack of confidence, but I learned how to make patterns from books using this method. This is how you will draw your basic fashion plate patterns.
IF YOU CAN'T MAKE THE TEMPLATE PATTERNS, PAY $3 WHICH INCLUDES POSTAGE IN THE U.S. AND I WILL SEND THEM TO YOU. EMAIL ME lj@tuscanadesign.com Check with me about postage if you are in another country.
You need an 8 1/2" by 11" piece of cardstock. You have to draw one inch lines both directions but the easiest way if you have one, is to lay it on a grid cutting mat and draw across both directions.
Follow the grid carefully and draw out HALF of the pattern only. Draw a line down the center. You can see I cut the bottoms before folding, this helped me line up the fold easily.
Cut out the half of the gown before folding and drawing the line of the second half around the folded piece. Now it will be symmetrical .
Cut them out completely and keep these templates to use over again. Store all your pattern pieces in a Ziploc bag so you don't lose any.
Now the gowns.
Next make your fabric patterns. On a sheet of paper, draw around both templates leaving space in the center. You can see how I began marking 1/2" away from the main line. That is because you will need extra fabric to turn over the side of your cardstock template.
Cut them out like this. These will be your main fabric pattern pieces.
Before you start designing, cut out several cardstock templates in both styles. Now you are ready to cover them.
Choose whatever fabric you can find. This is one I loved and bought it on clearance. It is a light green taffeta with a sheen that has embroidery. I lined up the dress pattern so that the embroidery would sit in the center.
GLUE. You can't do this with ordinary school glue as it won't hold and take too long to dry. You need a fast grab glue. I did use Aleene's fast grab tacky glue on my hats (check out my millinery blog, link at top) until Wal-Mart stopped carrying it and it was more expensive everywhere else. Then at Hobby Lobby I found Elmer's craft bond tacky glue, twice the size of Aleene's for only $2.77. I also used a 40% off coupon I printed off their site. What a deal and it works great!
You are working around curves and need to make slits all around to fold the extra fabric over the edge of the cardstock template. DO NOT SLIT ALL THE WAY TO THE EDGE OF THE CARDSTOCK AS THIS WILL MAKE LITTLE FRAYS AGAINST THE SIDE OF THE DRESS WHEN YOU TURN IT OVER EDGES.
Here you can see it finished. Let it dry upside down which won't take long.
YOU ARE NOW THE DESIGNER.
I used silver sequin trim which is very inexpensive and you can buy it by the yard. I glued it around the waist, then made shoulder straps. I then plucked off individual sequins and glued them randomly.
This time I covered the template with lavender satin, then used two different widths of lavender lace. You can use up lots of scraps making these gowns.
Sequins by the yard is all this one took. Try experimenting with design by placing them in loops.
This wedding gown I made by covering with white satin, then added an overlay of white lace. See photo below. Then I glued some flat back pearls for design. You can also use small pearls with holes and sew them on. See how I left the lace hanging over the bottom for more visual effect. Ribbon loops made the straps.
Here you can see the type of lace I used. My sister Norma in England sent me a parcel of fabrics, trims and lace and this was one of them.
I kept this dress strapless and first covered the template in gold satin. Then I took sequins by the yard and added them in rows on the skirt. I also added them on the hem and the top of the bodice.
I saved this one for last because you now need to make 2 more pattern pieces. By doing so the gown will become 3D. See how below. You will be required to do a small amount of hand sewing for this project. If you can't sew, find an adult who can and has patience to teach you. This is very basic and easy.
Use the same cardstock template and draw around the top on paper with the extra fabric line included. Then extend the bodice waistline about 3/4" as shown.
Draw around the skirt template, then flare out the sides towards the top when you add the extra fabric line. Also include extra at the waistline to turn under the raw edge.
First cut the skirt out without bodice top but leave extra fabric at the waistline to turn under the raw edge. Glue it onto the cardstock frame. Underskirt will be flat as before.
NOTE. Most of my fabrics are creased and need ironing before using. If you don't have an iron, you can buy a mini iron (available in craft shops where they sell things for decorating clothes.) You'll also need a small ironing board which are available in Wal-Mart and fabric shops. Make a Christmas wish list to hand to your parents if you enjoy doing this.
Next, hand sew down the center of the bodice, draw up and close off the thread so that it will stay.
Turn the bodice under and attach as before, moving the gathers upwards for the look of a bust line.
Turn down the top of the overskirt and make a pleat in the center. Glue down and let dry. Then you can turn it over and turn the sides in as before.
Now you've tried your hand at making gowns, make some other templates for clothing. This gown needed a hat, so I made one. Work on half a pattern as I have shown you and in the same scale. The templates will guide you on where the waistline is, length of leg and upper torso. Now you can design anything you like.
If you love this project, try your hand at shoes. Here's the link.
A word to teenagers and parents.
This project should be fine for age 12 years and older. Parents. If your teenager is keen, help them by asking crafty friends, crafty work mates and family for scrap fabrics and trims. It takes very little for each gown but it helps if you have an assortment. They can even recycle old clothes such as ugly prom dresses. Another suggestion. Get a group of your friends together and have a fashion slumber party.
For graphs, glues and stuff I use, check out this blog.
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