First Sewing Project

Life is crazy right now. I need to seriously make a time budget. I'm talking I need to get a huge poster board and make a chart/schedule for myself. My mind is going in like 98787783 opposite directions at once. I must be getting older for real, because I can't make myself focus! I can barely type anymore. I keep hitting the wrong keys...

Anyways, one of my goals is to pick up sewing and eventually be able to make my own clothes. I know this will not happen overnight, and I should start slow.

A friend of mine and I went to the Goodwill Outlet the other day. If you don't know what a Goodwill Outlet is...well, double the size of any basic Goodwill store and then, instead of clothing being on racks, there are massive hoards of them in bins you must all but dive into! It can be a little daunting but if you've ever been dumpster diving, it isn't much of a problem.

So, I found two beautiful pieces: a 1950s Kel Ray light blue slip, and a handmade 1930s cotton day dress. Both need fixing, the 1930s dress massively so...



...as you can see.

The slip only has one tear right on the hem in the back. The dress is full of age stains, the right shoulder is completely torn open, and it is missing all the buttons in the back.



The first order of business is to carefully wash both pieces. I'm going to do this by hand in my bathtub with warm water and a very mild detergent.



I need to try and figure out how to repair this. Most of the rips seem like they can be stitched together, but this massive hole...I really hope it doesn't require patching :(



The buttons all used to rest on these small holes.



The button holes are all intact, thank goodness. There is another small rip in the armpit, which will be simple to sew up.



This is such beautiful fabric...

So, I hope I've chosen something that isn't too intimidating. I think this dress is for a little girl.

Does anyone have any advice?

In the mean time, I'm going to attempt to finish some homework. Yay, senior year of college!

The Artist

I'm sure you've all heard of the movie The Artist by now. But have you seen it? Why, you simply must!

The Artist was written and directed by Michel Hazanvicius in 2011. It stars Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell, and Missi Pyle, and has won tons of awards.





The best thing about it is that it is, mainly, a silent film. According to one of my film major friends, when it came out a ton of people asked for their money back because they didn't know and unfortunately couldn't enjoy the simple beauty of silent films.





Of course, I was intensely satisfied to see that the costumes were incredibly accurate for the time period (late 1920s to the early 1930s) as well as the hairstyles. Nothing makes me angrier than period movies that get fashion wrong.



Oh that mustache...



I heard once that the fact that color was introduced into film/photography actually distracts the viewer, and that black and white makes you focus on what is truly important and will give you more of an experience. I completely agree.





The inserts were also incredibly simple, which, for me, after an emotional scene, leaves way more of an impression. This movie dives deep into the human heart and mind with wrenching emotion. I've never seen something so true.









This scene right here about broke my poor little heart.



The actors in this film were SO animated, incredibly expressive, and overall ridiculously wonderful. I felt like I could be them.



What happened to women? Why are people like Nikki Minaj and other floozies considered "hot" or "sexy" when there is beauty like this in the world?



I was born in the wrong decade.

So. See The Artist. Please. Treat yourself to some wine, something pretty and comfortable, relax, and enjoy one of the best movies I've seen yet.