Marquise Cut

I have spent almost the whole day working on a toile for myself. I figured, since I have to get a pattern for one anyway for a client of mine and haven't had a new one in ages, it seemed a good idea. I got a size 10, because that's all there was (and no prob for the client, because I know how to draft patterns, I just was too lazy to start completely from scratch), figuring, okay I'll enlarge it. (According to the common wisdom of 'buy by your bust size' I should be wearing a 16. Even with Nancy Zieman's buy 'by your front chest width measure', it should have been a 12.) Well, I had to enlarge the bust only and had to actually take in both the back and front upper chest and shoulders a LOT. And the waist, but I'm used to that. Thing is, this is supposed to be a fitting pattern - it's supposed to have NO ease. Obviously, it had a lot, because I took off four inches' width front and back. Heck!

So I'm standing there thinking, 'man, I have to move these front darts or I'll look like Jane Russell', and I had a flash of my mother. She made her wedding dress, a scrummy ivory faille Jackie Kennedy suit that fit me like a glove when I was the same age she was when she got married (I wore it for several swank occasions). Woo, scary. But, she had to do this too. All this fiddling. It was very sweet, a very tangible link, like her dress.

Then I thought, hey, I don't have so awful a figure! (It's been ages since I've bought a Big Four commercial pattern for me that wasn't a costume 'cause most of them are very boring, WHY DOES EVERYTHING HAVE PRINCESS @£$%!! SEAMS?! Ahem. I digress.

So, I only got the actual bodice fitted, I have yet to do sleeves and (yikes) straight skirt - that sort of Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot 'sewn onto you' type, in which I look horrible. Let's EMPHASISE my WORST FEATURE! HERE IT IS BOYS, LOOK AT THEM HIPS. yah. sure. But I will do it because it gives me a template for other things and then I don't have to alter every pattern every time; I can simply lay this one on top and bob's your uncle.

I've been trying to figure what a woman of my age and figure, job and number of grown children should be wearing, but the only rules I have are about 100 years old (I am not joking) - and stuff in catalogues is A-W-F-U-L, and shops aren't much better. I can look like a frump, an old hippie/folkie, or like I'm wearing the patio tablecloth. Gee which shall I pick? I pick Olivia deHavilland! or Vivien Leigh, Elsa Lancaster, or Myrna Loy or Maureen O'Hara anyone in any film before 1960. I can't pick the Queen Mum; I look ghastly in pastels, and forget ginormous flowers. Maybe I could pick the Queen Mum when she was Duchess of York. Anyway, the straight PRINCESS CUT sold colour dress is out. So are elastic waist trousers. Even if I wore trousers.

My friend Mrs. Washington (Mary Wiseman that is) wears beautiful ethnic print clothes with modern jewellery. About as far flung from Lady Washington as possible. But she always looks smashing.

I'll find what I'm looking for. Meanwhile, I'll stick to my vintage Laura Ashley.