Heyy thar,
interested parties and people who like clothes.
I've
got a couple days off at the beginning of this week as a result of a
client meeting this evening about a couple of wedding dresses. The
bride is coming to have her measurements taken and to approve the
sketches and fabric swatches I've chosen for both her actual wedding
ceremony gown and her reception party dress. I'm also making the
bridesmaids dresses for this occasion, but those will be discussed in
further detail at a later date. If she agrees and likes my design,
I'll come back and tell you all about it, but until then, it must
remain a mystery to all those but the seamstress and her client (and
Josh, who was probably sitting next to me while I was
sketching...ahem.)
I like timelines. I like schedules and having a plan for every hour
and every day and I like knowing way in advanced to be organized. I
never was a fan of surprise occasions, unless they are a planned
surprise. You betcha I've planned this hour of the day to sit down
and write a blog after hitting the pipe a few unglamourous times on
this lovely Monday afternoon. I've got two hours until I meet with
my client so let's get into it.
This week has been a strange one. Drama at work, drama with friends,
and feeling my winter urge to redirect my thoughts inward, has caused
for some sad nights, feeling defeated and hopeless, as we all do,
from time to time. One of the more positive results of these
feelings is that I tend to dive into my mind, and find energy that I
didn't know existed in an effort to create with originality and
efficiency. For example, I spent two weeks preparing a pattern,
looking for fabric and drawing sketches for a pea coat I was making
for Josh. I went the whole nine yards with this one. I started with
a basic pattern for a men's blazer, from which all other jacket
patterns can be made (with a little skill and a lot of knowledge
about the construction of clothing and the shape of the human body).
I then altered the pieces of the pattern in order to achieve a
different end result in terms of the style of jacket.
How does one turn a blazer into a pea coat?
Back up. What IS a pea coat? What is a blazer? Which pieces have
to be altered in order to make the necessary changes?
A pea coat is a double breasted style jacket, designed for sailors in
the British Navy during the Victorian era. Originally, it would have
only been found in navy blue, and would have been longer than the
typical styles we see in fashion today. The end result of Josh's
coat was going to include wrist belts, inseam pockets, epaulettes, a
partial waistband and an oversized collar. The colour we chose was
black, and the inner lining is the most wicked colour cream when it's
up against the black. The buttons are gold, it's just awesome. I
digress.
The pattern I had to start with was a blazer pattern, so what's a
blazer? The word blazer is used commonly to cover a lot of
variations of the same sort of jacket. It's single breasted,
usually has patch pockets, and vents and is usually seen as part of
a suit, or as a uniform item. The style became popular as a result
of it's use in school uniforms at establishments such as Oxford in
England, or Harvard in the United States.
In order to change this pattern into a completely different coat I
had to change almost everything. I shortened it, I straightened the
seams, took out the back vents and added the waistband, completely
changed the front panels from single breasted and symmetrical to
double breasted and entirely asymmetrical. Then I invented my own
collar and added the wrist belts, inseam pockets and epaulettes to
get exactly what I wanted.
When I got the fabric I cut it out, and then went into the sewing
room for eight straight hours to come out with a completely finished
coat. It's my most recent masterpiece, mostly because I was
surprised at how well the construction and creation of it actually
went. It reassured my confidence in myself as a seamstress. :)
Next up in my menswear line is a trench coat. I've got a couple of
dudes in mind for whom I'd like to make this trench coat, but if
you'd like it to be you because you always really wanted a trench
coat or something, than hit me up!! (Now, I'm talking like, Burberry
Brit style trench here, not like, scary oversized goth shit or
anything... fyi.)
One of Petey the Troll's trademark behaviours back in the day, was to
choose individuals we know, male and female, who have a look or a
style that we dig and that we think would fit our clothes. Then we
use that person as the inspiration for the garment we happen to be
working on and make it to their measurements as a prototype for the
finished collection. All I ask of these chosen individuals is that
they let me photograph them in the garment and use the pictures for
our website, this blog, promotion, portfolios, etc etc. If they
want to keep the garment afterwards, they could get it at the cost of
materials only instead of paying full price like everyone else! Get
it?
So if you're interested, or know someone who might be, email me! I
can't guarentee 100% that you'll be chosen, but at least I'll know
you're down.
You
can get me at vanessapetey@gmail.com
or on my Facebook if you happen to be a friend.
See you soon, thanks!!
