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Custom Wedding Dress & Kimono Upcycled Clothes | オーダーメイドウェディングドレス&着物ドレス

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Making Wedding Dress Pt.6 – Ruching

August 29, 2011 By Chie

My friend told me that she wanted a wide waistband, that is a bit more decorative than just one of fashion fabric. We initially thought of ordering this handmade organza and rhinestone belt from an etsy seller, JML Jewel Design(which is full of very pretty items by the way!) But things did not work out with the timing and seller, so we decided on adding a fabric that is ruched on top of waist band.

This is how it looks like from the front. I cut a piece of fabric that is 1.5 longer in length than the waist band. Then I sewed a straight line with wide stitch length, gathered the fabric, and sewed it on the waist band in order to create this ruched look.


Inside looks like this. I stopped often to iron.


I’m so happy that the side seams matched up perfectly!

This is how it looks like after attaching the waist band. I put the pretty pearl choker on the dress form to motivate myself! I’m pretty happy with how the dress looks so far 🙂

By the way, I finally started watching Project Runway shows a couple of weeks ago. We (yes, Andy watches this show with me! He is a wonderful husband :p ) finished season 1, then skipped season 2, because I wanted to watch Alison Kelly from BurdaStyle in season 3. It is so inspiring to see all the designers tackle the challenges and sew in such a limited time!  As a side note, I think Heidi Klum looked amazing while she was pregnant!

Read my progress on sewing wedding dress! :

Part 1 – Fabric shopping
Part 2 – Muslin
Part 3 – Another Muslin
Part 4 – Cutting Fashion Fabric
Part 5 – Sewing the Bust Part

 

Filed Under: blog, blogs, bridal

Shop Update – Midriff Cut Out

August 26, 2011 By Chie

TGIF! I updated my shop with new dresses:) They are available in both white and powder blue. I really wanted to try incorporating a midriff cut out in my dress as I wrote here and here. I finally got to it this week and I love the result! I think the key hole is small enough to be  fun to wear but not overly revealing or embarrassing. I wanted to create a piece that’s unique but not trashy 🙂

It might be because I am making a wedding dress that I chose white for one of these dresses. I think this dress would be perfect for an engagement photos, or as a gateway dress!

I modified the pattern I drafted for sweet heart cut out dress. The sleeves and top back panel are modification of the Tara pattern from BurdaStyle. I think these flatter sleeves are super cute and fairy like. I adjusted the length of the sleeves so it sits better with the front top panel.

Top: Powder Blue Midriff Cut Out Dress, Bottom: White Blue Midriff Cut Out Dress

I also made the same dress in powder blue. I underlined the entire bodice, since this blue fabric is gauzy and light weight. I wanted to give a little more structure to the bodice. I am happy with the result of underlining. I am not crazy about the iron-on interface I have on stock. They are too paper-like and I didn’t want to use it for this dress.

Both dresses are fully lined because I was afraid of them being see-through.

I think these will be the last of my Summer dresses of the season. From next week, I’ll be transitioning into fall/winter clothes. I much prefer sewing light weight summer dresses, but Andy urged me to make fall/winter wear and I think he is wright. Any requests or suggestions on what I should make for the cooler weather?

Last but not least, I made two share buttons! If you are reading this from a reader, please hop over to my site and grab the button 🙂

Have a great weekend everyone!

xoxo

Filed Under: blog, blogs, creation, Etsy

Mommy’s Diary 18

August 25, 2011 By Chie

So, last week I wrote about my sadly significant hair loss since child birth. It seems that I am not the only one with this problem…Andy is fine but Kiko is loosing her hair along with me! She did not have much hair in the first place (I guess lot of white babies don’t, as oppose to Asian babies, who are born with a full head of hair!). She has lost hair such that her hair now makes a big M shape. The bald space on her head is getting more and more pronounced. I’m not sure if it’s because her head is growing, or she if is shedding like me. Anyone know?

You might be wondering why Kiko is dressed like a snowman in the pictures even though it’s a hot and humid August here in Japan. We had a surprisingly chilly few days last week. So I dressed her up in a cute jumper with tights, matching cardigan and hat. I bought these at a thrift store while I was in Philly last year. Back then I bought these thinking I was having a boy. I love being a mom of a baby girl, it is so much fun to dress her up like a doll :p

We started feeding Kiko rice porridge this week. We serve it to her once a day before her milk. I am feeding her about two table spoons of this mush. She takes it, but gives me this face as if to say “why are you feeding me such a terrible thing?!” Her facial expression is priceless!

I’m continually amazed by her growth. Something beyond her ability to do one day, becomes something she can easily do the next day. For example, she has an elephant mobile above her crib. She used to yell at the elephants getting frustrated because she couldn’t touch them and make them move like Andy and I are able to do for her. But overnight she became able to grab the elephants, rip them off the mobile ( the elephant heads are connected to a plastic pole with velcro tape), sing to them, then squeeze and lick them.

As of this week, she has really started enjoying her toys. Of all the toys, her favorite toy is a plastic bag though! I guess she likes the sound it makes when she crumples it.

As I write this I can remember just a few short months ago when I first brought Kiko home. A week or so after birth, I was driving and burst into tears. That day, Andy sent me out to the post office to ship some packages. While driving, I was listening to Usher’s “U Got it Bad” and all of a sudden I started to ball, the feeling was just so overwhelming…I can’t really describe it. I thought to myself, “I am caring for such a small, precious thing” I was (and continue to be) super worried because my mind filled with “what if” questions. What if I’m doing this wrong? What if something happens while Kiko is sleeping? What if she has SIDS and dies all of a sudden?

But as of the 17th of this month, four months have passed and I feel great everyday and have not balled uncontrollably since then. When I see “The Fatness” in the morning  feel that all is well. Of course I am always thinking whether I’m doing certain things right, but I guess that is is just part of motherhood. I’m really enjoying being a mom and can’t wait to bring even more “fatnesses” into the house!

Filed Under: blog, blogs, every day life

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大正から昭和初期、若い女性たちの間で流行した銘仙。 かすりの技法を用いた平織りの絹織物で、さらりと 大正から昭和初期、若い女性たちの間で流行した銘仙。

かすりの技法を用いた平織りの絹織物で、さらりとした軽い着心地と、鮮やかな色柄・大胆なデザインが特徴です。

境界がにじんだような風合いと、鮮やかで大胆な色使い🌈

独特のにじみは、たて糸とよこ糸をわずかにずらして織ることで生まれます。

自分の一枚を自由に楽しむために生まれた、女性たちの心意気そのもののような布。その大胆さをそのままに、クロップ丈のキャミソールとまとうラップパンツで、今の暮らしにも映える一枚へ仕立て直しました。

Photographer @capturetokyo
Model @yaos.aisai 
Make up and hair @mami_hmua

Meisen — the kimono fabric that swept through fashion among young women in 1912 to the early 1930s.

A plain-weave silk textured with a kasuri (ikat) technique, prized for its light, breezy feel and its bold colors and daring patterns.

That soft, blurred-edge quality comes together with vivid, fearless color combinations 🌈

The signature blur comes from weaving the warp and weft threads slightly offset from one another.

This fabric was born from women’s desire to wear something entirely their own — it carries their spirit of freedom in every thread. Keeping that same boldness intact, I’ve remade it into a cropped camisole and wrap pants that drape and move with you — a piece that fits naturally into everyday life today🧚

 #KimonoUpcycled #MeisenSilk #VintageJapan #着物リメイク #銘仙
和のかたちを、新しい日常へ。 一本の帯を丁寧にほどき、普段づかいできるワンショルダーバッグへと仕立 和のかたちを、新しい日常へ。

一本の帯を丁寧にほどき、普段づかいできるワンショルダーバッグへと仕立て直しました🌸

見た目からは想像できないほどの収容力。ハサミや糸、リッパー、ペンチ…制作道具もすっぽりまとまって収まります✂️✨入れるのは私だけだと思うけど😆

内側の裏地も可愛い♡

一本の帯が、誰かの日々をまとう相棒に生まれ変わりますように。

From tradition, into everyday life.

One obi, carefully unstitched and reborn as a one-shoulder bag for daily wear🌸

It holds far more than it looks — scissors, thread, a seam ripper, pliers… all my sewing tools tucked neatly inside✂️✨ Though I’m probably the only one who’d pack it like this😆

The lining inside is a little secret I’m quite fond of♡

#帯リメイク #着物リメイク #DIY #アップサイクル #制作動画
金色に輝く森は元は着物の羽織でした👘 漆黒の地に、金彩の木立が幾重にも連なって
夜の神秘的な森を歩 金色に輝く森は元は着物の羽織でした👘

漆黒の地に、金彩の木立が幾重にも連なって
夜の神秘的な森を歩いているような、静かで奥行きのある一枚🌳

水着の上に羽織れば、そのまま街へ歩き出せるビーチカバーアップにも。

お揃いのキャミソールは既に素敵なお客様の元にお嫁に行きました👰‍♀️
 
Photographer @capturetokyo
Model @kumabeeesan
Make up and hair @mami_hmua

A forest of gold, once a kimono jacket👘
L
ayer upon layer of gilded trees on jet-black silk. A quiet, deep piece, like walking through a mystical night forest🌳

Wear it over a swimsuit and go straight from the beach into the city as an effortless cover-up🖤

The matching camisole has already found its way to a wonderful new home👰‍♀️

#着物リメイク #ラップパンツ #kimonoremake
Furisode — the long-sleeved kimono young women tra Furisode — the long-sleeved kimono young women traditionally wear once in their lives, for their Coming of Age Day ceremony (Seijin Shiki) at 20 — often gets worn just that one time. I actually wore my cousin’s furisode for mine, so hers got a second life. But most don’t. They live for one single day, then disappear into the back of a drawer, unseen for decades 😴

But beautiful silk doesn’t have to end there.
From a once-in-a-lifetime ceremonial robe to something you can wear again and again. This piece — butterflies mid-flight, flowers in bloom — deserved a new season. So I remade it into an i line dress.

振袖は、生涯でたった一度しか袖を通さないことが多いです。

私自身は従姉妹の振袖を着たのでその振袖は二度人に着られたけど、成人式の日だけを生きて、あとはタンスの奥で眠り続ける😴誰にも見られないまま、何十年も。

でも良い生地には、終わりがないんです。

一度きりの晴れ着から、何度でもまとえる一着へ。蝶が舞い、花が咲くこの1着に、新しい季節を与えたくて、マーメイドラインのドレスに仕立て直しました。

#kimonoremake #振袖リメイク #upcycledsilk
オーストラリアからのお客様がオンラインで着物を選び、オーダーしてくださいました✂️ まずは仮縫いを オーストラリアからのお客様がオンラインで着物を選び、オーダーしてくださいました✂️

まずは仮縫いを郵送でお届けし、Zoomの画面越しに丈や身幅を確認しながら、少しずつドレスは形になっていきました。

桜の下で、鳥居の朱色の中で笑う二人の写真が届いたとき、 遠く離れた場所からでも、確かにこの手で紡いだものが誰かの人生の一部になったのだと感じて嬉しかったです♡

A customer from Australia chose her kimono online and placed an order✂️

I first mailed a mock-up, and little by little, checking the length and width over Zoom, the dress took shape.

When the photos arrived of the two of them smiling under the cherry blossoms, in the vermillion red of the torii gate — even from far away, I felt so happy knowing that something woven by my hands had truly become part of someone's life♡

📷@whoshotthephotographer
👰‍♀️@cscambary 

#KimonoUpcycled #MadeToOrder #BridalCouture
#着物リメイク #国際オーダー
このシルクの軽さ、暑い季節にちょうどいい🫠 一枚の着物から、ワイドパンツを作りました✂️薄手のシル このシルクの軽さ、暑い季節にちょうどいい🫠

一枚の着物から、ワイドパンツを作りました✂️薄手のシルクは風を通して、歩くたびに裾がふわりと揺れます♪

後ろ姿には、着物の袖だった部分を使っていてお尻の部分の花柄が上下逆さまになっています👻最初は迷ったけれど、これはこれで面白いなと思ってそのまま残しました🫶🏻

一点ものなので、この一本だけ。気になる方はプロフィールのリンクから見てみてください♡

This silk is so light, perfect for the hot season 🫠

I made these wide-leg pants from a kimono✂️ The thin silk lets the breeze through, and the hem sways softly with every step ♪

The back is made from what used to be the kimono sleeves, so the floral pattern on the hips ends up upside down👻 I wasn’t sure at first, but honestly it grew on me, so I left it as is 🫶🏻

One of a kind, just this one pair. If you’re curious, the link is in my profile ♡

#着物リメイク #kimonoremake #正絹 #一点もの #和柄 夏の装い ワイドパンツ
数年前に制作したシルクのドレス。 今回「Released. Reimagined.」というコンセプ 数年前に制作したシルクのドレス。

今回「Released. Reimagined.」というコンセプトに合わせて、@redyeingproject さんに黒染めをお願いしました。

Helen x Vivat Veritasのイベントにベンダーとして出展してくださったご縁から生まれたコラボレーションです。

「服を捨てる前に、黒染めという選択肢を。」
色あせた服を、グラム単位の染め直しで蘇らせる——そんなコンセプトに強く共感しました。

天然素材のシルクスカート部分は深く美しい黒へ。
シャンティレースの部分は、少し緑がかった表情のある色に変化しました。

一着を長く着続けるための、小さな選択。
Before / Afterの写真、ぜひご覧ください🩷🖤

A silk dress I made a few years ago.

For this ""Released. Reimagined."" concept, I asked @redyeingproject to dye it black.

This collaboration grew out of a connection made when he joined the Helen x Vivat Veritas event as a vendor.

""Before you throw it away, consider black dyeing.""
His concept — reviving faded clothes through by-the-gram redyeing — really resonated with me.

The silk skirt, a natural fiber, transformed into a deep, beautiful black.
The chantilly lace took on a subtly greenish tone.

A small choice, in service of wearing one piece for longer.
Take a look at the before/after photos🩷🖤

黒染め
@redyeingproject

Photographers
@nothing_special_88
@japanphotographer_

Model
@sienna.christinaaa

Jewelry
@viviange

Hair
@angh0
@sho_kanaida
@iam__little__boy

Make up and videos
@glam_by_jyoti

#黒染め #RedyeingProject #ReleasedReimagined #着物リメイク #サステナブルファッション
実はこのお洋服、今回のショーに入れるか自分では迷っていました。結構前に作った作品だったので。でもヘレ 実はこのお洋服、今回のショーに入れるか自分では迷っていました。結構前に作った作品だったので。でもヘレンと話す中で、これも一緒に見せようと決めました。

ヘレンと3週間近く一緒に準備を進める中で、コレクションの作り方、見る人を楽しませる魅せ方、ルック全体の組み立て方など、本当にたくさんのことを学びました。自分一人だったらこのルックスを入れる決断はしなかったと思う。誰かと一緒に作ることで見えてくるものがあるんだなと、改めて実感しました。
ヘレン、ありがとう♡

Honestly, I wasn't sure whether to include this piece in this show. It was something I'd made a while back. But talking it through with Helen, we decided to show it together after all.

Working with Helen for almost three weeks to prepare for the show, I learned so much — how to build a collection, how to style looks that engage an audience, how to put together a look as a whole. I don't think I would have made the decision to include this piece if I'd been on my own. Creating something together with someone else really opens your eyes to things you wouldn't see alone.

thank you Helen @designerhelen♡

Model @izumi_nishida

Photographer 
@nothing_special_88 

Jewelry
@viviange

Hair 
@angh0
@sho_kanaida
@iam__little__boy

Make up
@glam_by_jyoti

#KimonoUpcycled #SustainableFashion #DesignerCollab #着物リメイク #ものづくり
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