Fancy Dress For Females

Hi! :)

So far I've made only some graphic shirts for my girls (female sims)

not because I don't like it but I don't have luck with it.

I did make some outfits before but they were so 'effing ugly'

and I highly doubt anyone will download if I release them.

But this time I managed to make something a lot nicer

than graphic shirt so I feel brave enough to share it. :P
I really hope you guys like it.
(Just so you know I'm a little nervous here)

Oh, I almost forget something... don't forget to download the mesh.
I didn't include it in the package since this is only a retexture.

The link is right below the download link.
Traelia from MTS who made the mesh so credit goes to her.
Thank you for your wonderful mesh, Traelia! :)

The texture are 50% done by me and the rest are from the original version.
I also edit the mask but it's still 3 Recolorable Parts, you can see it in the screenies.
And custom thumbnail, yes I made that... with a word FANCY on it.
(Oh, me love 'Fancy' stuff! :P)

Enjoy and Happy Simming, Guys!
Newone


FANCY DRESS

Young Adult & Adult
Everyday I Formal
3 Recolorable Parts
Top - Belt - Skirt


CLOSE UP

(Click on the pics to enlarge them)

FRONT PART

BACK PART

RECOLORS

CAS THUMBNAIL
Oh fancy! <3

+ DOWNLOAD +

Fancy Dress
Mesh
[MTS LINK]



Models by Me:

Alice
Scarlett

Custom Content I used:

Skin by 234jiao
Eyes by Escand
Brows and Blush
by Subaxi
Lipstick by Lemon Leaf
Eyeshadow by emmzx
Necklace by Anubis360
Eyeliner by Rosesims
Hair by Missbonbon
This one and This one

Credits:
Traelia for the mesh
CTU Team for the tool
All creators above for creating cool CC. Thankies!
Alice & Scarlett - My Beautiful Girls
(I love you two so much!)

Everything's Coming Up....

ROSES!

Yes, peeps, I made my decision and have opted to "say it with flowers."

Here's where things stand as of yesterday evening:



(I know it's not a track suit, Maggie, but let's be face it, I'd look pretty silly in a rose-print track suit.  A 1948 McCall's dress on the other hand...)

This dress has some interesting details I'd never tried before.  Rather than gathers at the shoulder and waist, the pattern calls for tucks, which are a little cleaner looking while creating a similar fullness.





Here's the pattern again, for those just coming in:



I think the simple lines of this dress will work with the fabric, or at least I hope they do.   It's a very literal print, if you know what I mean.  Roses.

Oh, before I forget:  McCall's patterns, back when they were known as McCall, are stunning: the pattern envelope has a high gloss, the pattern paper is beautiful and strong.  Highly recommended if you like vintage sewing.

For your entertainment, I was thinking Ethel Merman but stumbled upon this.  Watch out for falling petals!



TGIF, everybody!

SHOCKING -- Man Exposes His Pelagia on Peter's Blog!

Thank you, reader Rachael, for identifying the name of this Liberty of London print yesterday.

The shirt is finished, it fits, and Michael loves it.  What more can you ask for in life, really?





Of course, no sewing project would be complete without a little wabi-sabi and this one has its share.  Indulge my compulsive need to point out these endearing imperfections to you, dear readers; it's a personality defect.



Can you see how, on the (wearer's) left side, the collar stand juts out about 1/4 inch beyond the shirt front, when it should be perfectly flush with it?  Strike one up for carelessness. (I have done this before.)

And then there's this:



I caught the unraveling with Fray Check, but it's annoying.  In retrospect I should have used finer thread for the buttonhole and perhaps a finer needle as well.  I can clean this up by hand or perhaps one of you could take care of it for me.

I also need to shorten the back hem about an inch; an easy fix.

But you know, whatever.  It looks good on Michael and hopefully this will keep him satisfied for a few weeks and he'll stop asking me to sew him stuff. 



If you'd like to see more photos of this project and alternate views of Michael's Pelagia, click here.

As for shirtmaking, the best way to learn to make shirts is to make a lot of them.  For straight seams and accurate topstitching, nothing beats a straight-stitch sewing machine and I highly recommend picking up a vintage mechanical like a Singer Spartan or 99K (which is a Spartan with a light and originally some extra feet); or a 15-91 or 201 (Spartans and 99Ks can be found on eBay for less than $100 -- and should be; a fully accessorized 15-91 or 201 usually costs a bit more). They're great for everything and give you excellent control on garments that require a high level of stitching accuracy -- and don't they all?  (You can read my recent review of the Singer 15-91 here.)

And now on to my next project.  What should it be? The rose-print dress I've been talking about for months?  Jeans for me?  Curtains for the bedroom?

I am actually anxious to get back to my cheap fabric, peeps.  Liberty of London is swell, of course, but I feel most at home with a nice cotton-poly flat sheet from the Salvation Army.  There's something about the smell of those sheets under the iron that says home.

What would you like to see?

Care To Share Your Story?

I almost missed this one if I didn't check my MTS Downloads.

MissNuki posted her comment on To Bully Or Not To Bully? (or Ethan is Back on this blog) and she told me what the boys did in her game.
Here's her comment (No. 47)

I absolutely LOVE it! I laughed so hard when I read it specially when I saw the pic she showed me.
Here it is.

PAUL AND HIS LOVER

They were just having a good conversation, that's all.

Do you believe me? :P

[you can read it here]

I ADD MORE PICTURES


When the first time Paul met Steve
[you can read it here]

Steve Fox (Paul's spouse) and their son Boomer

[you can read it here]

Paul Romeo - Fox with his spouse Steve Fox and their son Boomer

[you can read it here]

Sneak Peek at Paul and Steve's son Boomer Fox in CAS
How he looks as young adult
[you can read it here]

You can see my other sims in her game and her art here

Thank you so much, MissNuki for the pics and your comment. It really made my day! :)

Now this is the most exciting part.
Alright, listen up!

If you use my sims for your picture/story/movie or you just play them in your game and you want to show them off here on this blog, you can leave your comment here or contact me through my email (use the contact button on top of this page)
Don't forget to add link to your site/blog and send me some of your pics (you can edit them first if you want)
And if it has adult content (nudity/vulgar language) don't forget to let me know before I post it here.

Don't worry if it's not written in English, that's what Google Translate is for, I will still post it here as long as you give me a short explanation (in English of course) of your story, movie, etc.

Let the FUN begin!
NewOne

Credit:
MissNuki for the pics

Give me Liberty!

Oh, the joys of sewing with luxury fabric!  I mean, sure, a Ralph Lauren bedsheet is nice, but Liberty of London is a whole other animal.

From the minute I started ironing it I knew this was something special: the iron glided along the fabric's smooth surface like Santa riding a Norelco razor.

I decided to use McCall's 6890 for Michael's shirt -- the same one I used to make my club-collared shirt last month.



So how's it going, you ask?  He likes it!



A few surprises.  When I stitched a sample with my polyester thread (and readers, shame on me: I've been using serger thread in my sewing machine for months now) I realized it was too thick and coarse for this project.  David Coffin recommends using fine cotton thread, so I hightailed it over to the notions store and picked up two cotton threads, one Gutermann and one Coats.



The Gutermann is on the right.  It's a little bit finer, so I ended up using that.



I cut this very carefully, due to the pattern, which is directional (i.e., there's a clear up and down).  And like a plaid, it also has to match side-to-side.

I'm proud of this button placket, which matches nicely.



Here's the collar:



I toyed with the idea of splitting the collar in two so the pattern would be perfectly symmetrical, but it reads fine; it's not like it's arrows or numbers that scream runs from left to right.  (Does that make sense?)

By day's end I'd sewn the collar on:



So I should have this finished later today with a final "reveal" tomorrow -- perhaps a glossy spread with Michael himself! 

I must thank Grace once again for sending me this beautiful fabric.  (Grace, Grace, Grace..., right?)  I bet a lot of you are sitting on some all-but-forgotten good stuff, huh?  (hint, hint)

OK, kids, time to put the pedal to the metal...or is it the other way around, I'm never sure.

Happy Wednesday everybody!

The Overbooked Sewist

You didn't think this was going to be about scheduling, did you?  I don't even own a calendar.

Kids, I have a problem.

Remember how I said long ago that "the way you do anything is the way you do everything?"

Well, the way I accumulate sewing books is the same way I pile on everything else in my life:  fast, and with abandon!  Let me remind you, I didn't own a single sewing book before June, 2009.  I now have a lot.  A lot.  

In no particular order, they are:

Creative Clothing Construction by Allyne Bane
The Vogue Sewing Book
Sew Everything Workshop by Diana Rupp
High-Fashion Sewing Secrets by Claire Shaeffer
Make Your Own Dress Patterns by Adele Margolis
How to Make Hats & Accessories by Vee Walker Powell
Serger Secrets
Singer Sewing Book
10-20-30 Minutes to Sew by Nancy Zieman
Encyclopedia of Sewing Machine Techniques by Bednar & Pugh-Gannon
How to Make Men's Clothes by Jane Rhinehart
The Perfect Fit (Singer)
How to Sew Fashion Knits (Singer)
Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing (2 editions)
Shirtmaking by David Coffin
How to Make Sewing Patterns by Donald H. McCunn
Sewing Magic! by Barbara Hellyer
McCall's Step-by-Step Sewing Book
Cool Couture by Kenneth King
Singer Sewing Essentials

Mind you, this does not include style or fashion books like Marsha Hunt's "The Way We Wore" or "Barbie Fashion Vol. 1."   Or stuff like this:





And I'm the same with patterns, sewing machines, and underwear.

Peeps, I think I'm going to be sick.

What's really scary is that yesterday I seriously considered purchasing this for a mere $90 on Amazon:

Luckily, my sanity kicked in before I could click "Proceed to Checkout."

Now in the spirit of full disclosure, I didn't actually purchase all of the above books (or underwear, for that matter).  Some were given to me and a few I found in the trash (including the wonderful Vogue book).  But still, how could anybody possibly need that many sewing books?   What invaluable secrets could they possibly contain?  If I continue to accumulate books at my current rate, I'll be living in their home by mid decade.  This is not good.

Loyal followers, lurkers, and enablers, I must thank you for the opportunity to inventory fully my sewing book collection here on Male Pattern Boldness.  And mind you, I am still finding books as I write this...I actually had two or three dusty tomes under my bed!  (Nothing calms me before bedtime like a page or two from "Serger Secrets.") 

Do you share this problem, friends?  Please tell me I am not alone.

Also, is there any title I'm missing that you recommend?

I must know!

Auckland show

Last week I flew out to New Zealand for a fashion show in Auckland. It was a very quick trip with lots of fittings and rehearsals so not much sleep was had but it was so fun to travel with a big bunch of my friends. We get booked on the same shows a lot of the time so it makes trips like this lots of fun!
We had to be at the airport at stupid o'clock (translation: around 4:30am) for our flight, this was followed by lots of duty free shopping of course! We landed in Auckland, dumped our bags at the hotel and spent the night in fittings and rehearsals. The following evening was the show so the afternoon was spent in hair and makeup with a quick run through backstage. The show went really well, I had a few issues with some misbehaving accessories, but it was fun! One outfit I wore in the show was a bra and matching satin pants with big white angel wings which were decorated with real flowers, ribbons and crystals! The wings smelled like a big bunch of flowers!!

Backstage with Christina Nouri

Backstage with Sarah Jane CoombeBackstage

The Return of Monday Nagging w/ GOALS

Happy Monday, everybody!  Did another week really go by?  Hard to believe but my calendar tells me yes.

So let's get to it:

If I learned anything last week, it's that the slip ain't goin' down without a fight.  Who knew this sometimes-silk, more-often-nylon-acetate garment had such a following?  Somebody on Seventh Avenue needs to wake up and pump these babies out again.

A brief summation of last week:

1.  I finished the purple 1937 Hollywood dress and entered it into the Pattern Review vintage sewing contest.  It's out of my hands.

2.  I bought a few new patterns -- please, no lectures.   I told you about this one:



Here's the latest:

The more I look at vintage Forties dresses, the more I realize there were like five popular styles.  These are two of them.  There is something about late-Thirties, early-Forties fashion I love and I can't quite put my finger on it.  Is it all those Barbara Stanwyck movies I watched as a kid?

Seriously, I think it's the simple, pared-down modesty of them (and I'm not talking body-coverage modesty).  They don't demand contorting the body -- a cinched-to-within-an-inch-of-its-life waistline or bullet bras.  They honor the human form rather than exaggerating it (well, yes, those shoulder pads...).  A future blog entry perhaps.

3.  I received the most wonderful gift from my friend amazing Grace.  It's three yards of a gorgeous Liberty of London print she has in her stash and I just love it.  I plan to make Michael a shirt out of it as the colors fit his palette perfectly.

Thank you again, Grace!

4.  I was a little troubled by how many of you are slicing your digits with rotary cutters and stitching buttonholes through the living room carpeting.  I'm trying not to lose any sleep over your chilling comments last Wednesday but I must suffer from overidentification or something. Remember: do not operate sewing machine while under the influence of anything more potent than your Mother-in-Law.

And now for the week to come:

1.  I want to sew the Liberty of London shirt for Michael I mentioned above.  This is the most expensive fabric I have ever sewn with -- well, expensive for Grace anyway-- and I will try to stay calm as I work with it.

2.  I still haven't sewn myself a pair of pants and I'm wondering if I ever intend to.  I'll be washing fabric today so maybe I'll prep something that could turn into trousers.  I may need a little help from the mice in the attic.

3.  I'm trying to get some clarity around where I want to go next with my sewing, if anywhere.  I mean, eventually Cathy is going to move on, and then where will I be?  I think I may need to start shopping for a muse.  What's Ann-Margret up to these days....?

But enough about me and my problems, how about you and yours?

Now I heard a lot of bellyaching over my decision last week not to nag you and, ever-sensitive to your needs, I have decided to re-ignite the flame of my inner nagster.  So....

Karin: Are you making your daughter a dress or not? uglycute: What are you sewing this week exactly? Kerry: Have you recovered and did you wear the "impractical spring green dress" yet?  Pics please.  AuntieAllyn: Did you finish the African print dress? Melanie: Have you started on your son's mushroom-print boxers?  Mae:  Did you decide between Vogue1182 and 1183?  The train's leaving the station, girl!  Maggie: Did you recover enough to start sewing?  Elle: Are you even OLD enough to be a MOB?  mom2five: So, the pants....?

OK, that's it for now, I'm exhausted.

Look, peeps, we can always find an excuse not to sew.  But frankly, if you've got a pulse, you can press that pedal.  And if you don't have a pulse, well...is your stash up for grabs?

......

OK, time to re-thread my serger!  (Ugh.)

What's on your plate this week?

(Remember: if it's perishable, refrigerate.)