Potato Technology – Page 13

A satin hem. Rosalina of the Mario universe. A blanket that has been an heirloom for 50 years. Comfort at the final moments. These are ingredients that wove together my inspiration for this unusual dress design.

This was a project of perseverance. I initially wanted to make a long midi dress with a shirttail hem. It was supposed to have a button placket and straps instead of sleeves. The mockup was not pretty! I felt like a thick column of plaid, compared to the easy breezy girl walking the beach I had in my mind.

As a maker, what do you do when the pieces are already cut? There’s no going back. Especially if it is a self-drafted pattern, which it was. You have to sit with it and see the piece for what it has become. Accept that your choices led you to this destination and figure out how to keep moving forward. It’s just like life and how things that happen, good or bad, shape us into the people we are today.

Some days I feel like pattern pieces that don’t fit together, but other days those pieces I can see make something beautiful. It’s all about the perspective we see the world in. Mine comes from God’s word and so I know that God is working all things for the good of His Kingdom. (Romans 8:28)

Making the Best of Things

But how do I apply that to a failing project? I try to see each project as worthy of improvement. Instead of getting frustrated and quitting, I try to give the materials the respect to make the best possible garment out of what the fabric is providing. It was plaid, casual, and oh-so-cozy to the touch! Those are good qualities! So I tried it on again and tucked the skirt so that it hit around the knee- it looked pretty cute! I decided it was time I hacked it off. This part is always nerve-wracking but thankfully I cut it straight.

With the dress in two pieces, the bottom portion of the skirt no longer looked like a skirt. It featured that shirttail hem I mentioned before, which curved like a familiar shape. I realized if I turned them upside down they looked a lot like the curve of a sleeve! A lovely oversized bell sleeve that would insert easily into the already sewn shoulder straps. Perfect.

Looking whimsical already, and giving me Rosalina from Mario vibes, I went digging through my stash for a specific trim – satin blanket edge binding. Suddenly this uncertain design became a dress of nostalgia.

On my bed, since I was a little girl, I had a blanket with a satin edge binding. It was a blanket similar to my grandparents’ one on their bed through 52 years of marriage. When Papa was sick he had a small blanket with a satin blanket edge binding on his hospital bed. He kept it there through the isolation of lockdown. He gave it to me as he passed on, and it now lives in my trunk.

End of Project Wrap Up

This dress even in its upcycled state still had some fit issues that have kept me from wearing it like a closet staple, but this project reminded me that sometimes you got to make things that evoke emotions and memories. Things that make you happy! When I see that style of blanket on my bed I smile because it reminds me of the memories that have shaped me into the person I am today. I know that if they could see this dress my grandparents would be amused and that brightens my day.

In the future, I hope to re-make this dress with either a stretch fabric or a stretch cotton twill that will help with the shape. It slides off my shoulders so I may need to add a tie across the back, spanning the opening of my shoulder straps, or create a snap system that can attach to my undergarment. I think this dress could be fun in another print or maybe a solid. There are a lot of possibilities to explore!

As a kid, I used to sketch clothing. My friends and I imagined our own fashion brands and collected these sketches into booklets, like homemade catalogs dreaming of our Delia’s. We were obsessed with Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Sister Sister, Lizzie McGuire, Totally Spies, Destiny’s Child coordinated outfits, The Cheetah Girls, etc. If it had a fashion twist, we were lining up to consume it. We excitedly watched What Not To Wear, America’s Next Top Model, and Project Runway, hoping one day that we would be a fashion force to reckon with. I gravitated to the design side while my friends were more interested in modeling, stylist, and it-girl/influencer ideal. To be honest, I think that girl of 11 would not believe the garment that would solidify my feeling of a true designer would be a set of loungewear instead of an avant-garde gown.

My sewing plan for 2022 had been simple, make, make, and make some more. I scoured Joann’s clearance bins and drooled over Mood’s selection of prints itching to make something of a higher caliber than my previous tries. I had drafted my own coat, tried some vintage patterns, and successfully made lounge pants for my husband yet had struggled with fitting my own pants. I had dabbled in tops but didn’t understand shoulder seams or hoods. I was still quite green! But I needed some new pajamas and thought hey, let’s do this. So I dug out of my fabric stash this cheerful blue gingham in soft cotton shirting. It felt like being wrapped in a hug with a little drape. I was feeling cocky after sewing two vintage patterned dresses earlier in 2022 and thought, how hard could it be to make myself some pants. I figured out that 1940s pattern, I got this. And actually, it turned out to be one of my favorite early pieces!

This set was made of a pair of high-waisted drawstring pants with oversized balloon-style pants that tapered into a cuffed ankle. The matching crop top featured a generous hood and long sleeves with a boxy fit that just felt so relaxed and cool. With the hood up I felt like Princess Leia in her original white dress. The geometric pattern and unusual silhouette gave me the confidence to seek out my own style with sewing, not just be a vintage hobbity cottage-core girl that was so popular around this time. This helped me to remember to be playful with my designs and inspire the little girl who sketched clothes while she was supposed to be taking notes in class. It reminded me of the Cheetah Girls matching track-suits and avant-garde silhouettes I craved from street style.

What made this feel full circle was not just how good I felt in the garment, but the doors it opened up. My cousin’s daughter fell in love with the piece and wanted me to make her one. That was the first time I had made something that people wanted to buy. It felt incredible! But also taught me that the vision of what I dreamed of becoming, was not that far off from those designs I sketched as a kid. They weren’t show-pieces for a runway, they were real-life clothing that was playful and useful for living life in. I realized I do have a place in the fashion space even if I’m not in a fashion capital, running a brand. The world right now doesn’t need more ballgowns or high fashion editorial pieces, it needs functional clothing made locally and created with love for the people we love. I could be a fashion designer who could make humble pieces a little more special. That’s where Potato Technology became a tangible idea instead of a pipe dream.