A Literary Sewing Circle Project: Plume Dress

Once again I've waited until the last minute to get my own project for the Literary Sewing Circle posted! This time it's not entirely due to procrastination however -- I was so close to done last week, and was planning to get it finished and posted on my week off work. But. Then I caught the flu. Ugh. So it was all I could do to finish this over the whole week; the rest of my planned projects didn't even get a look in.

Anyhow! This glorious bright dress is done, and the day was appropriately bright and sunny for photo taking. I chose to make the Plume Dress by Louis Antoinette Paris, who are incidentally one of our sponsors for the Literary Sewing Circle this time around. I didn't choose to make this dress because of that though, it just happened to be one of the two patterns I bought at the beginning of the challenge because I loved the designs. (The other is the Vogue Dress, which I'd like to make up soon as well!)

A breeze catches the skirt...

I used this quote from the novel as my inspiration for this dress:

We take a moment -- Antoinette and I -- standing side by side, shoulders touching, and peering through the window in to the rue de Douai. Matilde holds a feather, rose-colored and magnificent with long strands of the vane wafting in the breeze.... She stops, abrupt, a few steps short of Geneviève and holds out her find. She gives it the little nudge that makes Geneviève understand, and she reaches for the feather, those wispy tendrils of love offered by her sister as a gift. 

I mixed the name of this dress -- Plume -- with the French pattern company that just happens to have Antoinette in its name -- and this bright pink rayon print that has been in my stash for probably a year & a half or so, to come up with this project.

The fabric is very soft and pliable, and I did find that it stretched & frayed quite a bit, so I had to be slow and careful with this one. One of the features of this design is the piped belt which is attached to the dress. I had some plum colour piping that matched well, and I also found a pink invisible zip in my stash. So this was almost entirely stash made, though I did have to buy some hot pink thread to match.

Needed to press the back a bit more! The only flaw is that my shoulder yokes are slightly mismatched, argh!

The pattern is available in English, though sometimes the translations gave me pause. The instructions are clear but fairly basic; I think you do need some familiarity with sewing to successfully make this dress. I had a long head scratch over how to attach the sleeves, and finally just used the illustrations and fiddled around until something worked. Of course that might just have been because I was sewing with the flu...

One of the features of this dress: a topstitched front facing, and a pleat at the top of the shoulder

I was uncertain about how this was going to turn out when I was halfway through, but just persevered and finished it. And I'm so glad I did. It is such a pretty fabric and a more delicate style than I usually wear. I really like it! It's intended to be short, and because I am so very vertically challenged myself it's only above the knee on me -- but I still find it a little bit shorter than I like. Something to be aware of if you try it and don't like super short skirts yourself.  I'll have to get used to it once I start wearing all my summer clothes again! And that's it for another round of the Literary Sewing Circle for me.

If you've made something for this round of the Literary Sewing Circle, don't forget to post your link! Deadline is Sunday! But if you make something later on, just add a note and link in the comments and I can share from there -- I hope you enjoyed your read if you were reading along, and that you've had fun thinking about the projects you could make even if you didn't finish anything this time. There will be another opportunity this year, most likely another round starting in late summer/early fall.

Literary Sewing Circle: Interview with Cathy Marie Buchanan

This week we have a special feature: an interview with the author! Cathy Marie Buchanan is both a writer and a sewist, and has shared some of both of those worlds with us. Read on for more!

photo credit: Heather Pollock

1. Welcome Cathy, and thank you for taking the time to do this interview for the Literary Sewing Circle! Can you tell us a bit about how you came to write The Painted Girls? What was the genesis of the story?

Years ago, I happened on a television documentary called The Private Life of a Masterpiece: Little Dancer Aged Fourteen. I would learn Marie van Goethem, an impoverished student at the Paris Opéra Ballet School, had modelled for the famous Edgar Degas sculpture. I would also learn that on its unveiling back in 1881, the public linked Little Dancer with a life of vice and young girls for sale. She was called a “flower of the gutter” and her face was said to be “imprinted with the detestable promise of every vice.” Such notions were underpinned by a long history of often less than noble liaisons between the young dancers at the Paris Opéra Ballet and the wealthy male season ticket holders. The revelations flew in the face of my modern-day notions of ballet as a high-minded pursuit of privileged girls. I was fascinated and knew Marie’s story was one I wanted to tell.


2. The relationship of the sisters in The Painted Girls is so richly drawn. How did you approach the work of combining real people from history and your fictional story when creating these characters?

As one of four sisters, I have often found myself contemplating the mysteries of sisterhood, both the rivalries and the profound love.  I think it was inevitable my story would hold up a magnifying lens to sisterhood, that deliberate or not, a writer’s preoccupations quite naturally find their way onto the page.  In writing The Painted Girls, I stuck to the few known facts of the sisters’ lives—mostly demographic data recorded in the ballet school registrar and the limited details noted in the day’s press. That left plenty of room for imagination and, of course, my experience as a sister and an observer of sisters shaped the interactions between Marie and her sisters.


3. The details of the physical side of ballet are so believable in this story. Do you have personal experience, or do you just do a fantastic job of research?

I studied classical ballet quite seriously throughout high school, taught during the early years of university, and danced with a small regional company for a number of years. Yes, ballet is near and dear to my heart.


4. I know that you are also a sewist and have made some pretty fabulous outfits. Can you tell us a little more about your sewing life - how long have you sewn, and what are some of your favourite creations?

I learned to sew in high school Home Economics class, though I come from a line of sewists so there was always someone at home to advise (or critique). As a teenager, I sewed most of my clothes and designed plenty of them. I suppose my most accomplished projects are the wedding gowns I made for myself and my three sisters. For my own, I decided to copy a heavily beaded wedding gown from 1920s photograph.

Years later, when I tackled my first novel, The Day the Falls Stood Still, the old adage “write what you know” came into play, and I chose to make the book’s narrator, Bess, a dressmaker.  In that novel, same as I had, Bess spends long hours beading a 1920s era gown and certainly readers will find much of my experience on the page. Lately, beyond the two gowns I made for the Toronto Public Library’s Book Lovers’ Ball, my projects seem to consist of mending and home décor.

5. There are many threads woven in to this story for readers to explore. What do you hope readers will take away?

One the comments I often hear from readers is that The Painted Girls has shaped the way they view Edgar Degas’s artwork. I like the idea of my readers scrutinizing Little Dancer with new appreciation for the artist and model, and the social forces that informed the sculpture.


6. What are you working on now?

I’m in the final throes of editing another work of historical fiction, this time set in Iron Age Britain on the eve of Roman conquest. The as-yet-untitled novel tells the story of Smith, Devout and their daughter Hobble, who has the gift of prophesy and walks with a limp. With old customs dictating human sacrifice in times of great stress, anxiety mounts as the Romans draw closer to the family's remote settlement.

 

Thank you for sharing some of your writing and sewing journeys with us, Cathy! We hope you'll enjoy seeing the projects we make inspired by your writing. 

You can find more about Cathy here:

Website 

Twitter

Instagram 

Facebook

Literary Sewing Circle: Inspirations

Today's inspiration comes from the setting of The Painted Girls.

There are lots of great patterns that are either designed in France or that evoke France in many ways!

Let's start by exploring the offerings of our sponsors, all French pattern companies.

Louis Antoinette has many designs that could be made up in a lovely print such as this one, which comes as a kit with the perfect fabric & haberdashery included (and it's on sale). You'd have to add on the pattern for the Robe Lolita here.

Or you might want to go more 19th Century with a Gotham Cape to wear over your frocks on a cold Parisian night...

Orageuse has a modern, no-nonsense style that might represent a menswear element -- for example this high-necked view of the Prague Blouse in a lacy fabric plus the high-waisted Acacia Trousers and Amsterdam Blazer along with that very cute hat, makes for a very vintage inspired look.

And Deer & Doe offers up some choice dresses as well: the Centaurée Dress in its long view almost looks like something that might be worn on stage by dancers.

And their pretty Airelle Blouse could easily pass for a turn-of-the-century top if styled with a long skirt and button boots rather than bright short shorts!

You might find some ideas from other French pattern companies as well, like Ready to Sew -- their free Justine Skirt is a long front buttoned one that could have a shirtwaist added to it and instantly look quite 19th century!

Their Jolene Shirt Dress is also a vintage feeling one, less 50s retro, more turn of the century retro (I love it)

You could also check out English designer Tilly and the Buttons, as she has many patterns inspired by French style, even in the names she's chosen for them -- like the Coco Dress or the Francoise Dress -- and check out the styling of the new Nora Top pattern!

Maybe you'd just like to make some French style accessories, using this free tutorial for a stylin' French beret by Erika Bunker, on WeAllSew or this free head scarf pattern for the Brigitte Scarf from Tilly & the Buttons.

And if you want a whole lot of new ideas, try looking for this book: Home Sewn French Style by Amelie Morin-Fontaine for ideas ranging across France and from home decor to garments.

To find even more French pattern inspiration, you must explore this wonderful resource of French pattern designers compiled by Rachel of House of Pinheiro -- make sure you have enough time as there are tons of great links to explore. You've been warned!

Our next inspiration post will look more deeply into the characters for ideas about what to sew. Do you have any ideas yet? Share them in the comments!

Literary Sewing Circle: The Painted Girls

It's time for our first Literary Sewing Circle of 2019! I'm really thrilled to have both a wonderful Canadian book as our featured read, and new this edition, we have 3 amazing sponsors too!

I'm happy to announce that our group read for this round of the Literary Sewing Circle is

The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan

Summary:

Paris. 1878. Following their father’s sudden death, the van Goethem sisters find their lives upended. Without his wages, and with the small amount their laundress mother earns disappearing into the absinthe bottle, eviction from their lodgings seems imminent. With few options for work, Marie is dispatched to the Paris Opéra, where for a scant seventy francs a month, she will be trained to enter the famous ballet. Her older sister, Antoinette, finds work — and the love of a dangerous young man — as an extra in a stage adaptation of Émile Zola’s naturalist masterpiece L’Assommoir.

Marie throws herself into dance and is soon modelling in the studio of Edgar Degas, where her image will forever be immortalized as Little Dancer Aged Fourteen. Antoinette, meanwhile, descends lower and lower in society, and must make the choice between a life of honest labor and the more profitable avenues open to a young woman of the Parisian demimonde—that is, unless her love affair derails her completely.

(from Goodreads)

photo credit: Heather Pollock

About Cathy:

Cathy Marie Buchanan’s The Painted Girls is a #1 National Bestseller in Canada, a New York Times bestseller, and an NPR, Good Housekeeping and Goodreads Best Book of 2013. Her debut novel, The Day the Falls Stood Still, is a New York Times bestseller and a Barnes & Noble Recommends selection.

Her stories have appeared in many of Canada’s most respected literary journals, and she has received awards from the Toronto Arts Council, the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts. She holds a BSc (Honours Biochemistry) and an MBA from Western University. Born and raised in Niagara Falls, Ontario, she now resides in Toronto.

You can find out more about her at her website, cathymariebuchanan.com 

This book is available for purchase in both hard copy and ebook formats, as well as in audiobook format. 

You can find the ebook at:

Indigo.ca

Kobo.com

Amazon.ca

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com.au

Barnes & Noble

And the hard copy at:

Indigo.ca

Amazon.ca

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com.au

Barnes & Noble 

Biblio

ABE  Books

Book Depository 

Or, of course, check your local library!

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How does the Literary Sewing Circle work? We read a book together, discuss it, and then make something inspired by our reading. As long as you can point out what inspired you from your reading, even if just a sentence, you can share your makes in our final roundup!

Anyone can join, and you can sew, knit, quilt or embroider - any textile art that you like doing - to participate. This is a reading/sewing circle, very low-key; no competitions here, just reading and sewing for fun. Although we are very lucky to have some special sponsor offerings this time around -- the discounts are available for the first few weeks of the sewalong to anyone participating, and two of the finished projects will be chosen at random to receive one of the free pattern offerings. Just finish and post your project by the end of the linkup and you will have a chance to win.

There is no official sign-up to worry about; just start reading along if you wish, and leave your thoughts on the book or your project on any of the Literary Sewing Circle posts. We do have a dedicated book discussion post halfway through and again at the end, but leave your thoughts anytime. And when the final post goes up, so does the project linkup -- you can leave a link to your finished project there, whether it is on your blog, a pattern site, or even Instagram. It's easy :)

So, join in, and share!


Literary Sewing Circle Schedule

Jan 25 - Announcement & Introduction

Feb 1 - Inspiration post & featured sponsors

Feb 8 - Author interview 

Feb 15  - Halfway mark: book talk

Feb 22 - Inspiration post


March 1 - Final Post: book discussion wrap up & posting of project linkup

(The project linkup will be live until the end of March so you have enough time to get your project posted)

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AND NOW FOR OUR SPONSORS! 

Because this book takes place in Paris during the Belle Epoque, I reached out to some French pattern designers to see if they might be interested in sponsoring this round of the Literary Sewing Circle...and they were! Introducing our sponsors and their offers. 

Louis Antoinette is a Paris company with a very pretty aesthetic: 

many feminine dresses, blouses and tops to be found in their catalogue!

 They also offer sewing kits of fabric & pattern bundled together, and have an unusual option as well: you can order one of their designs and they'll make it for you! Check out their website for lots of details on all of these options, and you'll see lots of fun sewing accessories like bags and temporary tattoos on offer in addition to their large pattern catalogue. Their sizing seems to go to UK 18/US 16.

The Louis Antoinette "Vogue Dress" has caught my eye

Deer & Doe is a familiar name in sewing patterns! Run by two friends with an eye to environmentally friendly printed patterns and sizing up to a European 52 (XXL or US size 22) their pattern range has a variety of chic and pretty options. The Bluet and Bellandone dresses have been hits in the sewing community, and who hasn't made their free tshirt, the Plantain?

The Mysotis Dress is already a hit

Orageuse is a modern, urban sewing pattern company founded in 2016. It features minimalist, chic designs made to work together as a wardrobe. They have a few different collections on offer now, and they are very sleek designs often named after world cities. Their sizing goes up to a European 46, or US 18.

The Acacia Jumpsuit is one I've seen around the sewing community lately

The Offers:

If you're keen to get your hands on a French pattern, Louis Antoinette and Orageuse are offering 10% off their patterns during the first few weeks of the Literary Sewing Circle! 

Louis Antoinette has made their 10% discount available from 01/25 until 02/28. Use the code THREADS when you place your order.

Deer & Doe is also offering 10% from 01/25 to 02/14. Use the code LSC2019 when you place your order.

And there are prizes at the end too! 

If you submit a finished project to the linkup by the end of March, you will be eligible for a draw for a free pattern code from Louis Antoinette or  Orageuse. It will be a random draw from all finished, posted projects -- everyone who participates has an equal chance :)