Scissor Sister: Sweet Dress Book - Coat dress W

Tucked away at the back of the designs in Yoshiko Tsukiori's Sweet Dress Book is the bell sleeve coat dress (pattern W). It's easily the loveliest garment in the book - a front buttoning A-line coat with fairytale sleeves. 

I found the perfect fabled frock coat fabric in this grey linen-look cotton printed with French dressmaking notions (including slightly sinister scissors) at C&H Fabrics in Chichester. They couldn't tell me who produced it and there is no name printed on the selvage but it's similar in design and texture to the Berlin Macaroon fabric I made a dress from last month.

I thought the coat dress would be more like outerwear if I lined it, so used a floral print Japanese cotton which reminds me of the wallpaper in BBC TV's Peaky Blinders and gives the finished coat a charmingly retro feel. 

The flower-print wooden buttons are from Etsy shop BerryNiceCrafts - well worth a look for button bargains (I've also got my eye on these and these).

The coat has one front patch pocket and by fluke I managed to line up the pattern exactly.

I'm not sure the photos really do the garment justice, it's such a beautiful thing in real life. I wore it to meet friends last week and they all gasped in excitement at the fabric and ever so feminine flounce of the sleeves! 

Sweet Dress Book is worth buying for this pattern alone but for added cuteness the book includes an almond cupcake recipe and several pictures of this lilac colourpoint cat.

 

Dressmaking by Numbers: Happy Homemade Sew Chic - Dress C

Yoshiko Tsukiori's Happy Homemade Sew Chic was top of my list of Japanese dressmaking books to buy next, so I was tickled pink when Tuttle Publishing sent me a review copy of it in English translation. Wow!

The book contains 20 typical Tsukiori designs to sew. It has the same format as her other dressmaking books (with trace-out paper patterns enclosed in an envelope at the back) but also includes a Basic Sewing Techniques section with clear photographs and instructions, as well as detailed diagrams showing you how to make a paper pattern. I'd say it's ideal for beginners and those new to Japanese sewing books.

I immediately fell in love with pattern C 'Dress with Front Tuck' – a simple A-line tunic with a single front pleat and patch pockets – and thought it would be the perfect pattern to showcase this Painting by Numbers deer print fabric (designed by Erin Michael) bought from Worthing's Eclectic Maker.

Happy Homemade suggests finishing the dress with a bias facing at the neckline and armholes but as my chosen fabric is quite thin (and creases easily) I decided to fully line it with a soft cotton material to give the garment extra body. The finished dress hangs beautifully and the cotton lining gives extra warmth making it substantial enough to see me through autumn, into winter and beyond! For step-by-step instructions on lining a sleeveless dress, you can't beat Blithe Stitches ace tutorial.

Once I'd drafted the pattern the dress was quick and simple to sew in an afternoon. There will definitely be more Happy Homemade dresses appearing in my wardrobe in coming months...

The Good, the Fab and the Snuggly: Stylish Dress Book 2 - Dress D

Design D: Box Dress with Boat Neck from Stylish Dress Book 2 is a contender for my favourite Japanese sewing pattern ever. I like it so much I've made three of these dresses (and counting). It's a simple slightly A-line t-shirt shaped tunic with useful front pockets. The underarm seam is curved and the finished garment is roomy and elegant. When I first saw a picture of it on the book's front cover I wanted to squeal with delight. It's rather Cos but you won't have to wait for one of their sales to afford it (or until next May if you've stopped buying clothes).

The dress takes a couple of hours to make and here it is in three different fabrics. The red one (above) a 'Super Java Print' Hollandis heavy cotton. I hung onto this material after parting with this ukulele tote bag and had enough for a tunic. The bold geometric yellow/blue print (below) is a wax print fine cotton from Worthing's Wednesday market. It's printed slightly off-register and so was reduced to £2 a metre. Intended as a beach cover-up, the finished frock is so spectacular I'll wear it everywhere.

The final blue longer-sleeved fleece version I made to wear when camping. I lengthened the sleeves and cut the neckline higher to keep me warm on a cool summer's evening. It's soft and snuggly and reminds me of a Cornish fisherman's smock.

Mood Indigo: Gather One-Piece

The Gather One-Piece is the second dress I've made from Yoshiko Tsukiori's Easy Cute Straight Stitch Sewing book. It's a very simple, straightforward make - in fact you probably don't really even need to draft a paper pattern (though I cautiously did) and could instead just mark the measurements out onto a piece of fabric. The dress is basically three rectangles of material, one for the body and sleeves which is folded over with a hole cut into it for your head, and two more rectangles to form the front and back. 

I made a neck facing instead of using a bias trim and added a practical front pocket but apart from that the design is just as it says in the book (or as I think it says - the written instructions are in Japanese). It seemed apt to use these two Japanese indigo cotton fabrics, one with a scalloped waves design and the other has a star grid pattern, both from The Eternal Maker in Chichester.

I'm really happy with how it turned out - another success from this book! It's made me less wary of buying other untranslated Japanese sewing books in the future, but there are several more garments I'm itching to make from this one first...

Dare to be Square: Easy Cute Straight Stitch Sewing

An image from Yoshiko Tsukiori's Easy, Cute, Straight Stitch Sewing appeared on my Pinterest home page. It was the cover photo of the book and exactly the sort of garment I love to wear - a roomy square shaped tunic with elbow length sleeves. Simply beautiful. I searched in vain for an English translation and realised I'd have to bite the bullet and order the book in Japanese, or these boxy garments would remain forever out of reach. Encouraged by the Japanese Sewing Books blog I thought I should be able to muddle through. I ordered a copy from Pompadour24's Craft Cafe Etsy shop and it arrived 11 days later in a cute package sent all the way from Japan.

The layout is similar to Tsukiori's Stylish Dress Book series with stylised photographs of an elfin model wearing the designs in the front half of the book followed by a simple list of instructions for each pattern with numbered diagrams at the back.

I decided to make the cover dress "square one-piece" and used inexpensive large checked blue gingham reckoning that this would be a less painful waste if I made a mess of it.

The illustrations were very easy to follow and to my amazement I drafted the pattern, cut and sewed the dress in two and a half hours. The only part I wasn't sure of was how to finish the neckline. The cutting diagram shows bias strips, so I think the neckline is probably meant to be finished with a bias binding. I wasn't too confident about this working out so drafted and cut a neck facing instead (which worked well). The dress pattern has two pockets which I think are meant to be stitched one on the front and one on the back. Instead I put both pockets on the front and cut one of them from a contrasting pink gingham for fun.

I'm wearing the dress today, it hangs beautifully and feels loose and airy to move around in - perfect for the current heatwave!

Twirling around in my new square one-piece in front of an imaginary Vogue photographer (camera set to self-timer, balanced on top of a biscuit tin on the ironing board as usual) the serious business of posing was interrupted by a mischievous child creeping up on me. 

July Butterfly Smock: Stylish Dress Book - Y (again)

A trip to Brighton's budget dressmaking emporium Fabric Land harvested this beautiful butterfly and bird print cotton. I chose a ditzy beige and pink floral to contrast, having Stylish Dress Book's smock dress Y in mind as the perfect garment for this fabric. 

I've made dresses using this sewing pattern a few times now (see my first effort here) and haven't had a result I'm unhappy with yet. Dress Y seems to work in all fabrics from lightweight gauzy cottons to a textured barkcloth as long as the contrasting material for the bodice panel trim is the same weight as fabric used for the body of the smock. 

At £3.69 a metre for both gorgeous printed cottons, the dress cost £11 and took me just under three hours to make. I plan to wear it to waft into my daughter's infant school leavers' concert on Thursday.

The Curtain Coat: Stylish Dress Book 2 - pattern X

Two weeks into my not buying clothes for a year challenge and Volume 2 of the Japanese home sewing guide Stylish Dress Book: Simple Smocks, Dresses and Tops is providing a welcome distraction from thoughts of shopping. 

I've had two large Peter Hall 'Candida' screen printed cotton curtains in my collection of vintage fabrics for some time. This ornate material was originally printed in five different colourways (I have the brown and orange versions but am keeping my eyes peeled for the green, blue and red). I've made ukulele gig bags from this fabric already but saved some large pieces intending to make something for myself out of it one day.

Stylish Dress Book's coat dress pattern seemed perfect. I used the orange Candida print fabric for the front and back yoke and cut the body and sleeves from the autumnal brown piece. Something went wrong in my drafting of the sleeve pattern and the first sleeve came up very small. I retraced and recut the piece adding extra width to the sleeve head which I then gathered to fit the arm hole.

I love the finished result and can't describe how wonderful it feels to be clothed in this elaborate fabric. In my rich and interesting fantasy life I'd be wearing the coat to the opening of Saloua Raouda Choucair's Tate Modern exhibition as part of Shubbak Festival, but as my hectic schedule routine doesn't allow, instead I'll be wearing it to cycle along Worthing seafront, pop into Morrisons supermarket and then collect my daughter from school. If you see me out and about in this fantastic coat, do wave and say hello!

Spring sewing: Stylish Dress Book – Dress Y

Call me an optimist but after the coldest British winter for 50 years (allegedly) I do believe that spring is finally on its way. The budding plants in my garden seem to think so too and young seagulls are cawing outside my bedroom window at dawn.

Turning once again to Japanese dressmaking manual Stylish Dress Book, I continue my mission to sew myself a new spring wardrobe. Dress Y is an elegant smock with contrast neck trim and hem. I used Naito Shoji's Lille Skip Forest Blue printed cotton (having made this dress for my daughter in Forest Green earlier). For the contrast I used a yellow cotton fabric with a bold stem/flower design, rescued from a tunic I made last year that didn't quite work – the material looks much better as a trim.

As with previous Stylish Dress Book efforts this garment has turned out beautifully and feels light and airy to wear. Until spring properly arrives I'll be wearing it with a long sleeved top underneath because I love the dress too much to wait for warmer weather.

Couture and Biscuits: The Stylish Dress Book

Browsing the blogosphere I chanced upon Karyn Valino's Make Something site and her review of Japanese dress books. I'd not come across these before so was thrilled to read about the existence of books full of sewing patterns for simple, chic garments I'd love to wear. Inspired by Karyn's blog I tracked down an English translated edition of Yoshiko Tsukiori's Stylish Dress Book: Wear With Freedom. The book cost just under £12 and with 26 sewing patterns included it's incredibly good value for money, especially compared to the cost of individual sewing patterns (in the UK you can expect to pay between £5.00 and £15.00 per pattern).

Stylish Dress Book: Wear With Freedom (volume 1 in this series) is a beautiful object in itself with high production values. It contains gorgeous photographs of all the garments worn by an ethereal young woman looking by turns thoughtful, worried, frail, then a little happier holding a plate of biscuits*, followed by a numbered list of instructions for each pattern with clear step-by-step illustrations. At the back of the book is an envelope containing three folded large double sided pattern sheets. At first glance these were intimidating but with good light, tracing paper, pencil, ruler and concentration the patterns are straightforward to trace out – just don't forget to add your seam allowances afterwards!

I decided on pattern T (a pretty smock) and found drafting the pattern, cutting and making up my first dress from the book actually easier than following many other commercial sewing patterns which often have baffling instructions. The simple numbered list and diagrams were a pleasure to follow. I used a recently purchased piece of fabric called Red Folklore from the Isso Ecco & Heart collection by Lecien Japan. It's a cotton/hemp blend printed with apples, birds and plants in vivid, bold colours. For the contrast neck and sleeve trim I used a favourite piece of lime green/hot pink spotted cotton by Michael Miller. 

It's a colourful dress and I'm so pleased with the shape and loose fitting style - my ideal kind of garment! Three other Stylish Dress Books are lined up for UK publication this year: Simple Smocks, Dresses and Tops is out on 6th May, 23 Stylish Outfits from 6 Simple Patterns on 5th August and Daily Use Dresses, Blouses and Pants on 3rd September. I've a feeling I'm going to buy them all but in the meantime have already started drafting a second dress from volume 1...

*The biscuit recipe is also included in the book!

Mad about Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Kusama's Tate Modern show is my worst nightmare. The most disturbing childhood dream I remember is one where I had to count hundreds of red dots burning on a black background. The background changed to red and the dots became black and I still could not count them. They moved and multiplied and as soon as I started counting more would appear until I knew there were too many to count. Terrified at the impossible ordeal and the spotty vision I screamed myself awake. I've never forgotten the terror of those dots and was confronted with them again looking at Kusama's 1952 painting Parting. It is a visual record of my vivid dream.                             

     Kusama's art touches me. It's familiar, funny and terrifying. Her work famously depicts her history of psychosis, her crazed visions and oppressive hallucinations, but I found it also described my own neuroses. I wonder how many other people in the gallery that day also had a fear of numerous spots? Perhaps it's common.

Yayoi Kusama Walking In My Mind, Hayward Gallery 2009

She is a prolific artist, an original whose work has influenced many others. It's well documented that Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg, Lucas Samaras and Yoko Ono were inspired by her and I can see her ideas in a wide range of contemporary art (Michael Brennand-Wood's lace constructions, Tony Cragg's sculptures, Leigh Bowery's performance art, Anthony Gormley's Asian Field, Damien Hirst's spot paintings).

     I loved the exuberance of her Happenings and her zany fashion range. I was stunned by the complexity and detail in her many paintings, then found myself wanting to lie down on the sofa and fall asleep in the oddly relaxing fluorescent stickered I'm Here But Nothing room.

     I'm already planning my next trip to London to see the show again.   

Yayoi Kusama is on at Tate Modern until 5th June 2012. 
Infinity Net: The Autobiography of Yayoi Kusama is published by Tate Publishing.