Stylin' Stars
So, this years' Emmy Awards did not fare well in the ratings. But my kudos to stars who continue the tradition of style and class












Here's my pick for my top "stylin'" ladies, based on last week’s telecast and other than Heidi Klum:

1. Brooke Shields
She is one of my all-time favorite stars. I did not watch the red carpet entrance portion, but she certainly looked great when she presented an award. Coincidentally she was voted on one website also as #1





2. Jennifer Love Hewitt (love that dress!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)


3. Betty White
She's still adorable! I adored her on the Match Game (remember that groovy show?)




4. America Ferrare
Her award-winning smile says it all!





5. Terri Hatcher
She looked great in that banana-colored ruffled gown




6. Julia Louis-Drefuss




7. Christina Applegate


8. Vanessa Williams
She still looks wonderful after her Miss America days!



9. Sandra Oh


10. Mariska Hargitay
Jayne Mansfield's daughter is a class act in a lawful of order!






11. Jo Ann Worley
She's still sizzling and upbeat, especially in red!





12. Tina Fey (watch out Ms Palin!)


13. Susana Hoffs, former member of the Bangles rock/pop group
So her husband Jay Roach received his Emmys. It's her turn to return to the spotlight and rock and roll. She still looks great!


Stylin' Men:
1. Patrick Dempsey (Wow!)


2. Jeff Probst




3. Don Rickles (one-liners never go out of style!)

4. Lawrence Fishburne



5. Ryan Seacrest

6. Christian Slater






>
7. Ricky Gervais (he's so adorable and what a crack-up!)

8. Neil Patrick Harris
I’ll always remember him as the adorable Doogie Howser, MD.

9. Josh Groban (great talent, despite the disheveled hair!)

10. Tom Selleck
He is still looking good!

11. Bryan Cranston (first time I saw this guy before, I thought it was cool that he proudly introduced his wife, daughter, sister)



Other stars:


Laura Linney of John Adams


Glenn Close, Best actress in a drama series






Mr. and Mrs. Hanks


Nicolette on the runway


The Sheens

Dana Delaney and Felicity Huffman

Desperate Housewives desperately presenting awards



Eva Longoria a "gifted" actress

Marfy-ficial Intelligence



I just received this Italian import from the mail, and just had to make it right away (consider it a belated b'day present to myself). I needed a new challenge: my first Marfy! I already find Burda WOF directions, in general, to be cryptic and vague. Maybe after sewing a Marfy, I will see Burda WOF in a whole new light!


Scroll down for review of original version



First version with wild fabric



One of my inspirations for my second version:
Spiegel's ruffled collar blazer




This is my second version of this Marfy which I hereby name, my Sparfy jacket!
Sparfy = Spiegel+Marfy



Collar with flash lighting


Pattern Description
"This short, form-fitting jacket has an original collar set to the side and overstitched several times to create a flower petal effect. It has 3/4 sleeves and is closed with large buttons. Suggested fabric: shantung, crepe, satin, taffetas. Approximate fabric required 1.6 meters (1,40cm wide)"

Size
Pattern was precut to a size 46. Here's the Marfy's size chart

After not being happy with my first version due to being "under-fitted" to my form (I only liked the fabric), I decided that the pattern was not for me after all.

Then, the unexpected happen the following day. I found a draped ruffle blazer/jacket in one of my recent Spiegel catalogs while my mind was continuously hearing Steve Perry's amazing vocals on "Don't Stop Believing". I liked the simpler style of the Spiegel jacket, doing away with the princess seams. Then, nostalgia set in and I found Steve Perry performing with Journey in his glory days on youtube.com. Wow! For some unknown reason, I became inspired to give this pattern another try, but this time by redrafting every piece! Maybe, if he ever hears my heart-wrenching or "seam-ripping" story, he will return to Journey (the new lead singer is also extraordinary, but I prefer the original), miraculously get back his distinctively fabulous singing voice, and perform again. Imagine Stevey making a comeback and saying, "To all of you ladies, I dedicate this to you, 'Who's Sewing Now?'" Still I am trying to find the logic and relevance between an iconic 80's rock idol and sewing....

Modifications after the first version
*I used a navy double knit I purchased from Lucysfabrics.com. This fabric sewed like a dream! Yay no fray!
*Eliminated the princess seams and redrafted the front and back of blouse, while adding seam allowances


*Drafted the front facing using my new front piece

My new front facing piece.

*Raised the neckline 2"
*Extended the front edge 1"
*Drafted a back facing
*To prevent bulk, especially at the back of the neck, I omitted the overcollar.
*I folded the lower raw edge of the remaining collar and stitched a scant hem.
*Added 1" to the length
*Slip-stitched or hand stitched the hem after making a 1/8" little hem at the raw edge
*Added large circular op-art buttons, taking a cue from Michael Kors' current jackets with eyepoppingly large buttons.
*Added snap closures

Conclusion
I recommend this pattern if you like Marfy or want to try it for the first time, but beware of the exceedingly low neckline! From the look of top of the sleeves, Marfy probably intended for this jacket to have little shoulder pads, which I omitted. My amateur redraft of this pattern will serve as a basis for creating shirts/blouses with a tad more tweaking. I wish that I could be more ecstatic about my new jacket! But at least I can breathe better while wearing it!

Now, I know why I gave this pattern another try. Maybe subconsciously I imagined myself as a screaming fan wanting so much to redraft a new shirt for Steve Perry to replace that hideously wild yellow shirt he wore that time. I'll give him credit for the boleros and crop jackets which are still in style.

Some equations that I discovered:
Sparfy jacket = Spiegel-inspired + Marfy jacket
SParfy jacket = Steve Perry-inspired + Marfy jacket



I am still looking for the logic in this!


* *
Original unposted review

"Counter-fit" original

Pattern Description
"This short, form-fitting jacket has an original collar set to the side and overstitched several times to create a flower petal effect. It has 3/4 sleeves and is closed with large buttons. Suggested fabric: shantung, crepe, satin, taffetas. Approximate fabric required 1.6 meters (1,40cm wide)"

Size
Pattern was precut to a size 46. Here's the Marfy's size chart

Fabric
"Metro Retro Charmeuse - Black/Pink/Yellow" from Gorgeous Fabrics. It seems to have a poly/silk blend. I like the print and the texture, but sewing with it posed challenges. To prevent seams from further unravelling, I edgestitched them.




Favorite Features
* Princess seams in the front and back
* Ruffled neck collar
* Form fitting silhouette
* Pre-cut! Wow!
* Lettered seams
* I must confess, I like puzzles. I think of this project that requires some form of logic to make the pattern pieces fit!

Challenges
* No written directions. I only had the illustration that I printed from the McCall's website to refer to.
* Runs a bit snug
* Attaching the ruffled collar
* I experiened thread tension problems on two of the princess seams, hence leaving it with a slightly "ruched" effect. I gave up the option of re-doing for fear that I would ruin the fabtic.
* Missing back facing. I could not find one in the mailer. I figured out that the ruffles did not have a center seam, and I was debating whether or not to draft a back facing piece with each end to be attached to the ends of each collar piece.
* Getting the collar to drape as illustrated. Of course, the collar had difficulty draping due to being composed of an under, over collar, and fusible interfacing, which I should have skipped!
* Neckline came much lower than illustration
* Somewhat uncoooperative fabric
* Back armscye was large for the back sleeve cap. Operator error could be the culprit!


Directions
Marfy patterns do not have directions. If you have constructed shirts and/or jackets with princess seams, then you can use the order of construction with which you are familiar.

*I added a 5/8" seam allowance to each pattern piece. Marfy patterns do not include seam allownces.
*I cut out and ironed on fusible interfacing to the over and under collar pieces and the front facings
*I staystitched the front and back pieces at their princess seams.
*Sew side front to front (left and right)
*Sew center seam of back
*Sew side back to back (left and right)
*Sew shoulder seams. I stabilized them with a piece of bias.
*Sew side seams
*I sewed each under collar (ruffle type) piece to the over collar piece. Hmmm, somehow I had to trim a corner of an over collar that seemed unusually large. I attribute it to most likely cutting inacurately, forgetting a seam allowance somewhere?
*Topstitch the edges of the collar
*Attach left and right collars starting from the front edge and with each ending past the shoulder seam.
*Attach the front facings, tapering to the bottom rounded edge, prior to hemming the entire lower edge of the blouse
*Understitch the facings
*Finish the back neckline with bias trim
*Attach the buttons
*Ease the sleeve caps, sew sleeve seams, hem the sleeves.
*Baste and sew sleeves to the armscyes, paying attention to the include the finished edges of front facings coincide with the sleeve/armscye seams. I had to redo the sleeves due to the bunching caused by not pressing the edges of the front facings well enough.
*Hem the lower edge


Modifications
* Due to the somewhat delicate and ravelly nature of the fabric, I attached 5 button loops along the right front edge.
* Replaced 3 large buttons with 5 small hook-type buttons
* Took in the side seams below the armscye so that the sleeve cap could align a little better with the back of the armscye
* Added bias trim to finish the back neckline and the back ends of the over collar.

Conclusion
I recommend this pattern if you have experience in making shirts/jackets with princess seams. The construction is simple, but can be tricky and may be somewhat time consuming when done for the first time. My only reservations are the collar construction and the very low neckline (which can be remedied by wearing a camisole underneath).

If I do make this again with more time to spare, I would raise the neckline, draft a transition piece or a back facing to be attached to each front facing, and rework the sleeve cap and back armscye so that they better align with each other (strong possiblity that it is operator error.) I spent an inordinate amount time fussing over the slightly bulky collar with the front facing while dealing with ravelly nature of the fabric. It probably would have been handy to have a tube of fray block!

Despite some minor stalls and steep climbs, I still enjoyed my first Marfy roller coaster ride. Return visit? Maybe!




I like it better unbuttoned for a carefree look!

Playing with the Seam of Hearts

Finally, it's sewn!






My rating: Great pattern, but needs further modifications to better suit me.

The cut fabric from this pattern have been sitting around for exactly two weeks now! I thought I sew this before it becomes a UFO!




Pattern Description
"Graphic retro-prints on feminine garments are great fashion! This batiste blouse sports a peplum and short, puffed sleeves as well as true-to-style self-fabric button loops and pretty little buttons."

Sizes
Burda sizes 34-42. I sewed a "40". I could have gone down a size or reduce the seam allowances for a more fitted style. But it's better to be safe than sorry!

Fabric used
A stretch woven cotton from Gorgeous Things.

Favorite Features
*The hooped buttonholes
*The wide peplum that does not overwhelm or flare out so much
*The puffed sleeves with the banded bottom
*The front yoke
*No interfacing needed, but optional depending on the fabric


Other Features
*Bias finished neckline
*Underlap at left front for button
*Top gathered above peplum, giving a blouson or billowy look, which I have mixed feelings about.
*Not obvious in the technical drawing, is a peek-a-boo opening (a design feature which I prefer to skip)on the bottom front edge.


Pattern Pieces to Cut
Traced pieces
front, front facing, front yoke, front peplum, back (on a fold), back peplum (on a fold) and sleeve


Rectangular pieces with given lengths and widths that you measure and cut directly from fabric
left fastening underlap, bias strip, 2 bias binding strips for lower edges of sleeves and a bias strip for the neckline.


Directions
Surprisingly somewhat more detailed and understandable than the usual cryptic Burda WOF. However, throughout the entire construction process I used my "stop, think, re-read, and visualize" method before hitting the pedal! Things like finishing the edges of facings are not mentioned.

Hang on Loop-Y
The first step started with creating the button loops. If I have never created these before, I would have been lost from the start. I used 14" length of fabric instead of 12", still keeping the 1 1/4" or 3 cm width, to ensure that my loops accommodate my 5/8" diameter buttons. Instead of using a darning needle to turn the string of fabric right side out, I used a safety pin. Then I divided the length by 6, cutting 6 little tubes each having a length of 2 1/3". Wow, sewing and math certainly go hand in hand! Then I folded each piece into a "U" and attached the 6 "U"s to the wearer's right front edge, so that the raw edges of the "U"s lie along the edge and the "U" curve faces away from the center.





Here's the wearer's right front with button loops and the front facing attached over the front edge, right sides together.


The Underlap of Luxury
Then the next set of instructions pertained to attaching the wearer's left underlap and the front facings. After stopping and visualizing for some time about what I read in the bulleted section, it became clear to me.


Here's the left underlap with the front facing attached over it . The left underlap was made by rectangular piece sewn at the edges, right sides together and turned outward.




Here's the wearer's right side and left side of the blouse before I attached the yokes. As seen in the this photo and mentioned by Burda, the underlap will be shorter than the length of the front piece due to the seam allowance for the yoke and one for the front peplum.



Come Together
The next mentioned steps seemed straightforward (very much quoting what I read):
*attaching the front yokes to the fronts
*gathering the lower edges of the fronts between the asterisks and stitching the peplums to the front
*gathering the lower edge of the back between the asterisks, and *stitching the back peplum to the back of the blouse.
*stitch side seams and shoulder seams

Never Can Say Good Bias

Here's the finishing for the neckline created from fabric cut on a bias strip, folded lengthwise attached to the neckline and the front facing, turned outwards. After stitching the raw edges of the bias strip to the neckline, I turned the facing back in, turned the strip to the inside and stitched 3/8" from the edge


Hem the One Your Width
I hemmed the entire bottom edge of the blouse after folding out the facings, stitching to the desired length, trimming up to the stitching, and turning the facing back in.


Daydream Be-Sleever
Sleeve construction should be fine, especially if you have experience (ah, from any of the big 4 patterns) in setting-in sleeves gathered at the cap and binding the gathered lower edges with bias strips, with raw edges turned to the inside and topstitched.

Yes, this is typical Burda, "Gather sleeves and set in."


Modifications
* I added 1 1/2" to the length of the front and back pattern pieces. Ladies with longer torsos need to adjust accordingly.
* As mentioned earlier, I increased the length of the bias strip used to make button loops
* I slightly gathered lower edges of the yokes to ease onto the top edge of the front pieces of the blouse.


Conclusion
With the exception of the billowy characteristic above the peplum (which looks better on people who have longer torsos), I like the overall style and distinctive details of this top (button loops, front yoke, and puffed sleeves). If you have a copy of the August 2008 of Burda WOF, I would highly recommend sewing it! This style would hopefully work better for you than for me! If I make this top again, I would definitely omit the peplum, narrow the waistline, and lengthen the top to better suit my frame and figure.

This pattern has a nice overall design and is nicely drafted.