Moja venčanica / My wedding dress

Dragi čitaoci, desio se i taj dan! Uz sve trzavice i odlaganje, D. i ja se venčasmo. Bilo je zaista lepo, mada moram priznati da sam imala tremu i da se nekih detalja sa venčanja uopšte ne sećam. Uzbuđenje je učinilo svoje. 

Dear readers, it happened! With all the troubles and delays, D. and I got married. It was really nice, though I have to admit I was quite nervous, and can't remember some details from the wedding. The thrill did its thing.

Već sam vam ranije pisala o svom stavu prema venčanicama, tako da se neću ponavljati. Haljina koju sam nosila je bila, pre svega, jednostavna. Koristila sam kroj iz italijanskog časopisa La Mia Boutique 7/1997, #16. Za ovaj kroj sam posebno vezana jer sam isti šila pre dosta godina, još dok sam bila gimnazijalka, i u to vreme je ta haljina bila nešto najlepše što sam napravila. Kada mi je haljina postala tesna, dugo sam je držala u ormanu, nadajući se da ću je jednog dana ponovo nositi. Međutim, to se nije desilo (a sada mi je drago zbog toga - ranije sam bila premršava!), pa sam haljinu teška srca poklonila nekome ko je mogao da je obuče. No, ja od onda maštam o novoj verziji iste haljine. Tačnije, napravila sam u međuvremenu još jednu haljinu po istom kroju, ali sam koristila lan sa dezenom, koji je potpuno progutao kroj, pa haljina nije bila ni blizu efektna kao njena prethodnica. Pre koju godinu našla sam prelep beli pamuk sa zanimljivim vezom, koji je bio idealan baš za ovaj kroj. Kupila sam ga bez mnogo dileme, ali je tkanina stajala dugo u ormanu, jer nisam našla adekvatnu priliku za haljinu koja ima golišava leđa. 

I wrote about my thoughts on wedding dresses, so I won't repeat myself. The dress I wore was, among all, a very simple one. I used a pattern from the Italian magazine La Mia Boutique 7/1997, #16. I am attached to this model because I sewed the same pattern a long time ago, while I was at high school. At the time it was the prettiest garment I'd made. When the dress became too tight to wear it, I kept it in a closet for a long time, hoping I would wear it again some day. However, that never happened (now I'm glad about that now - I was too skinny before!), so I gave away the dress to someone who could wear it, but I was heartbroken. Ever since I've been thinking of remaking the dress. Actually, I sewed another dress meanwhile, using a patterned linen, which swallowed the pattern lines and the dress turned out as a pale variation of the original. A few years ago I bought a gorgeous white embroidered cotton that was perfect for the pattern. However, the fabric stayed in my stash for a long time, since I couldn't find the right occasion to wear a dress with (half) naked back.

Unapred se izvinjavan što slike nisu najbolje - verujte mi da nisam mnogo razmišljala o tome kako ću pisati članak na blogu, i da li će slike adekvatno ilustrovati sve detalje haljine. Originalan kroj sam blago izmenila - skratila sam suknju do dužine blago ispod kolena. Osim toga, morala sam malo da izmenim izrez oko vrata, jer mi je stajao previsoko. Haljina je izuzetno udobna, što je jako bitno ako morate u njoj da provedete ceo dan. Kompletno je postavljena tankim belim pamukom, kako se ne bi providila.

I apologize for the not so good pictures -at the time I didn't think of the blog and posting nor of whether the pictures would show all the details. I slightly altered the original pattern - I shortened the skirt slightly bellow my knees. Also, I had to reshape the neckline, since it seat to high. The dress is extremely comfortable, which is important if you have to spend a whole day wearing it. It is completely lined with a thin white cotton.

I evo par snimaka s leđa, gde se krije iznenađenje - otvor na lumbalnom delu. Svi su bili prilično iznenađeni ovim detaljem, jer haljina spreda izgleda prilično konzervativno. Ali, to je trik koji me posebno oduševljava kod haljine, i što ubija monotoniju, a da pri tom ništa nije preterano.

Here are a few photos of the back, where a surprise was - a hole on a lower back. Everybody was quite surprised by this detail, since the dress looked rather conservative from the front. But that was the trick that fascinated me on this dress - it killed the monotony, while not revealing too much.

Na žalost, na slikama se ne vidi detalj koji sam izvezla providnim perlama. Koristila sam konturu vezenog motiva, i popunila ga perlicama, da dodam haljini malo glamurozniju notu. Detalj se nalazi napred, iznad desnog kolena.

Unfortunately, you can't see on the photos a detail that I embroidered with glass beads. I used a contour of the embroidered motif, and beaded it with pearls, to give the dress a glamorous note. The detail is positioned on front, above the right knee.

Uz haljinu sam nosila laneni blejzer u koralno crvenoj boji, koji se slaže sa cipelama. Dan je bio prilično sunčan i topao, pa sam jaknu ubrzo skinula, a ovo je najbolja fotografija koju imam da vam pokažem. Zato ću napraviti poseban post o njoj, kao i o kompletu koji sam šila za mamu.

I wore a coral red jacket with the dress, and which matches my shoes. The day was rather sunny and warm, so I took off the jacket, and this is the best photo I can show you. Therefore, I'll write a separate post about it, as well about the suit I made for my mom.

Štepalica na Facebook-u i Pinterest-u / Štepalica on Facebook and Pinterest

Dragi čitaoci, sada možete pratiti Štepalicu i preko Facebook stranice, kao i preko Pinterest-a. 

Do skoro sam na Facebook-u imala otvorenu grupu Štepalica, u kojoj sam objavljlivala novosti samo na srpskom jeziku. Međutim, kako blog vodim na dva jezika, pomislih da bi bilo lepše da i na Facebook-u možete da ne pratite, odakle god da ste. 

Na Pinterest nalog ću postavljati slike koje me inspirišu da šijem i stvari koje mi oduzimaju dah.

Dobrodošli ste da svratite!

Dear readers, you can follow Stepalica via Facebook page and Pinterest now.

I had a Facebook group named Štepalica until recently, where I published blog news only in Serbian. As you know I keep my blog bilingual, so I thought it would be nicer if you could followed me on Facebook no matter where you were from.

I'll post to Pinterest pictures that inspire me to sew.

You're welcome to drop by!

Jedna za mog dragog / One for my baby

U prethodnom postu sam pomenula da sam se oprobala u šivenju muške garderobe. Tačnije, sašila sam košulju za svog muža (hm... tehnički gledano, još uvek mi je dečko, ali ja bih ga pre nazvala muž; uostalom, samo par dana nas deli od te tehnikalije). Ranije nisam imala priliku da šijem mušku garderobu. Zapravo jesam imala priliku, ali sam je uspešno izbegavala – tata me je više puta pitao kada ću njemu da sašijem košulju, ali sam se uvek pravdala da šivenje muške i ženske garderobe nije isto. Ne, nije isto, ali realno gledano, konstrukcija muške košulje se tek neznatno razlikuje u konstrukcije ženske bluze. Bila sam sebična, i ne stidim se toga! Verujem da će me mnogi od vas razumeti kada kažem da šivenje za druge ljude najčešće nije ni malo zanimljivo. Ovaj put sam napravila ustupak, jer sam želela da poklonim D. nešto što je veoma intimno i lično, a da istovremeno bude i veoma praktično. Garderoba je uvek praktična, a još ako je sami napravite, onda to i te kako spada u kategoriju intimnog i ličnog. U svakom slučaju, on se nije bunio, i nije mu bila nezamisliva ideja da nosi košulju iz domaće radinosti, tako da sam imala idealne uslove. Na sve to, moram da se pohvalim da je D. prilično zahvalan za saradnju – nije imao neke posebne zahteve, bio je pun poverenja da ću ja to uraditi besprekorno dobro, i nije tražio ni jednu prepravku, čak ni kada sam ja predlagala da ispravimo neke detalje koji nisu ispali savršeni. Milina!

I mentioned in the previous post I tried sewing men’s clothes. More precisely, I made a shirt for my husband (hm… technically, he’s still my boyfriend, but I prefer calling him hubby; after all it’s just a minor technicality that will change in a few days). I haven’t had an opportunity to sew men’s clothes before. Well, actually, I did have an opportunity, but I avoided it well – my dad asked me several times to make him a shirt, and I always excused myself, explaining that sewing men’s and women’s clothes weren’t the same thing. Well, it’s not the same thing, but to be honest, construction of a men’s shirt isn’t all that different from a construction of a women’s blouse. I was selfish, and I am not ashamed! I believe many of you will understand me when I say that sewing for others isn’t fun at all. I made an exception this time because I wanted to give a present to D., something that would be intimate and personal, yet practical. Well, wardrobe is always practical, and when you make it yourself it becomes intimate and personal. Anyways, he had nothing against it, and he was OK with the idea of wearing something that was home - made, so I had ideal conditions. I also have to point out that D. was very cooperative – he didn’t have any special demands, he believed I would sew the shirt perfectly, and he didn’t ask for any alterations, not even when I suggested fixing some details that didn’t turn out perfect. Such a joy!

Odabrali smo model iz Burde 10/2005, #133. Imala sam par dilema pre samog šivenja:

                        

We chose a model from BWOF 10/2005, #133. I did have a few doubts before I started sewing:

•  Veličina kroja – ispostavilo se da Burda daje muške krojeve do veličine 54. Sledeća veličina, 56 - koja odgovara D. nije ni odštampana na krojnom listu. Ovaj problem ima relativno jednostavno rešenje, koje zahteva malo vremena i strpljenja. Ukoliko ispred sebe imate kroj koji je dat u više veličina, sigurno ste primetili da su veličine štampane kao paralelne linije i krive sa ravnomernim razmacima, koje se tek ponegde ukrštaju. Na takvom krojnom listu možete lako docrtati veću ili manju veličinu, prateći konture štampanog kroja i razmake između dve susedne veličine. Ja sam počinjala uvek od ćoškova kroja, određivala položaj tačaka u njima, i zatim crtala konture nove veličine. Crtala sam direktno na krojnom listu – veličina više mi nikad neće zasmetati, a ko zna, možda mi još koji put zatreba.
  
  
  Size of the pattern – it turned out Burda’s largest pattern was size 54. The next size that suited D. wasn’t even printed on a pattern sheet. Well this problem has a relatively simple solution, that asks for some time and patience. If you have a multi sized pattern, you must have noticed that different sizes were printed as equidistant parallel lines and curves that cross each other at some points. On this kind of pattern sheet you can easily draw a bigger or smaller size, by following contours of the printed pattern and distances between two neighboring sizes. I started from the pattern’s corners, defined their positions and then draw contours of the new size. I drew directly on the pattern sheet .
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ·         I opet, veličina kroja  - D. je prilično visok i krupan (visok je skoro 2m), a standardna visina za muškarce prema Burdinim merama je 186cm, pa je bilo neophodno produžiti prsluk i rukave kroja kako bi se dobila adekvatna veličina. Prsluk sam produžila za 3 cm – po 1.5cm u visini grudi i struka; rukave sam takođe produžila za 3 cm, ali mislim da je trebalo da rukavi budu kraći, tako da ću sledeći put oduzeti 1.5 cm od dužine rukava. Dodatno, poređenjem sa kupljenim košuljama koje D. ima, shvatila sam da bi bilo zgodno proširiti kroj na leđima za po 1 cm sa svake strane, kao i dodati falte na zadnjem delu, koje originalan kroj nije imao. Ispostavilo se da poslednja izmena nije nužno neophodna, ali košulja i sa njima lepo izgleda.
  
  Once again – size of the pattern. D. is quite tall (almost 2m tall), and standard men’s height according to Burda is 186cm, so I needed to lenghten body and sleeves of the pattern to get an adequate size. I lengthened the body by 3cm – 1.5cm on each chest and waist; the sleeves were lenthened also by 3cm, but I think they might have benn shorter, so I’ll reduce 1.5cm from the sleeve length the next time I sew a shirt to D. Additionaly, I compared the pattern to a RTW shirt and then made the back wider by 1cm on each side; I also added back pleats, that the original pattern didn’t have. It turned out the last alteration wasn’t necessary, however the shirt looked good even with these changes.
  
  
  
  
  
  ·         Ojačanje kragne – sigurno ste primetili da su kragne na muškim košuljama mnogo čvršće i kuće nego na ženskim košuljama. Kvalitetnije košulje često imaju i fišbajne koje dodatno fiksiraju spiceve na kragni i drže im formu. Morala sam da nađem načina da ojačam kragnu, znajući da mi standardno lepljivo platno neće biti dovoljno. Ovaj problem sam rešila platnom pod nazivom angin (kod nas se najčešće koristi za šivenje jastuka). Dakle, iskrojila sam jedan sloj kragne od angina bez dodataka za šavove. Angin sam umetnula u kragnu, između dva sloja od originalnog platna, što je kragni dalo dovoljnu čvrstinu i formu. 
  
  Collar enforcement – you must have noticed that collars on men’s shirts are much stiffer and sturdier than collars on women’s shirts. The shirts of a good quality even have boning built into the collars that keep their form. I needed to find a way to enforce the collar, knowing that classic fusible interfacing wouldn’t be enough. I solved the problem by using a very stiff cotton  (I don't know how it is called in English, it is usually used for sewing pillows). So, I cut a single layer of collar in this fabric with no SAs. I sandwiched the cotton between two layers of fashion fabric, which gave the collar nice form and sturdiness.
  
  
  ·       Šlic na rukavu – do sada nisam imala prilike da šlic na rukavu obradim onako kako se to radi na muškim košuljama. No, pratila sam tutorijale po internetu i zaključila da ovo ne bi trebalo da bude prevelik problem, tako da sam hrabro krenula u šivenje. Zaista, nije nikakav problem sašiti lep i uredan šlic.
  
  A sleeve slit - so far, I haven't sewn a sleeve slit the way it's done on men's shirt. But, I read a lot of tutorials on the internet and figured it wouldn't be that hard to do it. And really, it's quite easy to sew a nice, neat sleeve slit.

I tako se D. našao u ovom postu, iako nisam imala nameru da ga delim sa vama :). On je zadovoljan, juče je ponosno nosio novu košulju, a ja sam cvrkutala dok se hvalio kako sam je ja napravila. Već sam iskrojila materijal za još jednu, a pride smo nakupovali još nekoliko materijala za košulje, tako da već nazirem da će D. postati redovan maneken Štepalice (što mu ne pada teško, jer se kao mlađi bavio manekenstvom; baš znam da odaberem muškarca!).

And that's how D. appeared in this post, even tough I had no intention to share him with you :). He's pleased, he wore proudly his new shirt yesterday, and I was shining while he bragged around that I had made the shirt. I already cut the fabric for another shirt, and we bought few more shirt fabrics, so I can tell D. will become a regular model of Stepalica (this won't be a problem to him, since he used to be a model when he was younger; I know how to pick a guy!).

Sivo - žuta haljina / A gray and yellow dress

Dragi čitaoci, hvala vam mnogo na rečima podrške i željama da se brzo oporavim. Ja se, zapravo, već odlično osećam, tako da sam nastavila sa svojim uobičajenim aktivnostima, i šijem kao sumanuta! 

Pošto smo morali da pomerimo venčanje za Oktobar, shvatila sam da će vremenske prilike biti drugačije od onih u Avgustu i rešila da svadbeni outfit upotpunim laganom jaknicom. Jaknicu sam do pola sašila, i nadam se da ću imati vremena narednih dana da je dovršim, jer je dan venčanja veoma blizu.

Takođe, oprobala sam se i u šivenju muške garderobe, tako da ću uskoro pisati i o tome.

Dear readers, thank you so much for the supportive words and the get-well wishes. I actually already feel great, so I've continued with my usual life style and I've been sewing like a mad woman!

Since we had to reschedule the wedding for October, I realized the weather would differ from the one in August, and decided to complete my wedding outfit with a light jacket. The jacket is half done and I hope I'll have enough time to complete it in the next few days, since the wedding day is very close.

Also I tried sewing some men clothes, so I'll write about that very soon.

U ranijem postu sam pomenula novu haljinu koju sam sašila u kompletu sa sivom jaknom. U pitanju je satenska haljina u žuto - sivim tonovima, materijal koji me potpuno fascinirao kada sam ga videla. Nisam imala jasnu ideju kakvu bih haljinu od njega sašila dok nisam videla septembarsku Burdu i dizajnerski model sa potpisom Metjua Vilijamsona (Burda 09/2012, #134). Čim sam videla tehnički crtež, znala sam da će haljina odlično izgledati u dezenu koji sam imala pred sobom. Dodatno me oduševilo to što haljina ima i džepove.

I mentioned before a new dress I made to match the gray jacket. It's a satin dress in yellow - gray tones, the fabric that fascinated me when I saw it. I didn't have a clear image of a dress I'd make from it until I saw the September issue of Burda Style and the designer model signed by Matthew Williamson (Burda Style 09/2012, #134). The moment I saw a technical drawing I knew the dress would look great in a print I had in front of me. I was additionally thrilled by the pockets on the dress.

Osim par sitnijih korekcija (kao što je prilagođavanje veličine kroja mojim dimenzijama i obliku), kroj mi je odlično stajao i nisam imala nikakvih problema tokom šivenja.

Beside few minor corrections (like adjusting the size to my dimensions and shape), the pattern fitted me well and I had no problems with it while sewing.

Kod ove haljine mi se dopada i V izrez na leđima - neočekivan detalj na inače potpuno konvencionalnoj haljini.

I love the back V neckline - such an unexpected detail on a rather conventional dress.

Na haljini sam postavila samo suknju, jer planiram da haljinu nosim i leti, a tada mi je previše toplo da bih nosila dva sloja materijala.

I lined only the skirt portion of the dress, since I plan to wear it during summer, when it's too warm for wearing two layers of fabric.

 

A evo kako haljina izgleda u kompletu sa jaknicom. Dopada mi se što je jakna prilično kratka - to je zapravo dužina jakne koja meni najbolje stoji, posebno u kombinaciji sa suknjama i haljinama.

And here's how the dress looks matched with the jacket. I really like that the jacket is rather short - it's the length that looks best on me, especially when combined with skirts and dresses.

I, kad sam se već lepo uslikala, što da ne podelim slike sa vama?

And, since I made some really nice shots, I saw no reason not to share them with you.