Waistcoat all done!

Hi,

I hope you are all having a good week :)

My waistcoat that I was making in college is now all complete! As I mentioned a post or so ago, for our first project we had to make a men's waistcoat in any style we wanted, it also had to be decorated in some way.

Here was my design, which was inspired by comic book villains and gangsters:

The front sections interlock.

And then here is the back, my decoration was inspired by the glamorous girlfriends gangsters and villains often seem to have in the movies :p:

And now, after a few weeks work, here is my finished waistcoat, front and back:

   

Then here are some close ups/different angles:

 My machine and hand appliquéd hand motifs (the little xxx are hand embroidered):

Satin stitch hand embroidered kiss :):

It was hard to get the lapels so sharp (and the pocket flap points too!):

It was a fun and challenging project. I learnt so much as this was my first ever piece of menswear.  I am really proud of the result though :-) please do leave me any comments below- I would love to know what you think.

See you all again soon, when I will be announcing a special giveaway........!

Bye xxx

P.s. All images in this post are copyright to me (Jordan Norrington)

Bonobos Fashion Challenge!

Hi,

As I mentioned in a previous post I was selected to take part in a Fashion challenge organised by the Menswear brand Bonobos. They sent me a few exclusive pictures from one of their latest collections (which you can view/buy: Here! ) and my challenge was to create a complimentary womenswear look. I spent quite a while looking at the different images and in the end there were two that particularly stood out to me- I loved the way that the men seemed to be looking at someone entering the room. I decided that the men were looking at my beautiful, complementary dressed, woman making her grand entrance. I imagined what she would be wearing to make them the perfect power couple (and to be making him stare so intensely)!

I will now present my designs. Here was the first image I chose to design for:

I loved how smart this suit looked whilst still being quite playful. Here is my complementary womens look:

The fabric darker fabric which makes up on side of the dress is supposed to be the same fabric that the men's suit is made from- I loved the idea of using the same fabric but in a way that it is not too obviously matchy-matchy with the suit. The diamonds on the cuff of the sleeve and in a pattern on the bottom of the dress add a bit of sparkle. The belt is attached into the front and back seam and s inches in the slightly flowier white portion of the dress. The fastening would be an invisible zip on the back down the seam which would end under the collar part (so but of the collar that tails off would be peppered etc.. down so it could be folded back to access the zip). You can see the dart placement on the white side of the dress. On the checked portion there would be a double pointed  dart which runs vertical between the bust and the hip, and similar in the back but between the shoulder blade and a dart running from the shoulder to the shoulder blade (as on white side also) the checked side needs more shaping as it doesn't have the little belt piece to sinch it in. Sorry for anyone who didn't want so much construction detail- just as a maker I think about all these things and it is nice to let you all know that my design is possible in real life seeing as I have only sketched it.

Here is the 2nd image from Bonobos that I chose:

This suit is razor sharp!  I was definitely drawn to the more formal looks- probably because the drama of them. The little pattern on the fabric and the velvet shawl collar are the accents I like the most- I tried to feature the velvet and patterned fabric in my womens wear design as I again liked the matching, but not in too-obvious-a-way look:

The draped strappy straps at the top I envisage being velvet roleau, as I mentioned above to compliment the velvet shawl collar (these fasten into either side of the CB seam- lining up perfectly of course! And into the top of the back of the dress). The fishtail part of the dress made from similar fabric to the diamond patterned suit fabric. The hanging ruby and gold coloured jewel piece adds some extra glamour and also I like the idea of its movement as it hangs- rather than being stitched down.The seam lines a fairly clear in the sketch if this dress and again I imagine there being a CB invisible zip.

I hope you like my designs, please do comment below to tell me what you think- honesty is fine! :)

And I would also like to Thank Bonobos for contacting me about taking part in this challenge as It has been really exciting and fun challenging myself to come up with new designs.

Speak to you all again soon,

Bye xoxoxo