Lekala, Thread Tracing and Other Goings On

So what's been going on here at Starcross Sewing HQ?

First up, I wanted to share with you that a couple of my readers have commented that Bootstrap Fashion Patterns is pretty much exactly like Lekala. Now, I had heard Lekala mentioned before but had never paid much attention to it or investigated further. I had a look at the Lekala website today and there are literally thousands of downloadable, cheap patterns available that come customised to your measurements. I also noticed that many of the patterns you get on Bootstrap Fashion Patterns for $10 are exact copies of the patterns available on Lekala for $2.49. What's that all about?

In any case, why aren't more people using one of these services. I know that even with the pattern adapted to your measurements it's not necessarily going to fit your proportions but it's better than most pattern companies can do. So, I was wondering why doesn't everyone use a service like Lekala instead of buying the regular sewing patterns we know?! If you have any experience with Lekala or Bootstrap Fashion Patterns or a similar service, I'd really like to hear what you think.

My weekend was mostly spent making muslins. I'm invited to a wedding in October and want to use this as an opportunity to make something really fancy and carefully crafted, which I ordinarily wouldn't get a chance to wear or have the time to make. To save a bit of money and use what's in my stash, I decided to use this super shiny and fancy mystery fibre fabric a friend brought me from Morocco as a present. It's bold and did I say shiny!

Really difficult to photograph!

I'm loosely following Susan Khalje's Couture Dress Class on Craftsy to try out some new ways of sewing. So I prepared my toiles as suggested by her and thread traced every single piece before machine basting  all the pieces together. And I did all of that three times with three different stages of toiles. It's not so much the fit that needed revising with each new toile but the style and proportions. I guess I just really don't quite know what I want to make. I'd so appreciate a good dress form and some experience in draping right now. I think I could get a good result much quicker.

Thread Tracing

I'm still not happy with version 3 but I think I might just make a quick wearable dress from it to get a better idea on what needs changing rather than work with this rather cumbersome toile I have.

Oh yes and one of my readers pointed out that she couldn't comment on my blog. Is anyone else experiencing this problem? It would be great if you could let me know if you have any problems. In an email I guess :)

Oh, and don't forget to have a look at my Emigration Sale stuff to see if there is anything you'd like. 

Happy sewing everyone!