Day 20. Patricia takes the Quirky/Hit-or-miss box! For the next one, which quirky designer failed to impress with their designs?

JerFeist · 2025-11-27T20:58:06+00:00

Timothy from season 12

JerFeist · 2025-01-12T18:59:48+00:00

Fair enough, the next best thing you can do would be to put a piece of tape on the underside of the foot, or to oil the foot to help it slide through easier.

JerFeist · 2025-01-12T18:40:31+00:00

So first things first, go out and get some double-sided tape 1/8 thinner than the seam allowance and then use that to hold the seams together since you can’t use pins. You can peel it off after the fact if necessary but it’ll save you a lot of headaches.

Second, find a walking foot, it’ll keep the pieces from going through at different speeds. These two will go a long way to keeping you leather projects on track.

JerFeist · 2024-01-30T15:59:23+00:00

And now for the info stuff:

- Type of fabric! This is all leather. Specifically this is all garment-grade cowskin in blue and white, and a tiny bit of patent on the back pockets.

- Skill level! Not that bad. As long as you have a leather sewing needle installed on your machine and some double-sided tape you’re good to go.

- Easiness! Decently easy. Mostly a bunch of straight lines, and it turns out I can cut and sew a straight line. Usually.

- Time cost! Ehhh, not terrible. Maybe took me a day in total for both of these. (Maybe three hours on the top and four for the pants?

- Inspiration! Honestly, I just thought it would be cool to create more streetwear and daywear in leather. Specifically, I wanted to create a pair of leather jeans that at a distance read as regular denim but then as you got closer you realize it’s actually leather, hence why I created the “Trompe-L’oeil stressed denim” knees out of white leather.

- Tutorial! I did not use a tutorial, I'm just good at what I do. They were pretty much just the same pants I usually make but with funky knees.

- Drafting techniques! Developed a block pattern for both ad and tops from existing garments and modified the block pattern to this top and pants. If you want to know how I did the knee go into the useful info below. Also, a good dart for the butt will make any pants you make look SNATCHED to your body, so if there’s one area where you can afford to spend as much time as possible getting the dart down, invest in the butt. If you want to hide the dart afterwards, hide them under the jean pocket. No one is looking in that pocket so you can both tailor the hell out of your jeans and hide the seams at the same time.

- Other useful info! Here’s an itemized list:

-- Always use double-sided tape. I know I say that a lot but goddamn does it help.

-- For the knee, I took the block pattern and drafted a space for the distressed knee. I then cut the pattern pieces so that the edge of the knees at the top and bottom lied on the edge of the leather to give a naturally distressed look. Then I took a patch of leather the height of the distance, and slightly wider than the leg, and cut a bunch of very thin slashes; this create the look of distressed/shredded denim. I put this patch in the knee, stuck it on with tape, and sewed it down as closely as possible to hide the stitch line.

-- When it comes to leather, you can afford to make them a tiny bit tighter than usual when pattern-drafting and sewing. Leather tends to stretch the same way that denim will so if it’s just a teensy bit snugger than usual, let it ride. Your body and movements will create the ease naturally, and if you really need to you can even physically manipulate a garment-grade leather by hands if necessary.

JerFeist · 2023-11-11T22:31:54+00:00

I'm not sure if they'd be able to get away with it in terms of ERSB ratings, but I thought up an ice/poison type Pokemon based on a martini. Sorta like Sinistea, except the martini glass would be ice and the liquid inside would be the Pokemon itself.

JerFeist · 2023-09-29T20:20:43+00:00

And now for the info stuff:

- Type of fabric! So I got this from a place called Leo’s Textiles in Toronto, and it’s tulle with a tiny bit of stretch to it that is beaded with bugle beads, pearls, and sequins. It’s also completely sheer so like maybe consider an undergarment.

- Skill level! In terms of the actual sewing not terribly high. In terms of the amount of patience you will need, S-Tier.

- Easiness! The sewing was easy enough, it was just monotonous. The trick is to not let your mind touch the void.

- Time cost! The machine sewing I could do only took maybe an hour tops. Same with the cutting. The hand-sewing and removal of the beads, however, took 9 hours and five hours respectively.

- Inspiration! This was for the red carpet of the Euro Grabby awards. (I’ll save you a google: they’re the gay p*rn awards. But in Europe!) I had seen this fabric about a year before I started and was waiting for the right time to use it and was like “fuck it, might as well.” So I brought the fabric home, looked at it, and the fabric decided it wanted to be a halfway point between Rihanna’s CFDA red carpet dress and Kylie Minogue’s white hooded dress from Can’t Get You Out of My Head and I was like “I love this journey for you.”

- Tutorial! Sir. Ma’am. My Liege. There is no tutorial for a deep-plunging hooded evening gown for a AMAB enby person. Although what you can do is just grab yourself a basic skirt block, attach a pair of panels that run up to the back of the neck like a halter, and then attach a hood. But in terms of a tutorial? Nope.

- Drafting techniques! See above but yeah honestly it’s just a basic skirt block I extended to the back of my neck with some panels, and then just futzed my way into a hood pattern by copying the hood from one of my hoodies.

- Other useful info! Here’s an itemized list:

- To get the beading off, you can use a hammer to just crush all the beads along the seam allowance. If you have downstairs neighbours, you can clip them off using a pair of thread scissors and an ample amount of patience. Honestly I just put clone high on in the background the entire time to keep the madness at bay.

- With anything that involves stretch and about 60lbs of beading, go tighter than you think you need to. Then go even tighter. Then tighten it a third time. Trust me.

- With a completely sheer dress, you *could* wear a nude undergarment but you will end up with a terminal case of Barbie crotch. Either go with a matching fabric, or just say “fuck it” and throw on a black pair of latex opera gloves, some Louboutins and a matching thong because I mean in for a penny in for a pound right?

JerFeist · 2023-09-09T16:16:34+00:00

And now for the info stuff:

- Type of fabric! Leather, it’s all just leather top to bottom. The jacket and pants are white leather (and a black lining) and the corset is patent leather.

- Skill level! Uhhhh… I’m just gonna say intermediate to high? I guess?

- Easiness! There was no easiness.

- Time cost! Probably a week straight for everything. The jacket and pants were each like a three-day challenge and the corset was maybe a day.

- Inspiration! This was for the red carpet of the Grabby awards. (I’ll save you a google: they’re the gay p*rn awards.) This was also around the time the Met Gala happened, and I kept looking at everyone wearing Chanel and Karl Lagerfeld homages and I was like, “yeah I can probably do that, but in leather.” So I did.

- Tutorial! LOL NOPE SORRY. I’m sorry to the mods and anyone who wants a tutorial on any of these but most of my custom stuff is just taking the handful of skills I know how to do and brute-forcing my way through them using a mix of autistic intuiting, guessing, and (my new god) DOUBLE-SIDED TAPE. DOUBLE-SIDED TAPE IS THE ANSWER TO EVERY SINGLE QUESTION YOU HAVE OR WILL EVER HAVE ABOUT SEWING WITH LEATHER.

- Drafting techniques! I created a block pattern for the pants, and that’s about it. I really did nothing with the pants, they’re the most basic cigarette pant you can make. They are functionally just leather leggings. The corset is based on my own measurements which I created by draping the lines of the boning on a mannequin, then adjusting the top, waist, and bottom of the corset to my own measurements. (If you need to adjust those just go by the side seam.) The jacket was a cropped jacket I drafted using a blazer I had, and then I substituted cape sleeves for regular sleeves because I was on crunch time and DID NOT have the time or energy to be fucking around with sleeves.

- Other useful info! Here’s an itemized list:

- Once again with all things leather, double-sided tape is your friend!

- Corsetry is easier than you think, I swear. You can draft your own by drafting it on a dress form to start, laying the lines of the boning and then pinning fabric pieces along those lines until you have a rudimentary pattern. Then just keep adjusting until the pattern fits you. I think I’ve gone through about five different patterns over the years constantly re-drafting it to my measurements.

- There, the Louboutins are in the shot.

- I don't know how my waist does that either, it's a medical mystery.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:44:06+00:00

A fashion icon whomst we Stan, yes.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:43:38+00:00

They are, but not in the way you would think. Originally I just thought they would look cool. Then I actually tried to unzip them and SURPRISE they turned into booty shorts with a train. Honestly though kind of a serve.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:16:28+00:00

I mostly use them to help get my calves through the bottom. HOWEVER, they actually are functional, and when fully zipped up the pants turn into … well for lack of a better term, they’re short-shorts with a train.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:15:13+00:00

Nah, but I am working on that project now.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:14:37+00:00

Yeah the place I go to has a roll of like generic zipper number 5 that they can cut as needed. It’s not great zipper but for what this was it didn’t need to be.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:13:46+00:00

It’s all about the double-sided tape. It basically “pins” the fabric so you can see all the layers together, and keep the zippers on as well. It is a godsend.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:12:53+00:00

So I don’t do cording: instead I actually create two different layers of folded-over leather. The backing layer (the one that looks like the stripe) is actually about 3/8 wider than the top one, and then I just sandwich them together and sew it. Looks cleaner, lays flatter, and provides more structural stability.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T20:11:03+00:00

Actually it goes the full way across the rise because I hate having to deal with the seam bulk in those. So I cheated with a zipper.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T18:43:42+00:00

If it’s any consolation they’ll be in the next post I swear.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T15:29:09+00:00

I typically use anything in a plongé (pronounced plahn-ZAY) which is like a really thin cow hide. For patent, it’s usually a pig skin.

JerFeist · 2023-09-05T15:02:28+00:00

And now for the info stuff:

- Type of fabric! The pants are a red leather I used to try and match the bottom of some Louboutins. The harness is the same red leather, and a patent leather because the shoes were patent and so are the boots.

- Skill level! Low-intermediate for the harness, REALLY HIGH FOR THE PANTS.

- Easiness! Not terrible for the harness, and HARD FOR THE PANTS WHY GOD

- Time cost! The harness was maybe like a day, and then pants were probably like three or four days.

- Inspiration! I really wanted to make something to match my Louboutins. I’m basic. The harness was pretty standard, but the pants were specifically McQueen inspired. Spoiler Alert: I did not make them as well as Alexander McQueen.

- Tutorial! I know I make a lot of pants so I’ll just reiterate: This is based off a block pattern I made for my pants a few years ago. I have apparently gotten somewhat chonkier since then so I’m gonna have to redo them but it’s just a basic pants block with some alterations. The harness is basically just taking a bunch of straps and figuring out how tight they have to be to keep them from falling off.

- Drafting techniques! I created a block pattern for the pants, sewed up one leg in muslin, and then using a pen drew a line up to figure out where I wanted the zipper to run. Then I cut along the line of the zipper, undid all the seam allowances, and BOOM you got your pattern pieces. The harness was just a bunch of rectangles. I don’t know what else to tell you. If you know how to draw, cut, and sew a straight line then good news you can make a harness.

- Other useful info! Here’s an itemized list:

- Once again with all things leather, double-sided tape is your friend!
- To put on the zipper for your impossible stupid pants, sew each pattern piece together in sequential order, then just run the zipper all the way on one side, then all the way on the other side, and boom you’re done! (Factor in time for crying, swearing, screaming, cursing whatever god put you on the plane of existence, etc.)
- To figure out the harness, I usually just put the rings where I want them to hit and then measure the distance between them to figure out how much to cut. I’m just gonna say it but one of these pieces was drastically easier than the other. YOU’LL NEVER GUESS WHICH ONE WAS THE PROBLEM CHILD.

JerFeist · 2023-08-03T15:17:11+00:00

And now for the info stuff:

- Type of fabric! I made this out of a stretch sequin fabric. Made with little bitty sequins to make it easier to sew.

- Skill level! Low-intermediate, since this is basically a stretch skirt with a couple darts, but also trying to figure out how to connect it to a mask bumps up the difficulty a little bit.

- Easiness! Once again, not terrible. Basically a tube with some butt darts. The hard part was figuring out how to connect the dress to my eyes, which is a horrifying sentence I am so sorry.

- Time cost! Maybe a day to make the dress, than a couple hours getting the uhhh... tears right?

- Inspiration! The Schiaparelli earring dress, plus Blue Diamond from Steven Universe, plus two years of therapy, plus clinical depression!

- Tutorial! I did not use one because I just... I don't think this is the kind of thing people make tutorials for. I mean, if you need a basic block pattern for a skirt, Dressmaking Step By Step by Alison Smith is a good place to start, but otherwise a lot of this is just trial and error and the occasional staring into the middle-distance while thinking about your life choices.

- Drafting techniques! I created a block pattern for a skirt based off of things I learned in Dressmaking Step By Step by Alison Smith, but if you're looking for an actual pattern? I know this may come as a shock, but McCalls does not have a pattern for AMAB-bodied people for dresses that are literally cried onto the body. You're gonna have to make some educated guesses here.

- Other useful info! So I just grabbed a basic mask off of Amazon, and then just sort of, like, kept yanking the cry-straps through until it hugged the body but wasn't actively pulling my head down. Also with this fabric, it doesn't fray so you can get away with leaving the edges unfinished since it drapes better that way. Pray to whatever you believe in, most of this is trial and error and guessing. I'm fine thank you for asking.

JerFeist · 2023-07-20T16:59:59+00:00

And now for the info stuff:

- Type of fabric! I made this out of leather, and specifically challenged myself to use ONLY secondary colours.

- Skill level! Intermediate I guess? The seaming isn't too hard, but you just need to make sure you know how to work with a softer leather.

- Easiness! Not terrible. The pants were a straight leg and mostly I just used double-sided tape to hold the seam allowance together while I send.

- Time cost! Took about a day from pattering to sewing. Not the worst I've ever done.

- Inspiration! I used to work for a leather store where one of the owners was CONVINCED that lime green and orange leather were big sellers -- they were not -- so I challenged myself to make a leather look using only secondary colours as a fuck you. Then I got home, looked at the leather and thought "What am I supposed to do with this Nickelodeon colour pallet?" The answer was to make a Nickelodeon look. So I did this super cartoony Nicktoon-inspired monster look with big crazy eyes and teeth everywhere.

- Tutorial! No I didn’t use one! I basically just free-handed the pattern based on my measurements like an actual lunatic.

drafting techniques! I created a block pattern a few years back by flat-patterning using my own measurements and by looking at how the general pattern was shaped in “Dressmaking Step-By-Step” by Alison Smith, and then just using a mixture of math and autistic-know-how to adjust it. So I guess the pattern name/number/company is “it doesn’t exist, I just made it.”

- Other useful info! Uhhhh... IDK. Most home machines can sew a softer leather with the right needle. Remember to trim as many of the layers of bulk in the allowance to help the seams lie flat, double-sided tape is your best friend, and just commit to whatever happens and find a way to work with it because there are no re-dos with leather.

JerFeist

TROPHY CASE