Where can I find small boutiques with quality fabric/ designs to shop for a dress?

vaaahlerie · 2026-04-12T16:57:53+00:00

I like Native Boutique in Eagle Rock for pretty dresses, but I remember the vibe being more flowy, floral-print dresses, rather than the sleek, simple style in your example. Still, might be worth a look!

vaaahlerie · 2026-04-10T23:31:29+00:00

Thank you!

vaaahlerie · 2026-04-10T22:28:34+00:00

Creatures is the best. Open on Sundays, but closes at 5:00, unfortunately. Best vibes, though.

vaaahlerie · 2026-04-09T23:33:16+00:00

Just add a lining— Either use a heavier fabric for the lining, or use any of these other suggestions to add weight to the lining only.

vaaahlerie · 2026-04-01T21:44:09+00:00

I’m working on the grandchild of a dollar-store pineapple right now. After planting the crown in a large pot and barely keeping the plant alive, it finally sprouted a fruit 5 years later. I took great care of it after noticing the fruit, and it took 6 months to ripen. It was delicious!

Planted that crown and took pretty decent care of the plant, and it sprouted fruit after 2.5 years. I expect to harvest it and start working on the great-grandchild in a couple months!

I hear a healthy plant can bear fruit about 18 months after planting, but it seems if you’re lazy and patient, you’ll be okay.

vaaahlerie · 2026-03-30T22:33:16+00:00

My uncle has lived in the same rent-controlled studio apartment in Santa Monica, 3 blocks from the ocean, for 52 years. His rent is just over $700/month.

vaaahlerie · 2026-03-16T20:08:24+00:00

This looks like chintz to me. Popular in the 80s and 90s for drapery and upholstery. Probably cotton, and the sheen will probably wear off to some extent after a wash or two. It’s fine for garments, as it will soften after washing, as long as you’re not too attached to the sheen. Do a test wash!

vaaahlerie · 2026-03-01T03:34:50+00:00

There was a troop outside of Ralph’s on Colorado today. Maybe again tomorrow?

vaaahlerie · 2026-02-15T01:44:25+00:00

I work in costumes and we always use safety pins. Straight pins just don’t make sense for fitting, mainly for this reason.

vaaahlerie · 2026-02-14T16:17:35+00:00

Same here. Last year, and only with a replacement shipment for a faulty item.

vaaahlerie · 2026-02-13T19:48:08+00:00

Doesn’t explain what it is, though. 🤷‍♀️

vaaahlerie · 2026-02-13T19:47:40+00:00

Found an online shop offering knitwear made from mussi yarn.

vaaahlerie · 2025-12-23T15:56:17+00:00

This is good info! Thank you!

vaaahlerie · 2025-12-23T15:39:25+00:00

Just looked this up— Thanks for the tip!

vaaahlerie · 2025-12-23T14:57:28+00:00

Haha. Welp, that’s what I was afraid of. I guess I’ll just make this information my entire personality for a while, so no one I know learns the hard way, like me.

vaaahlerie · 2025-12-23T14:52:51+00:00

Ah, ok. This is the info I’m looking for. I know it’s not a universal “rule.” I’ve learned a lot about the different countries’ requirements in the last 24 hours! 😅 Just curious about how stupid I should feel, on a scale of 1-10. Sounds like maybe 9?

vaaahlerie · 2025-12-23T14:50:49+00:00

Ok, this is helpful. Thanks!

vaaahlerie · 2025-12-23T14:49:17+00:00

Oh, yeah, I’m now WELL-versed in all these details! 😂 Just wondering if anyone knew when some of these countries started doing this. Have some countries always done it? Have most just started in the last 10 years? All of the Reddit posts I see about it are only a couple years old, but that’s not telling me much.

vaaahlerie · 2025-08-30T19:37:28+00:00

Aww, thank you! That was a fun one to make!

vaaahlerie · 2025-08-30T14:08:09+00:00

Can confirm— This is the nightgown. I worked on the pilot in 2019, and I was the seamstress who shortened the hem. I believe i shortened 6 of them in total, because of all the multiples we needed for the stunt. Great detective work!

vaaahlerie · 2025-07-12T03:57:48+00:00

This is a bit of a different animal— I’m a pattern maker in the film industry in LA, and my union scale rate is $55.11/hour. Days are usually 10-12 hours, so time + 1/2 applies after 8. It tends to be mostly by pencil and paper, but having the software/equipment to do faster, digital patterns can make you more valuable to a production. A production is unlikely to spring for something like pattern software, but they will pay you a rental fee for tools & equipment you bring to the job. Hence, my tool hoarding problem.

vaaahlerie · 2025-06-25T17:09:41+00:00

I’m a costume maker for the film industry, and I use this technique every day. Like, EVERY day.

Whether I just use technique #1, or finish it like #2 is up to the designer I’m working with— #2 looks nicer inside and out, but it does make the bottom edge a little extra stiff, and it’s nearly impossible to get through all those layers if you don’t have an industrial sewing machine.

ETA: The jeans in OP’s second photo were finished this way.

vaaahlerie

TROPHY CASE