Design and a couple of questions~ | Page 1 | How To Make Anything Lolita | Guild Forums

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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 4:51 pm

Anyway. So tomorrow I'm going to a sewing class where I'm going to start making my EGL design. But I wanted to show you guys my design and ask a couple of questions first~ Here's the design~

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So here are my questions-

- I've had a couple of people tell me that the satin ribbon is a bad idea because it's shiny. But it's so thin, it doesn't seem like it would matter... what do you think?

- I've also had a couple of people tell me that the corseting is going to look costumey, but I wholeheartedly disagree. Opinions?

- In regards to cheap lace: I found some stuff at Jo-Ann's that is by the spool; $1 for 2 yards. It doesn't have netting or really fine details, and looks just like the expensive stuff - only the material is a little cheaper. It's a little scratchy, but not like the Raschel stuff, and none if it is going to be touching my skin.

Any other advice you could give would be lovely. :3 T XD Being a jobless teenager, I can't afford to buy lace at $3 a yard when I probably need five yards. I need to focus on getting nice fabric and enough of it to actually make the outfit! xp

Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 6:12 pm

-C'est la lune qui conduit la danse...-

"Lolitists" are everywhere. Deal with it.

To put it simply; it is your design, you can use whatever you want, but in the end, if the materials look like s**t to those who are experienced, you will get constructive criticism on it. And if you decide to whine about said criticism, you're just gonna get burned all over again.

1- Satin ribbons will look shiny and cheap. You can use them if you like, but I wouldn't suggest it. You can find a better, if possible poly-cotton mix or something that will look much flattering.

2-Corset lacing going across like that never truly looks right. To put it in a simple way, since it stands out so much because it would be white against black (say if, you were going to have a light, floral design fabric with a light, pale pink ribbon- that might stand out less), and since it's front-lacing, that usually has the tendency to make most people look fatter and much less flattering than their body shapes are. Back-lacing usually looks better but it would still look somewhat off because of the off-ness. Then again you can't really change the color of the lacing if you're gonna keep it black and white.

3- Very rarely will you come across cheap lace that is sort of good, you would really need an eye for it. But honestly, if you don't happen to know what's the difference between bad lace like polyester and the better laces like poly-cotton (in between, but usually good enough) and 100% cotton, then I wouldn't recommend touching the lace.
Thing with lace, especially in this particular thing, is that if you want to make a good outfit, (again, with the colors standing out) cheap lace will be super-noticeable, and won't look very attractive at all.

TIP: Don't bring the 'age' thing in here, there are a lot of girls who are or started out as "jobless teenagers" yet they learned to save up for brand clothing or for good material to make their own clothing; you'll just end up putting a bad taste into people's mouths or making someone feel insulted.

-...quand le soleil sera couché dans ton âme froide.-

Amanikitty

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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 7:00 pm

Your design is love! heart

People will always find something to criticise. Don't let that put you off. My advice is to make sure you have fallen in love with every aspect before you start making it. Fall in love with the design, fabric, lace, ribbon and if you don't absolutely love something about any of those things, change them.

1) I think thin satin ribbon looks nice. I used it on my strawberry blouse that I made (as corseting) and I am totally in love with that top. Pics are posted in http://www.gaiaonline.com/guilds/viewtopic.php?t=14043285 currently the most recent post. I can see why people don't like lolita clothes made entirely out of satin, but personally I have nothing against satin accents and I use and enjoy them all the time.

2) I'm not sure whether or not corseting looks costumey. I just think it looks lovely smile As Amani said though, it will create the illusion of more width because of the way it draws the eye in a horizontal manner. But I don't care what I look like in lolita clothes anyway, so that wouldn't stop me.

3) Look around at all different types of lace and decide for yourself which type you like. Maybe look at pictures of finished products with those kinds of laces on too. You really have to love the lace you put on something. Personally, I don't like the look of the super expensive lace I've seen, because the designs are always dull or old fashioned. I used polyester lace on my accessories. On my strawberry top pictured above, I used cotton or polycotton embroidered lace with holes. I can't remember the name of that kind of lace off the top of my head.

Extra feedback about your design:
Are you making the top too? Personally I like it, but I don't understand the second elastic channel in the sleeves. That's the only part of your whole design I don't like smile That skirt is love. I want to make one like that too someday. Let me know how yours goes please and what pattern you use (if any).

Have fun sewing! I love making lolita clothes! I only wish I knew about this fashion when I was doing high school sewing!

Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 11:06 pm

I fully agree with Amani.

A side note:
If you are a beginning sewer, not just for Lolita but for anything, I would stay away from using high contrast fabrics when doing something detailed. Why? Because it shows more mistakes. White and black is probably as high contrast as it gets, there is nothing wrong with that(I suppose), but if you don’t sew completely straight or something puckers it will be ten times more noticeable than something that is black on black or a print or muted colors paired together. Think of that, then, when thinking about the human body as well. The higher contrast the fabrics the more imperfections show. I am not brand size (most of the time I’m medium to large), I know my limits and I know what flatters my body. I have no idea what size you are but if you’re in my size range then I would not put something white and almost horizontal across a black background which covers my stomach. So unless you’re inhumanly skinny I would stray away from high contrast laces.

Also Black+ White+ Lace+ Corsettee= kind of french maid-ee, I know my father would not let me wear that because like it or not, people who see you will relate whatever your wearing to something they are familliar with.

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Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 4:42 pm

OP: I have removed your comments about lolitists because they really have no relevance to asking for suggestions. If you follow the suggestions of the people in this thread you'll be fine because everyone thus far has offered very nice advice.

There will be no more talk or reference to Lolitists since they have nothing to do with the outfit design and really in this guild it doesn't belong (nor will I allow it).

On the subject of the design there's a few things that conceptually when it comes down to sewing will be a complication for you. I am in a Fashion Design class so I can tell you that:
a) I'm not certain of your body build but depending on it is how the corset lacing will look. If you have a slimmer build then the lacing will not make you look more bulky but if you are on the bigger build then the lacing will give you the illusion of having a larger waist and hips.
Also depending on what ribbon you use for the lacing and if it'll be grommets or loops will effect your garment. Even if using thinner satin lacing on the corset area it will still give it the appearance of French maidish. I suggest buying some grosgrain ribbon or if you have a wal-mart near by with a craft section they have some nice velvet ribbon of about 4yds for $2.00.
b) depending on your material for the skirt itself you need to think about the satin ribbon on the bottom part. If you are indeed using nice cloth like you stated then the cloth will have no sheen and will be flat in terms of shine. The ribbon even if small will indeed will stand out against the fabric because of the difference in materials.

Overall look at pictures which have a similar structure so you can see how they function and how that would be incorporated into your design. Here are some picture of Meta's skirts that are similar:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/onmyou_dix/3025151067/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/onmyou_dix/3025151129/in/set-72157608981425847/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/onmyou_dix/3025942968/in/set-72157608981425847/

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