Clevelanders - Visit the Open House at Murray Hill Bolt and Spool

http://event.pingg.com/GrandOpeningOpenHo

For Those of You Asking for Rita Finn's Flickr Slideshow of My Work

And thanks so much for being interested enough to keep trying!  I know some of you have told me you're having trouble getting into my blog and/or signing up to be a follower.  I'll try to check into things to see what the problem is.  So sorry!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ritafinn/sets/72157624908739311/show/
Remember - these photos represent just the tiniest fraction of my work (from two wonderful customers who were kind enough to lend me some things for a photo shoot).  I'm afraid I've always just let things slip away before I ever thought to have them photographed.  So let me know what I've done that you'd like to know about.

My First Visit to Murray Hill Bolt and Spool

Despite the icky gray day, I made it to a happy, sunny place - Murray Hill Bolt and Spool.  I found the address to be a wonderful old two-story school that has been refurbished to house lots of small "artsy" boutique businesses.  Bolt and Spool is a very cool space on the first floor in what looks like it could have been the school administration office once upon a time.  Though owner Nan Webb is not quite ready to be officially opened, I had a blast going through the stock that's in so far.  High quality stuff.  Hurrah!  Beautiful, unusual cotton prints and scrumptious silks.  Always in style wool tartans from Scotland as well as soft-as-butter wool solids.  A grouping of embroidered ribbons to die for and THE cutest little notions.  High end buttons for adults and children, tons of unique trims.  Not the usual (re: Simplicity, Butterick, McCall's) pattern brands for children with wonderful classic designs.  I'm making up some sample dresses for the store and will share them with you soon.  Stay posted at boltandspool.com and leave any ideas for Nan about what you'd like to see carried there.

Hey everybody - a new fabric source is on the way!

Here in the Cleveland and Columbus areas we are starved for REAL fabric stores.  Seems like every year has brought the closure of another fabric store until there are just none left anymore.  Through a really smooth (and kind!) move by my sister-in-law, Kathleen DePompei Santabarbara (by the way, check out Kath's gorgeous artwork on Facebook) I have had the good fortune to speak with new store owner Nan Webb.  Nan has the knowledge (and guts) to be opening a wonderful little shop In Cleveland's totally cool Little Italy.  Keep tabs on her website, http://boltandspool.com/. I'm sure she'd love to hear ideas and have you all visit.  And I'll keep you updated on what I know is going to be a great relationship.  Best of luck, Nan - we need you!

Inner Workings - the unseen but necessary parts of a successful custom garment

Things in-the-making can look really odd.  I often tell clients, "Sometimes the first fitting is just for me - close your eyes!".

Things are usually further along (than in is these pictures) before any fitting is done, so not everyone gets to see the unattractive "innards" that result in a beautiful garment.  They are a little scary, aren't they?

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It takes a good deal of planning on the paper pattern to be sure that buttonholes are pleasingly placed in a plaid

I always breathe a sigh of satisfaction when the lining goes in. A "rough" garment is suddenly finished- looking.  In this case, note how the silk jacquard lining echos the plaid of the wool/cashmere.  One more of those fun things YOU get to choose when clothes are custom made.






One last trip to the dressform for a final steaming and detail check.

 

Other clients start with a picture...............

It all began with an online ad from a boutique.  Pictures of a really dramatic coat - but maybe too dramatic.

The  client is a small person, and though she loved the silhouette and color of the coat, that collar was going to be overwhelming on her tiny frame and that "bib" overlay was just too much. Time to customize! So let's lose the drama queen details, I suggest, and you'll still have a fabulous coat. Let's keep the color, the covered buttons, improve the fabric quality, and taper the rows of giant pintucks for a more flattering effect. Off she went with pictures in hand. A fabulous light blue wool /cashmere blend was the perfect find - another plus of custom made clothing - your items can be made in finer fabrics than the "inspiration" piece. Now we had a truly a luxurious piece underway, so we decided to take it over the top with powder blue silk charmeuse lining.  Scrumptious!



Our refined design



Bound buttonholes are a must!

 

Photos courtesy of Rita Finn














                                                  

Some clients start with the fabric...........

Photos courtesy of Rita Finn

This is a good project to discuss because it illustrates how a client can be inspired  to create her own design - making me the craftsman who simply carries out her wishes!  These garments are courtesy of Jeanne Reed, Bexley, OH.  Jeanne is a long-time client and is adept at the brainstorming game that creates wonderful clothes. (It's an acquired skill, but everyone catches on.)  I'll be showing you more of her things in the future.

Jeanne first showed me this newspaper clipping of a Chanel jacket. The multi layers of fringe at the neckline were what really caught her eye. You can see that we didn't copy the design, that wasn't really the goal. Jeanne wanted a jacket with full length sleeve and a lapel line that would show the blouse, but we still kept the overall "feel" if the Chanel with the fringe and pastel tweedy fabric.  Jeanne already had already purchased these fabulous coordinating fabrics from Banksville Designer Fabrics, so we just took it from there.  http://banksvilledesignerfabrics.com/  Banksville, by the way, is my favorite fabric source.  Jeanne first introduced them to me several years ago, for she had a long-standing relationship with them from her years as a Connecticut resident.

The floral silk crepe-de-chine is beautiful with the light weight silk and linen suiting, and the luscious fringe (I believe from MJ Trims, http://www.mjtrim.com/, a great online source) pulls it all together. The suede trim  (Ultrasuede, that is - keep those dry cleaning bills down!) beefs up the delicate suiting, especially the sleeve edges.  Buttons were proving to be a problem because of all that was already "going on" in the design.  Jeanne had the great idea that I could make Chinese ball buttons from the suede.  Now, I have to admit, the first few were an agony and I was ready to call her and say forget it. I ended up spending quite bit of of time just figuring out the right size to cut the suede pieces for knotting and then learning how tightly to pull the strands, but the end result was worth it. 

I should add, that there are several more pieces to this grouping. The jacket coordinates with solid blue slacks and skirt,  as well as a skirt  and dress in the floral silk . Jeanne is always traveling, so having several pieces that work together is important. Having multiple coordinates created is just one of the reasons to have clothing custom made.

Some recent projects: Photographed by Rita Finn

CLICK HERE A slide show of garments - created and photographed by Rita Finn.  These photos will give you an idea of the kind of garments I make.  My photographer friend Rita has included wonderful close-ups of some of the details I use.  My thanks to the clients who allowed me to borrow their things for the photo session.

Start with an idea, then tailor it to your specific needs

Welcome to my blog! I hope to share with you some of the amazing custom couture projects I've been fortunate enough to work on, and invite you to share with me your thoughts, ideas, and projects of your own!  I've been making a living as a dress designer/dessmaker/women's tailor for longer than I want to say but am just now getting around to sharing the joys ( and, ok, sometimes frustrations) of custom sewing.

My clientele list consists of women at various stages of their social and professional lives; each are different in their tastes, means, body types, and goals. I try to meet them where they are comfortable, usually in their own home, for our consultations and fittings.   Together we create garments that are sometimes for specific occasion, sometimes something that is to be a wardrobe workhorse, and sometimes something that is just for the sheer joy of utilizing a must-have fabric.   There is always a special joy in making a garment in a style that a woman thought she couldn't wear - until she sees it done in her own proportions!  Fit is the key to it all, and nothing makes a woman feel more beautiful than wearing a garment made expressly for her.

Let's start with a little red silk fitted jacket.  ( See our work-in-progress sheets below.)  The inspiration came from the client herself, a jacket she had seen on Ralph Lauren's website. She had a formal speaking engagement and wanted to wear evening wear but slacks.  We made a few design changes, like raising the lapel depth, but stuck to the same overall silhouette.  The client is often in NYC, so took the photo to B&J Fabrics in NYC( http://www.bandjfabrics.com) and came back with the beautiful cardinal red silk ottoman for the jacket, black silk and lycra satin for the skinny pants, and an alencon lace for the blouse.  I picked up the great black jet buttons at Joann - go figure. The jacket is very tailored to her tiny waist (no, I do not expect all clients to be tiny! )and has a super-pointed winged lapel that was absolute mayhem to create in that ravelly ottoman, but the end product is spectacular.

If you need something special for an upcoming engagement, or would simply like your everyday wear to be in richer fabrics and more innovative in design, contact me at LyndaDePompei@aol.com.

And stick around for more lovely designs!  I have years of projects available to discuss - let me know what you'd like to hear about.