Taxi: Simka and The Price Of Tea In China

I'm trying out a new style: Boho Punk!

Simca on Taxi, was a freak.  That is what made her adorable.  She was foreign (from a "European Country" that they never specified), didn't have a lot of money, wasn't always that intelligent, and also wasn't always that nice. Bohemian Punk!

I built everything off of this unusual skirt.  It's a tiered gathered skirt (Boho) held together with zippers that are open in areas, giving it an unkempt, jagged industrial look (Punk).  I also did a treatment that gives some panels a permanently wrinkled look by scrunching the fabric and pressing it on top of iron-on interfacing, so the wrinkles will never release.  The skirt is terribly impractical and would probably scrape your legs up, but I think it looks very cool.

And much like a European story, the rest of the tale is not such a happy one.  I made a gathered crop top to use as an undershirt for a Boho Punk jacket, but the jacket turned out too clean, which is what I am used to making.  I put on exposed zippers for the pockets and made the collar normal-sized on one side and large on the other, and even added a bullet-holder thing on the shoulder, but it still looked too flat!  Maybe a different fabric choice would have been the key, but I knew I liked the blouse underneath, so I removed the jacket and went with a new concept.

I took the top and added long kimono sleeves appropriate for the very sheer fabric.  I like this better.  It's dramatic even though it is soft and flowy, the amount of exposure adds a hard edge that goes along with the hard/softness of the skirt.

Taxi: Rocking Dirty Downtown Urban Glam

I've been wanting to do character ever since I bought this wig for Leonora.  It's her new "signature hair", and in addition, it makes her a dead ringer for Marilu Henner!

There is a lot to be inspired by in the show "Taxi."  The cab drivers (all but one) have dreams and aspirations that just seem within reach, and they consider working at Sunshine Cab a temporary job that they can leave behind after they succeed in their real careers.  Sound familiar?  Elaine Nardo (this character) wants to be in the field of fine art.

I had the shape of this garment in mind before finding the fabric.  I originally wanted to do a yellow/b-w checker combination thing to give her "taxi-colors", but I ended up using an aqua crepe for the undershirt and this cool patterned jersey material for the jacket instead.  The color brings out her eyes much better than yellow. compare/contrast(By the way, I found the picture of Elaine in that shade of blue AFTER I made the garment.  The fact that they are the same is just a wonderful coincidence that affirms I made the right color choice).

Since Elaine wants to be an Artist, and also Sunshine Cab is based in Lower Manhattan, I wanted to combine the two looks.  I wanted the whole thing to look a little dirty and wrinkled.  The under vest has permanent wrinkles ironed-in.  The grey trim on the jacket is made out of one of my old tank tops with paint stains.  I rubbed sidewalk chalk on the jeans to make them look dusty and worn.  But I also wanted her to look artistic and glamourous.  The vest is shiny.  The jacket is meant to resemble one of those oversized dramatic ponchos that a stereotypical New York female artist wore in the 70's.  The pants are super fitted and not sloppy.  I think I did a good job at mixing the two looks.

Gilligan's Island - Skipper Sexy

So let us return to Gilligan's Island. Last season, I did the girls. (Ha, who ever thought they'd hear me say THAT?!) But who says that my ladies can't emulate the males of the island?

Maybe it's the current hot days, maybe it's that I have a lot of stretch material and just found a new website that teaches stretch pattern making, but I decided to do a small collection of swimwear, just for the fun and experience of it!

I have had this blue striped material for a while now (I've used it as the "underwear" in my mens' faire pants because it's hidden, but comfy and sturdy enough to be a good base under the pumpkin puffiness). Anyway, I think the stripes just scream, "Nautical!" So I made a bandeau variation bikini top and the female Skipper was born.

For the rest, I wanted an airy, sea-cruise type of feel, so I used some light lacy stretch white cotton to make a tiered cave-front peasant skirt, perfect for walking up the steps and short ladders on a yacht without tripping while still catching the sea breeze beautifully.

The top, of course inspired by The Skipper's blue polo shirt, is (gasp!) ultra drapy! I wanted to make her have a more "round" shape on the top to echo Skipper's chubbiness without making her actually look fat. I think I did a good job at that concept!

Oh, by the way, I did look for a Skipper hat to go with this outfit, but it ended up making Raine look so Jennifer Lopez-as-Selena. It just didnt' look right, so I didn't use it.  AS for the rest of the ensemble, I am quite happy with it!  It's cool and comfy and ready for more than a three hour tour!

Gilligan's Island: Profess This!


I was excited to make something for The Professor.  Along with the Skipper, he was always one of my favorites.  I used his white shirt and khaki pants combination as inspiration for this combo.

As I mentioned last post, I am doing an exercise in swimwear since finding a great site on how to draft patterns for stretch fabrics.  I'm quickly becoming a fan!

I knew I wanted to try to make a one-piece suit that looked like she was also wearing a very professorial vest.  The small problem was, how would I do that without making the waist look bulky with the extra layer of horizontal-laying fabric on it?  The answer was to do a twisty, high placed ditty withangular lines running through it.  I love the way it turned out!  

In addition to making the otherwise simple-ish suit look more interesting, notice how the placement of the bands on the side sections also add cleavage-creating bra-like support.

And of course, I couldn't simply make a one-piece and let it stand alone, so I made a flowy (yes, a flowy, unstructured top!  Can you believe my boldness to explore the unfamiliar?!) blouse as a cover-up.  While it doesn't really cover anything, it sure would look great billowing in the sea breeze.  I was not only taking from the Professor's white shirt, but also was inspired by coconut "fuzz" and the the palm frond thatched huts, which is why I added the detail of the frayed edge ribbon I created from the shirt fabric.