It Needs Something…but what?!
Posted by Claire on Sep 26 2010, in Smocking, WIP
- I’ve got an issue with my latest WIP. This is “Corrine Elise” from PBJK Patterns. I picked it up last year at the SAGA conference in Indianapolis and it’s been burning a hole in my pattern collection ever since.
But I have an issue that is holding me up from finishing it. It has an interesting one-piece, shaped yoke. The original pattern has lace insertion around the neck and yoke edge but I didn’t like that so I left it out.
Now, I’m stymied because the yoke looks so plain compared to the embellished smocking and fancy hem. At the same time, I want to avoid the kitchen sink style of heirloom sewing that sees a person embellish a garment within an inch of its fabric-y life, just ’cause they can. What to do? What to do?
Here’s a close-up of the smocking. As you can see, there are small pink bullion roses, flanked by tiny leaves and pearl beads.
Here’s the hem. I left off the shaping and cut down on the number of bullion roses but it’s still really rich looking. I absolutely love the monochromatic feather stitch the goes around the whole hem.
And here’s a close-up of the embroidery (please ignore my pencil marks – this dress hasn’t been soaked, seen an iron or a lick of starch!)
Here are my options:
- Leave the yoke plain
- Stitch a small rose and rosebud motif, centred just below the neck. Maybe add a few pearls?
- Add a row of plain white featherstitching around the edge of the yoke and/or neckline
- Combine #2 and #3, working a rose motif at the neck and then finish it with a row of featherstitching around the neckline
What do you think? If you were doing the dress, what would you do? I think I may leave the dress for a few days and let my options percolate. I still have to finish the petticoat for this and I’ve got another bishop pleated up that will hopefully distract me. But I hate to leave a project this close to being done. Grrr. Darn unembellished yoke. *stomp, stomp, grumble*
Shirley Clark
No. 3 – I think a row of the feather stitching around the bottom of the yoke will close it in a tad, and really emphasize the feather stitching at the bottom. I love the dress. It’s so sweet.
Linda
Claire, The dress is darling…if you are not doing those little shoulder epaulets (or whatever) I think plan 2 & 3 would look very nice. In looking at the PBJK website, I think the dress looks rather plain as is…and needs that touch of pink of one little darling rose with it’s green leaf & the feather stitching ties the border in perfectly! Lovely work!
Susan
Claire, the dress is beautiful, and you are right it does need a little something, what about duplicating your feather stitching around the lower edge of the yoke just like you have it on the bottom, with the pink bullion roses at the corners of the yoke, just a thought. You have done beautiful work on the dress.