6.03.2013

tilly, tanit isis, and tomes: a trio of treats


continuing on the train to Catch Up Town.... next stop, miette.

when the delightful tilly asked if i'd help test out her latest adorable pattern, i wrote her a long winded email explaining the amount of plate-age i had going on, and why i sadly couldn't test, and by the end of the email i had totally talked myself into testing.  the center front seam was stuck in my brain.  to be honest, i don't care for center front seams, but, they are AWESOMESAUCE for playing with prints!

you lika my rasta vibe?  courtesy of none other than the goddess tanit isis.  what?!  you cry!  she has such wild prints in her stash?  yep.  until we scream-met in corner of a canadian airport whilst ruggy had a coronary in the security line.  during those precious minutes, she handed this baby over, practically giddy to have it out of her possession.  i was brattily empty handed, and happy to accept.  which reminds me, i gots some payback to do. AND WE ALL KNOW WHAT PAYBACK IS.


a golden opportunity for chevron stripes was stuck in my craw, but life got in the way of the search.  then i remembered miss isis' gift.  though the colors called out to me on a daily basis, it had sat in my stash for well over a year.  upon inspection, this crazy print had even more neurological issues going on than first impressions would show.  the border print of black ran through thrice, the third wheel running about three quarters of the way through.  this made it impossible to get any large pieces out of it on the fold, as the center line always ended up with different patterns on each side.  but i realized i could make this print work with the miette's center front seam.  i spent a good hour laying out the pieces over and over, trying to eke out a maxi skirt.  in the end i had to go with the intended knee length (which, really, probably best, as i was meant to be testeroona, not hackeroona.)


i managed to find a recurring pattern in the print (those stripes were hellacious) and was able to eke out mirror images.  unfortunately i wasn't able to get a careful placement on side seams no matter how i tried, i'm telling ya, someone was having a good toke when they made this yardage.  but hopefully the psychedelic colors distract from that.

ties.  i am forever shaking my head at patterns and extending ties to drastic lengths, but i'm happy to report this tilly tie was already long enough for my standards!  the front pockets would have disguised the print placement, and as i'd spent many minutes of my life on that, i sacrificed a place for my phone.  i love me some pockets, but if you're using the center front seam for print placement, i'd suggest abandoning pockets.  you could always add side seam jobs!


aaaaand i'm happy to report, there will be no sighting of mount crackatoa in this wrap skirt.  i'd love to find some yardage wide enough to extend this to maxi length.  maybe something will pop up on my hunt for tanit's payback...

speaking of payback, let's talk payOFF!!  for my girl nikki's brilliant giveaway of her delicious book, you sew, girl! we had 57 contenders (duplicate entries were deleted & shout outs not counted).  magic random number generator, take it away...




congratulations beth!  shoot me an email at oonaballoona of the gmail sort, and we'll get the book ball rolling.  UPDATE: haven't heard from our pal beth (hope you're okay!) so a new winner will be picked from the 57 entries later today, 6/30...if fate wasn't on your side and you'd like a copy, you can grab yours at the book depository or on amazon, you won't regret it.  big thanks again to nikki!

this pattern was provided to me free-of-charge in exchange for my free-of-charge testing.

32 comments:

  1. This post wins for best title.

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  2. I love it! That fabric is beautiful and I love the side seam!

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  3. Fabulous skirt and gorgeous fabric.

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  4. This outfit makes me happy!..that skirt is lovely and this post cracked me up once again! :)

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  5. While I am not big on prints other than animal, that is) this is a seriously fab print and you did a GREAT job on the skirt.! It reminds me of the Hudson's Bay stripe dress I saw on another blog (Adventures in Couture) where she did a bang-up job with the stripage by staggering it... Sometimes matchy-matchy is not the way to go, so predictable! I like what you did with the staggered stripe/chevron part on the side of this skirt, so refreshing, and the colours are so pretty!

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  6. Beautiful skirt and in classic Marci style, beautiful description. No one can pull off this print without looking Jimmy Hendrix or Bob Marley. Nobody but YOU!

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  7. You are all sorts of fabulous. :)

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  8. BAHAHAHAHAHA! I was beginning to think this had sunk to nether reaches of Deep Stash! It's great! Although I don't think the weird insanity of the original quite shows through. ;) It looks positively wearable and practical! hehehehehehe. ;) So glad you finally got it out there. :D

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  9. Well, look what you've done. All of a sudden I NEED a Miette pattern.

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  10. Holy alliteration, Batgirl! What an awesome use of a bazonkers fabric. The colors look like a roll of Lifesavers or Starbursts.

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  11. I usually lurk, but I love your blog. And I was so excited to see you on TV the other day, on NCIS, I think. You were a nurse who sees dead people. :)

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  12. I didn't realize you were an actress! Cute wrap skirt and adventurous pattern work there!

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  13. Epic work with the print of sassiness, lady! Nice work getting it all to match up!

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  14. Hands down, that is the BEST version of this skirt I have seen. Absolutely brilliant. Yes, you'd rock it in maxi length. So, so clever.

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  15. Is it wrong that I keep being drawn to your bracelets? I'm afraid it is.
    Great matching on that front seam, though. I didn't realise it was a seam until I looked closer and realised some of the dragons were missing parts of their bodies...

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  16. Gorgeous! I love the fabric, and theway you've matched it up is so clever! You've also just given me some inspiration for 2 metres of a gorgeous voile I've got - maxi-Miette here I come!

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  17. Scrumbodini. No other word for it. You may name a cocktail after it, BTW.

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  18. Such a colorful print! Love the side seam, you made an incredible work with the matching stripes.

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  19. I so love your use of beautiful, brilliant, textiles and fabrics! You are making me jump outside of the "solids" box. YAHY!

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  20. Only you could make a charming reggaeton miracle with that fabric - is surprising and fun using such a simple pattern.

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  21. Your posts never cease to amuse me. Lovely skirt, you will pull that look off fabulously.

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  22. You really did an amazing job with this print, very clever! And I love they psychedelic pillows in the background too!

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  23. love this! I love that you sort of have three different things going on with the print (front / back / sides), rather than it matching everywhere. keeps it interesting! (not that that really would have been a problem in that print I guess.) but it really works, so fun!

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  24. Love it! And can't wait to see your maxi version - great idea... xx

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  25. Ughhhh I'm dying of jealousy over THAT FABRIC and the resulting skirt.

    I guess we're even... for now...

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  26. Again, so Oona! I wonder if there is a print on the face of this planet that wouldn't look good on you?

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  27. Summer babe alert! Super fun. I love those sandals too, and your pillow backdrop.

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  28. This looks AWESOME! I love it. Seriously.

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  29. ooh! Love that fabric and the pattern choice, looks amazing!

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  30. Wildly amazing! Love it!

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  31. With the combo of your reggae skirt and gorgeous pillows, you are quite the psychedelic candy crush in these photos!!

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  32. Your fabric/pattern placement is PERFECTION! Love all those delicious colors - you are looking fantastic, my friend!!

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i thankya truly for taking the time to comment, i love a good conversation-- and hope you know my thanks are always implied, if not always written!