Pin It

(12) print

People have been asking about the rest of this ensemble of the Fortuny fabric.  This jacket, as well as the jeans, are constructed with ready-to-wear techniques like serged seams and rivets.  I wanted the contrast of the rare and horribly expensive fabric worked in such an offhand manner.

The follow-up of the story: Today the colleague who gave me the first piece, let me take the other 65 remaining yards, as she felt I would make it up sooner than she would.  I was delirious beyond belief!

Kenneth King, contributor
Posted on Aug 31st, 2010 in sewing, design, garment construction, embellishments

Pin It

(12) print

Comments (12)

matti07 writes: Okay, I'm kind of dying here -- remaining 6.5 yards, or *65* yards? Either one would make ME ecstatic, but just curious... I'm guessing it's the former, as the latter would be prohibitively expensive. Also, I have fabric trade envy. Susan Khalje's overages? Yum.
Posted: 12:41 pm on November 8th

user-70578 writes: Wish I had some of that fabric. It looks sew cool, and what a great shirt. I am a shirtaholic. Love to make them, have recently been working on Claire Shaeffer's shirt design for Vogue, with the front covered placket and sash. It's a lovely pattern, and have been following both the couture and non couture directions--a sort of personal combination of techniques. It's been fun. Not quite finished or I would show the result.

CEGrayne
Posted: 4:53 pm on October 24th

user-70578 writes: Wish I had some of that fabric. It looks sew cool, and what a great shirt. I am a shirtaholic. Love to make them, have recently been working on Claire Shaeffer's shirt design for Vogue, with the front covered placket and sash. It's a lovely pattern, and have been following both the couture and non couture directions--a sort of personal combination of techniques. It's been fun. Not quite finished or I would show the result.

CEGrayne
Posted: 4:51 pm on October 24th

triangles writes: Absolutely marvelous. Nothing tacky about it at all. It takes big ones to go there. Linda S in MD
Posted: 6:53 pm on February 22nd

KennethDKing writes: To Boofsmom, I bought the jeans that way (in one of those off-price shops down on Lower Broadway), so I can't answer how it's done. Sorry I couldn't be of help there.

And to Rabia-- That's the beauty of fashion--one person's fashion is another person's tacky. If we all agreed on what was good and what was not good, wouldn't life be boring? I like the idea of being cavalier with something so fine by combining it with something so down-market. (And for the record, my fly is not open, but you can see my underwear through one of the holes in the jeans--it's the flash of red and green on my upper thigh.)

Diana Vreeland, Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Magazine in the 1960's summed it up best. To paraphrase, she said that she didn't mind vulgarity (or in other words, tackiness), it was having NO style that she was opposed to. My fashion choices may sometimes disagree with others' tastes, but I dress to please myself. It's one of my supreme joys in life--standing in front of my closet and deciding who I want to be for a particular day or event, and then deciding what that will look like.
Posted: 8:21 pm on November 14th

boofsmom writes: Kenneth-I actally would like to know how you distressed the jeans. I have seen some inteesting distressing on jeans and would like to know how it's done.
Posted: 8:58 pm on November 7th

Rabia writes: Love the jacket, hate the jeans. Is there anything MORE tacky than FAKE "distressing"? And your FLY looks UNDONE.
Posted: 10:18 pm on September 26th

suzannity writes: 65 yards?! You lucky duck! Your colleague is a gem.

Kenneth, thank you! Thanks for many things but the most important thing to me was the advice that you gave in a Threads interview to not be afraid. This jacket may be a good example that you "practice what you preach", I don't know. But I would have been absolutely terrified to cut this fabric! But you did it. And the result is really wonderful.
Posted: 10:18 am on September 7th

SewTruTerry writes: Kenneth
It would be nice if you would share, not only ideas but fabric as well... LOL! just kidding a little.
Posted: 1:52 am on September 3rd

Leine writes: This treasure could not be in better hands! Now you must show us the jeans. . .
Posted: 2:29 pm on September 2nd

Gigi_Louis writes: OMG, I am so envious! Your jacket is divine and you've styled it so well.
Posted: 11:04 am on September 2nd

gmhsews writes: Fabulous use of beautiful fabric. I love the use of the selvage and the reverse of the fabric. I try to look at fabric in many different ways and utilize it to its fullest potential.
Posted: 2:18 pm on September 1st

You must be logged in to post comments. Log in.