SWAP 2010 Official Rules

[Marji]

Even though I'm fairly certain I like my plan the way it is, I have all these ideas whirring in my head. And I wondered,
with option 1, which contains no dress, might your "choice" garment be a dress? Or must it be a top or another bottom or something to do with the bottoms/tops etc.?

And might I say again how wonderful I think it is that the focus of this particular SWAP set of rules is the sewing itself.
I have all the respect in the world for Julie and know she put a lot of effort into running SWAP. And always the emphasis was on the coordination of the wardrobe and making all the elements work with each other. Which is fine.
But, since this is first and foremost a sewing board, I Just Love it that the emphasis this time around is on the sewing, and that a "collection" where all the elements look like they belong but don't necessarily each have to coordinate with every other piece...It's just my cup of tea   and I'm thrilled.
Thank you DragonLady and mod's who came up with this set of rules. 
 

[kiltsnquilts]

Marji, I totally agree with you.  I found it hard to plan a SWAP where every top went with every bottom - it doesn't happen in my wardrobe   A collection is great!  I struggle with prints so am sooo glad I have the choice of a stripe or print,  I will use the stripe, which I love anyway 

[KathrynT]

Marji and Kilts, I asked on the first page and dragon lady replied:

My personal taste is not to make everything completely matchy-matchy.  To me, a cohesive clothing group means being able to choose from multiple outfits that work.  So...to that end, yes, every top should go with every bottom.  There shouldn't be any "stepchildren" that look like they belong to another wardrobe. 

That to me says that every top does have to match every bottom.  I haven't any firm plans at the moment, but I'm wondering if I make a jacket, will it have to go over every top and co-ordinate with every bottom? 

[Licarrit]

Kathryn, I think after your conversation with DragonLady, her and I talked about everything looking like it came from the same closet ie. you wouldn't want a Laura Ashley dress in amongst a Jil Sander wardrobe. To that end if the jacket you want to make goes with most of the clothes you are making then it should be fine. Especially if the jacket is the +1 optional piece. My wardrobe probably wouldn't have qualified under Julie Timmel's strictest rules but you can see that they would work together. BTW, Julie didn't make that requirement up, it came straight out of the "Stitches" article that started all of this.

[DragonLady]

Even though I'm fairly certain I like my plan the way it is, I have all these ideas whirring in my head. And I wondered,
with option 1, which contains no dress, might your "choice" garment be a dress? Or must it be a top or another bottom or something to do with the bottoms/tops etc.?

Yes; your "choice" garment may be a dress.


To clarify further about matching.... The emphasis this year is on sewing skills.  To that end, no, every garment does not have to "match" every other garment.  But, they should all go together.  For example:  If you make three tops in plum, charcoal and navy, and three pants the same colors, you probably won't want to wear the plum top with either the plum pants or the navy ones.  But the whole group will work.  The plum top will go with the charcoal, and the other two will work with the other pants.  You see?  Instead of focusing on fabric choices and trying to match four shades of teal, I'd rather see nice straight seams, beautiful pockets, nicely-set sleeves...good sewing that results in clothes you'll wear. 

[KathrynT]

Thanks Dragonlady.  I was thinking of making black pants, a black top and a black jacket.  Whilst you might wear 2 of the things together, it is unlikely you would wear all three together, so this last reply solves my dilemma.  Also in my reading of this, the jacket doesn't have to play nicely with every top, but everything should look like it's part of the one collection.

[JennyAnne]

Question about the matched print or stripe:
I want to use an eyelet with floral embroidery.  Not really a print, but there is embroidery that I will match.  Does that follow the spirit of the requirement?

[DragonLady]

Question about the matched print or stripe:
I want to use an eyelet with floral embroidery.  Not really a print, but there is embroidery that I will match.  Does that follow the spirit of the requirement?

Hmmm.... I guess that would qualify for either the matching or the embroidery, but not both. 

[Silly_Seamstress]

This sounds cool, but I have a question: Does SWAP stuff necessarily have to be business-y/professional clothing? Or can it be any kind of cohesive style set of clothing? Because I was thinking I would like to use this to make myself sew something besides dresses, but I want to make some Lolita-ish things- ruffled skirts, peasant blouses, corset tops, etc., and I was wondering if that was allowable as long as I kept them in the same color scheme. Is it ok to do that?

[kitnrose]

This sounds cool, but I have a question: Does SWAP stuff necessarily have to be business-y/professional clothing?

Not at all!  I think we tend towards more business-y stuff just because, well, most people need it and it's a little more exciting than a bunch of tees.  But any group that forms a cohesive wardrobe is totally fine.  Of course since the spirit of SWAP is to solve that "nothing to wear" dilemma the idea is to make stuff that you will wear on a normal day (the only reason I haven't used it to fill out my costume closet - my day job just doesn't call for such stuff) but hey, if you have a more exciting daily wardrobe then take this chance to fill it!  

I want to make some Lolita-ish things- ruffled skirts, peasant blouses, corset tops, etc., and I was wondering if that was allowable as long as I kept them in the same color scheme. Is it ok to do that?

That's a wardrobe I'd LOVE to see!  The one solid rule is that all tops must go with all bottoms and the jacket/topper must go with all outfits.  But I can imagine that you could make that work with the Lolita style without a problem.  So looking forwards to what you come up with!

[Licarrit]

Silly, What KitnRose said and hey, if you can make Lolita work for your real life then go for it. Honestly this year the requirements are structured so that you don't even need a "jacket" type piece and I think (check previous posts) that DragonLady said that if you want to make a lace wrap that fill that niche. The wardrobe I am making is exceptionally casual, just don't need the business-y stuff anymore! I would love to see some one really take the basic idea of SWAP and run with it!

[DebbieY]

I am so looking forward to seeing all the items that result from this swap, with such a fantastic variety of projects it is going to be a feast for the eyes!

[Lisanne]

I'm sorry we haven't still got access to the pictures from last year.  I think there was a very frilly flouncy SWAP.  I can remember giving it some votes.  Or perhaps it was for one of the smaller capsules.

[AnnRowley]

I'm sorry we haven't still got access to the pictures from last year. 

You can see all the photos from last year here.

I have no plans to delete them!

[Lisanne]

Thanks Ann, I'm delighted the photos from last year are still available.  Full of inspiration.

I was referring to Fridas SWAP for frills and flounces.

Free choice of style, the 'only' limit is they have to go together !

[MaryPat]

I don't have much to add, except that I like the way the rules are working this year. I plan to attempt it again. Even if I don't complete it I get a few new items.
The links to Sashiko and the Edwardian jacket have been fascinating.

[Myrna]

You can see all the photos from last year here. I have no plans to delete them!

Thanks for the link Ann. I enjoyed seeing the different combinations. It was good learning since I've never done a SWAP before and gave me some ideas on how to photograph the pieces as well.

- Myrna

[Silly_Seamstress]

Okay, thanks for telling me! I'm very excited to start doing this, and it's definitely the kind of clothes I like to wear in everyday life. I'm very much a fluffy girly-girl when it comes to dressing, and you won't usually find me in jeans and a t-shirt unless I'm painting the house or hiking, LOL. A lot of my stuff is already fairly Victorian/1950s styled (a weird combination, I know, but it somehow works for me most of the time!), so a Lolita wardrobe would definitely go with a lot of what I have already. I'm drooling at how cool other people's plans look, I can't wait to finish making my own. I wonder if I can convince my graphics teacher to let me submit my storyboard as a class assignment, since I'm using the GIMP techniques I've learned in the class to do it...

[Lisanne]

The SWAP 2008 photos are here :

http://www.timmelfabrics.com/2008swap.htm

[Silly_Seamstress]

Now that I'm a little further in planning my wardrobe, I have a couple of questions about the embellishment rules. Would a decorative corset lacing count as embellishment? And would replacing buttons with hook-and-eye tape count as an unusual closure? Thanks!
Jamie AKA SillySeamstress

[DragonLady]

Would a decorative corset lacing count as embellishment?

Hmmm.... I think that would be more along the lines of alternative closure.

And would replacing buttons with hook-and-eye tape count as an unusual closure?

It's not really unusual.  And, it's usually hidden so no, I don't think so.  I want to see alternative closures that are interesting to look at or somehow demonstrate good sewing skills.  And I don't think this would qualify either way.

[Licarrit]

Ooh, DragonLady, I was going to do a jean jacket with large hooks as the alternative closure and just assumed... so did I do as the old saying goes "makes and Ass out of u and me"

[DragonLady]

Ooh, DragonLady, I was going to do a jean jacket with large hooks as the alternative closure and just assumed... so did I do as the old saying goes "makes and Ass out of u and me"

Hmmm.... Maybe not.  Are the hooks going to be the kind that are hidden so it looks like there is no closure?  I'm kinda after making the buttons or closure a distinctive feature of the garment, rather than having them hidden.  But, most jean jackets have rather large front buttons or snaps, so doing something different might really stand out.

[Marji]

I was surprised when I read that you weren't going to allow hook and eye tape as an alternative closure, but then I realized you were thinking the standard stuff that is used in formalwear and isn't meant to be seen.
There is a whole generation of new closure tapes that came about after the goth clothing phase, and they are meant to be seen.
Where I teach classes she has a whole bunch of them, so I knew they were out there.
I just went looking and found some at Vogue Fabrics online.
It's called Jumbo Hook and Eye tape.

black and nickel


black and antique brass

and it comes in white with silver hooks.


edit to fix my link

[Lisa]

There is a whole generation of new closure tapes that came about after the goth clothing phase, and they are meant to be seen. It's called Jumbo Hook and Eye tape.

This isn't a rules question so this might not be the right place only I don't know how to move the quote to another place - LOL. How is this tape sewn in place without running into the hooks/eyes? Looks fun.

- Myrna

Myrna, I'm moving your post to it's own thread under notions!  It's now in a thread on the Notions board called "Attaching decorative hook & eye tape." 

Thanks!

Lisa

[DragonLady]

I was surprised when I read that you weren't going to allow hook and eye tape as an alternative closure, but then I realized you were thinking the standard stuff that is used in formalwear and isn't meant to be seen.
There is a whole generation of new closure tapes that came about after the goth clothing phase, and they are meant to be seen.
Where I teach classes she has a whole bunch of them, so I knew they were out there.
I just went looking and found some at Vogue Fabrics online.
It's called Jumbo Hook and Eye tape.

black and nickel


black and antique brass

and it comes in white with silver hooks.


edit to fix my link

Ahhh...that's neat.  Yes; something like that will be perfectly acceptable.

[Licarrit]

DragonLady, sorry to be a dolt   but hooks (invisible) on the jean jacket, yes or no? I actually added all kinds of seaming and was planning appropriate topstitching so it clearly reads "Jean Jacket" but has a cleaner front.

[DragonLady]

I suppose on the jean jacket hooks are indeed an unusual or alternative closure.  So, yes, go for it.

[DragonLady]

I just realized that it seems I'm setting a double standard about the hook-and-eye tape, so let me clarify.

Yes; I'll allow it if it stands out and makes the garment unique.  But not if it just says "gee, I haven't learned how to make buttonholes yet".  Does that make sense?

[Licarrit]

Thanks, I get it now!

[NancyK]

Does fabric painting count as embellishment?

[MsFunk]

Now that I'm a little further in planning my wardrobe, I have a couple of questions about the embellishment rules. Would a decorative corset lacing count as embellishment? And would replacing buttons with hook-and-eye tape count as an unusual closure? Thanks!
Jamie AKA SillySeamstress

I have been eyeing a corset/cincher in a window on my walk to work that has keys as a decorative feature; They are turned so the lacing is threaded through the hole at the end instead of lacing through grommets.  I assume that there is an additional closure since this wouldn't hold up to cinching, but I thought of that when I saw your question.  No idea how the keys are attached to the corset.

[DragonLady]

Does fabric painting count as embellishment?

Certainly!

[NancyK]

I have read and reread the rules, but are the dress options supposed to be two piece dresses, ie top and bottom that match or can they be one piece?

[DragonLady]

I have read and reread the rules, but are the dress options supposed to be two piece dresses, ie top and bottom that match or can they be one piece?

I assume most of the dresses will be one piece.  But I don't see any reason why they can't be two pieces if that works better for you.