GARMENT CONSTRUCTION 5 - THE ONE THAT MADE ME PAUSE

I went into it fairly confident. I'd made a lot of garments by then, understood structure, wasn't scared of zippers or sleeves anymore.

Then I cut the blue dress on the bias.

I didn't realise how different bias really is until I was in the middle of it. The fabric stretched, shifted, grew while it was hanging — what fit one day felt slightly different the next. I adjusted it, then adjusted it again, and eventually remade it completely. That was hard — not dramatic hard, just quietly frustrating. It's uncomfortable thinking you've moved past struggling, then finding yourself right back in it.

Bias doesn't let you rush. It doesn't let you force it into place — it asks you to wait, let it hang, accept the fabric's going to do what it wants first. Even now, looking at that dress, I don't feel proud. I just remember the feeling of it stretching and trying to understand why.

At the same time, we were also making structured, lined pieces — coat-style garments where everything had to be right before you closed the lining, because once it's enclosed, that's it, no quick fixes. So it was two extremes in one class — one garment that wouldn't hold still, one that demanded complete control.

GC5 didn't feel elegant. It felt like being stretched. But I didn't quit it — I remade it, I finished it. And even if that blue dress still gives me a bit of dread, I know it made me better.