Doris Stitches

Even though I focus more on women and kiddies clothing, I have a some knowledge on men's clothing. Just basic knowledge though but of course there's YouTube to always help when I am stranded 😅.

So, here's a two piece outfit I made for my brother for this birthday shoot. He wanted some simple and classy for his birthday look, he came up with his design and I brought it to life.

Oga don baptise me with pictures 😂. It can't be for my eyes only😄. My people, I try abi I no try?

You know when they say, "keep posting your works, you never know who is watching" I can categorically tell you that this is true.

So a lady reached out to me from Precious Apparel's page🤭❤️ few months back and said she wanted to make a dress. She saw one of my posts there, checked out my page and was already certain that I will be the one to make the dress.

Even tho I felt distance will be a challenge, this lady was ready to go all the way 🤗💕. Her level of trust for a total stranger was just amazing! We set up an appointment for video call to take her measurements and I got to work.

I must say, sewing for plus size is a special skill o. I was just hoping and praying that the dress comes out fine on her because ...hmmmm..... everything was just big especially when I was working on the bra cups😅. Anyways, after completion, I sent her pictures and she absolutely loved her dress. Then I sent it out for delivery. She received it and to the glory of God, it was a perfect fit 😃.

What is the moral of this story? Keep posting! 🫵

Super excited when I get to see pictures 🥰 and it sure can't be for my eyes only😍. Guys, what do you think?

Fellow sew mates, which do you enjoy? Cutting or sewing?🤔

For me, I enjoy sewing..... especially when there is light 💡😁🤸. Nothing like sewing when there is light. Ironing go too sweet! 😄

Speaking of ironing, one important tip to work with velvet is to iron interfacing to it e.g airstay. It makes it stable and very easy to work with. Even adding boning to give it structure will not be a struggle.

Happy new month beautiful people 🤗. Welcome to the second half of the year 2024 🥳🥳🥳......Don't know about you but I am super grateful for the gift of life 😌🙏 and I pray that the remaining months in this year will be filled with blessings upon blessing in Jesus name. And may God almighty continue to bless the works of our hands 🙏

Check out this cute pink ball gown I made for a beautiful princess who turned one last month. How do we look guys ? ☺️

You see this our tailoring work eh, no be everything them they teach person. Most times, you just have to put on your thinking cap and figure out how things are achieved. For me, I do this mostly by observation.

So my client reached out to me that she wanted to make this notched collar faux wrap dress and she wanted it to have this fabric belt. I just told her straight up that I can't make a fabric belt o😰. I even convinced her to use a ready made belt for the dress instead but she insisted that this fabric belt is what she wants as it will make the dress look unique.

I then told her since it's not something I have done before, I'll try and make an attempt but she should be ready to take the outcome how ever it turns out 😅. She said, "Doris, I trust you".......haaa see wahala 🤣

Anyways, I took one of my old belts(the red one in the picture 👇) and observed how it was made. Went to the market to look for a belt buckle and these tiny grommets (eyelets) and I got to work. At the end of the day, it came out far better than I expected and my client was happy 😃.

If you want to see a sneak peak of how I made the belt, check out the next reel on my page Doris Stitches. While you are there, kindly drop a comment and follow too 🙃

So, what is that thing you were never taught but had to figure out by yourself? How was the outcome? Pls share with us in the comment section 😊👇

Just a little detail can transform an outfit from basic to extra 🔥💥. Who says Ankara has to be boring? 😏.......not when Doris Stitches is involved 😁

Oversized button down shirt with basket design and shorts specially tailored for my beautiful client. You can tell she had fun in this outfit ☺️

Burgundy never looked so good!😍❤️

Super excited when I get to see pictures of my clients in their dress. The feeling is out of this world🥰. Guys, how do you rate her look? 😀 Meanwhile, she's wishing y'all a happy Sunday ✨

Sometimes, you don't know how good a dress will turn out to be while making it. But as you join each piece step by step, the beauty begins to show. Then when you wear it with the right accessories, the perfect look is achieved 🥰.

Follow the pictures to see the making of this beautiful court wedding dress for my sweet client. Glad Doris Stitches made her day memorable ❤️

Something cute for a beautiful princess who turned 4 this month 🥰. She's wishing you all a very happy Sunday ✨

Made by yours truly Doris Stitches 🪡

When my client sent me these ankara fabrics to combine them for a bubu style, I actually thought the colours were just too much 🫣. Even the bubu style she chose gan sef na die 😄

However, knowing the fashionista that she is, I knew she would rock the style effortlessly so I went to work.

Ladies and gentlemen, I got to see a video of her in this bubu. Ahhhh! It can't be for my eyes only!🔥 🔥 🔥 . Check out the video in my next and tell me what you think.

Making a shirred dress or smoky dress is not as easy as it looks. In fact, it is when you start sewing, you will know that it is not a small job😩.

Some customers will say, is it not to just be sewing straight lines? Aunty, can you sit down and be sewing repeated straight lines for hours? 😒 Then make NEPA no come bring light.....na you and manual machine go dey battle am 😆. Despite the stress though, the outcome is always worth it🥰 ☺️

Here are some tips that can help when making a shirred/smoky dress
1. Double your measurements.
2. Use your hands to reel the elastic thread on the bobbin.
3. Loosen the screw on the bobbin case a little bit so the elastic thread can pass through easily and not be tight.
4. Sprinkle water on your fabric to soften it before you start sewing
5. Instead of just sewing as the spirit leads, rule the lines you will be stitching on. Give at least ½ inch interval. This will help your dress look neat and straight.
6. Increase your stitch length on your machine and as you sew, ensure you are pulling the fabric as this will help maintain the stretchiness.

If you have any other tip, pls share with us in the comment section. Meanwhile, here are a few of my shirred works. How do dey look? 🙂

You know when they say...... "picture isn't doing justice to this style"......This is the style they were talking about o😆.

So my bride wanted something simple for her traditional wedding dress and we settled for this style. I got to work immediately and finished up in no time.

As I sampled it on the mannequin, it just wasn't giving what it supposed to give🥴 but when my client sent pictures, Omo, my wow was wowed 😲 😲 😲. Just check out the dress on the mannequin and on the owner, shey difference no dey? 😃

See more beautiful slides in the on my page Doris Stitches .......too cute!!!🥰

The beauty of pattern drafting is that you get to see the end from the beginning🥰

Happy new week beautiful people ✨

Thank God it's Friday 🥳. The weekend is here again💃💃💃. Owanbe Saturday loading😁......Meanwhile, check out this beautiful peplum top specially made for my client. Who modelled it better though? Mannequin or owner? 😃

For those into bespoke tailoring, y'all will agree that every dress has it's own unique story, be it good or bad.😄 Well, here's the story of this dress in the picture below 👇

So one of my client recommended me to her friend who was getting married and needed a good tailor to handle her traditional wedding dress. The friend got in touch with me and we began discussing the styles.

Fast Forward, I finished making the dress and sent the picture in the 1st frame for her to see how it looks. Aunty look picture finish come talk say "Doris, I'm not feeling this dress🫤" Haaaaaa..........see heartbreak 💔. After all my effort 😫

To cut the story short, I suggested we add appliques to it to elevate the look. We settled for something gold so it matches with her jewellery. Since it wasn't part of our initial agreement for the style, she agreed to pay the extra cost.

But to be honest eh, the applique took this dress from 0 to 💯😍. It gave it that extra spice that was missing. Like seriously, check out the video of her rocking it on my next and tell me what you think 😃

I think the major work in tailoring has to do with cutting. This is the part where you bring all your calculation skills and creative thinking abilities in whatever project you are working on. In fact, before you start the actual cutting on pattern paper or on fabric, you must have cut it in your head........make you no go spoil person cloth 😂

1. First task is understanding the style you are about to cut. Sometimes, you'll need to check YouTube for help.

2. Next is to calculate how many yards of fabric you'll need for the style based on the measurements given and draft your pattern appropriately. If you no check the measurements well, Omo! you go explain tire 🤣

3. Then you'll calculate the amount of fabric needed to cut certain parts like flare, flounce, gathers, pleats etc so you don't end up with too much waste.

4. You'll also need to take note of the pattern placement on the fabric to ensure there is uniformity in your design before going ahead to cut.

By the time you are done with all these, person head go just dey hot 🥵 .........but once it's done right, you know the outcome will be amazing just like this beautiful aso-oke danshiki top and shorts that I made for my wonderful client. Love how the lines align 😍

So tell me, what do you think is the major work in tailoring?

I have come to realise that making a dress fine is important but the person wearing it is "importanta". 😄 The way they wear and carry themselves in the dress just gives life to it........I mean, check out my client naaaaa😍. Is she not making sense?

Just thinking🤔....why is it that when you have an emergency dress to make, that is when your machine will start misbehaving or NEPA will just frustrate you?

Machine that was sewing normal o will just start skipping or cutting thread. What ought to take you less than 2 hours is already taking the whole day. Then when you now move the dress to the ironing table to iron, it is that time gan gan NEPA will take their light. 😑 Light that was wasting since!

Now, because you are in a hurry and your customer is breathing down your neck, you didn't get the chance to sample the finished look on your mannequin 💔😫. After all the hard work, no evidence 🤧............ Lol, I know it doesn't happen all the time but I'm sure we've all had our own experiences abi na only me waka come? 😂

By the way, this dress below was one of my many emergency clothes that didn't make it to mannequin 😢 but my beautiful client was kind enough to send me a video 🥰🥰🥰💃💃💃. Check it out my next reel and tell me how I did😊

Something I made for a little princess turning 2 🥳🥳🥳. It's just satisfying to see how each piece come together to form something beautiful 😍.......but really, to make children's clothes, you need a whole new level of patience 😅. Sewing tiny things is another skill on its own. Meanwhile, how did I do?🙃

You know you took the measurements correctly, you know you drafted your pattern accurately but there's always this little anxiety you feel when you send out the clothes for delivery because your client is far away and can't come for fitting.

You are constantly checking your phone to know if they have received the clothes and if it fits. Then suddenly, a message pops up from your client. She loves her dress!!!! 😍😍😍 Best feeling ever!!!! 😁😁😁💃💃💃. Abeg, am I the only one on this table? 😃

Meanwhile, how does my client look. Cute right? Cute baby loading too 🤭

Hello beautiful people, wishing you all a blessed week ahead ✨🤗

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I used to think fashion illustration wasn't an important skill to have as a fashion designer but I have come to learn that it is as important as pattern drafting.

So my client wanted to make something for her traditional wedding. She said Doris, "I'm tired of searching for styles online, let me just explain how I want it to be."

I want the upper part to look like off shoulder but it won't be off shoulder. You'll add illusion net. Then I want it to have a cape like design that goes round my shoulder, forming a sweet heart neckline down to the waist line. I don't want corset but just help me add those corset loops at the back so I don't have to worry about the dress being too tight or loose. Also, don't forget to ............

To cut the long story short, I was able to use her details to come up with this quick sketch and she loved it. Although we planned for it to be a gown but at the last minute , she decided it's best for it to be blouse and wrapper.

From sketch to life. How did I do guys? 😃

When my client brought this ankara fabric for this style, I just knew it would make sense. As the fabric fine, abeg tell me why the style no go fine? 😍. Can't wait to see her model this. Meanwhile, happy new month everyone 🎉✨🤗.

Concerning my last post, the most question I got was
1. How did you draft the trouser pattern for the jumpsuit?
2. How do you get the crotch depth for your jumpsuit? So let me start with question number 2 first. To get the crotch depth for jumpsuit, I simply divide the hip by 3 then raise the back pattern of the trouser by 1 to 2 inches....depending on the size of the bum while for question 1, I have taken out time to make a step by step paper illustration of how I did it.
Measurements needed
Waist
Hip
Round thigh
Trouser length. ( Pls ask your client if she's wearing heels o.....to avoid my mistake 😂)
Hope this was helpful 🤗

Have you ever made a mistake on a style that later became a design? 😃 So here's my own story......If you look at the hem of this jumpsuit on the mannequin and on the owner, you can tell something went down there 😂.
The length was short.....not up to the owner's taste as she planned wearing it with some high heels and she wanted her heels covered. Haa see wahala!.....Luckily there was extra fabric remaining which was just enough to extend the length (thank God say I never throway am😅) then I made use of left over cup chain trimmings to cover the stitch lines so it doesn't look ordinary.
My client wore her jumpsuit for a wedding and she said she got so many compliments🥰. She even said that one of her friends want to replicate this same style with the design at the hem of the trousers because it made the style look unique. If only the friend knew 🤣🤣🤣
At the end of the day, I was glad everything turned out well. Have you been in such situation before?

Here's a brief paper illustration on how I achieved this gorgeous bustier gathered-flare gown with spaghetti straps. Materials used are:
6 yards of Ankara( I didn't use all though)
Lining
Warden and bra cups
Crinoline (for the hem of the flare)
Zip and thread.
Measurements needed are:
Shoulder, bust, under bust, waist, shoulder to bust point, ni**le to ni**le, shoulder to under bust, shoulder to waist, dress length.

Luckily, I got to see my client model this dress and guys, It is so cute 🥰. The fit nko? purrrfect ✨😚👌. If you doubt me, check my page Doris Stitches for the video. Her shakara no get part 2 😂 .......Don't forget to like and follow too 😊

Wishing y'all a blessed week ahead✨

Tailored to perfection ✨