Corduroy Jumper

Jumper Pattern

2009-06-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

Here's the pattern I used to make the jumper with. The ladies on the cover are just chillin' in their jumpers. They know you're jealous.

Vintage Rose Pattern Fabric Close-up

2009-05-30T10:04:00.000-07:00

Here's a close-up shot of the fabric I used to make the jumper. I love how pixelated it is.

I Made This

2009-05-29T11:31:00.000-07:00

I spent two days sewing this. I got this cool vintage fabric from Treasure Mart and I had an old jumper pattern from a thrift store. The fit is a bit wonky, hence the pink belt, which I hope hides the fact that the back is kind of bunchy and the two sides are uneven. Ooops.

Return of the Red Jumper

2009-05-24T16:46:00.000-07:00

I wore my red corduroy jumper to eastern market in Detroit on Saturday just to make sure I'd have a jumper photo to add to wardrobe remix. Here I am at the Heidelberg art project in Detroit.

Flickr Wardrobe Remix

2009-05-22T09:07:00.000-07:00

I've joined Flickr, (http://www.flickr.com/photos/thousandships/), as well as the group Wardrobe Remix, where people post pictures of the outfits they wear everyday.

Sadly, most of my outfits do not contain jumpers. Why is that?
I do feel a bit of pressure to look hip and up to date now that I'm taking pictures of my outfits every day, and I 'm just not sure if Wardrobe Remix is ready for "the jumper." Do I suppress my true jumper nature to fit in, or do I expose my jumper wearing self, in all my corduroy, pocketed, pleated glory? It is truly an age old question and one I will not soon find the answer to.

In the meantime here's a picture of me looking like Alice when she grows and grows and her head comes out of the roof of the house. We have low ceilings and it's harder than it seems to take those timed self portraits and get everything in the frame. This is a hand-made dress with really cool details on the bodice and a beautiful bright green floral print. It's not a jumper, so, yeah, it'll never be my favorite thing in the whole world, but it's still kind of pretty.

What is a jumper anyway?

2009-03-05T12:08:00.000-08:00

I'm glad you asked!

American Heritage College Dictionary tells us it is a "sleeveless dress worn over a blouse or sweater. 2. A loose, protective garment worn over other clothes."

I agree. The jumper is sometimes called a "sleeveless dress," and some summer dresses can become jumpers when worn over blouses or sweaters, as mentioned above. A jumper is not a sweater, unless you are Colin Firth in "Bridget Jone's Diary," and your "jumper" has reindeer on it.

I had to search a bit in the OED ( past a lot of fisherman and religious movement references) to find this:

b. U.S. A pinafore dress. Also jumper dress.

1939 M. B. PICKEN Lang. Fashion 84/3 Jumper-dress, sleeveless, one-piece garment worn with guimpe. 1967 Boston Sunday Herald (Mag.) 16 Apr. 6/1 (Advt.), Wear as a jumper over blouses. 1971 NewYorker 11 Dec. 3 (Advt.), Wear a jumper to dinner!

c. Comb., as jumper suit, (a) a pinafore dress; (b) a woman's suit consisting of a jumper and skirt.

1908 Sears, Roebuck Catal. 1149/1 An unusually pretty jumper suit made of soft striped taffeta silk. 1925
Times 29 Dec. 7/6 Sports stockinette jumper suits. 1931 E. RAYMOND Mary Leith III ii. 225 .Mary was in
a jumper suit of primrose silk. 1973 Country Life 2 Aug. 335/2 Soft jumper-suits in fine printed wools.

But I am excited to learn that the New Yorker advised its readers in 1971 to "Wear a jumper to dinner." Yes, please do!

The origins of the word "jumper" may be from the obsolete "jup" or "juppe" meaning a woman's jacket or bodice. First recorded mention of "juppe" in literature is from 1603.

Modest Clothing For Girls of All Ages

2009-03-05T09:03:00.000-08:00

This picture is from jumpinbloomers.com, a website that sells "modest clothing for girls of all ages." Just thought I should give them a 'shout out.' They are not messing around!

Party time jumper

2009-03-02T16:46:00.000-08:00

ok, this jumper breaks every rule of jumperdom because it is

a) not frumpy,

b) lacking pockets, and

c) not conducive to extreme weight gain.

But it's still a great jumper.

I post it here to prove to all the naysayers that jumpers and 'rock and roll' do indeed go together. Like birds of a feather in fact.

new jumpers

2009-03-02T16:41:00.000-08:00

I know I said my long jean pocketed jumper was my favorite, but this jumper is also my favorite, if that's possible. It's vintage Esprit (if that's possible) and has buttons all the way down the back, or the front, you can kind of just wear it whichever way you want. As you can see it is super cool and looks like those old rail road conductor hats we all had as kids.

Anita Housecoat

2009-01-08T08:50:00.000-08:00

Knock knock.

Who's there?

Anita.

Anita who?

Anita Housecoat!

And so do you! I know this is a jumper blog, but the sweet, filmy, beflowered little sister of Ms. Jumper Frumper is Anita Housecoat. In these photos our model shows off three of our top-selling housecoats. And even manages a Tyra Banks-inspired cave-in couture pose! What a talent!

Top-Rated Jumper

2009-01-04T18:34:00.000-08:00

According to my newly devised Jumper Rating System(see "Does Your Jumper Pass Muster?" to rate your own jumpers), this is my top-scoring jumper. See what I mean about the 7 months of pregnancy thing? I could gain about 200 pounds and never have to part with this treasure.

Jumper Rating System: Does your jumper pass muster?

2009-01-04T18:16:00.000-08:00

In my last post about the homemade jumper I realized a few things about jumpers' relative values, depending on several important features. Thus, naturally, it seemed necessary to create the Jumper Rating System.

Does Your Jumper Pass Muster? Find out by answering these simple questions.

1. Is your jumper roomy enough to see you through at least 7 months of pregnancy?

A) Yes, definitely

B) More like 3-5 months

C) My jumper gets restrictive after a plate of fries

2. Is your jumper made out of some under appreciated, natural-fibered fabric like corduroy or linen?

A) Yes

B) Does polyester count because of the under appreciated bit?

C) No

3. Is your jumper long enough so that it could never under any circumstances show off your lovely toned thighs, and people have to take your word for just how lovely and toned your thighs really are?

A) Yes, and yes they are lovely, thank you for noticing

B) No, my jumpers sometimes confuse themselves for shirts

4. Does your jumper have big gaping pockets that fit your whole hands?

A) Yes, and my cell phone, keys, and cash.

B) No, that's why I carry my purple Guatemalan woven nap-sack

C) No, and that's not a very nice joke about purple Guatemalan woven nap-sacks

Scoring: If you haven't already guessed my leanings, 5 points for every (A) answer, 3 points for (B) answers and 1 point for (C) answers.

2009-01-04T18:05:00.000-08:00

First Homemade Jumper

This lovely brown corduroy number is my first homemade, well semi-homemade, jumper. I re-appropriated it from an art-therapisty asianesque jacket with a high neck and decorative clasps that I found in my friend's basement. Luckily I got to reuse the jacket pockets as jumper pockets. Pockets are a really important feature on any jumper. And that great neckline was also already part of the jacket.

2009-01-04T17:49:00.000-08:00

The Original Red Jumper

My love for jumpers started one fall day in Ann Arbor. I was on a walk and found this comely red corduroy jumper in a cardboard box outside someone's house. I took it home with me and have loved it and cared for it ever since. I wore it in its original form for a while, but it was so long I couldn't take very big steps and I felt like a mennonite every time I left the house. Not necessarily a bad thing, and it, of course, comes with the jumper territory. But still, in the interest of stretching my legs, I decided to cut about a foot from the skirt (which became the makeshift neckwear in this photo.)