Ottobre 5/2016 #7 Miniskirt

After sleeping on it, I decided that the coat wasn't worth finishing.  Even if it ended up looking okay - not a certainty by any means - there were enough places where it had gotten distorted that I would have known it wasn't okay, even if no one else noticed.  So I decided to give my first Ottobre pattern a try, and cut the split-front miniskirt (#7) from the 5/2016 issue out of the plaid-ish ponte I'd used for the body of the coat.

Even though I don't anticipate I'll wear this all that often, it was just what I needed sewing-wise after the things that went wrong with the coat.  This was my first time using a pattern from a "roadmap" style pattern sheet, and it took a bit to get the hang of tracing off it; I had to go back a few times because I'd missed markings.  But once that was figured out, this was a beautifully easy and tidy sew.  Everything lined up perfectly, my coverstitch behaved itself (mostly), and I finished this project in a day, from tracing-off to hem, which I almost never do.

There are things that could be better - for example, it didn't take a press as well as could be ideal, and that shows in the seam between the yoke and the skirt.  But even so, this feels like a success, even if it's likely to spend more time in my closet than on me.  And who knows, if I can make leggings that actually fit me right and stay opaque all the way up, maybe shorter skirts will play a bigger role in my wardrobe this fall and winter.

I made a size 48, based on my waist and hip measurements of 35" and 44" (or 46" if I use the accomadate-your-tummy method.)  The fit isn't 100% perfect - I'm not sure if the lines in the front picture are drag lines or just because of how I'm standing - but it's fully wearable.

So thanks to a very satisfying little project after a week of struggles, thing-a-week week 1 is a success!  I'm not sure yet what to plan for week 2.  The coat failure has made me a bit intimidated by the prospect of trying something else well outside my realm of experience, but I do still need a transitional jacket, and have both pattern and fabric picked out for one.  But this time, a muslin for sure.

Butterick 6254, not working out

Only two days left in the first week since I started my thing-a-week plan.  Finishing this week's project in two weekend days is definitely possible, but I haven't decided if it's worth it.  Some things have gone awry in my attempt at Butterick 6254, and I'm not sure I'd be that into it even if they hadn't.

I've had a lot of issues with things growing during construction.  Even on straight, with-the-grain seams, my double knit fabric stretched a lot, and I had all sorts of things not lining up properly as a result.  (The interfaced facing and the front piece lined up perfectly when pinned, but the non-interfaced piece grew over an inch as I sewed them together!)  It's somewhat frustrating since I'm not sure what I should have done differently, but obviously something!  I staystitched where told, but perhaps I should have stabilized everything before sewing.  Or used the walking foot?

I also tried using bits of washi tape to transfer some of the pattern markings, since chalk usually rubs away before I need it, but the washi tape peeled off too easily and I lost some semi-important markers.  (The impact of this was fairly trivial, since after all the distortion from stretching, they wouldn't have lined up anyway.)

Now that it's close enough to done to put on and get an idea of what it will look like, I'm not sure I'd like it even if it were perfectly constructed.  I haven't done the side seams yet, so I can't be sure, but it's looking like it will be huge, and although I still like the idea of it, I'm finding my combination of fabric choices pretty drab.

All in all, I'm thinking this project is bound for either the trash or the giveaway bag, depending on whether I finish it or not.  It's a learning experience, of course, but I'm disappointed.  I had envisioned this as an easy success while broadening my horizons, and it shows me that in some important ways I'm still lacking in basic sewing know-how.

I have another transitional jacket in my sewing plans, but as my sewing ego is fragile, I think a super-easy project, virtually assured to be a success, is a better next choice.  Probably another Concord, or perhaps a very simple skirt.

Thing a Week?

Unsurprisingly, I didn't complete all that many of the things I had planned in my previous post, and now that it's mid-September, most of them are off the to-sew list.  It's still hot for now, but this is Wisconsin - it won't be for long.


What I have completed:

The greatest success was my striped Cashmerette Concord.  The stripes aren't quite perfectly across, but they're pretty close, and since this was my first attempt at a striped anything, it's definitely a success in my book.  None of them are perfect, but my me-made tees are quickly becoming my favorite thing to wear.  (This has nothing at all to do with the fact that I've gained weight and my RTW tees are mostly too snug now, shh.)

I also made another pair of Greenstyle's Walbrook boxer briefs for my partner.  I always like the idea of making him underwear, since it should be quick and easy and takes so little fabric.  But my coverstitch machine hates the narrow binding on the fly, and what should be a two-hour project ends up involving more than two hours just of unpicking!  (It is nice to be reminded of how agreeable my plain old sewing machine is by comparison.)

I also made a few muslins of the Cashmerette Springfield top, but have shelved that one for seasonal reasons too.  Muslin 2 was pretty close, but then I tried muslin 3 as a meant-to-be-wearable muslin out of this polyester silky I had.  It didn't fit, but in a completely useless way - the fabric was so slippery during both cutting and construction that I couldn't tell if it was that my alterations still needed work, or just cutting and sewing errors.

My next planned project - and I've already traced it off and prewashed the fabric, so it should actually happen - is a lightweight jacket using Butterick 6254.  I've got a black doubleknit for the sleeves and collar, and a black-on-grey plaid-ish ponte knit for the body.

I'm planning on setting a sewing goal for myself for the rest of the year.  My partner and I both have summers off and have just gone back to work, but while he's full-time, I'm only part-time, so I've got a lot of hours at home alone.  I was content to be lazy during the summer, but I want my excess free time to be productive now.  So my goal is to complete one sewing project per week for the rest of the year.  That's sixteen weeks, so even if I fail to meet my goal half the time, it would still be my most productive period of sewing ever.  (There's a reason I'm still pretty much a beginner fifteen years after buying my first sewing machine.)  Who knows if it will happen, but that's what I'm aiming for.

Planning

After a mix of successes (Concord tee came out good) and failures (Jalie 3243 looks terrible on, and So Sew Easy Summer Drape Top wasn't looking promising enough to finish), my will to sew hasn't been too much lately.  But there are several things I want or need in my closet for the final month of summer or for when I return to work in the fall, so hopefully getting a clearer sense of what those things are - and how easy most of them should be! - I can get back on track.

Summer clothes - there's still at least a month of hot weather left, after all!

• Tees and tanktops.  Most of my RTW tops fit poorly or were never all that good in the first place.  Several basic, solid-color tees and tanks are called for.
• More interesting short-sleeve or sleeveless tops - basics are nice, but I also have very few non-tee/tank summer tops.  Even a simple cowl neckline or some ruching would add some interest.  McCall's 6963 is probably the first one I'd try, though I need to check reviews for it.
• Knit gaucho pants (Butterick 4807).  My RTW knit gauchos are my preferred summer bottom, but the only pair I have is wearing out and in the laundry half the time I want them.  I hope this project will be quick and easy.

Work clothes

• ITY knit loose pants - for when it's too warm to want to wear trousers.  Lots of pattern possibilities, so picking one is probably going to be the hardest part.
•  More short-sleeve tops.  I'm good on sleeveless and on sweaters, but transitional wear that's good on its own or under a cardigan is somewhat lacking.

Vesta Patterns Grail Tee

The more I sew and read about sewing, the more aware I am of the problems with my RTW clothes.  I've tolerated my t-shirts stretching to semi-sheerness across the bust, and irritatingly snug armholes, for a long time, but with multiple curve-friendly t-shirt patterns now available, it's time I improved my t-shirt options.

Vesta patterns puts out each of their patterns - only two at this point, the Grail tee and a princess-seamed dress - for three different body shapes, and the "S" shape is pretty much spot-on for my measurements.

I added a contrast neckband and sleeve cuff, and increased the length of the sleeves a bit for the sake of personal preference.

What I Liked:

• I love that this fit me without any adjustment. I need to get comfortable doing FBAs, certainly, but FBAs on knits are another matter entirely.  Every FBA-for-knits tutorial is different, and half of them say to use a dart, while plenty of other places scoff at the very ideal of darting a knit.  So bypassing that whole issue with a tee pattern that fits without adjustment is fantastic.
• Aside from the fitting-me-specifically aspect, I like the fit of the tee in general - it's got enough ease to drape nicely and be more comfortable in hot weather, without ending up shapeless like many looser-fitting tees are meant to.

Downsides:

• I don't care for the finish of the tee.  The neck and hems are all finished by folding under 1/4" and stitching.  I don't like the look for the neck, and 1/4" is pretty skimpy for a hem.  I added a neckband and folded up 1/2" instead of 1/4" for the hem.
• While it worked out fine for me, it would be cool if the pattern sizes went bigger - I usually wear a 14 US in RTW, and I was in the largest size, XL.  So people in the plus-size range aren't going to be able to use this pattern without modification.

There's also a tank-top option, with a snugger fit.  I'll probably try that in the future, but I'm planning on the Cashmerette Concord next.  Two options for full-busted tees, hooray!

Fitting the Lady Skater bodice

I mostly wear knits - I'm a big fan of comfort, and my waist size varies a lot, even within a single day.  And I'd love to have simple, casual dresses as a regular part of my wardrobe, so I'm determined to get the Lady Skater to work.  I've seen so many different versions, on so many different bodies, that it must be possible to get it to work for me.

For my first attempt - a practice bodice, as suggested by the pattern - I did a straight size 7.  That's too big based on my high bust measurement, which the pattern tells you to choose by, but maybe the right size for my waist measurement (at that moment, anyway.  The variations really are ridiculous), and I was using a printed knit that looks bad when it's stretched too much, so I wanted to be sure that there would be enough room in the bust.  Once I got far enough to baste the sides closed, it was obvious that it was too big above the bust - lots of excess fabric along the front sleeve seam, and too wide in the shoulders.

For the next attempt, another practice bodice, I went down to a size 6 at the shoulders, and used the cheater FBA method suggested on the Kitschy Koo blog to go up to a 7 at the underarm and below.  But I still wound up with a lot of excess fabric above the bust, and very prominent shoulder seams.

(And looking at this photo, I can see slight drag lines across the bust too!)

At this point, since the fit problems were hardly improved at all, I began to suspect that the fabric might be contributing to the problem.  It's somewhat stiff, as knits go - I lay down the t-shirt I was wearing on the bodice and found that its dimensions around the shoulders were just about the same, but the much lighter fabric of the t-shirt meant the excess didn't stick out sideways like it's doing on this bodice.

So my next attempt is another size 6 until the underarm/7 below combination, but out of a drapier, stretchier knit, that will hopefully handle the excess more gracefully.  But before I finished that, I also got ambitious and decided to try out an FBA, even though it's a knit, following the directions from Maria Denmark on FBAs for a tee.  I plan to sew both the cheater FBA version and the real FBA version from the same fabric - hopefully one or the other will turn out okay, because I want to make this dress for real!

Jalie 3245 Raglan Tee

I made this raglan in anticipation of going to a Milwaukee Brewers (hence the gold and navy) game with the boyfriend.  A lot tried to go wrong with this top - the fabric I ordered didn't arrive until Friday night before the Sunday game, and the colors turned out wrong, so I ended up using cheap poly/cotton knit from Joann that I could have started on anytime that week.  And several silly errors - seams ending up on the outside and such - made it take much longer than it should have.  But I did get it done in time for the game.

This mostly went together well, though I changed the neckline.  I couldn't quite figure out the pattern's instructions to make their neckline work, and time was running out, so I just made my own and attached it in a more familiar way (though one that leaves visible topstitching, which apparently the original pattern method did not).

You can also see that the zig-zag stitching attaching the sleeves is visibly pucker-y; I must need to switch to a smaller stitch length.

I also took in the sides quite a bit - about four inches in all.  I'm several sizes larger in the bust than in the waist for most pattern brands, and I didn't want the top to be too snug, so I chose the size based on my bust measurement.

The fit could be improved, but overall I'm happy enough with the end result - especially since the fabric is already pilling after one wash, so this isn't something I'm going to be wearing often!