Jean Jacket Now Finished

I just finished making the buttonholes and sewing the buttons on the jean jacket that I wrote about in my post on April 3^rd.  It is a relief to finally have it totally done!  A picture of the jacket is shown below.

 

I learned some lessons from making that jacket.  The first lesson learned was make sure you start with the correct size.  I believe the first pattern I tried to fit was at least one size too large for me.  If I had tried a different size, it might have worked.

The second lesson was to always keep a written list of any changes you make to your muslin.  In the future I will immediately write down each change as I make it.  I do that sometimes, but failed to do it this time.  I made a lot of changes and I forgot to transfer some of them to my pattern before I cut the grape denim.  It was fortunate for me that I had enough extra fabric to recut three pieces after I discovered my errors. 

When you are making changes, it is important to think about other pieces of the pattern that may be affected by those changes.  For example, if you do a full bust adjustment (FBA), it will affect both the width and length of the front bodice piece.  If your pattern has a front facing piece, it will no longer fit onto the front bodice unless you remember to lengthen it.  If you add or subtract width to the hip area of the back as I did with the jean jacket, then the lower back facing must be adjusted as well.

I learned the hard way that it is important to think through a sewing project not only before you begin, but as you make changes to the pattern.  You should also make sure you have all your supplies before you begin just in case you need to order something you cannot get locally.

Good luck with your sewing projects. 

Judy

 

Not Exactly a Sewing Slump

For more than a month I have been going through something like a sewing slump, but not exactly.  I call a sewing slump a period of time when I just can’t get interested in sewing anything.  That is not my current problem.  I am very interested in making a few things for a core wardrobe, but recently things have not gone well.

It all started with a pattern hack of a tee top.  A friend of mine wore a tee top that really caught my attention.  It looked like a short sleeve top with a ruffle at the bottom edge of the sleeve, but it also looked like she was wearing a long sleeve shirt underneath it.  Instead, it was a knit tee top with the lower part of the sleeve and ruffle made from a woven cotton-blend fabric. 

I decided I could easily do a pattern hack to make this top.   I used my regular long sleeve tee top pattern and just change the sleeve pattern piece.  I cut the sleeve pattern at the level where a short sleeve would end.  I made the short sleeve piece and the front and back pieces from knit.  Then I made the lower sleeve from a cotton fabric.  I substituted a knit flounce for the cotton ruffle, but that didn’t work well.  Then I tried a knit ruffle and that didn’t look right either.  And worse yet, when I added the lower sleeves, it looked really awkward; almost like I had the shirt on backwards.  It was at that point that I decided to put the shirt aside for a while.  I could work on something else and come back to the tee top later.

Next, I attempted to fit a pattern for a jean jacket.  I used the pattern, By Popular Demand, from the Cutting Line Designs.  I measured the pattern and compared the measurements to my own.  Then I started making adjustments to the pattern.  I sewed a muslin from the pattern and made more adjustments.  No matter what I did, I could not get that pattern to fit me.  Finally, I gave up.

I chose another pattern, McCall’s M5191.  It was a jean jacket pattern that was out of print, but  I was able to get one from Ebay.  Once again, I started the fitting process.  After making many adjustments, I still had a group of wrinkles in the back under the armscye.  I took the advice of a friend and made an adjustment to the yoke seam at the armscye.  That helped, but there were still too many wrinkles in that one area on the back.  I knew I was too close to give up again.  I started looking through all my fitting books.  I flipped through all the information about fitting a bodice back.   I kept flipping past information on broad/narrow back adjustments.  I didn’t think that applied to me because I didn’t think I had either a broad or a narrow back.  Finally, a light bulb turned on in my head.  I had wrinkles under the armscye of that jacket because the armscye went past my back and onto my arm.  BINGO!  I needed to make a narrow back adjustment. 

I made the adjustments to the yoke and lower back.  The adjustments helped to eliminate most of the wrinkles.  The jacket isn’t perfect, but I wasn’t looking for perfection.  I was looking for a jacket that would fit me better than one off the rack.  I think this one will work.  I can always tweak the fit a little when I make another jacket with this pattern. 

The jacket is finished except for the buttons and buttonholes.  Now that JoAnn Fabrics is out of business, I can’t just get in my car and drive to Lansing to get buttons.  I know I could order buttons on-line, but I don’t want to wait for them to get here and I don’t want to buy them without seeing them.  I called Yards of Fabric in Mason and talked to Jeanean.  She carries a few buttons in her store and has eight plain 5/8” black buttons on hand.  She is holding them for me to pick up tomorrow.   The denim I used for the jacket is a grape color and is top-stitched with black jeans thread.  I am hoping these black buttons will look good on this jacket.

I don’t usually post on my blog without a picture of whatever I made.  However, I am doing that this time because it has been a while since I posted.  I will follow up this post with a picture of the jacket as soon as I get the buttons on the jacket and make the buttonholes. 

I hope you have been having more success with your sewing projects than I have had recently.  If you haven’t, don’t give up.  If you don’t try, you will never succeed.  Research whatever sewing or fitting techniques you need and keep trying.  Success will eventually follow!

Judy

 

Why Use the Same Pattern Again and Again

There are good reasons to use a pattern over and over again once you get it to fit you.  The best reason is the time it can save you.  Fitting is a process that takes time, but is definitely worth the effort.  Once you have fitted the pattern to your measurements, you can use it over and over to make many versions of the same pattern.  It saves lots of time because you don’t have to go through the fitting process every time you make something. 

In my post of January 20^th, I showed two tops I made using the ABB Tee from Copper Creek Patterns.  One was a top made using a white sweater knit.  That one was made following the original pattern.  The other was made with a black and red knit fabric and a solid black knit was used to make a yoke in the front.

In January I made two more tops from the same pattern.  One was made from a printed turquoise knit fabric following the original pattern.  I wanted to make another top that would be a little different, so I add buttonholes and buttons on the left shoulder.  Pictures of both tops are shown below.

Last May I made a jacket from the Moss Jacket pattern from Helen’s Closet. Recently I decided it was time to make another jacket from this pattern.  I sewed the jacket using a black cotton blend fabric and added a decorative stitch using black thread for a tone-on-tone effect down the band on the front of the jacket.  See the picture below.

I saved a lot of time when making these items because I used patterns that had already been altered to fit my personal measurements.  In addition to saving time, I also saved money.  Patterns can cost anywhere from $8 to $25 or more each. 

I hope you are busy sewing some beautiful garments for yourself and I hope you are saving time and money by reusing the patterns you alter to fit your own measurements.  If you need help with the fitting process, check with your local library for books on the subject.  You could also check the website for the American Sewing Guild (ASG) to find a local chapter in your area.  The Lansing, Michigan Chapter (Lansing Clippers) of the ASG has a Neighborhood Group that focuses on fitting patterns.  The website for the Lansing Clippers is https://www.lansingclippers.com/.

Happy sewing!

Judy