The blue suit

I said I was going to wear it and I did. I asked Peter to take a picture of me just before I left for class:

I look like I'm holding my breath. But I think I am just standing up straight after all the yoga I have been doing. I see the one sleeve looks like it needs some more pressing, alas. But I have to say, it fit well and the fabric is very light so it was very comfortable to wear and teach in (which involves a lot of arm waving for me). And because it is wool, it was warm and yet breathable. I wasn't actually sure if I was going to like it after I made it but now that I have worn it, I think it will get fairly frequent rotation.

Blue wool suit finished

I have finally finished the blue wool suit. It didn't really give me grief, but the fabric appears to want to wrinkle when you just look at it, so I don't know how happy I am going to be with it. I'll wear it to teach on Tuesday night and then I'll know better.

I press diligently as I go. This is the shoulder/armscye area with a ham under it, so I can press the seam flat without creasing the fabric.

Here's the hem going up. You can see how I had a little bubbling of the iron-on interfacing on the facing on the right. I ironed it out but it's annoying when that happens because then you always have to be so careful with pressing afterward. It is for this reason that I sometimes use sew-in interfacing, even though it might be considered old fashioned these days. It depends on the fabric and how fond I am of it and the garment I intend to make.

And here it is, all sewn and pressed. The bottoms of the fronts want to curl under a little. Perhaps when I wear it, it won't be a problem. I have only made one previous jacket with this version of this pattern - the red wool with the black embroidery - and it doesn't have this problem. But the red wool is more substantial and heavier. I know I always have this problem with the square bottomed version of this pattern.

I opted for clear buttons. I can always change them if I don't care for them but they look okay for now. The skirt is a fairly simple a-line with a yoke, which I lined. As I said, I'll wear the whole suit on Tuesday and we shall see. Next, some wedding gifts!

New project - wool suit

I am being a good girl and only using up my stash. I bought all those pieces of fabric on speculation, so it is only fair that I finally sew something with them. The difficulty is deciding what fabric will go with what pattern.

First of all, I finished that striped shirt and it looks pretty good. I sewed down the facings with a single line of topstitching. I put it on the dress form for a photo before I realized that I should press the topstitching and buttonholes. You can see a little of the "puckering" caused by the topstitching in this photo but it disappeared after I ironed it.

I got out a bunch of my "outfit" patterns, to ponder over and speculate what I would make with them. I'm going to a wedding at the end of May, and it would be fun to have a new dress and matching jacket. I have made the two Vogue patterns with the short jackets with the swing backs and I could definitely do them again. I haven't made the plaid outfit (V1132). I got that jacket pattern for the back on it too, having in mind my "Edwardian" (or maybe it is Victorian?) jacket that I was planning a couple of years ago.

I have these long lengths of fabric in the pale pink with the same stuff in navy, and then there's the bright pink. I laid them out on my ironing board to think about them.

Then I remembered this pale blue (ice blue) pure wool with a thin white stripe, that I had bought at Darrell's a few years ago. It was actually two remnants. I got some matching lining at the time and planned to make a suit out of it. It is nicer in real life, compared to this photo.

I had thought I would use this jacket pattern that I have made a few jackets out of in the square bottomed, notched collar views, but only once in the rounded bottom view. The one I made in the rounded bottom view was this one:

It is also pure wool with embroidery on it. Every time I wear it, I feel great and I get compliments. Of course, it is mostly the fabric and the colour, but I like the fit also. For some reason, even though it is virtually the same pattern as the square bottomed jacket, it works much better than the square jacket, in terms of the hem lying flat and the pockets working. It is very odd how that happens. I wonder if it was a fluke, that the red one works so nicely, but I am willing to gamble on the ice blue wool, and see how it turns out.

Silk suit finished!

It only took me another 5 days! Please pardon the model in the pix - they were taken at 6:30 am with no make-up. Zzz.

First: the buttonholes.
I realized, especially after thinking about what Lorna wrote about taking a lesson for bound buttonholes, that I was not making "real" bound buttonholes. I made real ones on my faux fur winter coat. You make the tiny welts and turn the welt fabric to the inside of the jacket front, which is inside where the interfacing is, between the front and the facing. Then you finish the buttonhole on the facing in a similar way and bind them together. I sewed the "welts" to my silk jacket, sewing through all layers at once and turning the welts to the inside but where they showed on the facing. The above photo shows one finished buttonhole at the top, from the outside. The second buttonhole has the welt fabric zigzaged to it from the outside. There is a line of basting in dark green thread running down the middle of the welt area. That's where I cut the buttonhole open.

I know I showed this before but here is the buttonhole from the inside - the facing side. I have tucked under the raw edge on the short sides of the "welt" and pinned them down.

Here, I have sewed the fold on the short ends down to the jacket facing. On your right side, I left the needle in to show the scale and the stitches. The stitches are very small but not invisible. But the silk fabric is very forgiving and doesn't show all sorts of insults. Then I had to tuck under the raw edges on the long sides of the "welt" and sew them down too. You can click on these pix and make them larger at Flickr for detail.

Here it is on Rose last night. I am having an "issue" at the moment with the top button area not wanting to lie flat. I am not sure I will want to button it all the way up to the neck but I should press that and maybe it will work better.

I decided to model it with a yellow t-shirt because, a) I haven't decided what shirt to wear as it is only -2C out there right now and b) the yellow suited the pink because if it's warm background - it is not a blue-pink.

Here it is all buttoned up with the top button "issue".

And here she is with the top button undone. Whew. I guess I should make the satin blouse next but I haven't decided.

Continuing with the Chanel suit

Boy time flies when you're doing other things! I have been working on the suit but haven't been blogging. I am taking a course which is now over except for the exam which will be on March 30. The course was every Sunday, all day, for four Sundays. It was about how to be a personal trainer - not sewing related. You can check it out here. Anyway, back to the suit.

I can always tell when I am making progress when the various pieces of fabric suddenly get sewed together and they are not all over my sewing room. I have almost finished the skirt. It is the pattern I make over and over so I can do it in my sleep. Here, I am just showing the zipper, how I pin it on and then baste it.

Especially with loose fabric like this, you want to be careful that the fabric doesn't get rucked up one side and down the other when you sew in the zipper. Because the "stripes" are so close together and because they aren't uniform anyway, I am more concerned with making sure the vertical threads line up than the horizontal. I take the pins out before I sew with the machine, of course.

I sewed just the facings together and did not then attach the lining to the facings. I am going to be putting a thin line of piping between the facing and the lining and will do that after I attach the facings to the jacket. All will become clear soon!

I've attached the sleeves to both the jacket and the lining and draped everything over the dummy. I have also basted the piping on to the front edges and around the collar of the jacket. In the photo, I've tried to tuck the raw edge of some of the piping under, so you get a glimpse of what it will look like.

Here, I've pulled back the jacket to show the lining and the facings draped over the dummy. That sure is shiny smooth satin! I will be making a blouse out of it but later. Next, I will sew the facings to the jacket and sandwich the piping between them into its finished position.

The navy wool suit

Sewing with nice fabric in a pattern you have made before makes for an easy go of it.

Here is the same pattern, made with some more of Darrell's wool from some years ago. I got two separate compliments on the jacket when I wore it today and I realize that it fits me even better than the other pattern, especially around the shoulders. Plus it doesn't have that curling problem so I'm away to the races.

Here's the navy wool outside shell. I just have to put it together with the inside shell (which is at the same stage, which is to say, completed) and it's almost done. Those are tailor tacks at the collar, to locate the large dots where the collars come together.

When you have any slightly bulky fabric like this, pressing becomes even more important than usual. And we all know I am a fanatic about pressing. This time, I quadruple pressed the seams.

First, I press the seam as sewed. I press the seam in its closed position, as it came off the sewing machine. Then I press the other side of it, closed. That's two.

Then I press it open from the inside. I am using the clapper at this stage too.
Then I press the seam flat and open but from the outside or right side, also using the clapper. That's four presses on one seam.
Next - I finish the skirt and decide how long it should be.

The navy wool suit

I've had a little extra time just to myself, so work on the navy wool is going very quickly. It is also fast because I have made this pattern several times (never mind how many skirts I have) and I don't have to match plaids.


I've already put the zipper in the skirt. I basted the opening with bright green thread by hand, because I knew I'd never see the thread to pick it out if it was navy, and the loose weave of the fabric would make it extra difficult to pick stitches out if I machine sewed it.

The jacket really does look extra long and it is long - mid thigh. But I knew that when I chose the pattern and so far, I think I was right. I may hem the skirt up an inch higher than the plaid I just made.

I am using some polyester for the lining that was not sold as lining. It has body and substance compared with regular lining. But it is also weirdly puncture-proof. Sticking pins in it has been ridiculously difficult and even sewing by machine, I have to hold the fabric taut otherwise it pokes down into the bobbin case as the needle tries to make a dent in it. And when I cut it out with pinking shears, it cut fine but the cut edges stick together almost like they were fused. Once I start to peel them apart, it is fine - they aren't really fused. But getting a purchase on the cut edge to get the two pieces apart is like trying to open a shrink-wrapped CD case.

This jacket pattern has one-piece sleeves so I am going to put the sleeves in at the shoulder first, and then sew up the entire underarm seam. It might not be any easier in reality but it has always seemed easier to me, to put sleeves in this way, rather than setting a tube inside the armhole.

And the suit is wearable

It's 6:30 a.m. and although I got dressed, I haven't put makeup on yet. The nicest thing about the outfit is how comfortable it is. I still have to train the bottoms not to curl in (they are doing it again this morning) and I wore a plain white shirt to start. But the shoes go great! They are some camel coloured sling-backs I got last summer.

Plaid wool suit, finished and starting the navy wool

I'll start where I left off, which was on my way to Darrell's to look for buttons. I wanted the buttons for the beige plaid to be subtle yet distinctive, a possibly difficult combination as, if they are too subtle, then they aren't distinctive, and vice versa.

I was totally successful! First, although we were having another huge snow dump, I got downtown by bus and back again with no issues. I even spent a short enough time at Darrell's that I was able to use my original transfer to get home. Cheap I know but sometimes, every penny counts. Second, I had bought some lovely horn buttons ages ago from Darrell and they turned out to be just too large for me so I took them back, just wanting him to have them for someone else, and he gave me a credit for them! [Thank you so much Darrell, I didn't expect that.] Third, he still had some of that wonderful printed lining that I had coveted for the Chanel style raw silk I want to make (one day, I hope soon) and so I bought some of it. And finally, I found just the right buttons for the plaid.

Here is the jacket, completed. It will still require some judicious pressing to train those curly bottoms into line but I also think it will help to wear it a lot, which I plan to do, starting tomorrow.

Here is the button in close-up. That red glow is my range-finder, I think. To me, they are perfect. They stand out but they aren't shiny or sparkly. They contrast with the plaid but not too much. Even the slightly green tone is a little contrast to the pink tone of the beige. I like the fact that they are matte in finish and yet have a metal rim.

Then it was time to cut the navy wool. I cut each piece out of a single layer of fabric, to make sure everything was all straight.

The front panel of the skirt has to be cut on the fold so I ran a line of pins down the fold to make sure the fabric had folded exactly along one of the warp lines.

And with each pattern piece, I also put pins in the stright-of-grain lines and then turned the pattern to make sure I was straight.

This extreme close-up doesn't do a lot more for you but here it is anyway.

After I had cut everything, I still wondered which side I should use for the right and the wrong side. I don't know how much you can see in this photo, but I chose the left side in the photo as the correct/right side because it is ever so slightly less fluffy than the other side.

Finally, I settled on sew-on interfacing because the fabric is so nice, I didn't want to take chances with issues associated with iron-on interfacing - bubbles, scorching (not that I've ever had that). I think I will also zigzag stitch around the raw edges of most of the pieces because it is a fairly loose weave and I don't want to risk any unravelling later. I plan to press all seams open and only trim the ones that need it, like shoulders and facings but I plan to wear this suit a lot and for a long time so I want it to be sturdy.

Plaid wool suit - jacket

Now I have to get buttons. I see in the photo that I didn't press the near sleeve very well but the sleeves, they are hemmed and everything is completed except for buttons. I took the basting out down the fronts and sure enough, the lower edge has curled up to the inside slightly. I am still puzzled by why this happens, especially because I know the facing/lining is not smaller or shorter than the front. I can sort of "fix" it by pulling the jacket up at the shoulders so maybe it is a function of not using shoulder pads? But I don't think so. In spite of this one thing (that happens on all the jackets in this pattern), the jacket fits beautifully and part of that is because of the fabric. It never once gave me a hard time while I sewed with it and now it deserves lovely, special buttons.

Next, I think I will finally cut out the navy designer wool. I have hopes that it will be like making sure the bus comes by lighting a cigarette. If I make the navy suit, I will get a call for a job interview.

The plaid wool suit, continued

So it's still coming along nicely. The front is folded with the "wrong" side over the other - the buttons will go on the left, not the right - because of the angle I was photographing it from. I put a line of basting down each front because the front always curls up and to the inside for no good reason and while it awaits the next steps, the fabric can learn to lie flat the way I want it to. Also, the stance in the picture is higher that it will be (I think) when the buttons are on.

Interesting aside: I just looked up "stance" in the online dictionaries and none of them include this use, which is where the jacket comes to a closure at the top. But I hear them use it all the time on "What Not To Wear".

I also want to comment on the vivid blue and pink showing under the jacket. Although they are "okay", I think I will wear shirts in "ice cream colours" with this jacket. Especially as it reminds me of butterscotch ice cream. Mmm, ice cream.

So here's the way I'm doing the vent on this pattern these days. I want the lining to be as free of the skirt as possible but I don't want it to show at the vent. I fold back the flaps on the lining vent and sew down the one that won't be tucked under the skirt vent.

Then I tuck the one side of the lining under where I am going to sew down the vent on the skirt. I make sure it is loose down the middle back seam, so it won't pull up on the back. Then I pin down the vent.

After I pin the vent into position, I baste it. If you look closely, you can see a line of turquoise thread which is the basting. Then I sew it down from the right side or outside of the skirt.

And here is the skirt, finished. The whole back centre needs pressing again but once it has been steamed and clappered, you won't even notice the vent. I hung it using clothes pins so it would lie flat for the photograph.

Plaid wool suit - skirt

I decided to work on the skirt next, as it was draped over my ironing board and it seemed a logical thing to do. I also decided to put skirt hangers inside the facing, to give me the option of hanging it that way, as opposed to using clothes pins on the wire hanger. I take a 12 inch length of seam binding and fold it in half lengthwise and sew down the length of it, just to make it thinner and stronger. Then I cut that in half, making two 6 inch pieces.

I take one of those 6 inch pieces and fold it in half to make a 3 inch loop and sew the raw ends (using a zigzag stitch) to the facing that has not yet been tacked down to the skirt.

I position the loop slightly to one side of the seam because when I tack down the facing, I "stitch in the ditch" of the seam from the right side of the skirt and I don't want to catch the loop in that stitching.

By the way, here's what that "darts converted to ease" looks like when it has been understitched and pressed. That is the back of the skirt on the left (the dart is a deeper dart and so the gathers are more pronounced). It's a softer look but since I wear shirt tails out these days, you don't really see it anyway.

Here's the skirt hanging by the loops. Wrinkles tend to form where the skirt does not lie flat (down those folds that are forming diagonally across the front) and so I will probably have to iron it before I wear it. But I am often ironing things anyway, as my closet is crammed and things wrinkle in there despite being hung up carefully.

Plaid wool suit

I have been sewing more than blogging so this may be a little long.
Okay, when I left off, I was still cutting. And I hadn't cut out the skirt. Although I am cutting each piece individually to make sure all the lines line up, the front of the skirt is cut on the fold and I decided to cut the back of the skirt in one swoop too. So I had to make sure all the lines lined up.

If you look at where the plaid lines up at the selvage, you'll see that the horizontal lines (unfortunately for reference, they are vertical in the photo) skew off to one side.

I had to make sure the lines in both directions matched so I started at the fold and turned back the upper part of the fabric and put pins in where the lines converged.

Then I folded the fabric onto itself and put pins in so I could take out the pins that were causing bumps from the other side. That's hard to describe! The above photo shows my slow progress toward the selvage in the middle, making sure that the lines all line up. The lump in the fabric is caused by the pins I put in when the fabric was folded back.
Anyway, I was successful in lining up all the lines for the skirt, and you'll see that later when I sew the pieces together.

I knew the lining would be quite transparent due to its colour and so I'm being careful about making sure notches are trimmed off and such. But after all, it IS the inside of the jacket and not too many people will see it. Speaking of finishing, I am zigzagging all the vertical edges on the skirt because, although it will be lined, the lining will not be attached to the hem and I don't want the skirt fabric to fray and hang down later. I have pinked all the edges of the lining pieces so I am not worried about them unravelling.

I worked hard to make sure that the plaid lined up and this is the back two pieces, sewed together.

Here is the back with the side back and I made sure they matched up where the sleeve will be inset and not so much along the bottom.

Here is the same piece from the right side and you can see how the plaid lines up near the armhole.

I was happy when I ironed open one of the seams on one of the sleeves (they are 2 piece sleeves) and saw that the plaid matched.

Then I was disappointed to discover that the other sleeve didn't match as much. I know, it's under the arm anyway but I worked at it and it should have matched!