Notes: This is a vintage 1950's pattern that Simplicity reissued in 2007. A couple months ago, Summerset of Pins and Needles did a comparison of the actual vintage pattern and the reprinted copy. I made some changes to the pattern and construction based on the knowledge that she shared, and I'm really glad that she posted about the pattern when she did (thank you so much, Summerset!)! I would recommend reading those three posts if you plan on using this pattern.
Materials:
-Fashion fabric - Black wool (100%)
-Lining - Polyester (100%)
-Interfacing - Black silk organza (100%)
-Notions include a 22-inch zipper, black all-purpose thread, and extra-fine thread for the lining.
Pattern alterations:
When I made a muslin test garment to preview the fit of the jumper, I was grateful to find that the only fitting issue was in the bodice. The top was too full for me because I have a small bust line.
This was easily remedied by trimming the bottom edges of the bodice panels. My modified pattern is about 1 3/8-inches shorter than the original pattern at the center front, but I didn't cut it all off at once. I began by trimming off about half an inch in the gathering area under the bust, but the trimmed amount gradually grew as I trimmed a little, tested the fit, trimmed a little more, and tested the fit again. I ended up altering the back bodice panel, too, in order to make the side seams even and the skirt hang smoothly.
Construction:
The main changes that I made while sewing the garment were: interfacing the neckline, armholes, and midriff, adding a skirt lining, and putting in a waist stay to help support the weight of the skirt. I also reorganized the order of construction to accommodate these changes. This is the order in which the jumper was constructed:
1.)After stay-stitching the neckline and sewing the shoulder seams, I interfaced the neckline and armholes with one-inch wide bias strips of silk organza (cotton flannel could also be used). I basted them to the wrong side of the fashion fabric before sewing the seams.
2.) I sewed the bodice lining to the bodice according the the instructions, but I left several inches of the back neckline seam open on either side in order to have a lining that covers the zipper tape rather than being included in the zipper seam (see the small blue arrow in the picture below).
3.) I under-stitched the neckline and armholes by hand with a prick-stitch, stopping and starting about 2-inches away from the beginning of the stitching at the back of the neckline seam. Under-stitching by hand can be advantageous in instances such as these because your fingers can reach small spaces that the machine cannot!
4.) Moving on to the skirt panels. . .
I interfaced the midriff portion of the skirt panels with silk organza, according to the vintage instructions that Summerset shared. I traced a copy of the the top of the skirt pattern to use for cutting the interfacing. The interfacing pattern ends about 3-inches below the points of the darts. I thread traced the darts before removing it from the pattern. I finished the bottom edge of the organza by tissue stitching over it with a zigzag stitch. After that, I decided to conceal the zigzagged edge with hem tape for a neater finish. I then aligned the cut edges of the interfacing with the cut edges of the skirt panels. To anchor it in place, I stitched half an inch from all the outside edges and down the center of each dart. Here are two pictures, showing how it looked from the both sides of the skirt panel:
When sewing the darts, I treated the wool and silk as on layer.
5.)I clipped each dart at the center and slashed it open to press it flat. I slashed from the top to within 3/4-inch from the point. I was left with raw edges, so I hand over-cast them to keep the organza from fraying too much.
I did not clip or slash the darts in the lining because the material was lightweight and wouldn't be a source of bulk. I simply pressed the darts toward the center seams as directed in the pattern.
6.) Next, I sewed the skirt to bodice, I leaving the bodice lining free. I graded and pressed the seam, then I proceeded to install an invisible zipper.
7.)Then, I opened out the lining and sewed the skirt lining to the bodice lining, in the same manner as the main jumper.
8.) Afterward, I sewed in the waist stay. I used a 7/8-inch wide grosgrain ribbon, which I cut to be 1/2-inch smaller than the finished garment measurements. Waist stays are often 1-inch longer that the wearer's waist, but my jumper is not closely fitted, so a small stay would cause it to buckle oddly.
I believe there are a few ways to sew in a waist stay, but I put mine in by pinning the ribbon over the natural waistline of the lining and stitching through the center of the tape to hold it in place. I positioned it in such a way that it would be slightly off-center in the back, to prevent it from creating bulk in the zipper area. To attach the stay to the actual garment, I tacked the stay to the seams, but only after I completed step #8!
9.) This is the point where I completed the back of the neckline seam. At the same time, I secured the lining to the zipper tape by crossing over the zipper seam by several stitches and pivoting the fabric so that I would be heading down the zipper tape. My description of the process may sound confusing, but if you look at this post about RTW-style zipper facings at besewstylish.com, you can get an idea of how I did it. I stitched about 5 or 6-inches down the zipper tape, then I stopped. I needed to go back an finish the under-stitching at the neckline seam and bring it all the way to the zipper. So I turned the garment right-side-out again, finished the under-stitching, turned the garment wrong-side out and continued securing the lining to the zipper tape. I hope I haven't confused anyone!
ETA: I wanted to mention that it is very important to make sure that the back neckline seams on either side of the zipper will align with each other before stitching the neckline/lining attachment seam. I've learned this the hard way more than once! Uneven neckline edges can sometimes be disguised by hand sewing a hook and eye above the zipper to help pull the edges into alignment while wearing the garment; but, needless to say, it's always better to *not* make this mistake in the first place ;)
10.) After the lining was sewn over the zipper tape, I went back to the waist stay and carefully aligned the lining/garment seams and tacked the stay to the garment seams, catching only the seam allowances.
11.) Almost done! I finished the outer garment with a hand-sewn hem and the lining with a machine-stitched hem.
12.) I completed the jumper by making thread chains to join the skirt and lining hems and by sewing the hooks and bars to the ends of the waist stay.
In conclusion. . .
I'm very pleased with this pattern and the outcome of the jumper! It would be neat to have a petticoat to wear under it, but that's another project for another time!
By the way, if anyone has a question, let me know ;)
