Another Knit Top

Here's my second version of Simplicity 4076. This one has the same cut as my first top, in respect to the neckline and lengthened hem (see the details here), except this time around, I allowed a for bit more ease and tried a sleeve variation.





The fabric is a bright orange, cotton/lycra jersey knit from Fashion Fabrics Club. It actually has a bit more stretch than the material for the last top, and it's also "slinkier" than the other because it stretches in both lengthwise and crosswise directions. I pretreated it by machine washing and drying it twice to eliminate any significant shrinkage.

To construct the top, I followed the same basic steps as I did for the last one, but I wanted to have a little more wearing ease in the armhole and side seams, so I stitched using a 1/2" seam allowance instead of 5/8." Also, to stabilize the shoulder seams, I used clear elastic instead of seam binding.



When I altered the pattern for the sleeve, my original intent was to gather only the top part of the sleeve. I altered the pattern as pictured below:



My plans changed after I'd hemmed and set the sleeves; their fit was looser than I'd hoped, and they were a little droopy. :-( I decided to pick out the hem stitches and gather the lower edge to a band, similar to the finish of the neckline. In a way, I'm kind of glad it ended up happening as it did because I actually like the sleeve bands better.

Brown Knit Top

This is a brown and tan printed top, which I completed early last week, using Simplicity 4076 (view D) and a length of polyester jersey. As evidenced by the other projects I've posted, I haven't sewn much with knit materials in the past, mostly due to negative experiences in which my machine stretched them beyond recovery. Late last year, however, I was able to acquire a four-thread serger/overlock machine, which, coupled with a need for more tops and blouses, has given me a bit of incentive to try knit fabrics once again.



Pattern Changes
Since this top basically fits like a T-shirt, I didn't really need to make any fitting adjustments; my focus was more on learning to construct a garment with knit fabric. I did lengthen it by nearly three inches at the hemline, though, as well as bringing up the front of the neckline slightly. To raise it, I cut the neckline along the line for the largest size at the center front and blended it with the lines of the size ten, as shown below.



This caused the neckline opening to become slightly smaller, so I trimmed the neckband piece by about 1.5" to 2" to compensate for the loss of length.


Construction
When constructing the top, I followed the instructions provided with the pattern, except for the portion on setting the sleeves. The pattern recommends assembling the sleeves and main part of the garment separately, then setting the sleeve "in the round," but I found it easier to hem the sleeve, set it into the armhole, and then stitch the underarm and the garment's side in one continuous seam. When the seams were complete, I pressed them toward the back of the garment and topstitched them in place at the hems of the sleeves, as often seen in ready-to-wear (the topstitching is barely visible in the photo below).



Working with the Fabric
Prior to stitching into the actual garment pieces, I spent some time testing scraps of the fabric on both machines to become more familiar with the knit material and adjust the stitches and settings. Once everything was finally ready, assembling this top was fairly simple.

When sewing all of the seams, I used a four-thread overlock stitch on the serger. With some of the seams, such as the neckline and armholes, I found it helpful to set the differential feed at 0.3 to slightly ease in the fabric. The easing didn't show in the finished garment because the fabric was only being eased enough to counteract the stretching that would have been caused by the feed dogs, had they been at the normal setting.

When working with the sewing machine, I used the straight-stitch foot for the basting and topstitching; the foot's narrow hole for the needle helped prevent the needle from pulling the fabric up and down. In order to prevent the fabric from stretching too much, it also helped to reduce the the pressure of the presser foot. The hems were sewn with a twin needle, using a stretch stitch - not the triple-stitch type, but one that greatly resembles a zigzag stitch, where the needle doubles back with each stitch it takes forward. Finally, I also hand-wound a bobbin with wooly nylon thread to lend the hems a bit of stretch.

In Conclusion, I think I actually had a bit of fun experimenting with knits. It seems that once the stitching and construction issues are resolved, this type of material can be somewhat forgiving in the way it fits the body. Aside from preferring just a tiny bit more "wiggle room" at the side seams, I'm pleased with the outcome of the pattern. And since it never hurts to get more practice, I might just find myself using knits again in near the future. :-)

Simplicity 4233 . . . a Skirt "Refashioned"

I can't believe it's been over six months since I've last posted any updates here! Things have been a bit busy for me, as other aspects of my life have been consuming my time, making my sewing projects somewhat sparse. Within the past month, however, my pace has started to pick up a bit, with efforts toward using my ever-increasing pile of scraps, experimenting with alterations on ready-to-wear clothing, and remaking old items to be more wearable. This particular project is a skirt that I recently remade using Simplicity 4233 (which is now out of print).



The original skirt (pictured above) was one that I purchased at a consignment shop a few years ago, thinking that it might be cute to wear, but after trying it on, I found it to be less than flattering; the heavy gathering and wide sash only seemed to create bulk in the hip area. It had quite a bit of fabric in it, though, making me wonder if I couldn't possibly turn it into something else - especially since the Simplicity pattern had been waiting in my "stash" for some time and offered a way to use the embroidery at the fabric's border. After dismantling the skirt, I found enough material for the pattern pieces, and this is what it looks like now:



The pattern went together easily, though I have to confess I didn't really follow the instructions much. I needed to insert a lining, an invisible zipper, and a hem facing, which changed the construction process considerably. For the interfacing, I actually basted a scrap of woven shirting fabric to the yolk pieces. Even though the color of the interfacing is a little lighter than the the fashion fabric, it doesn't show through when the skirt is being worn. . . yet strangely enough, looks like it must have been illuminated by the flash of the camera ;-)





The original skirt was lined, so I reused the lining by cutting the top of it to fit the bottom of the yolk pieces. With all of this re-cutting, however, the skirt panels actually ended up being slightly longer and the lining panels slightly shorter, so I tried to make the lining hem as narrow as possible. The pictures above and below also show the hem facing that covers the embroidery on the interior. This was salvaged from the original, too, as it conceals and protects the wrong side of the embroidery while providing a nice finish for the hem. In addition, I understitched the seam that attaches the the facing to the lower edge of the skirt to make the seam roll slightly inward and prevent it from showing on the outside of the garment.



For the most part, this project was rather enjoyable - it can be interesting to take a garment that would not have otherwise been worn and use the fabric to make something wearable, not to mention being able to try a new pattern, as well.

Rust Orange Fall Jacket

Well, I suppose it's about time that I've posted this, since I made this garment in September and have had the photos floating around on my computer's "desktop" for quite some time now! I needed a jacket to wear this past fall, and PatternReview.com just happened to have a jacket-making contest in progress at the time, so I decided to enter with this project. Even though I didn't win the end, I really enjoyed being part of it because it motivated me to actually finish the jacket in time to wear it in the fall, and it was fun to watch what the other contestants made, as well. Anyhow, here are the pictures:






Here's a copy of the review I wrote for this project at Pattern Review (for a link to the original, click here):

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Pattern Description:
"Semi-fitted, double-breasted jackets A, B with princess seams, notched collar and lapel, sleeve variations and belt." I made view B, which is entirely lined.

Pattern Sizing:
Misses' 6-8-10-12-14. My measurements correspond with those of size ten, but after comparing them with the finished garment measurements printed on the tissue, I cut a size six. This pattern seems to have a generous amount of ease in the main jacket body, so I'd recommend checking the amount of ease to help determine the correct size.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes, I believe it did.

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes, they were very comprehensive. I followed them loosely for the main construction of the jacket body, but I followed separate instructions for making and inserting the lining (more about this below).

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
First of all, I like the style lines of the jacket. I also like that the under collar is cut from two pieces on the bias and that the under collar and lapel facing pieces have already been adjusted for the turn-of-cloth. Perhaps these features aren't too uncommon among jacket patterns, but it's helpful when this work has already been done.

One thing that bothered me, however, was the sleeve, as it did not fit in as smoothly as I would have liked it to. Even when testing the pattern in muslin, it was difficult to smooth out all the puckers in the sleeve cap. Before cutting into the fashion fabric, I measured the seam lines of the sleeve and armhole to see if the amount of ease might be reduced, but after finding only about 1-inch of ease, I decided to leave it be and make the best of it in the construction process.
The back notches also did not align on the sleeve and armhole pieces, and in the sleeve there was not quite enough length of seam line to fit the armhole at the back underarm. As a "quick fix" for this issue, I let out the top of the sleeve's seam by about 3/16" to 1/4" in the back only. Other than this issue, however, the rest pattern fit together beautifully.

Fabric Used:
A tightly woven cotton/nylon blend with a "peach skin" finish on the right side; it was somewhat difficult to penetrate when sewing by hand, and it was easily marred by pinholes, making minimal hand sewing ideal for this project. The lining is a "silky" polyester fabric with a coordinating print.

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:
Fitting Changes:
As mentioned above, I cut the jacket body two sizes smaller due to the generous amount of ease, but after making a test garment, I found that I still needed the larger sized armholes and sleeves. To correct this, I used the size 10 pattern lines (still intact) to trace a larger armhole into the size 6 jacket body.

In addition, I reduced the amount of fullness in the darted princess seams (SBA), made my typical short waist adjustment, and added 3/8" shoulder pads to improve the fit of the shoulders and sleeves. The pattern doesn't call for shoulder pads, but my garment needed them to correct some "drooping" at the back underarm.

Design and construction changes:
To start, I interfaced the front of the jacket with batiste, rather than using a fusible interfacing on the front facing as the pattern says. For added structural shaping, I also fused interfacings to several areas of the batiste. This is repeated in the under collar pieces, as well (click here for a photo).

For further structural support, I made a back stay from broadcloth, fused the sleeve caps with a knit interfacing cut on the bias, and inserted sleeve heads and shoulder pads.

After seaming the jacket front to the side front panel, I also taped the lapel roll line to prevent stretching and help the lapels roll smoothly.

For the lining, I followed the instructions in Claire Shaeffer's High Fashion Sewing Secrets From the World's Best Designers to alter the pieces for "bagging." In addition to instructions for creating a back neck facing, the book shows how to alter the shoulder slope and sleeve cap to accommodate shoulder pads, as well as how to make the lining's armhole sit slightly higher so that it won't bunch up inside the garment's armhole. The result is a lining that fits smoothly inside the jacket (this information can be found on pages 140-142 and was very helpful, so I definitely recommend it). At this time, I also took the opportunity to change the lining sleeve from two pieces to once piece. The second seam is only an ornamental feature for this pattern, so eliminating it simplified the construction.

To attach the lining, I also used the Shaeffer book's instructions for bagging a jacket, which involves sewing the lining into the garment almost entirely by machine and turning the jacket right side out through the sleeve seams, which are left partially open for that purpose. Afterward, the openings are edgestitched closed to completely finish the inside of the garment.

Finally, I finished all the hems by machine-topstitching them in place, rather than stitching them by hand. As a finishing touch, I used small buttons against the front facing to reinforce the outer buttons.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Even though I like this jacket, I probably won't be making another one in the near future, as I don't really need two of them. I would recommend it to others, though, along with making a muslin to fine-tune the fit.

Conclusion:
Overall, I'm happy with the way that this pattern turned out, and aside from the little issue with the sleeves, the construction was fairly straightforward. The design is very cute, and with a belt to cinch in the waist, it would look wonderful paired with a full skirt :-)

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Dotted Blue Dress

It's been so long since the last update to this blog, but finally, here is another finished dress project. I have to admit I actually finished it sometime this past April or May, so this post is long overdue! Things have been somewhat busy lately, making my projects almost as sparse as my blog updates, but here's to hoping things will soon "pick-up" again :-)



The design for this dress comes from New Look 6824 and is a combination of the pattern's options for a full skirt, a square neckline, cap sleeves, and a broad sash (views H, A, F, and J, respectively). The fabric is a border-printed cotton from JoAnn's.

Details. . .
Fit alterations/design changes
I made a "muslin" test garment for fitting purposes and found that I actually didn't need to make too many dramatic changes. I made my typical short waist adjustment, did an SBA on the princess seams, and added a little hip room by widening the skirt panels a bit.

I also redrew the neckline to be slightly higher, at the same time giving the corners a more rounded shape. Since the skirt is cut with the border along the hemline, I used the fitting stage to determine the dress's length, as well. I made it slightly shorter by removing 1-inch from the bottom of the skirt panels.

Fabric/layout
The cut of fashion-fabric was about three to three and half yards long and 50+ inches wide, with the border printed along both of the selvages. It turned out to be just about the right amount, though I did need to spend some time spreading the pieces over the material and adjusting the layout, in order to fit in all of the pieces and match the border print at the center back skirt seam. Having a border along both of the outside edges made it necessary to squeeze all of the bodice, sleeve, and sash pieces into the middle of the yardage, so a single-bordered material might require less length (but even then, the layout can be affected by the fabric's width, nap, or the distance between repeats in the border pattern).

Other details
The entire dress is lined, rather than having only a bodice lining as directed by the pattern. I did this by drafting A-line shaped panels for the skirt and seaming them to the bodice lining at the waist. Additionally, I made swing tacks to connect the hem of the lining to the hem of the dress.

Conclusion
What I love most about this pattern is the full, pleated skirt and the big bow at the waist! It also offers many design options and is fairly simple to construct. I really enjoyed making it and find that it's fun to wear, as well.

Brown "Trumpet" Skirt

This post is really about more than one skirt, as this skirt design didn't come from a commercial pattern, but is a copy from a ready-to-wear garment. It all started when I bought this skirt I found on a sale rack about four years ago. . .



It has eight identical panels that are trumpet shaped - starting very narrow at the waist and curving out to form a flared hemline. I liked the way that the skirt fit so much that I wanted a second one. I decided that it couldn't be too hard to take a pattern off the skirt and make it myself, especially after I'd met a girl a week or two before who had described to me a method for doing it.

I didn't take any pictures at the time, but I'll describe it the best I can: I found a piece of corrugated cardboard that was at least as big as one of the skirt's panels and placed it inside the skirt. Smoothing one of the panels out to be completely flat and centering it over the cardboard, I inserted sewing pins in all of the seam lines along the edges of the panel. Pushing the pins into the cardboard created a series of holes that outlined the shape of the panel. I then removed the pins, pulled out the cardboard, and used a marker to "connect the dots" preschool-style with the marks the pins had left. After that, all I had to do was re-trace the shape onto pattern paper and add seam and hem allowances.

It was very easy to do because I only had to copy one panel and there were no darts in it. Eager to test my new pattern, I made this skirt:



This brown skirt is the most recent garment I made with this pattern, when I needed a basic brown skirt this past February/March. The construction is super simple! Seam eight panels, add a waistband and a zipper, hem the lower edge, and it's finished.




I finished the inside of the waistband with a cotton print to add a bit of color.

Cross-hatch Denim Jumper

This is a jumper from Simplicity 4097, made using a cross-hatch denim with a slight stretch.

Materials:
-Denim (cotton/spandex)
-Cotton lining
-Interfacing
-Invisible zipper
-Thread

Fitting Alterations
I made a muslin to test the fit of the garment and took a tuck in each of the skirt panels when cutting it out, on account of my short waist.

The first fitting issue was that the entire bodice was hanging too low, with the lowest part of the front neckline running along the bust line. To fix it, I took up the shoulder seams until the bodice was centered over the bust line, as it fits in the photo on the pattern envelope. Afterward, I lowered the back neckline and armholes back to their proper positions, since taking in the shoulder seams had pulled them up too high. I eventually lowered the pocket stitching lines on the skirt, as well.

The next adjustment involved an excessive amount of fabric in the back, where the jumper was very baggy from shoulder blade to . . . um. . . well, never mind. I eliminated most of it by taking a small amount out of the empire waist seam in back. The only alteration after this was to add a bit of room in the hip area.

Construction
The denim I used had a bit of stretch along the cross-grain, so the horizontal seams had a tendency to stretch out of shape under the pressure of the machine's presser foot. To prevent this from happening at the "waist" seam, I basted a strip of bias-cut broadcloth (with all of the elasticity pressed and stretched out of it) along the seam line before seaming the bodice to the skirt.

Also, when lining the bodice, I kept the lining free from the zipper and waistline seams, rather than including it as the instructions say. This way, I could turn under the seam allowances and slip-stitch it over those seams later on.



As mentioned above, I did use a bit of interfacing, even though the pattern didn't call for it. I fused it to the upper pocket edges to prevent stretching and the zipper area for a bit of stabilization.



Overall, this jumper was fairly simple to assemble, and I love it when I get a chance to add a bit of color to the interior of a garment with a contrasting floral print. . .

Chocolate Corduroy Jacket

Here are a few pictures of a chocolate colored jacket made of pinwale corduroy, using Butterick 5253. I made view B, but substituted the collar from view D, rather than making a mandarin collar.





Materials Used
-Pinwale corduroy (the photos represent the actual color but are somewhat dark; here is a better picture)
-Cotton broadcloth
-Fusible interfacing
-Champagne colored polyester lining
-Thread
-Self-covered buttons
-Shoulder pads (1/4")

Fitting Alterations
I didn't make a test garment for this jacket, but I had anticipated needing to make an SBA, so I altered the pattern for it before cutting into the fabric. I typically take a tuck in the pattern for my short waist, but since this jacket is not particularly fitted in that area, I didn't need to make any adjustments for it this time.

The jacket was much too loose when I tried it on after sewing the side and shoulder seams, so I took it in at the back princess seams. I actually had to remove quite a bit, but it seemed to do the trick ;)

Cutting and Construction
When cutting out the under-collar, I placed the pattern on the bias and added 3/8" to the center back edge to allow for a seam. I didn't actually intend to do this when I started cutting, but I ran short of fabric and it was the only way it would fit. Funny that it should work out that way!
Also, when cutting the sleeve ruffles, I wasn't sure that I wanted make them quite as gathered as in the illustration, so I reduced the length of the pattern piece by a slight amount. It ended up fitting on the layout perfectly, without an inch to spare (I was literally "cutting it close" with this garment!).

For the construction process, I basically followed the pattern directions to the end, except for a few slight detours. The first was using broadcloth for interfacing rather than a fusible, since I was working with corduroy. I wanted it to have additional support in the button/loop area, though, so I fused a strip of lightweight interfacing to the broadcloth along the center front edges. After that, I basted the broadcloth to the corresponding corduroy panels.
The second "detour" was trimming the under collar by 1/8" at the outer edges before seaming it to the upper collar to pull the seam under slightly. Finally, I did a bit of hand under-stitching at the center front edge, on the under collar seam, and at the back neckline, where the lining joins the collar.

Overall, this pattern worked pretty well for me. It probably would have been helpful if I had made a "muslin" to determine the necessary fitting changes before starting to sew, but I was able to adjust it during construction. Other than that, it's a relatively straightforward pattern, I'm satisfied with the results, and I'd recommend it to others as well.

Black Gabardine Skirt

I've finally got a few pictures of a black wool skirt that I had worked on and completed in December of '08. I meant to post about it sooner but hadn't taken photos until just now. At any rate, here's a view of the front:





For the pattern, I used Simplicity 9825; I've used it once before to make a denim skirt and pulled it out again to use up a generous scrap of black gabardine left over from another project. I modified its design this time by adding hip pockets and flaring the hemline. Here's a side picture; if you look closely, you can see the pocket opening:



To make the pockets, I drafted a simple pattern by using the dimensions of a pocket on a ready-to-wear skirt. The hemline of each panel has been flared by 4 to 5 inches at the side seam. I would have liked to flare them even wider, but I was somewhat limited by the size of the fabric scrap ;)



Other modifications include an added lining, an invisible zipper instead of a lapped zipper, and swing tacks connecting the skirt and lining hems. The construction was fairly simple, but the wool gabardine did not hold creases especially well, so I catch-stitched some of the seam allowances in place when working on the yolk. I also recommend this blog post by Dawn of Secret Pocket; I found her hemming tip very helpful when stitching the hem into place =)

Catching Up: Rust Orange Shirtdress

This past summer I worked on a shirtdress project that was originally inspired by a dress worn by June Cleaver (Barbara Billingsley) in the vintage television show, Leave it to Beaver. It was full skirted, had bais-cut sleeves, and - the feature that attracted me the most - a pair of hip pockets with overturned flaps.

I started out by searching for a pattern to use so that I could make something like it, and this is what I found:



It wasn't a "carbon copy" of June's dress, but it was close enough to where I could use it as a base to be adapted to the design I liked.

The original dress was made of a printed material with small motifs arranged in a striped pattern. Since I couldn't really find anything close enough, I decided to try using a Rust Orange Shirting from Fashion Fabrics Club that features a subtle, tone-on-tone stripe.



Materials:
-Striped shirting fabric
-Batiste (for interfacing)
-7/8" wide Grosgrain ribbon (for waistline stay)
-Buttons (photo below)

Pattern Alterations:
First of all, I had to resize the pattern. It was a size or two larger than my measurements, so I graded it down using these instructions from Sensibility.com.

I also made a few fitting changes for my figure, which included taking extra room out of the bodice (SBA), making a short-waist adjustment, and adjusting the darts in the back of the bodice. I had to play around with the back and waistline darts a bit; I even had to take them in a little again - along with the side seams - when the dress was nearly complete.

To conform the pattern to June's dress design, I flared all of the skirt pattern pieces to be wider at the hem. I turned the sleeves and cuffs on the bias, too. In the original dress, it looked like there was a seam down the center of the sleeve, creating a chevron pattern with the bias-cut grain, but my fabric was a little too thick to make this feature work smoothly, so I cut each sleeve in one piece, instead. For the pockets, I needed to incorporate the pocket pattern pieces into the side/front pieces of the skirt, rather than attaching them as patch pockets. This caused me to split the side/front skirt piece in two - a top piece which meets the bodice at the waistline (and part of which is also the inside of the pocket) and a bottom piece (which makes up the rest of the skirt portion). I also made the pocket pieces to buckle slightly outward, so that they would stand out a little.

Construction:
For the most part, the construction was fairly simple - basically assembling the bodice and the skirt, then seaming the two together and working on the collar and button placket. I followed the instructions rather loosely, but I did use a sew-in interfacing, as directed. I didn't receive very positive results when I tried fusing the fabric with interfacing, so I used batiste by basting it to the wrong side of the areas that needed interfacing.

Originally, the collar/under collar pattern was supposed to be cut all in one piece, with a fold along the outer edge, but I made a separate under collar piece. This allowed me to make the under collar piece an 1/8" smaller around the outside edges so that the seams would pull slightly toward the underside of the collar, where they won't be seen. While I was at it, I decided to cut the under collar in two pieces on the bias, with a seam down the center.

(This picture is probably the most accurate in representing the actual color of the dress.)

I also stitched a waistline stay to the seam allowance of the waistline to help support the weight of the full skirt:



Last but not least, a better view of the buttons. They're not very easy to photograph because they're somewhat glittery and glow when I use the camera's flash. They're not quite as dark as they look below, but this is the best shot I could get ;-)

Butterick 4790

For a quick project this earlier this year, I used Butterick 4790, more commonly known as the "Walk-Away" dress pattern.




If you look at the line drawing on Butterick's website (linked above) you can see that this dress is basically like an apron. It goes on over the shoulders, then the front of it fastens in the back, and the back fastens in the front. The inner layer fits like a sheath dress. . .


. . .And it's fastened with a button and loop at the center back:



Details:

I was basically "testing the waters" with this version (thus the not-so-original color scheme). The changes I made to this pattern were adding about an inch on each side where it fastens in the back so that the edges would meet, taking in about a quarter of an inch at the shoulder seams (doubling to half an inch), tucking out a bit of length for my short waist, and removing a bit of excessive fullness at the bust.

The only detour I took from the instructions was to miter the binding at the corners of the dress rather than stopping at each of the corners and turning under the edges.

This pattern is pretty simple to sew and went together quickly, though I took my time with the binding. Unfortunately, the fabric and binding don't really seem to compliment my coloring, and even after my alterations it didn't look quite right on me (not sure why -- my short waist, perhaps?). My sister fit into it nicely, though, and these colors are more her style, so I'm letting her have this one. I'm not sure whether or not I'll be tweaking it to make another one for myself, but it's still a neat pattern for its unique design and simplicity of construction :-)

Navy Corduroy Jumper

Here's another version of Simplicity 3673. I made my first version during last December/January, and this time I made one for my sister.





The Specifics:

Fabrics:
For the fashion fabric, she chose a navy blue pinwale corduroy, with a polyester lining for the bodice. We also substituted an invisible zipper for a regular one.

Alterations for Fit:
None, other than slight adjustments to the side seams in the skirt.

Construction:
For the most part, I made the jumper following the pattern directions, with a few small additions/changes. . .

The first change was to add interfacings to reinforce a few key areas of the garment. I hand basted 1-inch wide bias-cut strips of silk organza to the wrong side of the shoulder and armhole seam lines before sewing in the lining. For the zipper seam, I basted in a 1-inch wide strip of batiste, which was cut on-grain.

I also hand under-stitched the armhole and neckline seams with a pick-stitch. The instructions don't actually say to under-stitch this area, seeing as it's too narrow to reach by machine, so I did it by hand to prevent the lining from rolling outward.

The third change I made was to insert the lining in such a way as to cover the zipper seam and waist seam. In the pattern instructions, the main purpose of the lining seems to be for finishing the neckline and armholes. After that, it's supposed to be stitched into the zipper and waistline seams with the rest of the bodice. I decided to leave the lining free of the zipper seam and tack in place later (I actually did this by machine; see my other version for details), also slip-stitching it over the waist seam.



The waist seam was supposed to be pressed down (according to the directions), but pinwale corduroy is relatively lightweight, so I "cheated" and pressed it up so I could hide it in the lining. The rest of the seams are simply overcast with a zigzag stitch.

Well, that's about it. It was a fairly simple and enjoyable project, and the corduroy seems to be a great choice for fall!

I'm sorry I haven't been posting very often (I say this too much!). I sew a lot more often than I get around to writing about, so I'm woefully backlogged with projects to post :-( I'll have to see if I can get some more pictures up!

Navy Linen Dress

Last summer I purchased a length of "hanky" linen with the intention of making a coat-dress from a vintage 60's pattern, but after a while, I changed my plans and decided to save the linen for another project. This spring I felt the urge to finally make something with it, and since I wasn't really sure that Vogue 7693 (see link above) was suited to me, I started searching for patterns with that called for a lightweight fabric in a length of 2 5/8 of a yard. After gathering pictures from several different patterns, I decided to use this one:


Butterick 6582

After fitting the muslin, working on the lining pieces, and planning the construction, the dress went together pretty quickly. Here are the results:




A Few Details. . .



The pattern doesn't include a lining , but I added one because my fabric is nearly sheer. Making the pattern for the lining wasn't difficult; all I did for the bodice pieces was combine the bodice facing pieces with the main bodice panels.

I started by tracing the front facing piece onto a blank piece of paper. I then placed the front bodice piece over it, matching the seamlines at the armholes. I pinned the sides and bottom of the pattern piece flat (this caused the fullness in the upper part of the pattern to buckle inward, which you can see below).



I then traced around the side and bottom edges of the pattern, and it ended up looking like this:



I transfered the darts after unpinning the pattern, then matching the side and bottom edges and tracing the dart legs.
One thing I should note, however, is that drafting the lining piece this way caused the lining to be slightly shorter than the bodice piece. After making the dress, I found that the front of the lining waistline seam was about 1/2" higher than the waistline of the actual dress (it ended up being alright, though, because it did not significantly alter the fit). So when making the lining piece, I would recommend adding about 1/2" to the middle of the bottom edge and gradually blending into the side seams ;)

I didn't even need to make a back lining piece; all I had to do was use the back bodice piece.

To avoid adding bulk at the waist of the dress, I altered the pieces for the skirt lining to be an A-line style. I simply started with the original skirt pattern, making the length of the waistline seam the same length as the bodice waistline seam (with the darts folded in, as they would be when sewn).


The hem was a bit uneven once it was sewn in, but I was able to use a hem marker to make it parallel to the floor.

Even though I wasn't using the facing pieces for this pattern, I still wanted to interface the neckline and armholes to support the edges. To do this, I cut silk organza from the facing patterns hand-basted them to the wrong side of the lining panels. I finished the free-hanging edges with a zigzag stitch and catch-stitched them to the linings (you can barely even see this in the picture).



Those strips on the outer edges are strips of batiste that are cut on the grain. I had originally applied them fearing that the neckline edges on the bias would stretch too much. After sewing the neckline seam, though, I found that it would be better to allow for a little "give," in the front, so I ended up removing the strip on the largest bodice piece and re-stitching the seam ;)

To keep my bra straps from peeking out from under the narrow shoulders of the garment, I also added "lingerie straps" to the shoulder seams on the inside. I made them by using 1/4-inch wide twill tape, miniature snaps, and following Claire B. Shaeffer's instructions from The Complete Book of Sewing Short Cuts.



This pattern actually wasn't very hard to make and I'm pleased with the results, so I'm glad that I saved my fabric for a suitable project! I've written a review about this pattern for PatternReview.com, so if you're interested in reading more about this project, click here. As always, if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask :)