REDESIGNING THE PATTERN - SewingArtistry.comsewingartistry.com/documents/products/newsletter/... ·...
12
D E S I G N U N E W S L E T T E R D E S I G N U N E W S L E T T E R How to Transform Your Patterns With Print Matching Beasom Pockets in Knit Fabric Drafting Pattern and Tissue Fit vs Muslin P u b l i s h e d b y S e w i n g A r t i s t r y OCTOBER, 2017 OCTOBER, 2017 From this jacket Style REDESIGNING THE PATTERN To this Jacket Style
Transcript of REDESIGNING THE PATTERN - SewingArtistry.comsewingartistry.com/documents/products/newsletter/... ·...
D E S I G N U N E W S L E T T E RD E S I G N U N E W S L E T T E R
H o w t o T r a n s f o r m Yo u r P a t t e r n s
With Print Matching Beasom Pockets in Knit Fabric Drafting Pattern and Tissue Fit vs Muslin
P u b l i s h e d b y S e w i n g A r t i s t r y
OC TOB ER 2 0 1 7 OC TOB ER 2 0 1 7
From thisjacketStyle
R E D E S I G N I N G T H E PAT T E R N
To this Jacket
Style
Page 1
One of the fun things about having the knowledge to redesign your own patterns is that after you get a couple of good basic TNT patterns (those are Tried lsquoN True) you can do a myriad - well really an infinite - number of variations from that pattern
Last month we did a great notched collar on a stable ponte knit In the meantime Irsquom missing a jacket that I had that I loved Well I loved the look of but frankly because Irsquom living in a one-level home without the old stairmaster of my old 3-level home Irsquove put on a few pounds that do not seem to come off Additionally one of my BFF is having hip replacement resulting in not bike-riding pals Amazingly enough Irsquove noticed that my health has not deteriorated as much as so many of my piers I do get out and walk every day and eat as healthily as I can not perfectly though (we all need a little cake and ice cream in our lives) But my health seems to be doing beautifully mostly due to genes but also due to the fact that Irsquom working at what I love
Irsquom a creative type - an artist and Irsquom at my best when Irsquom creating Irsquom really my best when Irsquom creating in my studio And not only am I at my best but itrsquos what I do when a crisis occurs Itrsquos my salve for everything that hurts scares injures or is threatening Where music very well may soothe the savage breast sewing goes one step further and is that Calgon take me away moment (or day or week) that enables me to pull back and make at least a somewhat intelligent decision in the maddening chaos
At the same time I do not want to burn it out - do so much that I canrsquot or wonrsquot do it for long stretches That line is a fine line and itrsquos also manifested by my mood - if a problem is so gigantic that I feel I can not surmount it itrsquos time to walk away A lot of folks will simply plug through it and I will eventually but walking away and often thatrsquos at the most a couple of hours at the least 15 or 30 minutes allows me that break to come to the problem from a newer fresher view and thatrsquos often all thatrsquos needed to get through a major hurdle
Sometimes it allows me to see the problem from a completely different point of view as this is what happened this month Irsquove been missing a garment I made that no longer even come close to fitting and wasnrsquot from some valuable fabric but the look was something I loved I liked the fabulous design and fit of the jacket At the time I was doing a lot of underwater photography and the whole idea of Zeus on a halfshell instead of Venus on a half shell (the colloquial name for the a major work of art by Sandro Botticelli) was really kind of fun for me in Birth of Venusaddition to the perfect match up of the print in front the besom pockets and red trim All combined to make this wonderful But alas time passes and a non-stretch fabric isnrsquot my favorite as it once was I want now a ponte in a dynamic Baroque-esque print with the same zip and besom pockets to wear as a jacket and a top with a double separating zip This is another one of the great things about sewing If I had purchased this jacket from a shop I would be hunting for years trying to find something like it again Whereas because I sew all I have to do is pop out a good pattern and Irsquom off making the whole jacket exactly the way I want it
One of my all-time favorite jackets
October 2017
R E D E S I G N I N G Y O U R P A T T E R N S
P u b l i s h e d b y S e w i n g A r t i s t r y
R E D E S I G N I N G Y O U R P A T T E R N S
Page 2
Yes itrsquos fun to be able to sew anything and even things that can be classified as folly type clothes but eventually like in a year or so that gets very boring And I know you think you wuld NEVER get bored if you could sew anything and everything that you wanted But believe me it gets very boring
So what happens is you begin to qualify the need By that I mean determine what you need in your wardrobe and the holes that exist and what to fill them with Currently therersquos a huge hole for red things - more specifically oxblood red rust deep warm red - some dulled red like a muted dark warm red and others a clear warm red like an oxblood red These fall into my color range and make an excellent contrast for the plethora of green in my closet I have too much green right now
Additionally I need a longer jacket that zips (with a double separating zipper - thatrsquos a zipper that separates and then once itrsquos zipped it can zip down from the top or zip up from the bottom - itrsquos very cool) This is a style Irsquove missed in my closet that the Zeus in a half shell filled for many years but as I said - it shrank one day out of the clear blue sky and of course I didnrsquot gain any weight the jacket shrank (yeahright OK this is my little delusion)
And that prompts me here to talk a little about the one caveat of being able to sew your own clothes If you purchase your clothes and are spending a fortune on them and itrsquos almost impossible not to cause fastcheap fashion is about all thatrsquos available then you really do have an extra motivator to keep trim and keep your weight in check One of the big problems and caveats to being able to not only sew your own clothes but fit them and with style and flare which I hope you are learning how to do in these newletters is that you can gain weight and simply make another pair of pants or another jacket or another top or another dress for pittance and particularly compared to what the regular non-sewing consumer is paying IOW sewing like this wonrsquot be much of an impetus to start that needed exercise program I like to think I have another excuse as my great bike-riding companion has had to have her hip replaced and is on the mend but we really miss our morning rides on the river
So although this jacket is not oxblood red it does go into the wardrobe well because it fulfills several other needs The black navy of the jacket (Irsquoll bet you donrsquot see that in the videos until I said something) is so black it really does tone well with black Irsquove had it up next to my black pants and it looks splendid The gold is also a standard in my wardrobe so this is a fabric that will tone will with a lot of things in my wardrobe specifically my black ponte pants and a black turtleneck under the jacket
This jacket will also tone well with the various green bottom garments I have in my wardrobe And I am using another type of garment to fulfill the missing red in the closet - most probably pants and another top probably a solid rust top
For now the idea of a Baroque-type print ornate and very matchable will suit the need Irsquom looking for in replacing this jacket The other factor that worked on this was the search for the fabric For me for my clients and for my students this is usually the hardest part of sewing a project I can usually draft any pattern I want but I can not draft the fabric Finding something in the neighborhood of what I have envisioned is usually a miracle and hitting all my standard online stores Mood was the one that came up with the best design
Qualifying the Need
Page 3
Now that I have the idea of what Irsquom looking for in the jacket and those dastardly people at Mood have supplied me with the most perfect pattern of the type of fabric Irsquom looking for Irsquom set to go The best part here is that there were several parts of the old Zeus jacket that I didnrsquot like I get to correct those problems now to the style and shape and of course size I want
The first thing you notice is that itrsquos not red after I said I needed more red and I do However the whole idea of the Baroque design which is pretty close to a toile design in feeling makes reconciling this design to the old toile design a bit easier These are the decisions we make everyday and this is one of the qualifiers for an artist The process by which we decide what fabric what color what style what tradition will work for the garment we have in mind Not everything works and we have all done and made enough mistakes that were not technical or fitting mistakes but the fabric didnrsquot match the style of the pattern or the pattern didnrsquot match the style of the idea you originally had in your head and well therersquos a lot to consider here so remember that when you are doing this and remember that this is the artistic process The pics to the left are linked
If you have problems with this refer back to the basics There is nothing wrong with this and artists do this all the time when they get stuck or have the white canvas syndrome Those basics of the Elements and Composition of Design These are those rules they teach in design and art school and artists everywhere use them constantly for all their lives
So perusing the internet which can always be dangerous for me Mood Fabrics have exactly what Irsquom looking for Itrsquos not exactly but itrsquos pretty close without hopping on a plane and going someplace far away and trekking through about 5 or 10 fabric shops which is never hard work but a little time-consuming at this juncture in my calendar This is actually a very dark dark true navy Itrsquos so dark that only when I match it with black does the blue come out and even then itrsquos very hard to tell Itrsquos close enough to black to suit me fine for what I want Irsquom after a feel and a look more than anything else
I want a great tailored jacket with a higher collar than the collar I did on the original Zeus jacket and most of all I want it to be stretch This way I can wear it now and can wear it again when I loose some weight or gain some more Irsquoll wear this with my Lands End 1980rsquos yoga pants (that I took apart and have the pattern for and have made 2 times already) or my black StyleArc Barb Pants in black Irsquod really like to find a pattern like last monthrsquos pattern of the notched-collar jacket And so far Irsquom not having any luck at all
Herersquos the thing I know how that jacket goes together I know how that jacket fits now Irsquove made all the necessary alterations (remember the front and back darts I put in - they are already sketched out on the pattern) And most of all it has the body I want because I donrsquot want to have to do a lot of matching with this jacket - match in front and in back and thatrsquos it Because I know how well that pattern body works Irsquom already ahead of the game so what happens if I make my zip up jacket from last monthrsquos notched-collar jacket pattern This gives me two patterns now out of that one I have now Plus I know itrsquos going to fit So this is what wersquore doing this month - turning a notched-collar jacket into a zip up with a nice standing collar You can make this standing collar stand away from your face or make it shorter or make it high and close or however you want to do your standing collar Mine is probably going to be a little higher
Irsquom also going to use the mustard as a contrast and this can be a woven or silk to make a really nice contrast Because mustard is a standard color in my color palette I wonrsquot have too much trouble finding that in my stash and I found a great washed silk dupioni that will work great here This is a silk that I washed with so that the Synthrapoldye is suspended in the water silk does not hold dye well and the washing makes the silk less formal and shiny and perfect for the contrast for this jacket
Matching the Need to the Fabric (or vice versa)
Page 4
Boy doesnrsquot this sound like Irsquom asking you to be a professional But herersquos the really fun part about this - itrsquos not that hard Again itrsquos a step-by-step process
And let me include this here as a note Itrsquos my job to stuff these newsletters with as much inspiration and techniques as I possibly can I certainly do not expect to use all of them and if one of them works for you or inspires you or otherwise causes you to think about your clothing style shape and fitting in a different more exciting way that solves problems that may have otherwise seemed unsolveable then I feel this newsletter was worth it In this particular newsletter therersquos a lot about matching patterns choosing appropriate fabric and pattern to serve the wardrobersquos owner not the wardrobe and certainly not the clothing One of the other techniques I feature in this newsletter is the besom pocket which is another one of those in-your-face techniques when incorporated into your design makes a very professional detail but itrsquos a very quiet way of saying ldquoI know how to sew and you donrsquotrdquo I do NOT expect you to do all these techniques in this one jacket the way I did The jacket is merely a vehicle I can use to show the various techniques so that you can select one or more to use for something you might do for yourself
So here we are drafting this pattern There are a couple of rules to keep in mind here because we really arenrsquot going to draft this from the start We are going to cheat a little and use a bodice here and a neck there That means that what Irsquom really going to do is copy the neckline from the bodice of the neck pattern I like onto the pattern of the bodice I like - itrsquos that simple
So first we need to turn the notched-collar pattern into a zip up pattern Thatrsquos really not that hard to do basically you find center front draw the line all the way up to the neck and make a curve (doesnrsquot have to be a curve it can be a line Remember wersquore going to copy the neckline curve from the other pattern to fit on the collar that we like so this is really a piece of cake
Now if you donrsquot want to do that and want another collar thatrsquos great - choose the pattern that has the collar you like and use that pattern neckline to trace onto the top of the bodice front and back When you have finished tracing off the neckline all you have to do is trace the collar from the old pattern and thatrsquos what you will use to make the collar for the new pattern
NOTE In the video I remark about drafting a collar that works for those of you who donrsquot like collars close to your neck I didnrsquot have time to do that here but will in the mini-newsletters later in the month
Drafting the Pattern
Page 5
Tissue FitOK - so we now have a pattern How about skipping everything and cutting out the pattern and checking the fit when wersquore putting it together
Oh boy - let me count the problems that would make - First the fit will not be there - I guarantee itSecond - there will be no room for tweakingThird - An OK fit + no tweaking = trouble ( )right here in River CityFourth - Missing out on extra ideas and inspiration that a simple fitting and checking of the pattern can give to you
So letrsquos cheat a little OK this isnrsquot really cheating itrsquos more like a legitimate short-cut And letrsquos do a tissue fit The great thing about this is fitting the tissue with all the markings (like waist hip line bust point neckline location) can be so much easier than trying to read the garment on the mannequin Simply pinning the front to the back and then lining up center front of the pattern with center back of the pattern and checking the girth on the bust shoulders (although they are a little tough without the sleeve inserted) waist and hip girth are as easy as pie to check
There are so many things you can check and after that tweak the pattern to do exactly what you want and isnrsquot that why we sew Isnrsquot this why we do all this Itrsquos really folly not to at least try this wonderful fitting shortcut Because what it can tell you is volumes
Now the caveat here is that Irsquove made both of these patterns before so I know how they run and what the general feel of the style that the pattern-maker was trying to convey in the patterns Patterns do have a general feel to them and when you make it up you get that feel of the style the pattern is after In this case the Butterick stable knit jacket is a traditional notched collar jacket - really nothing fancy a simple double knit jacket This is more of a throw-back to the 70rsquos to the first leisure suits which were more molded than they were sewn Probably the first ones were sewn but they eventually became more of a molded and pressed within an inch of itrsquos life type garment than anything sewn The Burda jacket (below) I thought was a total mistake and I never understood what the original pattern Even the pictures of the pattern were not correct because if you made the pattern up as directed it would look nothing like the photo (lower right) I had to make some pretty impressive alterations to it to make it work
So ferreting out all this - from the Burda neck to the Butterick body is going to take some decent fitting And there are two ways to do that - with a muslin and with a tissue fit on the pattern The interesting thing is that Irsquove made the Burda pattern 3 times in my interation and the Butterick once but I still felt I needed a tissue fit See why in the (this is same video as videoprevious page but has both the patter draft and the tissue fit on this video) because I not only checked the collar to make sure it would work but the shoulder and finally the tilt of the pattern to make sure it fitted my tilt Qualifiers - why do it when not to do it what it tells you as oposed to muslin or not
OriginalPattern
MyAlterations
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 1
One of the fun things about having the knowledge to redesign your own patterns is that after you get a couple of good basic TNT patterns (those are Tried lsquoN True) you can do a myriad - well really an infinite - number of variations from that pattern
Last month we did a great notched collar on a stable ponte knit In the meantime Irsquom missing a jacket that I had that I loved Well I loved the look of but frankly because Irsquom living in a one-level home without the old stairmaster of my old 3-level home Irsquove put on a few pounds that do not seem to come off Additionally one of my BFF is having hip replacement resulting in not bike-riding pals Amazingly enough Irsquove noticed that my health has not deteriorated as much as so many of my piers I do get out and walk every day and eat as healthily as I can not perfectly though (we all need a little cake and ice cream in our lives) But my health seems to be doing beautifully mostly due to genes but also due to the fact that Irsquom working at what I love
Irsquom a creative type - an artist and Irsquom at my best when Irsquom creating Irsquom really my best when Irsquom creating in my studio And not only am I at my best but itrsquos what I do when a crisis occurs Itrsquos my salve for everything that hurts scares injures or is threatening Where music very well may soothe the savage breast sewing goes one step further and is that Calgon take me away moment (or day or week) that enables me to pull back and make at least a somewhat intelligent decision in the maddening chaos
At the same time I do not want to burn it out - do so much that I canrsquot or wonrsquot do it for long stretches That line is a fine line and itrsquos also manifested by my mood - if a problem is so gigantic that I feel I can not surmount it itrsquos time to walk away A lot of folks will simply plug through it and I will eventually but walking away and often thatrsquos at the most a couple of hours at the least 15 or 30 minutes allows me that break to come to the problem from a newer fresher view and thatrsquos often all thatrsquos needed to get through a major hurdle
Sometimes it allows me to see the problem from a completely different point of view as this is what happened this month Irsquove been missing a garment I made that no longer even come close to fitting and wasnrsquot from some valuable fabric but the look was something I loved I liked the fabulous design and fit of the jacket At the time I was doing a lot of underwater photography and the whole idea of Zeus on a halfshell instead of Venus on a half shell (the colloquial name for the a major work of art by Sandro Botticelli) was really kind of fun for me in Birth of Venusaddition to the perfect match up of the print in front the besom pockets and red trim All combined to make this wonderful But alas time passes and a non-stretch fabric isnrsquot my favorite as it once was I want now a ponte in a dynamic Baroque-esque print with the same zip and besom pockets to wear as a jacket and a top with a double separating zip This is another one of the great things about sewing If I had purchased this jacket from a shop I would be hunting for years trying to find something like it again Whereas because I sew all I have to do is pop out a good pattern and Irsquom off making the whole jacket exactly the way I want it
One of my all-time favorite jackets
October 2017
R E D E S I G N I N G Y O U R P A T T E R N S
P u b l i s h e d b y S e w i n g A r t i s t r y
R E D E S I G N I N G Y O U R P A T T E R N S
Page 2
Yes itrsquos fun to be able to sew anything and even things that can be classified as folly type clothes but eventually like in a year or so that gets very boring And I know you think you wuld NEVER get bored if you could sew anything and everything that you wanted But believe me it gets very boring
So what happens is you begin to qualify the need By that I mean determine what you need in your wardrobe and the holes that exist and what to fill them with Currently therersquos a huge hole for red things - more specifically oxblood red rust deep warm red - some dulled red like a muted dark warm red and others a clear warm red like an oxblood red These fall into my color range and make an excellent contrast for the plethora of green in my closet I have too much green right now
Additionally I need a longer jacket that zips (with a double separating zipper - thatrsquos a zipper that separates and then once itrsquos zipped it can zip down from the top or zip up from the bottom - itrsquos very cool) This is a style Irsquove missed in my closet that the Zeus in a half shell filled for many years but as I said - it shrank one day out of the clear blue sky and of course I didnrsquot gain any weight the jacket shrank (yeahright OK this is my little delusion)
And that prompts me here to talk a little about the one caveat of being able to sew your own clothes If you purchase your clothes and are spending a fortune on them and itrsquos almost impossible not to cause fastcheap fashion is about all thatrsquos available then you really do have an extra motivator to keep trim and keep your weight in check One of the big problems and caveats to being able to not only sew your own clothes but fit them and with style and flare which I hope you are learning how to do in these newletters is that you can gain weight and simply make another pair of pants or another jacket or another top or another dress for pittance and particularly compared to what the regular non-sewing consumer is paying IOW sewing like this wonrsquot be much of an impetus to start that needed exercise program I like to think I have another excuse as my great bike-riding companion has had to have her hip replaced and is on the mend but we really miss our morning rides on the river
So although this jacket is not oxblood red it does go into the wardrobe well because it fulfills several other needs The black navy of the jacket (Irsquoll bet you donrsquot see that in the videos until I said something) is so black it really does tone well with black Irsquove had it up next to my black pants and it looks splendid The gold is also a standard in my wardrobe so this is a fabric that will tone will with a lot of things in my wardrobe specifically my black ponte pants and a black turtleneck under the jacket
This jacket will also tone well with the various green bottom garments I have in my wardrobe And I am using another type of garment to fulfill the missing red in the closet - most probably pants and another top probably a solid rust top
For now the idea of a Baroque-type print ornate and very matchable will suit the need Irsquom looking for in replacing this jacket The other factor that worked on this was the search for the fabric For me for my clients and for my students this is usually the hardest part of sewing a project I can usually draft any pattern I want but I can not draft the fabric Finding something in the neighborhood of what I have envisioned is usually a miracle and hitting all my standard online stores Mood was the one that came up with the best design
Qualifying the Need
Page 3
Now that I have the idea of what Irsquom looking for in the jacket and those dastardly people at Mood have supplied me with the most perfect pattern of the type of fabric Irsquom looking for Irsquom set to go The best part here is that there were several parts of the old Zeus jacket that I didnrsquot like I get to correct those problems now to the style and shape and of course size I want
The first thing you notice is that itrsquos not red after I said I needed more red and I do However the whole idea of the Baroque design which is pretty close to a toile design in feeling makes reconciling this design to the old toile design a bit easier These are the decisions we make everyday and this is one of the qualifiers for an artist The process by which we decide what fabric what color what style what tradition will work for the garment we have in mind Not everything works and we have all done and made enough mistakes that were not technical or fitting mistakes but the fabric didnrsquot match the style of the pattern or the pattern didnrsquot match the style of the idea you originally had in your head and well therersquos a lot to consider here so remember that when you are doing this and remember that this is the artistic process The pics to the left are linked
If you have problems with this refer back to the basics There is nothing wrong with this and artists do this all the time when they get stuck or have the white canvas syndrome Those basics of the Elements and Composition of Design These are those rules they teach in design and art school and artists everywhere use them constantly for all their lives
So perusing the internet which can always be dangerous for me Mood Fabrics have exactly what Irsquom looking for Itrsquos not exactly but itrsquos pretty close without hopping on a plane and going someplace far away and trekking through about 5 or 10 fabric shops which is never hard work but a little time-consuming at this juncture in my calendar This is actually a very dark dark true navy Itrsquos so dark that only when I match it with black does the blue come out and even then itrsquos very hard to tell Itrsquos close enough to black to suit me fine for what I want Irsquom after a feel and a look more than anything else
I want a great tailored jacket with a higher collar than the collar I did on the original Zeus jacket and most of all I want it to be stretch This way I can wear it now and can wear it again when I loose some weight or gain some more Irsquoll wear this with my Lands End 1980rsquos yoga pants (that I took apart and have the pattern for and have made 2 times already) or my black StyleArc Barb Pants in black Irsquod really like to find a pattern like last monthrsquos pattern of the notched-collar jacket And so far Irsquom not having any luck at all
Herersquos the thing I know how that jacket goes together I know how that jacket fits now Irsquove made all the necessary alterations (remember the front and back darts I put in - they are already sketched out on the pattern) And most of all it has the body I want because I donrsquot want to have to do a lot of matching with this jacket - match in front and in back and thatrsquos it Because I know how well that pattern body works Irsquom already ahead of the game so what happens if I make my zip up jacket from last monthrsquos notched-collar jacket pattern This gives me two patterns now out of that one I have now Plus I know itrsquos going to fit So this is what wersquore doing this month - turning a notched-collar jacket into a zip up with a nice standing collar You can make this standing collar stand away from your face or make it shorter or make it high and close or however you want to do your standing collar Mine is probably going to be a little higher
Irsquom also going to use the mustard as a contrast and this can be a woven or silk to make a really nice contrast Because mustard is a standard color in my color palette I wonrsquot have too much trouble finding that in my stash and I found a great washed silk dupioni that will work great here This is a silk that I washed with so that the Synthrapoldye is suspended in the water silk does not hold dye well and the washing makes the silk less formal and shiny and perfect for the contrast for this jacket
Matching the Need to the Fabric (or vice versa)
Page 4
Boy doesnrsquot this sound like Irsquom asking you to be a professional But herersquos the really fun part about this - itrsquos not that hard Again itrsquos a step-by-step process
And let me include this here as a note Itrsquos my job to stuff these newsletters with as much inspiration and techniques as I possibly can I certainly do not expect to use all of them and if one of them works for you or inspires you or otherwise causes you to think about your clothing style shape and fitting in a different more exciting way that solves problems that may have otherwise seemed unsolveable then I feel this newsletter was worth it In this particular newsletter therersquos a lot about matching patterns choosing appropriate fabric and pattern to serve the wardrobersquos owner not the wardrobe and certainly not the clothing One of the other techniques I feature in this newsletter is the besom pocket which is another one of those in-your-face techniques when incorporated into your design makes a very professional detail but itrsquos a very quiet way of saying ldquoI know how to sew and you donrsquotrdquo I do NOT expect you to do all these techniques in this one jacket the way I did The jacket is merely a vehicle I can use to show the various techniques so that you can select one or more to use for something you might do for yourself
So here we are drafting this pattern There are a couple of rules to keep in mind here because we really arenrsquot going to draft this from the start We are going to cheat a little and use a bodice here and a neck there That means that what Irsquom really going to do is copy the neckline from the bodice of the neck pattern I like onto the pattern of the bodice I like - itrsquos that simple
So first we need to turn the notched-collar pattern into a zip up pattern Thatrsquos really not that hard to do basically you find center front draw the line all the way up to the neck and make a curve (doesnrsquot have to be a curve it can be a line Remember wersquore going to copy the neckline curve from the other pattern to fit on the collar that we like so this is really a piece of cake
Now if you donrsquot want to do that and want another collar thatrsquos great - choose the pattern that has the collar you like and use that pattern neckline to trace onto the top of the bodice front and back When you have finished tracing off the neckline all you have to do is trace the collar from the old pattern and thatrsquos what you will use to make the collar for the new pattern
NOTE In the video I remark about drafting a collar that works for those of you who donrsquot like collars close to your neck I didnrsquot have time to do that here but will in the mini-newsletters later in the month
Drafting the Pattern
Page 5
Tissue FitOK - so we now have a pattern How about skipping everything and cutting out the pattern and checking the fit when wersquore putting it together
Oh boy - let me count the problems that would make - First the fit will not be there - I guarantee itSecond - there will be no room for tweakingThird - An OK fit + no tweaking = trouble ( )right here in River CityFourth - Missing out on extra ideas and inspiration that a simple fitting and checking of the pattern can give to you
So letrsquos cheat a little OK this isnrsquot really cheating itrsquos more like a legitimate short-cut And letrsquos do a tissue fit The great thing about this is fitting the tissue with all the markings (like waist hip line bust point neckline location) can be so much easier than trying to read the garment on the mannequin Simply pinning the front to the back and then lining up center front of the pattern with center back of the pattern and checking the girth on the bust shoulders (although they are a little tough without the sleeve inserted) waist and hip girth are as easy as pie to check
There are so many things you can check and after that tweak the pattern to do exactly what you want and isnrsquot that why we sew Isnrsquot this why we do all this Itrsquos really folly not to at least try this wonderful fitting shortcut Because what it can tell you is volumes
Now the caveat here is that Irsquove made both of these patterns before so I know how they run and what the general feel of the style that the pattern-maker was trying to convey in the patterns Patterns do have a general feel to them and when you make it up you get that feel of the style the pattern is after In this case the Butterick stable knit jacket is a traditional notched collar jacket - really nothing fancy a simple double knit jacket This is more of a throw-back to the 70rsquos to the first leisure suits which were more molded than they were sewn Probably the first ones were sewn but they eventually became more of a molded and pressed within an inch of itrsquos life type garment than anything sewn The Burda jacket (below) I thought was a total mistake and I never understood what the original pattern Even the pictures of the pattern were not correct because if you made the pattern up as directed it would look nothing like the photo (lower right) I had to make some pretty impressive alterations to it to make it work
So ferreting out all this - from the Burda neck to the Butterick body is going to take some decent fitting And there are two ways to do that - with a muslin and with a tissue fit on the pattern The interesting thing is that Irsquove made the Burda pattern 3 times in my interation and the Butterick once but I still felt I needed a tissue fit See why in the (this is same video as videoprevious page but has both the patter draft and the tissue fit on this video) because I not only checked the collar to make sure it would work but the shoulder and finally the tilt of the pattern to make sure it fitted my tilt Qualifiers - why do it when not to do it what it tells you as oposed to muslin or not
OriginalPattern
MyAlterations
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 2
Yes itrsquos fun to be able to sew anything and even things that can be classified as folly type clothes but eventually like in a year or so that gets very boring And I know you think you wuld NEVER get bored if you could sew anything and everything that you wanted But believe me it gets very boring
So what happens is you begin to qualify the need By that I mean determine what you need in your wardrobe and the holes that exist and what to fill them with Currently therersquos a huge hole for red things - more specifically oxblood red rust deep warm red - some dulled red like a muted dark warm red and others a clear warm red like an oxblood red These fall into my color range and make an excellent contrast for the plethora of green in my closet I have too much green right now
Additionally I need a longer jacket that zips (with a double separating zipper - thatrsquos a zipper that separates and then once itrsquos zipped it can zip down from the top or zip up from the bottom - itrsquos very cool) This is a style Irsquove missed in my closet that the Zeus in a half shell filled for many years but as I said - it shrank one day out of the clear blue sky and of course I didnrsquot gain any weight the jacket shrank (yeahright OK this is my little delusion)
And that prompts me here to talk a little about the one caveat of being able to sew your own clothes If you purchase your clothes and are spending a fortune on them and itrsquos almost impossible not to cause fastcheap fashion is about all thatrsquos available then you really do have an extra motivator to keep trim and keep your weight in check One of the big problems and caveats to being able to not only sew your own clothes but fit them and with style and flare which I hope you are learning how to do in these newletters is that you can gain weight and simply make another pair of pants or another jacket or another top or another dress for pittance and particularly compared to what the regular non-sewing consumer is paying IOW sewing like this wonrsquot be much of an impetus to start that needed exercise program I like to think I have another excuse as my great bike-riding companion has had to have her hip replaced and is on the mend but we really miss our morning rides on the river
So although this jacket is not oxblood red it does go into the wardrobe well because it fulfills several other needs The black navy of the jacket (Irsquoll bet you donrsquot see that in the videos until I said something) is so black it really does tone well with black Irsquove had it up next to my black pants and it looks splendid The gold is also a standard in my wardrobe so this is a fabric that will tone will with a lot of things in my wardrobe specifically my black ponte pants and a black turtleneck under the jacket
This jacket will also tone well with the various green bottom garments I have in my wardrobe And I am using another type of garment to fulfill the missing red in the closet - most probably pants and another top probably a solid rust top
For now the idea of a Baroque-type print ornate and very matchable will suit the need Irsquom looking for in replacing this jacket The other factor that worked on this was the search for the fabric For me for my clients and for my students this is usually the hardest part of sewing a project I can usually draft any pattern I want but I can not draft the fabric Finding something in the neighborhood of what I have envisioned is usually a miracle and hitting all my standard online stores Mood was the one that came up with the best design
Qualifying the Need
Page 3
Now that I have the idea of what Irsquom looking for in the jacket and those dastardly people at Mood have supplied me with the most perfect pattern of the type of fabric Irsquom looking for Irsquom set to go The best part here is that there were several parts of the old Zeus jacket that I didnrsquot like I get to correct those problems now to the style and shape and of course size I want
The first thing you notice is that itrsquos not red after I said I needed more red and I do However the whole idea of the Baroque design which is pretty close to a toile design in feeling makes reconciling this design to the old toile design a bit easier These are the decisions we make everyday and this is one of the qualifiers for an artist The process by which we decide what fabric what color what style what tradition will work for the garment we have in mind Not everything works and we have all done and made enough mistakes that were not technical or fitting mistakes but the fabric didnrsquot match the style of the pattern or the pattern didnrsquot match the style of the idea you originally had in your head and well therersquos a lot to consider here so remember that when you are doing this and remember that this is the artistic process The pics to the left are linked
If you have problems with this refer back to the basics There is nothing wrong with this and artists do this all the time when they get stuck or have the white canvas syndrome Those basics of the Elements and Composition of Design These are those rules they teach in design and art school and artists everywhere use them constantly for all their lives
So perusing the internet which can always be dangerous for me Mood Fabrics have exactly what Irsquom looking for Itrsquos not exactly but itrsquos pretty close without hopping on a plane and going someplace far away and trekking through about 5 or 10 fabric shops which is never hard work but a little time-consuming at this juncture in my calendar This is actually a very dark dark true navy Itrsquos so dark that only when I match it with black does the blue come out and even then itrsquos very hard to tell Itrsquos close enough to black to suit me fine for what I want Irsquom after a feel and a look more than anything else
I want a great tailored jacket with a higher collar than the collar I did on the original Zeus jacket and most of all I want it to be stretch This way I can wear it now and can wear it again when I loose some weight or gain some more Irsquoll wear this with my Lands End 1980rsquos yoga pants (that I took apart and have the pattern for and have made 2 times already) or my black StyleArc Barb Pants in black Irsquod really like to find a pattern like last monthrsquos pattern of the notched-collar jacket And so far Irsquom not having any luck at all
Herersquos the thing I know how that jacket goes together I know how that jacket fits now Irsquove made all the necessary alterations (remember the front and back darts I put in - they are already sketched out on the pattern) And most of all it has the body I want because I donrsquot want to have to do a lot of matching with this jacket - match in front and in back and thatrsquos it Because I know how well that pattern body works Irsquom already ahead of the game so what happens if I make my zip up jacket from last monthrsquos notched-collar jacket pattern This gives me two patterns now out of that one I have now Plus I know itrsquos going to fit So this is what wersquore doing this month - turning a notched-collar jacket into a zip up with a nice standing collar You can make this standing collar stand away from your face or make it shorter or make it high and close or however you want to do your standing collar Mine is probably going to be a little higher
Irsquom also going to use the mustard as a contrast and this can be a woven or silk to make a really nice contrast Because mustard is a standard color in my color palette I wonrsquot have too much trouble finding that in my stash and I found a great washed silk dupioni that will work great here This is a silk that I washed with so that the Synthrapoldye is suspended in the water silk does not hold dye well and the washing makes the silk less formal and shiny and perfect for the contrast for this jacket
Matching the Need to the Fabric (or vice versa)
Page 4
Boy doesnrsquot this sound like Irsquom asking you to be a professional But herersquos the really fun part about this - itrsquos not that hard Again itrsquos a step-by-step process
And let me include this here as a note Itrsquos my job to stuff these newsletters with as much inspiration and techniques as I possibly can I certainly do not expect to use all of them and if one of them works for you or inspires you or otherwise causes you to think about your clothing style shape and fitting in a different more exciting way that solves problems that may have otherwise seemed unsolveable then I feel this newsletter was worth it In this particular newsletter therersquos a lot about matching patterns choosing appropriate fabric and pattern to serve the wardrobersquos owner not the wardrobe and certainly not the clothing One of the other techniques I feature in this newsletter is the besom pocket which is another one of those in-your-face techniques when incorporated into your design makes a very professional detail but itrsquos a very quiet way of saying ldquoI know how to sew and you donrsquotrdquo I do NOT expect you to do all these techniques in this one jacket the way I did The jacket is merely a vehicle I can use to show the various techniques so that you can select one or more to use for something you might do for yourself
So here we are drafting this pattern There are a couple of rules to keep in mind here because we really arenrsquot going to draft this from the start We are going to cheat a little and use a bodice here and a neck there That means that what Irsquom really going to do is copy the neckline from the bodice of the neck pattern I like onto the pattern of the bodice I like - itrsquos that simple
So first we need to turn the notched-collar pattern into a zip up pattern Thatrsquos really not that hard to do basically you find center front draw the line all the way up to the neck and make a curve (doesnrsquot have to be a curve it can be a line Remember wersquore going to copy the neckline curve from the other pattern to fit on the collar that we like so this is really a piece of cake
Now if you donrsquot want to do that and want another collar thatrsquos great - choose the pattern that has the collar you like and use that pattern neckline to trace onto the top of the bodice front and back When you have finished tracing off the neckline all you have to do is trace the collar from the old pattern and thatrsquos what you will use to make the collar for the new pattern
NOTE In the video I remark about drafting a collar that works for those of you who donrsquot like collars close to your neck I didnrsquot have time to do that here but will in the mini-newsletters later in the month
Drafting the Pattern
Page 5
Tissue FitOK - so we now have a pattern How about skipping everything and cutting out the pattern and checking the fit when wersquore putting it together
Oh boy - let me count the problems that would make - First the fit will not be there - I guarantee itSecond - there will be no room for tweakingThird - An OK fit + no tweaking = trouble ( )right here in River CityFourth - Missing out on extra ideas and inspiration that a simple fitting and checking of the pattern can give to you
So letrsquos cheat a little OK this isnrsquot really cheating itrsquos more like a legitimate short-cut And letrsquos do a tissue fit The great thing about this is fitting the tissue with all the markings (like waist hip line bust point neckline location) can be so much easier than trying to read the garment on the mannequin Simply pinning the front to the back and then lining up center front of the pattern with center back of the pattern and checking the girth on the bust shoulders (although they are a little tough without the sleeve inserted) waist and hip girth are as easy as pie to check
There are so many things you can check and after that tweak the pattern to do exactly what you want and isnrsquot that why we sew Isnrsquot this why we do all this Itrsquos really folly not to at least try this wonderful fitting shortcut Because what it can tell you is volumes
Now the caveat here is that Irsquove made both of these patterns before so I know how they run and what the general feel of the style that the pattern-maker was trying to convey in the patterns Patterns do have a general feel to them and when you make it up you get that feel of the style the pattern is after In this case the Butterick stable knit jacket is a traditional notched collar jacket - really nothing fancy a simple double knit jacket This is more of a throw-back to the 70rsquos to the first leisure suits which were more molded than they were sewn Probably the first ones were sewn but they eventually became more of a molded and pressed within an inch of itrsquos life type garment than anything sewn The Burda jacket (below) I thought was a total mistake and I never understood what the original pattern Even the pictures of the pattern were not correct because if you made the pattern up as directed it would look nothing like the photo (lower right) I had to make some pretty impressive alterations to it to make it work
So ferreting out all this - from the Burda neck to the Butterick body is going to take some decent fitting And there are two ways to do that - with a muslin and with a tissue fit on the pattern The interesting thing is that Irsquove made the Burda pattern 3 times in my interation and the Butterick once but I still felt I needed a tissue fit See why in the (this is same video as videoprevious page but has both the patter draft and the tissue fit on this video) because I not only checked the collar to make sure it would work but the shoulder and finally the tilt of the pattern to make sure it fitted my tilt Qualifiers - why do it when not to do it what it tells you as oposed to muslin or not
OriginalPattern
MyAlterations
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 3
Now that I have the idea of what Irsquom looking for in the jacket and those dastardly people at Mood have supplied me with the most perfect pattern of the type of fabric Irsquom looking for Irsquom set to go The best part here is that there were several parts of the old Zeus jacket that I didnrsquot like I get to correct those problems now to the style and shape and of course size I want
The first thing you notice is that itrsquos not red after I said I needed more red and I do However the whole idea of the Baroque design which is pretty close to a toile design in feeling makes reconciling this design to the old toile design a bit easier These are the decisions we make everyday and this is one of the qualifiers for an artist The process by which we decide what fabric what color what style what tradition will work for the garment we have in mind Not everything works and we have all done and made enough mistakes that were not technical or fitting mistakes but the fabric didnrsquot match the style of the pattern or the pattern didnrsquot match the style of the idea you originally had in your head and well therersquos a lot to consider here so remember that when you are doing this and remember that this is the artistic process The pics to the left are linked
If you have problems with this refer back to the basics There is nothing wrong with this and artists do this all the time when they get stuck or have the white canvas syndrome Those basics of the Elements and Composition of Design These are those rules they teach in design and art school and artists everywhere use them constantly for all their lives
So perusing the internet which can always be dangerous for me Mood Fabrics have exactly what Irsquom looking for Itrsquos not exactly but itrsquos pretty close without hopping on a plane and going someplace far away and trekking through about 5 or 10 fabric shops which is never hard work but a little time-consuming at this juncture in my calendar This is actually a very dark dark true navy Itrsquos so dark that only when I match it with black does the blue come out and even then itrsquos very hard to tell Itrsquos close enough to black to suit me fine for what I want Irsquom after a feel and a look more than anything else
I want a great tailored jacket with a higher collar than the collar I did on the original Zeus jacket and most of all I want it to be stretch This way I can wear it now and can wear it again when I loose some weight or gain some more Irsquoll wear this with my Lands End 1980rsquos yoga pants (that I took apart and have the pattern for and have made 2 times already) or my black StyleArc Barb Pants in black Irsquod really like to find a pattern like last monthrsquos pattern of the notched-collar jacket And so far Irsquom not having any luck at all
Herersquos the thing I know how that jacket goes together I know how that jacket fits now Irsquove made all the necessary alterations (remember the front and back darts I put in - they are already sketched out on the pattern) And most of all it has the body I want because I donrsquot want to have to do a lot of matching with this jacket - match in front and in back and thatrsquos it Because I know how well that pattern body works Irsquom already ahead of the game so what happens if I make my zip up jacket from last monthrsquos notched-collar jacket pattern This gives me two patterns now out of that one I have now Plus I know itrsquos going to fit So this is what wersquore doing this month - turning a notched-collar jacket into a zip up with a nice standing collar You can make this standing collar stand away from your face or make it shorter or make it high and close or however you want to do your standing collar Mine is probably going to be a little higher
Irsquom also going to use the mustard as a contrast and this can be a woven or silk to make a really nice contrast Because mustard is a standard color in my color palette I wonrsquot have too much trouble finding that in my stash and I found a great washed silk dupioni that will work great here This is a silk that I washed with so that the Synthrapoldye is suspended in the water silk does not hold dye well and the washing makes the silk less formal and shiny and perfect for the contrast for this jacket
Matching the Need to the Fabric (or vice versa)
Page 4
Boy doesnrsquot this sound like Irsquom asking you to be a professional But herersquos the really fun part about this - itrsquos not that hard Again itrsquos a step-by-step process
And let me include this here as a note Itrsquos my job to stuff these newsletters with as much inspiration and techniques as I possibly can I certainly do not expect to use all of them and if one of them works for you or inspires you or otherwise causes you to think about your clothing style shape and fitting in a different more exciting way that solves problems that may have otherwise seemed unsolveable then I feel this newsletter was worth it In this particular newsletter therersquos a lot about matching patterns choosing appropriate fabric and pattern to serve the wardrobersquos owner not the wardrobe and certainly not the clothing One of the other techniques I feature in this newsletter is the besom pocket which is another one of those in-your-face techniques when incorporated into your design makes a very professional detail but itrsquos a very quiet way of saying ldquoI know how to sew and you donrsquotrdquo I do NOT expect you to do all these techniques in this one jacket the way I did The jacket is merely a vehicle I can use to show the various techniques so that you can select one or more to use for something you might do for yourself
So here we are drafting this pattern There are a couple of rules to keep in mind here because we really arenrsquot going to draft this from the start We are going to cheat a little and use a bodice here and a neck there That means that what Irsquom really going to do is copy the neckline from the bodice of the neck pattern I like onto the pattern of the bodice I like - itrsquos that simple
So first we need to turn the notched-collar pattern into a zip up pattern Thatrsquos really not that hard to do basically you find center front draw the line all the way up to the neck and make a curve (doesnrsquot have to be a curve it can be a line Remember wersquore going to copy the neckline curve from the other pattern to fit on the collar that we like so this is really a piece of cake
Now if you donrsquot want to do that and want another collar thatrsquos great - choose the pattern that has the collar you like and use that pattern neckline to trace onto the top of the bodice front and back When you have finished tracing off the neckline all you have to do is trace the collar from the old pattern and thatrsquos what you will use to make the collar for the new pattern
NOTE In the video I remark about drafting a collar that works for those of you who donrsquot like collars close to your neck I didnrsquot have time to do that here but will in the mini-newsletters later in the month
Drafting the Pattern
Page 5
Tissue FitOK - so we now have a pattern How about skipping everything and cutting out the pattern and checking the fit when wersquore putting it together
Oh boy - let me count the problems that would make - First the fit will not be there - I guarantee itSecond - there will be no room for tweakingThird - An OK fit + no tweaking = trouble ( )right here in River CityFourth - Missing out on extra ideas and inspiration that a simple fitting and checking of the pattern can give to you
So letrsquos cheat a little OK this isnrsquot really cheating itrsquos more like a legitimate short-cut And letrsquos do a tissue fit The great thing about this is fitting the tissue with all the markings (like waist hip line bust point neckline location) can be so much easier than trying to read the garment on the mannequin Simply pinning the front to the back and then lining up center front of the pattern with center back of the pattern and checking the girth on the bust shoulders (although they are a little tough without the sleeve inserted) waist and hip girth are as easy as pie to check
There are so many things you can check and after that tweak the pattern to do exactly what you want and isnrsquot that why we sew Isnrsquot this why we do all this Itrsquos really folly not to at least try this wonderful fitting shortcut Because what it can tell you is volumes
Now the caveat here is that Irsquove made both of these patterns before so I know how they run and what the general feel of the style that the pattern-maker was trying to convey in the patterns Patterns do have a general feel to them and when you make it up you get that feel of the style the pattern is after In this case the Butterick stable knit jacket is a traditional notched collar jacket - really nothing fancy a simple double knit jacket This is more of a throw-back to the 70rsquos to the first leisure suits which were more molded than they were sewn Probably the first ones were sewn but they eventually became more of a molded and pressed within an inch of itrsquos life type garment than anything sewn The Burda jacket (below) I thought was a total mistake and I never understood what the original pattern Even the pictures of the pattern were not correct because if you made the pattern up as directed it would look nothing like the photo (lower right) I had to make some pretty impressive alterations to it to make it work
So ferreting out all this - from the Burda neck to the Butterick body is going to take some decent fitting And there are two ways to do that - with a muslin and with a tissue fit on the pattern The interesting thing is that Irsquove made the Burda pattern 3 times in my interation and the Butterick once but I still felt I needed a tissue fit See why in the (this is same video as videoprevious page but has both the patter draft and the tissue fit on this video) because I not only checked the collar to make sure it would work but the shoulder and finally the tilt of the pattern to make sure it fitted my tilt Qualifiers - why do it when not to do it what it tells you as oposed to muslin or not
OriginalPattern
MyAlterations
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 4
Boy doesnrsquot this sound like Irsquom asking you to be a professional But herersquos the really fun part about this - itrsquos not that hard Again itrsquos a step-by-step process
And let me include this here as a note Itrsquos my job to stuff these newsletters with as much inspiration and techniques as I possibly can I certainly do not expect to use all of them and if one of them works for you or inspires you or otherwise causes you to think about your clothing style shape and fitting in a different more exciting way that solves problems that may have otherwise seemed unsolveable then I feel this newsletter was worth it In this particular newsletter therersquos a lot about matching patterns choosing appropriate fabric and pattern to serve the wardrobersquos owner not the wardrobe and certainly not the clothing One of the other techniques I feature in this newsletter is the besom pocket which is another one of those in-your-face techniques when incorporated into your design makes a very professional detail but itrsquos a very quiet way of saying ldquoI know how to sew and you donrsquotrdquo I do NOT expect you to do all these techniques in this one jacket the way I did The jacket is merely a vehicle I can use to show the various techniques so that you can select one or more to use for something you might do for yourself
So here we are drafting this pattern There are a couple of rules to keep in mind here because we really arenrsquot going to draft this from the start We are going to cheat a little and use a bodice here and a neck there That means that what Irsquom really going to do is copy the neckline from the bodice of the neck pattern I like onto the pattern of the bodice I like - itrsquos that simple
So first we need to turn the notched-collar pattern into a zip up pattern Thatrsquos really not that hard to do basically you find center front draw the line all the way up to the neck and make a curve (doesnrsquot have to be a curve it can be a line Remember wersquore going to copy the neckline curve from the other pattern to fit on the collar that we like so this is really a piece of cake
Now if you donrsquot want to do that and want another collar thatrsquos great - choose the pattern that has the collar you like and use that pattern neckline to trace onto the top of the bodice front and back When you have finished tracing off the neckline all you have to do is trace the collar from the old pattern and thatrsquos what you will use to make the collar for the new pattern
NOTE In the video I remark about drafting a collar that works for those of you who donrsquot like collars close to your neck I didnrsquot have time to do that here but will in the mini-newsletters later in the month
Drafting the Pattern
Page 5
Tissue FitOK - so we now have a pattern How about skipping everything and cutting out the pattern and checking the fit when wersquore putting it together
Oh boy - let me count the problems that would make - First the fit will not be there - I guarantee itSecond - there will be no room for tweakingThird - An OK fit + no tweaking = trouble ( )right here in River CityFourth - Missing out on extra ideas and inspiration that a simple fitting and checking of the pattern can give to you
So letrsquos cheat a little OK this isnrsquot really cheating itrsquos more like a legitimate short-cut And letrsquos do a tissue fit The great thing about this is fitting the tissue with all the markings (like waist hip line bust point neckline location) can be so much easier than trying to read the garment on the mannequin Simply pinning the front to the back and then lining up center front of the pattern with center back of the pattern and checking the girth on the bust shoulders (although they are a little tough without the sleeve inserted) waist and hip girth are as easy as pie to check
There are so many things you can check and after that tweak the pattern to do exactly what you want and isnrsquot that why we sew Isnrsquot this why we do all this Itrsquos really folly not to at least try this wonderful fitting shortcut Because what it can tell you is volumes
Now the caveat here is that Irsquove made both of these patterns before so I know how they run and what the general feel of the style that the pattern-maker was trying to convey in the patterns Patterns do have a general feel to them and when you make it up you get that feel of the style the pattern is after In this case the Butterick stable knit jacket is a traditional notched collar jacket - really nothing fancy a simple double knit jacket This is more of a throw-back to the 70rsquos to the first leisure suits which were more molded than they were sewn Probably the first ones were sewn but they eventually became more of a molded and pressed within an inch of itrsquos life type garment than anything sewn The Burda jacket (below) I thought was a total mistake and I never understood what the original pattern Even the pictures of the pattern were not correct because if you made the pattern up as directed it would look nothing like the photo (lower right) I had to make some pretty impressive alterations to it to make it work
So ferreting out all this - from the Burda neck to the Butterick body is going to take some decent fitting And there are two ways to do that - with a muslin and with a tissue fit on the pattern The interesting thing is that Irsquove made the Burda pattern 3 times in my interation and the Butterick once but I still felt I needed a tissue fit See why in the (this is same video as videoprevious page but has both the patter draft and the tissue fit on this video) because I not only checked the collar to make sure it would work but the shoulder and finally the tilt of the pattern to make sure it fitted my tilt Qualifiers - why do it when not to do it what it tells you as oposed to muslin or not
OriginalPattern
MyAlterations
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 5
Tissue FitOK - so we now have a pattern How about skipping everything and cutting out the pattern and checking the fit when wersquore putting it together
Oh boy - let me count the problems that would make - First the fit will not be there - I guarantee itSecond - there will be no room for tweakingThird - An OK fit + no tweaking = trouble ( )right here in River CityFourth - Missing out on extra ideas and inspiration that a simple fitting and checking of the pattern can give to you
So letrsquos cheat a little OK this isnrsquot really cheating itrsquos more like a legitimate short-cut And letrsquos do a tissue fit The great thing about this is fitting the tissue with all the markings (like waist hip line bust point neckline location) can be so much easier than trying to read the garment on the mannequin Simply pinning the front to the back and then lining up center front of the pattern with center back of the pattern and checking the girth on the bust shoulders (although they are a little tough without the sleeve inserted) waist and hip girth are as easy as pie to check
There are so many things you can check and after that tweak the pattern to do exactly what you want and isnrsquot that why we sew Isnrsquot this why we do all this Itrsquos really folly not to at least try this wonderful fitting shortcut Because what it can tell you is volumes
Now the caveat here is that Irsquove made both of these patterns before so I know how they run and what the general feel of the style that the pattern-maker was trying to convey in the patterns Patterns do have a general feel to them and when you make it up you get that feel of the style the pattern is after In this case the Butterick stable knit jacket is a traditional notched collar jacket - really nothing fancy a simple double knit jacket This is more of a throw-back to the 70rsquos to the first leisure suits which were more molded than they were sewn Probably the first ones were sewn but they eventually became more of a molded and pressed within an inch of itrsquos life type garment than anything sewn The Burda jacket (below) I thought was a total mistake and I never understood what the original pattern Even the pictures of the pattern were not correct because if you made the pattern up as directed it would look nothing like the photo (lower right) I had to make some pretty impressive alterations to it to make it work
So ferreting out all this - from the Burda neck to the Butterick body is going to take some decent fitting And there are two ways to do that - with a muslin and with a tissue fit on the pattern The interesting thing is that Irsquove made the Burda pattern 3 times in my interation and the Butterick once but I still felt I needed a tissue fit See why in the (this is same video as videoprevious page but has both the patter draft and the tissue fit on this video) because I not only checked the collar to make sure it would work but the shoulder and finally the tilt of the pattern to make sure it fitted my tilt Qualifiers - why do it when not to do it what it tells you as oposed to muslin or not
OriginalPattern
MyAlterations
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 6
I got a great fit and lots of information from the tissue fit and since I had made both of these patterns before I did this tissue fit I felt very confident that the fit was going to be what I was after If I had had any questions at all I would have made up a muslin but with this the fit was excellent on the mannequin so moving on
Cutting out patterns plaids and prints and matching them is completely different for each one In past newsletters matching plaids and prints can be a lot easier than matching a pattern For one thing in the plaids you are interested in getting as close to the repeat of the plaid as you can Most plaids are symmetrical but not all but the repeat is generally close together enough so that there is not too much waist in the fabric Also the plaid almost always can not be matched in certain areas like under the arm and around the waist to the underarm in the side seam But what you can do is keep the plaid horizontal going all the way around which looks very professional and has a nice continuity to it
On prints simply matching the repeat of the print is the preferred method of matching Again under the arm in the sleeve and side seam it will be almost impossible to match however you donrsquot have to necessarily have to match on the side seam at all as this is mostly hidden but do in center front and back Most of the time yoursquore working with a repeat that can be very small or it can be a yard or more but the repeat is easy to see and match
In this example of a pattern matching here is going to be completely different I want this to be symmetrical in center back and front That means because of the way the print is laid out on the fabric I will have to flip the pattern which is usually one of my cardinal no-no laws - never flip (top to bottom and bottom to top) as this messes with the nap of the fabric However there are two reasons Irsquom flipping 1) the pattern wonrsquot match otherwise and 2) Because it is a pattern the nap will be difficult at best to seeItrsquos sort of like knowing the rules then you can break them The rule is there to keep the nap running in the same direction but because I know that itrsquos hard to see a nap on a patterned (or print) fabric I can probably get away with it
I probably donrsquot have much of a life because I think this sort of matching is like heaven Below left is the lay of the fabric and you can see that the fabric can be symmetrical up and down but not side to side From side to side it looks like a jumbled mess but when the pieces are flipped (lower right) it matches and make beautiful music Click the photo above for the video on how I matched this center front and back Here I did not worry about the side seam as it wouldnrsquot show but the back and front match so beautifully that the side seam will hardly be worth the trouble it would be to match it
Matching Print
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
So surely Irsquove gone nuts - a besom pocket in a stretch fabric Well normally this would be the purview of nuts and basically neurotics that are looking for trouble but hold on cause there is a way to do this on knit and stretch fabric that it wonrsquot cause a psychological break with reality I promise
First thing wersquore going to lay down some interfacing on this and then go through all the normal steps for a besom pocket as if this were a woven fabric The only part that wonrsquot stretch here is the pocket so that means the rest of the jacket will stretch fine
ToolsOn these pockets (as well as the rest of the jacket) Irsquom using a straight stitch or other stitches that I would normally use on a non-stretch fabric However I am using a stretch needle not a jersey needle A stretch needle has a bit deeper scarf than a jersey needle and the stretch needle has a shorter narrower eye Herersquos why you need this for stretch fabrics As the needle goes into the fabric down into the bobbin area when then machine pulls the needle back up the stretch fabric will not stay in place like the non-stretch fabric will and this will cause the thread to stay close to the needle therefore the bobbin hook can not grab the thread and hence a skipped stitch This is called flagging What I find is that on really stretchy stuff I use a stretch needle and on stable stretch fabrics (like pontes double knits and scuba knits) because they donrsquot flag as much as a stretch jersey or draping fabric which has a much higher stretch percentage
This is as much about techniques as the proper tools Donrsquot try and do sewing with regular sharp needles They will cut the fabric and if itrsquos a knit it will ravel and fail eventually (really takes far less time than you think) And with a ball point there is no cutting of the fabric as well as the scar p r e v e n t s t h e skipped stitches
Th i s i s ano the r reason wny stretch p e r c e n t a g e i s important to know Wersquore using stable knits here that have l o w s t r e t c h therefore require different techniques a n d d i f f e r e n t equipment
Page 7
Making the Besom Pocket Part 1
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 8
Making the Besom Pocket Part 2
A Besom pocket is one of those tell-tale signs of professional sewing People see that on your jacket and they will take you for a professional so get ready with the ldquoNO I DONrsquoT SEW FOR OTHERSrdquo (unless you want to) answer to the questions that will come
The one problem with the Besom pocket is that it sags This is the reason why these pockets are delivered to the store sewn in place and it is up to the consumer to clip the threads and open the pocket In this jacket I put in slant pockets which means that they are far less likely to droop In the mini newsletters I will do some curved welt pockets that will be even more fun
Even though Irsquom doing besom pockets on this jacket there are other jacket pockets that are equally as elegant on a jacket like this Even though you wouldnrsquot consider a patch pocket elegant when matched this again goes a long way toward identifying this jacket as professional and bespoke Of course welt or flap pockets are also lovely On the right you can see two types of flap pockets and if yoursquore doing something in a pinstripe and exceptionally tailored then putting in a ldquoticket pocketrdquo (which is the little pocket above the larger flap pocket) might be a look that would be fun but basically this was strictly for a manrsquos jacket Itrsquos nice to know what itrsquos called though
Often welt and besom pockets are confused They are actually made the same and itrsquos easy to see how they would be confusing The curved welt pocket can be either a welt or a very thin besom-espque type pocket opening An upper welt pocket is traditionally on the upper left of the jacket - the breast pocket and a lower pocket would either be a flap patch or besom
NOTE These besom pocket videos are long for me but they are step-by-step and yoursquore meant to have your pad or phone and as you complete one step you go to the next When you do this step-by-step they suddenly loose their intimidating and become a really wonderful technique to have in your portfolio
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
I copied this phrase from Carolyn Norman because she practices what all well-practiced dressmakers and home sewists do - working a set of standard patterns to her size and varies them and keeps to them You can see the variations on her dress pattern to the right Clockwise starting upper left contrasting sleeve tunic waistband insert sleeveless under sweater wow dress over white blouse with jacket and contrasting waistband insert What I love about this is how many variations she gets by using the same pattern Most folks wouldnrsquot believe this is the same pattern But herersquos the thing Carolyn in her professional life was a regional manager of her company and didnrsquot work the standard 40 hours a week it was probably more like 60 hours a week but she sewed all her own clothes This is a perfect example of an executive professional taking her time-management skills she learned at work and applying them to her sewing There is nothing hokey or funny about this Almost every executive and mid-level business managers understand time management and incorporate into their daily lives as well as their work
The absolute most valuable resource we have is time and Carolyn is a perfect example of how excellent time management can allow you to do more of what you want and cut out the riff raff or anything else that takes you away from what you want to be doing This is exactly what Carolyn does When she needs a dress pants jacket tunic whatever she pulls out that pattern and looks at how she wants to make this or that variation on the pattern and shersquos ready to go to work no alteration no fitting no problems because shersquos most like made the pattern only a month ago maybe a week ago This is the maximum use of her time
So what would a good library of TNT patterns look like Herersquos a great list to start youTop - Variations dress tunic shirt blouse shell My favorite pattern for this right now is this Jalie patternPants - You canrsquot do a lot of variations on this so you may need several TNT patterns to fill this wardrobe need Here are a few suggestions (for a classic business like suit pant StyleArc Barb Ponte Pantor something that can be worn with a little higher jacket or top which is a pattern for you gals who donrsquot New Look Thin Pant like leggings that looks like leggings but doesnrsquot look big - they actually look like leggings but really arenrsquot Leggings my favorite pattern for this is this BurdaStyle pattern Yoga CutBoot Cut - the difference here is that Yoga Cut has a lot of stretch and Boot Cut has a little stretch or no stretchSkirts - full and thin and thatrsquos it Check your length carefully with this JacketCoat - make this a notched collar including a woven and a stretch one Therersquos a great pattern out for a nice stable knit coat from and of course last monthrsquos jacket from lengthened would make an Katherine Tilton Butterickexcellent coat From this monthrsquos front zip variation you can have a stretch pleather moto jacket with a zipper or a nice coat that zips all the way up to the collar And of course you can make the coat length you want tunic (mid thigh) long hip (peacoat sort of length) street length (knee) and then for those really cold times floor length
For some more ideas head over to my and peruse through my patterns they are all linked to Pinterest Pagedownload information
Page 9
TNT - Tried lsquoN True Patterns
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
So when I was altering the jacket shoulder and
bring the shoulder to a less strong angle
(therefore needing a much thinner pad in the
shoulder) this brings up the matter of the sleeve
head (or that part of the sleeve that fits into the
bodice)
One of the hallmarks of a well-tailored and even
well assembled garment is the ldquopoprdquo that
happens on the sleeve head at the very top of the
sleeve This is a standard requirement in a menrsquos
jacket and no reason a womanrsquos jacket whether
in a bespoke fine 130rsquos wool or a nice stable
ponte knit shouldnrsquot have the same As a matter
of fact this turns out to be a lot easier in a knit
than in a woven
But herersquos the rub Because it is a lot easier
therersquos the tendency to want to be a little slack on
the header of the sleeve That means therersquos a
tendency to stretch the sleeve all the way around
This is where the experience and knowledge
gained from that experience helps in putting in a
knit sleeve Since you know how to do a woven
sleeve a knit is a lot easier Where you might have to really struggle on some fabrics (letrsquos not even talk about a
closely woven linen or cotton - ugh) on a knit you can pop in a lot of fabric in that header to give you a nice bump
But keep the pop at the top of the sleeve What I like to do is match the underarm first the shoulder second and then
put in pins about frac12rdquo on either side of the shoulder where nothing is eased into this space This keeps the sleeve from
becoming too bumped or popped out and looking gathered After pinning these places then working from the
bottom up keep the jacket as smooth as possible on both sides You should have a lot left to ease into the top
In the case of this jacket I did since I took out some space in the circumference Irsquom guaranteed to have a little extra
in the sleeve I will simply ease this in and have an outstanding popped shoulder head The idea of this straight front
jacket is a bit more casual but that doesnrsquot mean that we let the tailored aspect of this jacket fall down Keeping the
tailored sharp shoulders the nice crisp fit the detailed pockets the contrasting inside collar and facing and maybe
even some contrast on the cuffs will all go towards making this a beautifully tailored jacket
The changes in the shoulder line in the bodice at a softer angle will go with a more modern look for the jacket of less
intense shoulder I liked this in the jacket for last month because the whole idea was to do a bespoke look in a knit
It was like taking a traditional Queen Ann ball and claw foot table and putting it in a very stark modern house - it
works but only because both styles stay true to themselves Thatrsquos what I wanted with the jacket last month - that it
stay true to a bespoke look This month with other techniques this jacket becomes a more modern version
In the next mini-newsletter I will finish the jacket and look at some other details and ideas for a jacket like that can
keep the jacket modern but in a traditional sort of way
Page 10
The Shoulder and The Sleeve Head
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
Page 11
Itrsquos common all over the internet to say ldquoYou must do a muslinrdquo Irsquom not sure if itrsquos to brag that folks are trying to channel being a pro or if itrsquos that they really get the whole idea of a muslin For whatever reason it is a valid and very professional technique to use for fitting Each one is different and itrsquos important to understand the information that you get and you donrsquot get using each method
The Tissue FitThe tissue fit is pinning together the pattern tissue on the seamline and because it is clearly marked check your major points like center back center front waist bust point shoulder position neckline (too high too low) as well as length But there are some other things you can check as well like the hang of the pattern I happen to be sway back and I tilt funny my mannequin shows that and I can easily check the tilt to make sure that the fit is correct I also checked the shoulders because the Butterick jacket had strong shoulders and for this jacket I didnrsquot want such strong shoulders so I could make that adjustment I also needed to check to make sure that the jacket was close to my waist
This sounds like a lot of information but most of it was checking points that I normally check to confirm a good fit Most of those points were correct so that meant most of the information I had on the pattern was correct and didnrsquot need altering What the tissue fit did was confirm that most of the information on the pattern was correct
Had most of the information been wrong IOW I had measured and drafted out what I thought was correct but was getting conflicting information from the tissue fit I would have had to make a muslin - - PERIOD This is the purpose of the tissue fit - to tell you if you need to make a muslin
The Muslin When working with a pattern that you may be little used to or not used to at all (for example the first time I did the Burda Pattern after making really huge adjustments in the pattern I made a muslin) a muslin is safe Now I will tell you itrsquos a lot of work but herersquos the reward It lsquos like taking the final exam of the whole year in school and your whole grade will be the results of this exam only you get to get the answers the night before Now would you spend that night memorizing those answers Of course you would The thing with the muslin is that they are the answer to the test but you donrsquot need to memorize them - you can go back and refer to them over and over again Itrsquos even better than getting the answers to the test the night before And herersquos the next part if the first muslin messes up and you canrsquot seem to get the information you need (which is the muslin doesnrsquot fit) make another one
For both of these technique you must have a mannequin And not the dial-o-matic mannequin but one that is as close to your size and shape as possible That means that it measures close to your height from your shoulder to your bust point to your waist if you waist is higherlower in back if one hip is higher than the other if your hips extend out higher or lower below your waist if you have a distinctive curve in your back if you have a flat or full tummy flat or full fanny if you have bust that point out or in and a myriad of other dimensions that are hard to get without a good mannequin The dial-o-matic mannequins are OK to start with but do not expect a good fit from these The Cadillac of mannequins the Wolf Forms are also fabulous but once you grow out of it you return it to the company and buy a whole new one and being the Cadillac of forms they have Cadillac pricing My most favorite mannequin these days is the Uniquely You This form has a cover and you fit the cover to yourself and put it on the foam form and the form fills in all the parts that you fit on the cover The great thing about this form is that if you grow (and puhlease who among us hasnrsquot) you take the cover off refit and put it back on - I usually have to add a few layers of batting each time I do this But the great news is that Irsquove had my form for 40 years and the foam has not degraded or dried out or flaked off Itrsquos still in great shape
Tissue Fit andor Muslin
