What Size are You?

This week has been insane with more June brides wandering in for “simple” alterations which turn out to be 4-5 hour affairs so I thought I would share some before I delve into the mysterious/misleading world of pattern grading.

Enter the swimmer bride…she is a health nut and works out and she like many others bought her dress on Ebay from a company in China that makes dresses for $120-300. The tall Asian models on the webpages look absolutely gorgeous in the dresses so she thought she would too. She said they ask for your measurements to assure a perfect fit/toss in the trash can and then send you the dress in a neatly wrapped package/vacuum sealed with all the air removed flat as a pancake with wrinkles almost permanent. So, I asked, “is that what you did, send them your measurements?” “No”, she replied, “I am a perfect 10 so that is what I ordered”. Here is what she got:

  Not too bad so far right? Sort of a Downton Abbey vintage look covering arms version

The train is very long and it will require 5 points to get it up off the ground as well as the satin skirt needing the same amount as it is separate and shorter all around. Now let’s check out the back…I have it on my mannequin as it was way too graphic on the body:

Just a slight problem. You can see this is corset time for sure!!! This will add $120 to the price along with the 10 pick-up points for the bustles. You can see the different colored safety pins marking the top points which match the same colored pins below so I can keep track of all of them/keep from screaming. Let’s see the solution:

First make the loop sections…pin, pin, pin and then stitch, stitch, stitch: Then attach to the dress and add a modesty panel with 2 rows of boning horizontally. I backed the panel with cotton pocket lining from Wawak as it will be cooler on the inside and stiffen the satin fabric that shows

. And did I fail to mention that this dress is also 12 inches too long and I will have to remove the front scalloped lace to raise hem higher? Yes, this is one fine internet dress…$300 worth of alterations will make it wearable and memorable.

Now, let’s see what Vogue 8791 patterns has come up with to fit our bodies. Here are some frightening Google images! I cut out this pattern back in January when I had 2 weeks off and never got back to it until I tried it on basted and discovered it was way too big after cutting my normal size…so I broke down and backtracked and took it apart and laid the pattern pieces all stacked up to reveal the difference between the smallest to largest. Here is what I found, now remember this pattern says it has cup sizes from A-D. This is what I needed to use as the new seam line.

From an A cup to the D cup they add 1.25 inches (total 2.5 inches) but all the other dimensions do not change, all side seams line up as does shoulder seams.

To make this center front section work I will have to take in where the chalk line is on the interfaced piece.

Here is what I do normally on my back patterns, slash and spread and make a dart if the center back is a fold. Please click on the photo for a clearer look and follow the sequence. Here is what I have to trim away to make it fit although I will keep the longer length in the waist. While this looks complicated since it is a princess line, it just fits so much better if you put in the effort. If your pattern does not have a straight center back fold you can allow the back seam to curve and not add the neck dart.

Next time I hope to have the tunic pattern for my client all adjusted and ready for you to see what I did to add where the gingham was pinned…but this week it has been very difficult to manage everything…7 brides for June…too much!

Before I get back to this sea of ivory I wanted to share a site that will send you daily uplifting quotes from writers and famous people from around the world from all religions and philosophies: www.gratefulness.org/word/index.htm

From Box to Beautiful

Two weeks ago I shared this post about a baggy muslin jacket I was making for a regular client. Well, she came yesterday for her fitting and decided that the jungle fabric would be best used on cushions for patio furniture but it is interesting to see what alterations were made to her muslin.

Some of you commented that you also had made versions of other baggy boxy jackets and never went further so I have photos of what worked yesterday. You remember how the lines that were drawn horizontally across the lower section were rising up in the front and back and how the front and back centers flared out away from the body of my duct tape dummy?

On a real live body the front still rides up, the biceps are tight and we added shoulder pads because we add them to all her clothes for balance. Drag lines point to the seam line with the button. It is screaming, “Release me!” So let’s get some scissors and do just that…just don’t cut what is underneath!

Adding a 2 inch section of gingham shows what we needed to make lines straight and drag lines disappear. Of course, this causes other problems but nice ones as we have to pin out the side seams to reduce bulk. At this point the added section will narrow down to nothing at the armhole like a wedge but that may change later. Let’s check out the back…

Now her shoulder seams are allowed to slide forward and sit where they belong instead of pulling toward the back. This new section also allows the 2 crossed over back piece to lay flatter and closer to the body without making a “rooster butt”.

The final photo is what happens to the sleeve…it is tight and restricts her movement. I slash that puppy vertically to see what we need there and pin in the new section of gingham.

   

That inch piece can be left there and altered on the paper pattern or it can be transferred to the wedge sections on the front and back to make for a more even addition on paper.

Once I get to that stage of backtracking next time it will be clearer as to where the best place for it will be. Custom fitting is so much fun as it makes it so apparent so fast as to where you need to add and subtract and then working back to the paper it can change a little more to be cleaner. But you can see in the last photo that the original horizontal lines are now parallel with the floor and the side seams are hanging straight down and the center front and back fabric are hugging the body. For now all is sweetness and light and my client plans a fabric shopping spree in Portland this weekend to search for the perfect fabric for her new jacket…that lucky girl!

Before I leave you to attend to my peas and beans that have emerged from the ground this week on Day 8 I thought you would like to hear some customer comments and emails I got this week. Below are the actual emails:

I am writing to ask how much it would cost to replace a zipper in a skirt?  The skirt is red felted wool (I think) and the zipper is the hidden-type. The other issue is that we are driving into your area for an event that runs Sunday-Wednesday, and were hoping to have it done on Monday… so I am not sure if that is realistic, or what your schedule this week but I figure it is worth a shot to ask.

Hello Jeannie,
I would charge $16 for labor and you would have to bring the invisible zipper replacement (From JoAnn’s Fabrics) in that color as I have mainly darker colors. It can be done for you in a day, no problem.

Thank you for your quick response!  We will think about it on the drive down, but my guess is that we will pass… it was a thrift store find for $2 so we will see what we can do.But if we decide otherwise, you’ll get a call.

They never did call, thankfully.

 

A mother of a bride called me to ask 3 things before she would make an appointment:

Do you own a cat as MOST seamstresses own cats?…Really? No I don’t own one as I sew bridal gowns.

How long have you been sewing for clients?…40 years

Are you any good?…Maybe you might want to read the 11 reviews on Google to help you make up your mind as my clients seem to think so.

Next time paper pattern show and tell and comparing Vogue pattern sizing for different bust cup sizes…how exciting, no? Thanks for dropping by! Welcome to all the new followers from Rhonda’s blog!

 

A Vest and a Guess

Finally the man’s denim vest is finished and I have photos to share.

This was not a simple straightforward project but then working with men never is. First, finding the pattern was a big deal and after trolling the internet, finding it with a front collar, the client wanted a back section to the collar and no lining or facings…great. All of a sudden he has gone from building contractor to clothing designer. A denim collar with a facing is a thick enough item and having a neckline facing or lining holds the layers down nicely and cleanly…but hey, the client is the boss so I worked around that issue. I made yoke linings and used them to hold down the inside collar edges and the armhole binding covered up those raw edges as well. Everything was topstitched on both sides of the seam lines for a more masculine/macho effect:

Here is the inside and you can see that the lower raw edges of the yoke linings were bound with bias binding before the topstitching. The top of the pockets are free and open so he can stuff papers in there to keep safe and dry while the outside pockets hold phones and truck keys etc.

One thing I mentioned last time was a change with the original drafted collar back piece. While it did look great being one piece, the center back section did not like to lay flat being bias so I cut a separate one (center back on the fold) and it worked better.

You see Mrs Mole is still learning…sometimes the stuff I come up with works and sometimes it doesn’t so I share with you the problems and reverse decisions. If you think someone who has been sewing for clients for 40 years knows all the solutions…GUESS AGAIN! I can make up stuff and cheat and do shortcuts but you don’t always get lucky…this was one of those projects…this 3 hour project really racked up extra labor hours…it was a “doing my Penance” project or as some say “Earning jewels for my crown”.

Enough suffering, how about some fancy prom dresses? Here are 2 that wandered into the sewing room on the same day. Here is the guess part of my post….can you tell which dress was the more expensive?

The only difference between the two is the purple one needed 4 inches taken out of the center back:

Have you figured it out? Both are polyester, both weigh about the same, similar beading, pleating, netting underskirt….well, the pink one was bought on line and cost $29 and fit perfectly. The purple one was special ordered from David’s Bridal and cost $300 and needed major alterations. The girl claimed they told her she was a size 6, ordered her a size 6 and she is actually a size 0…go figure? She gets to pay me over 2 hours of labor to make it work.

Before I leave you I want to share something from my husband, Mr Mole. Now since he is a business writer he shares information about what he is researching for clients. It can be the fascinating world of vehicle insurance, waste water recycling in the UK, underground irrigation programs in Israel…all riveting shit but he was reviewing a business book about branding and the importance of getting the visuals right so the consumer would never forget the brand name. Have a look at this video and if you don’t laugh you might want to check your pulse:
http://youtu.be/X21mJh6j9i4

Have a super weekend! You know I welcome comments nice or nasty…ha ha.

Let’s Be Honest

Another blogger, Julie of ReadyThreadSew started a Bitchfest 2013 in order to ask if women wanted to hear real honest comments about their clothes photos. I guess it all depends if you are new to sewing and need a pat on the back or a veteran who needs the truth.

My gripe is always bad fit….loosey goosey,airy linen comfortable/baggy clothes that have no shape and worse yet…a pregnancy shape which does not work on a woman over 50.

One of my dear custom clients brings me great fabrics she finds along her travels and this week she dropped off this pairing…the pattern Vogue (Very Easy) 8090 and this fabric

  Simple top, one button, 3/4 sleeves….what could go wrong? I told her that I would like/insisted to make a muslin to make sure this pattern would suit her and lay flat in the front. Here is the muslin and can you see what is going on here? I have outlined the body shape in black dots and the red line should be following the red parallel line but it isn’t…how charming!

Hands up…who thinks this is good fit? Want more photos? Here are the rest:

Now from the look of the pattern envelope and the title Very Easy you might think…Hell yes, I can crank out this top in the recommended fabric (linen, gabardine) and wear it to some uber-chic gathering/school function and won’t the folks think I bought this in a fashionable boutique where cool ladies/Jennifer Aniston shop. I think not…the best they might think is that you are wearing your pajama top. Or they may think you are 6 months pregnant and doing a good job of covering that up. Either way what other sewers will see is the horizontal bust seam line is hiking up in front causing drag lines and screaming “DART ME!”

This top is a classic box, rectangle sleeves, no shoulders, shapeless no dart example of what is out there in RTW with labels like Eileen Fisher and J. Crew…they work if you have no bust and square shoulders…basically 12 year old girls and cross-dressers.

Can this top be fitted properly and salvaged…yes, and I will attempt that when my client gets back into town the following week. I would like her to look as carefree as the model on the envelope…now where did I leave my magic wand???

This weekend will be filled with planting seeds for beans and peas and checking for snail damage along with bridal sewing. My vest man is coming next week for his try-on and I have some changes in the collar I drafted to share with you. Enjoy your weekend!

 

Pearls and Pockets

Hands Up, who remembers the totally silk beaded dresses of the late 1980′s? 

Maybe some of you even have some hanging in the back of the closet in a garment bag…I know I do in 3 colors, pink, black and blue. But this week I got in a real beauty covered in pearls! It weighs about 7 pounds and will be worn to a gala ball in Paris at the end of the summer. My client needed it hemmed 1/2 inch all around as she was not going to wear her stilettos from that era.

Yes, those are huge shoulder pads…remember those too? See the cuffs and the hem below:
Once all the alterations and bead repairs were done I wrapped the entire dress in tissue paper for the journey on the plane. Each sleeve was stuffed with tissue paper and the neck edge filled and then everything was folded and then wrapped again and taped shut. My client says she is going to keep the dress in her lap during the flight so it will be placed into a cotton pillowcase.

At the other end of my sewing room I have a man’s project…a tall man about 6’2 with huge shoulders and a particular issue he needs to conceal. A beer belly? Oh no nothing that obvious…he is licensed to carry a gun so I was asked to make a vest that allows a holster to be worn and not to be seen from the outside. I started with NewLook 6839 as he wanted a collar but it only went to the shoulder seam. He wanted huge pockets as well but not in the side seams. I made up a muslin after taking his measurements, adding ease for a waist holster and decided that what this basic pattern needed was to be cut up into sections to add what I wanted. I also noticed that he had a slight curve at the top of his upper spine so he needed a curved section there too. Here is the muslin with all the markings for cutting apart and adding seam allowances and pocket. Please ignore my crappy drawing of a side gun…I realize now it looks more phallic than firearm. To get what was needed here are the pattern pieces cut up, seam allowances added: By making the top, a yoke piece, it could be split in the center and curved on it’s own and then sewn to the rest of the back which is cut on the fold. The back darts are sewn all the way to the hem without narrowing. Let’s see the front pieces: By extending a “cut on” pocket and making a separate pocket facing it will be less bulky and I eliminated the darts. Sometimes I have actually used a French dart to add a sneaky pocket in women’s clothes. So we have a new upper front yoke and new vertical seams which will all be topstitched for added interest. There will be a center front separating zipper. One problem left…the front collar piece needed extending to reach around to the center back neck.

It was a strange little thing so I kept the straight of grain and let the new back piece just go bias so it would be all one piece. Here is the paper pattern altered: Fingers crossed everything will come out OK. Next time the finished vest!

Checking my book of brides for the season I have 13 already…throw in prom dresses, mother of the bride dresses, some of my favorite clients custom clothes and I have enough to keep me out of trouble. One of my regular clients has lost over 20 pounds so I have some things to make smaller for her…hooray Nancy!

Wishing you a great week filled with easy projects and co-operative fabrics!

Birthdays, Books and Brides

Every April my birthday arrives just as the Spring rains appear. So as I watch the downpour and hear the tapping on my sewing room skylights it is nice to sit with my presents and be grateful for my health and husband and good friends and family who wish me well.

This year Mr. Mole surprised me with a subscription to a magazine I saw in JoAnn’s. It seemed similar to Threads but with many more articles about recycling clothes into new creations. It is called Altered Couture: My first issue will come in May and fingers crossed I will have some time to just sit and flip through the pages and dream! The other present was something I can read and enjoy while riding my exercise bike to build up my knee muscles…nothing to do with fashion but a real treat for the eyes and brain…World Religions:Maybe most folks would be happy just being in their own place of worship and culture but I find all other cultures and practices absolutely fascinating and this book like all DK (Dorling Kindersley) books cover the subject superbly and extensively with the most beautiful photos!

While we are checking out books I will share some recent good reads and presents from others who understand my personality. My daughter gave me this book: While a book on worms seems a strange topic, if you are a gardener on any level or have ever owned and maintained a wormery (I did in England), this book explains the value these absolutely fascinating little creatures have in our world.

Some of you may know that I have been a Kiva member since 2007 and when I found this book about another lender who went on a quest to visit some of his people who were given loans, I just had to read it! It gives you an insight into how we are all connected and how far a small loan of $25 can carry a struggling farmer/seamstress/fish seller in another country. Their success and dignity depends on small loans and you can read about their stories here.

Lastly, if any of you are introverts, swamped in your work or family dynamics by high energy, high volume gregarious people and wonder why you are drained at the end of the day, this book is for you! Reviews on Amazon are amazing and when readers say they cried after finding themselves in the pages…it is true!

Susan Cain understands the frustration with being raised in a loud chaotic world and does a great job of explaining how small strategies at home and at work can get us through the day without feeling like we are lacking in communication skills because we do not force our views on others nor have to be the life of the party or center of attention to get our point across.

Finally, my sewing room got in another bride this week and this time she wanted me to cut off her train…here are photos of the gorgeous Augusta Jones gown:

Yes, I know…it seems as though the train is the best feature but it has to go so nothing touches the ground…more photos later as the chopping begins! Next time close-ups of all the pick-ups…which are huge godets (triangles) attached at all levels of the skirt held in place by covered buttons and loops ala bustles.

Wishing you all sunny Spring weather in the Northern Hemisphere and happy Fall weather for those south of the Equator!

Blinged Out Babes

Is there anything nicer than a prom or bridesmaid dress covered in jewels and sequins? This week has been a bonanza for those here in the sewing room so I want to share some of the lovelies with you. Let’s go in order of arrival:

High School Prom Princess. Hem 3 layers (chiffon, satin and lining) 300 inches around.

There are 4 of these bridesmaids dresses from Simply Dresses to hem with chiffon and satin and lining…guess how many inches around? 432 …yes, 12 yards and each layer had to be pinned and stitched and pressed times 3.

A lovely one from David’s Bridal: This one is branded a perfect dress for a Mexican traditional Quinceanera .

But it will be a prom dress too and it has many, many layers to shorten by 3 inches…lining, satin, and about 7 layers of netting and tulle. The girl would like the top tightened up as well so the invisible zipper will be removed and snugged up and re-attached and sequins added back on.

And last of all…an internet purchase for another high school prom. This dress had no side seams like the previous one and needed snugging up in the waist area below the upper corset detail. Here is the back with lines drawn where it should be taken in:

See the mess of tulle all lumped at the bottom of the zipper? It was actually sewn into the lower edge and was so nasty that I undid all the layers, undid the stitching and then it could lay flat away from the re-attached lapped zipper.

Of course, we have to remove at least an inch of beads and sequins to move the zipper over. I anchored the beads that were going to be the new edge before detaching the extra ones. The zipper placement turned out nice and then I thought you would like to see the inside. I try to save as much of the original fabric in case the girl sells the dress to someone else and she can have it restored to the original size if necessary.

When you fold under at least one inch of fabric something has to give and normally it is the bodice seam, it is opened up a little and allowed to lay flay and hand stitched down. Hook and eye are added at the top edge and we are done. Here is a photo of what the girl thought she would be getting from QualityBridals :

  In the end she will have what fits and she may even swap the blue ribbon for silver in the tiny top corset area.

And in the middle of all the brides that came and dropped off their dresses last week in the last post, and the bridesmaids here that have been done and dusted and ready to be picked up, some older lady showed up with a crappy homemade fleece jacket she made for a relative. She said her high-end sewing machine would not make buttonholes so I had to do them for her…Really?

Do I have a sign outside my house that says, “I do all the stuff you don’t want to do”? So I tell her she can do this at home by wrapping washaway stabilizer over the front and back of the buttonhole area and just stitching but she want to leave me this nasty slippery stretchy cheap JoAnn’s fabric project for 5 buttonholes. Then she needs a firm price…Oh Lord….I tell her $8 just to get rid of her and she says she can wait while I do them…What?

Is there also a sign outside that says “Instant results”? I tell her later that day or early the next day would work better for me and she leaves the buttons and thread. I make the buttonholes, they are not easy, I swear a little, OK, I swear with each one and then I think, oh, what the Hell, I will sew on the buttons while I wait for her and add tiny plastic backer buttons since the first time the jacket is worn the buttons will pull through and make holes and come away from the fleece as she has used the thinnest nastiest interfacing on the market…like tissue paper. She arrives and says she is happy I sewed the buttons and hands me $10 and says she definitely wants her $2 in change…Really? Sewing on 5 buttons with backer buttons doesn’t warrant a $2 tip? Then she says she will be back the next time she needs help with troublesome fabric and buttonholes….ahhh…I will certainly be tooo busy!

Hope everyone had a super Easter no matter what the weather!