New Patterns

McCall's and Kwik Sew have new patterns.  Here are my favorites:


M6246


KS3827


KS3825.  It looks better with a print and no sleeves.

Here's where I'm torn, KS3826 and KS3823:



The dress looks horrible in the misses size, but the top looks great.  The plus-sized dress rocks, but the top looks terrible. I think I may have the best of both worlds because I'm misses up top and plus below :-)

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make a Muslin

I have been working on V8699 for what seems like forever.  It's a Custom Fit, so no FBA needed and it came in a 24 for my hips. This was going to be easier to tackle.

Then came the dreaded sway back alteration.  I made a 2" wedge.  The side seams were straight and the CF matched mine. The round back alteration worked like a dream. Dealing with forward shoulders on a shoulder princess was no walk in the park, but I think I got it.  All of this was done on Swedish tracing paper.

I whipped out my prized ponteroma knit and began cutting.  I made it to the sewing machine, knocked out the staystitching and basted the top together. Tried to get fancy and add clear elastic to the shoulders, but I did it wrong. No biggie.

I anxiously tried on the top this morning. Y'all know what I forgot to do? Pay attention to the placement of the front princess seams.  They were INCHES away from my apex; waaaay too close to the side seams.  Wait, I forgot about how I didn't actually complete the round back alteration.  I made the dart, but forgot to widen the back shoulder. I would have been able to save the top if it wasn't for that.

Oh well. I have a nice stash of ponteroma here and there's plenty more at Hancock. When I replace this fabric, I'll get to use less because the View B tunic is not the look for me. I knew better! I've been reading The Science of Sexy (I'll review it later) and I fully agreed that pear-shaped women should not wear long tops. But I really liked the shaped hem on the tunic. Lesson learned. I'll be making the View A top with long sleeves.

All is not lost because I'm continuing to fit my 'new' muslin. I'm happy with the front and lower back. I added a CB seam for my sway back. I've had to take even more length out.

I think I've had enough for today.

Vision Statement: How This First Lady Moves Markets

Head over hbr.org and check out the analysis on how The First Lady's fashion choices affect clothing companies' stock prices.



BTW, I've been attempting to sew.  I'm baffled by the sway back alteration.  How do you take out inches when there is no CB seam????

New Simplicity Patterns

The Simplicity Winter 2010 collection is here.  There's only one in the group that made my list. Since it's a jacket, I'm thinking 2012!

Isn't View A with the ribbon pretty? I like the Chanel-like zippered View D too. Even better is that multiple cup sizes are included in the pattern.

Book Review: Jackets For Real People

Of the Fit For Real People Series, this is the most difficult of the three books.  Perhaps rightfully so because a tailored jacket is a much a much more difficult garment. However, this book works hard to make the process more understandable. Early on, the book devotes a few pages to defining tailoring. Now, you know what you're in for! To increase your chances of success, the book suggests you divide the process of making a jacket into four blocks of time:

• Planning and Fitting
• Cutting Marking, Applying Interfacing and Pinning the Pieces into a ready-to-fit position
• Sewing and Pressing
• Finishing

The fabrics chapter is very informative. It's a fabric glossary with suggestions as to which fabrics are easiest and those that are not the fastest to sew. The section on appropriate seam finishes was helpful.

Chapter 4 is all about shaping fabrics. It defines lining, interfacing, underlining and interlining. It's mostly devoted to the discussion of interfacing. Surprise! There's a recommendation to use Perfect Fuse interfacing. 

Chapter 6 covers pressing. The fitting discussion starts happening in Chapter 7. The real how-to begins in Chapter 9, Cutting Marking and Interfacing.

The next few chapters break down fitting and construction according to the various pieces of the garment:

• Jacket Front
• Back and Under Collar
• Sleeves, Shoulder Pads and Chest Shaping
• Facing, Upper Collar, Lining and Hems
• Bagging a Lining
• Buttonholes
• More Pockets
• Mitered Back Vent
• Finishing Touches

The remaining chapters are:

• Tips That Will Improve All of Your Sewing
• Plaids and Stripes
• Men's Jackets

This book would be an excellent addition to any sewing library. It provides a wealth of information. There's an in-depth knowledge here that you won't get from the tailoring chapter in a general-reference sewing book. I'm glad I made the purchase.