We’re still a week away from cutting and beginning to fit the muslin, but now is the time to start thinking about adjustments you’ll need to make to the pattern prior to fitting the muslin. Rarely do I just cut out a test garment straight from the pattern; usually I do some measurements and adjusting before my scissors ever touch the muslin. Why? Because this eliminates some (not all!) of the fitting problems I might encounter and allows me to focus on the larger issues that may need to be fine tuned.
But first, I would highly recommend taking a set of measurements for yourself. This can be a bit tricky if you’re alone, but is very helpful to have. Threads Magazine published a great guide on what measurements to take and jot down. (If you have Cal Patch’s Design It Yourself Clothes, so has a good section on measurements and how to take them.) Of particular note for this project will be: bust, waist, hip, waist to desired skirt length, and shoulder to waist.
Once you have your measurements in hand, it’s time to pick out a size. I recommend tracing this pattern since it’s printed on heavy paper–or if you’re using the at-home printing option because of taped together the paper pieces (which just get awkward to work with). This will allow you to create a custom-fit garment pattern without ruining the original pattern. For tracing I use medical table paper, but as I mentioned in the supplies post, banner paper, large sheets of tracing paper or even non-fusible interfacing will work.
Now if you’re like most women, it’s likely you may span more than one size. If you do, don’t worry! You can easily blend one size to the other over various areas where you need to go up or down a pattern size. For example if you have a hip measurement a size larger than your waist: trace the waist measurement from the smaller size and gently curve a line out to meet the line for the larger size over the hip. I’ve included an example above of just that (black line is size 12, and the red line shows blending from the size 12 waist to a 14 hip).
Once you have traced all your pattern pieces, you will want to start making some preliminary adjustments to the pattern. I plan on doing a post on Monday about adjusting the bodice and sleeve lengths, but some others that may need to be taken into consideration:
- Sleeve Cap Ease As I mentioned in my most recent version of this pattern, like most 40s inspired styles, there is a lot of ease in the sleeve cap, which makes it tricky to sew the cap in smoothly. I did an entire post on how to adjust this here. I highly recommend doing this prior to cutting the muslin!
- FBA or SBA Large or small busted, you may need to make a Full Bust or Small Bust Adjustment to this pattern. I think this pattern will work well for ladies with a C or small D cup size, but outside of that you’ll need to do some tweaking (I need to do an SBA on mine). Despite how intimidating it sounds, it’s a very simple adjustment to make. Gertie posted a roundup of tutorials on bust adjustments awhile back that are super helpful.
- Skirt Length I have short legs, so I almost always have to adjust the length of a skirt. While you could just chop off the couple extra inches at the hem, this will also affect the sweep or hem circumference of the final skirt as well. Plus if you’ve got the opposite problem (taller than the pattern allows for), you’ll need to lengthen it. I’ve documented how to make this easy adjustment below
{ click here to continue reading this post }
January 20, 2011 ·
33 lovely thoughts
posted in sewing
· tags: swing dress sew-along
Taking a bit of a breather today from the intense-blogging that’s been going on. Just a few snapshots I took last week of a few little things that have found a home with me lately, that I thought you might enjoy seeing! I tend to be a bit conflicted when doing these sorts of posts, because I don’t want to come across as bragging or gloating over things like this. But at the same time, I always love seeing what others find as well. So I guess I’m of two minds about this! So tell me: any little finds recently cross your path that made your day?
deadstock barrettes found on the Virginia trip over the holidays. these were found at a weird little store that had a lot of vintage deadstock and was going out of business. I should have snatched up more, but it was towards the beginning of the trip and I didn’t want to go through my spending money at one go!
Sailor Husband has been searching Ebay for these vintage Navy sweetheart pins lately. The one on the left (seller dated it to WWI, but I’m not sure…) is a bit worn and shows it’s age, but I tend to like things like that! I’m thinking of making it into a necklace rather than wearing it as a pin.
A pretty vintage fabric purse with a Bakelite handle that my parents gave me for Christmas. I’ve used it quite a few times already and love it because it’s light-colored (so many of my handbags are dark leather or fabric)!
A 1950s headband hat found in Virginia for a song. Sadly the net veil ripped a bit on the trip back (despite my babying it and packing it oh-so-carefully!), so I need to either tack it up permanently as shown to remove it altogether. I’m getting quite addicted to this style of hat–it tends to work well into my wardrobe.
January 19, 2011 ·
50 lovely thoughts
posted in life,vintage inspiration
· tags: thrifting + vintage
After being so cruel as to post some summertime fashions yesterday, I thought I’d better post something a bit more seasonal! lol. Over the weekend I decided to pull out one of the many thrifted black cardigans I have and add some embellishment to it. While a basic, jewel neck cardigan is a great staple to have, I admit I have more than one and multiples of the same thing are just a bit redundant. I had originally bought this particular sweater months ago with the intention of either adding beading or embroidery to it, but finally decided on what I wanted to do and how to accomplish what I envisioned! I thought I’d document the steps for how I embroidered a sweater knit; I do hope you enjoy! (A little disclaimer though: I am not an expert on embroidery, so if you’re more well versed in techniques, please feel free to chime in the comments!)
The lovely thing about this embellishment method is that it is cheap. The sweater was thrifted for less than $2, I already had the supplies on hand, so it was quite budget-friendly. Even if you don’t have all the supplies lying about, embroidery thread and tracing paper can still be had for literally pennies. Supplies you will need:
- jumper-style sweater or cardigan – whichever style you most prefer
- sew-in stabalizer – I used a piece of cotton voile, but organza or any other lightweight (preferably natural fiber) material would work. Just a scrap a bit bigger than your embroidery design will do!
- embroidery floss – I use DMC brand, 6-strand floss; just gather up as many colors as you’d like
- hand embroidery needles
- embroidery hoop – big enough to allow the design you’re embroidering to fit
- tracing paper – I just used the paper I use to trace my sewing pattern, but regular tracing or even tissue paper would work
- embroidery design – I found the one I used here
- scissors, marker, pins
Begin by printing off your design if you’ve found it online. Place the tracing paper over top and trace using a permanent, fine-tipped marker. Trim the edges of the paper down a bit if needed.
{ click here to continue reading this post }
January 18, 2011 ·
69 lovely thoughts
posted in tutorials
· tags: 2011 wardrobe, embroidery, tutorial
For some inexplicable reason, everything I have been wanting to wear lately is summer-ish: light cotton embroidered dresses, open-toe sandals, big straw sunhats… Case in point: Sunday I wore one of my vintage, silk tops that is far too lightweight for this time of year (a sweater was employed by early evening when I couldn’t tough it out any longer!). Of course this little detail of weather and winter didn’t stop me from daydreaming about it and scanning a few images from 1948 of summertime fashion! It’ll be here before we know it! (Yes, I realize this is a complete turn-around from my longing for winter weather a couple months ago… lol.)
I love this pretty dress print and the blue shoes!
Lovely, classic, easy-wear outfits for warm weather. I also adore the hairstyles suggested in the sketches…
Skirt and blouse ensembles! My eye is really drawn to the top two skirts; bold prints are always fun.
{ click here to continue reading this post }
January 17, 2011 ·
41 lovely thoughts
posted in vintage inspiration
· tags: 1940s, vintage inspiration
