Little details and good ideas

In a few days we are heading out of the ice and snow, over the ice and snow, in the RV headed for a week's driving south.

I have been indulging in a lot of sewing of warm and practical rv type clothing. 

I will be sharing that highly useful but probably non inspirational type sewing over the next few days.

Now onto the inspirational part. 

The weakness of this blog is the lack of those beautiful pictures the other bloggers I admire can do.

My husband has many wonderful qualities but has not mastered iPhone shots that capture both my head and are not on an angle. 

I often think I should get this visual side together but am stalled by not wanting to take my limited sewing time away in a photographic detour. So for those of you who do manage to take pictures that actually look decent. any advice would be appreciated.

In the meantime, in the interest of speed and in getting something up that might have a handy hint in it. I am going to entertain you will some scandalist shots taken of the back of the bathroom door. 

Not very glamorous. but you have to remember I haven't read your photographic advice yet.

And there is a sewing point I want to make here.

Let's begin with Exhibit A: Love Notions Constellation pullover.

Now I have made several of these for other people but this one was for me. This top has driving-in-the-rv-down-the I-95 written all over it, with a second life in campground walking around.

 First the bathroom door shot:

And on me. 

You will notice no head. Of course this shot was taken after I had walked two dogs in the wind so that is probably a good thing,

I really really love this pattern. 

It is super easy to make and comfortable. The ladies' version (there is a kid's version and a man's available from Lovenotions) has a view with knit band along a sort of curved hem that I think is more flattering to most of us than a traditional ribbing band.

It also has a giant sort of kangaroo pocket that looks more like two normal pockets - and these are finished with some easy little knit bands. I used some rayon knit I had saved from a T shirt project:

The best part of the who project to me however was the way the  upper cover/neckline was finished - a  method I have used years ago and sort of forgot about.

You know in any kind of collar like this one getting the inside bottom edge of the upper collar to look nice when the collar is open (think golf shirts, any banded shirt collar etc.) is tricky.

The method here was to trim the seam allowance off the bottom of the upper collar and to wrap a piece of binding around the raw edge of the bottom of the collar piece, before it got attached to anything at all.

The construction process was then to just sew the under collar to the neckline, then to sew the upper collar (the one that would be next to your neck when worn) to the undercollar already attached to the garment, just along the top and short sides.

The next step was to just stitch the free bottom edge of the collar to down to cover the seam - either by hand or by machine.

I did this part by hand because I felt like sitting in the chair with Daisy and relaxing at this point. 

What makes this way of doing a collar is so cool is that the bottom edge of this collar piece is already been finished before it hits the garment - so there is no need to do any folding under or tricky stuff - so easy and so neat!

I love how stress free this was.

My next project was to make a sort of housecoat thing for running around the rv and campsite. 

And to wear too when I go  off to have a shower in the campground washroom when I am in the mood for a shower in an area larger than a phone booth and that does not also include someone standing outside the bathroom asking you to save water- not something I am usually in the mood to do when I am finally getting a hot shower after a long drive.

I used this Vogue pattern

This illustration was exactly what I wanted but unfortunately the actual garment did not look exactly like the picture when I made it up.

The shoulders for a start are really quite dropped and the sleeves super wide - think kimono draft.

But to be realistic about it the only people who are likely to see me in this unit are old camping type guys whistling along in their shaved heads and hiking boots on the trails in the woods on the way to the bath houses. On their way there of course because their wives have kicked them out of the rv for a while for some peace -because living in an rv with a man who whistles makes you feel like that is what you should do. Every now and then.

So if that is who will observe this outfit, I really am not too stressed that it doesn't look a lot like the envelope picture.

The instructions for the facing at the front when it transitions to the collar were interesting. 

The pattern does not have a back neck facing (those are a nuisance anyway) but instead the pattern advises you to slash up the stitching line where the facing ends on either side of the back neck seam and to turn the remaining raw edge of the collar under and stitch it down.

I never like to do this because the slashed up the stitching line part is always dicey and never neat.

However this was the next thing I made after the pullover above so I just used to Constellation technique again - complete with the same binding in the same fabric:

This was really a much better solution and I am pretty pleased with myself for making this adaptation.

Now the thing I want us all to think about are other ways in which we can use this same binding the raw edge, rather than fighting to turn it under neatly, technique to make our lives easier.

What do you think?

Pattern testing and the Duet pants from Love Notions

Some of you may remember that one of my new year's resolutions was to sew more Indie patterns.

There are many reasons for this.

The first off is that as someone who works with and thinks a lot about new and returning sewers, I have become increasingly disenchanted with the Big Four- particularly the instructions in most patterns. 

The fact is that when those patterns are produced so many of the guide sheets are an amalgamation of cut and paste texts from a bank of instructions. Even those seem to be based on outdated textbook home-ec from the 50s methods that just don't acknowledge the innovations in techniques, tools, and equipment. Folks have sergers and lightening stitches on their sewing machines these days - double rows of straight stitches is not the standard approach for sewing knits.

You would have to go a long way in those instructions from the regular pattern companies to devise an more discouraging approach to sewing, and a route to disappointing results for an enthusiastic keener beginning or intermediate sewer. Why the under illustrated instructions that explain too much about what you don't need to do? Why suggest folks sew gathering stitches to ease in a knit sleeve and set-it in for a T shirt pattern? Baste press and trim, straight stitch and stitch again on the hem of a jersey dress, turning under the raw edge? Twin needles folks twin needles.

I could go on and on. You know I could.

I think you get the drift.

The fit in so many of the Big Four also is bizarre. How else do we explain urban myths like McCalls fits big, or necklines large enough for two heads, and pants with legs wide enough for torsos? No wonder no one knows what size to buy.

Now I have a few Big Fours I use, love, and have saved over the years. But really would I pass most of these patterns on to my daughter and her friends and say go for it, the instructions will tell you everything you need to know, and it will fit the way you expect clothes to fit?

Nope.

Also, apart from some fairly elaborate, and in my opinion unreliable, tissue fitting advice in the Palmer and Pletsch patterns, standard pattern companies pay very little attention to fit issues. And this is the main reason so many sewers give up sewing.

So enter my interest in Indie, generally small home-based, pattern companies.

The availability of pattern drafting software, the ability to produce and sell .pdf patterns, to have all those transactions possible from nothing more complicated than a smartphone,  as well as online communities to both build markets and share creative inspiration, has revolutionized the home sewing industry.

I can imagine the discussions that must be happening around the Big Four boardroom tables.

This opening up of the sewing community is fascinating to watch and to participate in.

So that's why I signed up to be a tester for the newly released Duet trousers from Love Notions.

Now a while ago a commenter here on this blog left a comment about the objectivity of the testing process. She noted that all tester reviews seemed to be glowing. She wondered, probably accurately, if some "testers" were really just sample makers. 

I get that point.

In some situations this may be the case.

So I wanted to see for myself what went on in a real testing process and so I volunteered. If you are interested there is a testers group on FB that posts testing calls. Most of the Indie pattern companies also have FB groups where these are posted.

That's how I applied to test this pattern for Love Notions. I am glad I did.

It was a pretty gruelling couple of weeks working as a tester.

Here is how this process worked.

First off the designer, Tami Bunch Meyer, sent out over the testing period eight different pattern iterations, each one fine tuned and responsive to testing experiences over the 10 days of testing.

We testers made up as many of these as we could (I made 5) using our own fabric and posting pictures as we went to a FB group for discussion. This let Tami see the pattern on different body types (sizes 2-22 - these were real people!)  I think I posted only 3 of my versions because in two cases a new and improved version was out before I could get my pictures taken and posted.

This was a pretty solid pattern to start with and I have to say that the pattern refinement process was painstakingly careful. and the quality of the final version shows this effort. Sometimes it was only take in an 3/8" here or there. The testers worked hard but I have to say that Tami worked even harder.

To be honest I was amazed at how hard she worked. 

Personally the thought of taking on fitting (essentially muslins for every size and type of body shape possible) is something I wouldn't do. So much work and we are all so demanding about pant fit. Friends of mine have been working on the same pant muslin for decades.

Think about it. Think about the challenge of figuring out which fit issues are personal shape issues and which ones are pattern design issues. This is huge.

I have to say that how this was handled was impressive. 

The final version of the pants pattern has been carefully developed that's for sure. But any pattern is not going to fit every conceivable body curve exactly out of the envelope. So in recognition of that this pattern comes with an excellent pattern adjustment/alteration booklet that really would be a fitting handbook for any pants maker.

A note on the style of these pants. 

They are trousers, meaning more thigh ease than many of us after years of skinny pants are used to. They hang down at the back as opposed to cup under the seat. It is important to distinguish between fit and design issues in your expectations.

The pattern can be made with or without pockets and in either a stretch woven with some drape, or a knit like ponte (although I note that some testers used straight up wovens and they seemed to work well too). 

There is a classic trouser width and a tapered leg option. There are two waistband options, a knit yoga band and a standard waistband to go with an invisible side zipper. I think a knit yoga band combined with a stretch woven would work too depending on your hip to waist ratio.

For my own version of the final I used the wrong fabric, a poplin with only a tiny bit of stretch, and I knew it wouldn't hang as well as the suggested fabrics. 

However I have been desperate for comfortable golf pants that I could move in easily in a lighter fabric for the evenings when the bugs come out. I took a chance. Next time I make these for non golf wear I will take these down a size particularly if I do the knit version or use a real stretch woven. 

Interesting that one of Tami's fit recommendations is to go down a size always if you fall between the exact measurements in the charts. Given the ease of this pattern that makes a lot of sense.

So here are my own pants, done from the last version of the pattern but without any personal alterations. I will do those next time, like adding length to the legs and reducing the front crotch depth a bit. Again done in not the best fabric choice for the pattern, I think there are more illustrative versions posted by other testers you can see in the pattern link. That said I have worn these already a few times and found them perfect for comfortable pants on the golf course. I will be making more.

So here's what I learned from testing this pattern:

1. Allow yourself some real dedicated time to do this. The pattern designer needs this from you. I had company arrive in the middle and this made it hard to do all versions.

2. Understand this is not a get a free pattern exercise but real work. This is test and feedback sewing not sample sewing. You will burn through a lot of stash fabric to do a good job. In my case I was happy to do this and get some weird coloured stuff that I am not sure why I bought it out of the inventory. All the testers were given a store credit to put towards future pattern purchases at the end of the process, but really in relation to time and fabric spent this should not be a main motivator to involve yourself in this process.

And finally some thoughts on Indie patterns and my experience.

I often hear from long time sewers that they don't like or trust Indie designers. 

I so get this. But I also don't think it is accurate all the time. Whose Indie pattern really matters.

Sure I have had my own experiences with quickly produced patterns that have been rushed into .pdfs and Paypal set ups by the kind of newish sewers who might be considered to be in the category of those who don't know what they don't know. Some of the independently patterns I have bought have been pretty crude and technically illiterate to be honest, but I could, and have, sometimes said exactly that about patterns from the Big Four.

So really it seems to me that the best thing to do is to remember the word Indie means independent and that each of these operations is a reflection of itself and not a category of pattern-making.

So having gone through this process in depth with Love Notions I now know that this company really puts a huge amount of effort and attention to detail into pattern development. I have had good results with their patterns in the past, mainly tops, but now I understand the design process from the inside I would trust them as a reliable source for quality patterns in the future. 

It would be interesting to test more of these patterns and I might even do the odd one for another designer again if I have the time. 

Your thoughts?

Maternity sewing

Of the many pairs of leggings I have been making lately two of these have been for my DIL who is expecting in November.

I used the Pattern 4 Pirates add-ons (thank you P4P for not calling these hacks) for different styles of maternity waistbands that can be used in conjunction with the Peg Legs pattern. Note again both the Peg Legs and the add-on patterns are free.

Maddie liked the over the belly waist so these two pair, made in some lovely Supplex from Halo Fabric Addicts again, used that option.

I am going to show these out of interest for both those who might want to sew maternity leggings and for those who won't ,because the construction is interesting.

For a start the Peg Legs have a deep waist band, and like the Clara's really, have a short front crotch seam to accommodate that. Kind of weird when you are making both of these patterns up if you try them on before you have attached the waistband because it feels and looks at first as if these units aren't going to be high enough to cover anything much less a belly and the distance up to the waist.

But you attach the waistband and what do you know, they do.

Having this deep dip in the front means it is so easy to switch these up for maternity sewing. The Peg Legs maternity add-on is really a very deep front waistband with a little self fabric knit band stitched onto the top.

Now these look really weird I know, hanging on a barn door in the basement, and they will look better in pictures that Maddie has said she will send, but there is hopefully still some educational, and certainly some humour value in these shots.

Love this fabric, this is a side view so you can see how the front waist dips down and the wide overbelly waistband comes up. We will cut this down to make a postnatal pair later if we want.

Long and skinny but hopefully comfortable
And here is another pair in a lighter colour so you can see the waistband seam and the band at the top a little better:

I top stitched the seam allowances down with a triple zig zag on this pair more or less for my own entertainment

Now to go with the leggings I made some tops. 

I used Love Notions famous Laundry Day tee. I wanted to try this out for myself and figured doing a size small for Maddie would give me some sense of how it might look. This pattern has quite a swing to the hem, despite being fitted through the shoulders, which I thought would make it work for a maternity top basic.

I added 2" in length over all and an additional 2" to the centre front hem tapering that up to the side seams. As you get bigger that front hem pulls up and that centre front dip down in the hem is useful.

Here are the tops, it is interesting how they all look slightly different because they are each made in different fabrics. The grey one is cotton single knit, the white one bamboo, and the navy one is rayon knit:

Since I was on a sewing, neglecting all other aspects of life roll, I decided to also make a replacement skirt for one that got lost in Maddie's travels - the Jalie Lisette again lengthen to 30" with a centre back seam added and a 12" walking slit. I added a little to the width of the waist and left out the elastic in the front waistband and put it only in the back:

I have to give a shout out to Stonemountain in Berkeley for sending me the exact same fabric I made the original in. I sent them a picture of Maddie in the original skirt and they put the same fabric in the mail to me and I got it in a few days - pretty impressive I thought. Another reason why I love them.

I also played around with one more top, a striped cotton lycra knit (yes I know the stripes are not matched on the sleeves - I had to really scramble to find fabric to cut them out at all - the lower front of this pattern is doubled - a long gathered piece attached to a shorter under piece). I used this pattern, and added 2" to each side of the bottom of both bodice pieces and the 2" to the centre front of the hem like I did with the Laundry Day tee. I am completely enumerate and once I come up with a number I like to stick with it and apply it everywhere. 

This pattern also includes a modesty panel thing that I originally had made and was going to apply then I decided we didn't need it. I sewed in some clear elastic ever so slightly stretched along the sides of the V neckline under the binding and I felt that was enough to do to prevent gaping.

I also made Maddie a swimsuit using the First Crush pattern from Rad Patterns. Not a bad maternity pattern at all (they also sell a non maternity version) but the instructions were apparently written for Harry Houndini to execute so I sort of had to throw those out the window (sort of literally) and applied what I have learned from other swimsuit construction.

More on those details in next month's swimsuit sew-along.

Here is a front view and a side view, to show you how maternityesque it is, fabric again from my mega order from Halo:

Finally I even remembered that my daughter-in-law is married and who she is married to is my oldest son.

You know the one I promised I would make him a shirt for his birthday March 30.

So I finished that too and put it in the package to keep up appearances. 

So folks when this blog goes dark for a few days this is why. I made this batch of garments over about a 10 day period and sort of like living like that.

However if any of you would like to drop by however and fold a bit of laundry or do a few floors ... those jobs are still outstanding.

In the meantime more to say on sewing along leggings over the next few days!