Review of Tessuti's Tokyo Jacket

Good morning folks.

I have been sewing my brains off recently but haven't been able to share it. Mostly this is because I have been working on seven of the new Jalie patterns and I can't share those until the patterns are released.  That should happen very shortly so get ready for that.

I also sneaked in some sewing for myself of a pattern, and a pattern line, I have wanted to try for myself. Melbourne's Tessuti patterns, and the Tokyo jacket in particular.

I usually find that I need to make one pattern in a new line to see if it is my kind of sewing - it's almost like seeing if you speak the same language, or if their idea of how clothes relate to body shape fit yours.

I have hesitated a bit because on first glance Tessuti uses a lot of loose shapes and those, I regret to say because they are such easy sews, often just swamp my tall and narrow (belly excepted) body. For exact this reason I have bought fewer Stylearc's recently as their boxy silhouettes lately are just too big in the shoulders for me, even with careful sizing. Their pants are still great, but the upper body garments right now not so much.

So all of this is a lead into why I have been stalking and wondering about Tessutis so long.

That said I recently bought some double gauze fabric, a fabulous red at Stonemountain and daughter in Berkeley, and some white at my local Fabricville, and decided I wanted to make jackets out of it.

I wear a lot of jackets and cardigans. 

When I am home in Nova Scotia that's because I am home in Nova Scotia and the words North Atlantic pretty much explains why. When I am off visiting my boys in Texas and California I need jackets of a different type and weight, for some sun protection and for light cover up but not warmth.

I need both gale force wind and light hint of a breeze jackets.

It's this last type of jacket, for summer here and for my upcoming babysitting week of the marvellous Miss Anika in Nashville (the kids are doing a Memorial Day weekend with friends not too far away and Miss Anika and I are going to be staying in an Airbnb), is the one I decided to make out of the double gauze. (Gee I write long, is this OK with you?)

Enter the Tokyo jacket.

I have made a few kimono type jackets in the past, love Jalie's kimono pattern for that, but let's face it those are pretty wide sleeves and not entirely practical for all situations. The Tokyo jacket has cut-on sleeves and looked somewhat neater than the traditional kimono so I figured why not?

A note first on the fabric.

Double gauze for garments is a kind of fabric that if you had looked at it two years ago you would have said "Really?" but this year seems sensible. It is exactly the same fabric that is in the receiving blankets my daughter-in-law Maddie used to most expertly swaddle baby Anika, like a carefully wound pea in a pod. It also resembles the bird's eye cotton I used for diapers for the boys because anything that was not very breathable gave them terrible diaper rash.

So basically we are talking about wearing diaper fabric jackets.

I anticipated that this would mean somewhat wavy hems and no crisp edges but I figured that would be OK, but I also figured that the pre-crinkle would mean that these jackets would be very packable and crushable which suits my life.

I made my size according to my measurements and although this meant a wide body but the sleeves were quite narrow, about right, so I would use this size again.

I really, really enjoyed this pattern.

I always look for evidence of a designer's mind and experience in patterns and was quite pleased with what I saw here.

The method for the pockets, although complicated in the read through - I was quite convinced that the wrong sides were being sewn together until I saw it turn out - is brilliant. Patch pockets with semi-closed openings and zero top-stitching which was a definite plus given my fabric texture and mobility.

Smart thinking went into these pockets.

I was also interested in the instructions to use tear-away stabilizer around the neck and front openings as a stabilizer during construction. Stabilizing edges is a theme in my first couple of newsletters (they are free and you can sign up through the contact form above) and often not included in instructions these days. I did sew these two jackets at a sewing retreat however and didn't have the full force of my resources with me, so I used interfacing, that I carefully removed in the white jacket, and stay- stitching on the red jacket as substitutes. I think I would just stay stitch next time.

So here are the pictures. Because I am tall I lengthened the red jacket by 2" and the pockets by 1" to maintain proportions in the red jacket:

In the white jacket, because I figured I might throw it on over a bathing suit while I chase kids this summer (my one rule as a grandmother is to return the same number of children to their parents as have been delivered to me) I lengthened this one by 4" and the pockets by 2":

I had fun making this pattern and now want to see how it would look in a more structured fabric. I am definitely going to be exploring more Tessuti patterns.Definitely.

In the meantime I now have two jackets that I know I will be wearing all summer done - both sewn at a leisurely speed in one day.

Hard to beat that.

Flypaper thoughts post Seaside Sewing edition

• I am home after six days of sewing away at a retreat
• 10-12 hours at the navy yacht club
• Home to sleep and get more thread then back
• Will post the clothes as I get pictures done
• I married my husband
• Because when I tell him I ran out of the bright pink pills that I am supposed to take every other day
• Two weeks before the boring ones yellow I take on alternate days
• Because I always reach for the nicer colour first
• He says well that makes sense
• And means it
• Even though he is a person who uses the scales
• To make sure the quarter pound hamburgers are in fact a quarter pound
• All that sewing makes me want to do more
• Like an performer who hears applause
• Feels like more
• What can I do next?
• Every once in a while a child will have a period when you are particularly important to them
• Right now a middle grand daughter wants to dress like me
• We are just alike, we are practically the same person she says
• Cancelling the decades
• These quick moments in time require
• Cozy cardigans for two
• An election here this fall
• The secret to good politics
• One politician told me
• Is always just to ask people about themselves
• We all remember with affection 
• Anyone who lets us talk about ourselves
• Good advice to those who are 15 
• Or find cocktail parties make them feel that way
• I am considering a tattoo 
• Of grandchildren's names
• First I have to find someone who does cursive
• Might take a while
• I am pretty sure I spent the first four years of my education
• Learning cursive or having it corrected
• Elbow on your desk
• And I went to school in modern times
• Define modern
• Listen I was there when cartridge pens replaced fountain
• Now that was ink
• A tattoo nearly ended the marriage of a woman I know
• For her anniversary she had her husband's name put on her ankle
• Thing is it took him three months to notice
• That would do it
• You know in that four years I could have learned something else
• But I was in a system that had me learn Latin instead of typing
• Now that came in handy
• Or it would have if I had ever gone to Britiannia
• Conjugate that
• At least we had Home Ec.
• Which I believe I failed
• Got dragged down by cooking
• Maureen Campbell and I dropped our batter on the floor
• And tried to tell the teacher those were raisins not ants
• You get the drift
• Fast track to an F I can tell you
• Our self esteem was no one's priority
• Although it seems we had lots
• Maureen and I made all our own clothes starting in grade 7
• We kind of freelanced and sewed everything with the same colour thread
• An allowance went only so far
• Fabric we got by the pound at a place called the Farmer's Supply store
• I am not making this up
• Been there lived that
• Maybe this explains why I turned out not to dress like a French woman
• Maybe it explains a lot

My busy week flypaper thoughts

• Packing now for a six day sewathon with my local guild
• When I emerge I should have all my new season's Jalies done
• And maybe the birthday present for my son-in-law's birthday made
• It was his birthday yesterday
• Remind me too to get cracking on those napkins for Christmas
• You know Christmas 1992
• Fired off the first of my weekly newsletters last night
• It's intended for just learning to sewers
• Send me a message if you want one
• This side project is dedicated to my daughter
• And a young girl I met in Kansas
• She couldn't afford my sessions so waited outside in the hall to ask me questions
• I talked to her at my breaks and instead of lunch
• I tried to share what patterns don't
• Just a little hint can make a difference between thinking it's you and knowing it's them
• I am looking forward to uninterrupted sewing this week
• Life has interruptions
• Daisy is so happy to be home
• And walk her route
• I hear the golf course will open soon
• Also hear that there are new sand trap rules
• That mean everyone doesn't have to wait all day while I take 25 tries to get it out of there
• My policy right now is to golf with only my husband who would golf with the dog if she would go
• And folks who have an excellent sense of humor
• And think conversation on the course is OK
• This narrows it down quite rapidly in the golfing world
• I am considering returning a bit to wovens
• I have been making things in linen and cotton for family
• And damn it's nice to press
• The smell of steam is one of life's most satisfying pressures
• Thank goodness I have given up eating the Easter eggs
• Mainly because I can't find any more
• My husband is planning his vegetable garden
• Another hint I have returned to Nova Scotia
• Can't plant until after the first full moon in June
• He says that means no risk of frost
• It takes skill to make a 10 day growing season work
• I want him to plant celery again
• The fresh stuff has real taste
• Not like those pale rolls of woody newsprint you get at the store
• I also want more rhubarb
• Next to pickled herring rhubarb is my favourite food
• This says something but not sure what
• I am distracted now by wondering if I have enough navy thread for the retreat
• For the first time in my life I am doing a capsule
• Around one base colour
• Better check
• Will post pictures during the week
• Now where's the thread?

Quick YouTube video

One thing I do to promote sewing is make sure the girls in my life have machines. You never know.

When I was in California I left one of my vintage Berninas with my DIL and this week I am giving another one to my niece.

Of course they don't have me to show them how to use these machines so I got this maniac idea to do some YouTube videos for complete beginners for them to see.

Here is one I did just now on how to thread a sewing machine.

Hope I hit all the basics!

Home again an projects all over the house

A few days home now and lots to do.

Before I get into what is going on, I am reminded to share something that I learned in Tulsa.

One of the organizers at the conference works in publishing. During my book signing (she was sitting nearby signing her own book) she was careful to tell all the visitors to make sure to leave Amazon reviews for our books. 

I actually never ask for these myself so I was interested when she explained to one lady that the algorithms (no clue at all what those are) on Amazon pay attention to the reviews when recommending books that come up in searches. 

So if some person searches sewing, more review for a particular book, means it is more likely that Amazon will show them books that book.

This interested me because the part of writing a book that matters to me the most by far is that maybe something I wrote might be helpful to someone who was the person I was -  at home trying to figure something out.

It is the readers and their lives, not the I have written a book part, that I care about.

For this reason I am most thrilled to hear that my book is in a library somewhere where someone can borrow, it or that someone liked it and bought it for a friend. So I have decided to pass on this algorithm information. Maybe it will make sense to you.

Back on topic.

Since I have been back I have been flat out and of course started sewing before I unpacked. I missed my sewing room!

This time of year Jalie does their annual release of new patterns.  I was sent a preview of the new patterns and had a chance to choose a few to sew up for myself and my family and review them as part of the release process.

Getting those printed up and my fabric gathered was my first job as soon as I got home, more or less before I got my jacket off.

I am currently working on seven of these patterns now. When they are done these will be up on the blog and reviewed here. Hint these are all wearable and practical patterns and I am really, really interested to see what they all look like made up.

That said there will be a pause in the sewing for Easter dinner here on Sunday. I love doing blow out family dinners and it takes days to meander around the kitchen to get things ready. My husband does the heavy lifting on the main course and the kids and I do desserts and sides.

Leading this is my middle grand daughter Heidi.

Every once in a while you run across someone who finds their vocation at a young age.

For me it was sewing when I was eight and made Barbie's first dress. I actually completely understand the expression 
"and she never looked back". Sewing has been that for me.

With Heidi it is cooking. She said to me a year ago, when she was just six, that "when I am cooking I am just happy." She hauls around big cook books, writes down menus and yes, Uncle Nat, loves the Great British Cooking Show.

Doing a family meal with Heidi is quite an adventure.

So far I have talked her out of fondue as an appetizer (she saw it on TV and was sold when she saw the forks and the flame) and we have settled on only four desserts. 

Desserts are her speciality, pavlovas in particular and cakes. So we are having brownies, a strawberry and a chocolate pavlova, I think a lemon pie and she has this idea that she is going to come over on Friday and she and I are making home made chocolate eggs ("what are we doing to fill them Babs?") that in her mind are going to be decorated more beautifully than I am certainly capable of doing.

Did I mention the braided Greek Easter bread? Anyone know how to get those red eggs in there?

Cooking to the standards set in a seven year old's imagination keeps a person pretty busy I can tell you.

I promise you pictures, of the whole family, including my daughter Katrina, who really is my hero these days. Someone remind me.

Before I go I have to share a couple of sewing ideas.

When I was in Berkeley my daughter-in-law asked me to make her car seat cover out of a knit (I love hearing that word) that would also double as a nursing cover. 

We searched it and I was delighted to see what she was talking about was what the sewing world would describe as a knit pillow case sloped at bit at the top like a giant funnel neck with an opening at the top.

Here are some instructions.

Now from a point of view of a dining room table sewing operations this project was a piece of cake.

A hugely trendy an cool baby present that requires about a yard of fabric and about half an hour of sewing. Man you have to remember this one.

Now my second bit of sewing information is that I whipped this whole thing up with one twin needle, and a vintage machine, since I was about 2,500 miles away from my serger and cover hem.

Here's how:

1. I eyeballed the pattern, you can do this too, just slope the top and leave a space for a mother to stick her head into, or for her to pull back and check on the baby in the car seat. We used a rayon knit.
2. I zipped up the sides of the cover, the two side seams, using the twin needle to sew the seams. Listen I feel bad if I haven't shared this before, or if no one else has, but twin needles make fantastic stretchy seams. Two rows of stitching and that zig zagging bobbin thread makes an incredibly elastic, strong, and non wavy seam. I sometimes use a narrow set twin to seam up good knits like silk jersey because I can sew them on my conventional machine with the walking foot. Works like a charm, try it.
3. I then just turned under a hem at the bottom and around opening at the top and twin needle hemmed them too.

Then I was all done and pretty impressed with myself.

Now off I go.

They want pickled carrots as one of the sides and I can't find my recipe.

When the dishes are done Sunday night it will be back to the sewing room.

Flypaper thoughts almost home edition

•  Day after tomorrow we will be back on my street
• Already doing some re-entry adjusting
• Wondering if there will be mouse poop under my pillow like there was two years ago
• This year I took my pillows with me
• Tried to debrief our time away with my husband tonight
• What did you enjoy best I asked?
• Well everything he said
• It was all great
• That man enjoys himself no matter what
• But that doesn’t lead to in depth debriefs
• So I will do that with you
• I learned a lot
• For instance that there is a real bird called a road runner who runs around Texas
• At top speed, including through our campsite
• Identical to how they look in the old cartoon
• Can’t say that about everything
• I learned that if you decide you need a haircut and you are in the middle of nowhere
• The dog scissors, an RV bathroom, and no glasses
• Are not an ideal combination
• If you had to have two out of the three I would say to keep the glasses for sure
• And go for the mirror a probably
• Try to sub the dog scissors
• Might not be doing head shots in my next round of garment photos
• I learned that the ticks you catch on your arm
• Really look a lot like the pictures in the doctor’s office
• And that Texas is absolutely full of wildflowers in the spring
• Even the cacti
• Completely amazing
• The desert does bloom
• I learned that it really is possible to be flat out doing next to nothing
• So you can just stop worrying about that one right now
• Retirement is covered
• I learned that cowboy boots actually look pretty sharp with summer dresses
• And that I absolutely have to get some next year
• And that the age you really shouldn’t been wearing them
• Is probably the exact same age when you no longer care
• I learned that the sight of a granddaughter who is completely and absolutely identical
• To her father when he was the exact same age, yesterday
• Is both comforting and awe inspiring
• And exactly what you were meant to see this time round
• Now it makes sense
• I learned that any place called a Washeteria probably has dryers that only do High Heat
• And that there is no fabric on earth that doesn’t shrink or pill
• But that there is so much entertainment at the Washeteria that this seems like a small price
• Besides that 85 year old man who assured me he was a cowboy
• Thought I had class
• You go where you can get it
• I learned that it is possible to be very happy with your spouse
• In a very small space for two months
• If he is a very good cook
• And you are knitting
• I learned that the sound of rain on a metal roof is still sweet
• And the stars are still there
• And marshmallows burnt on the outside
• Beat any dessert anywhere else
• And that you just pull the twigs off
• If you need to
• I learned that showers don’t have to be long
• That leaving your watch at home is fine
• That going for an after work walk with a son
• Is worth the 2,500 miles it took to get there
• But most of all
• That if you let everything just stop
• It doesn’t matter one bit

Tulsa Vintage Sewing Machine Museum

My husband coordinating with the blue machines and purple fabrics

I took a lot of pictures in my visit to this museum and I will try to post as many as I can here, with annotations, before Blogger becomes saturated.

No particular order here. The over whelmingness I felt faced with nearly a thousand machines, many, many of them set up ready for test sewing, will become apparent.

Here we go. The operating hours can be erratic, this is the creation of one man who was having his lunch in his truck when we arrived but who helpfully told us where the hidden key was so we let ourselves in.

The entry arch, made from salvaged machines from a landfill

Wall art made from flywheels.

Do you recognize these? Some more wall art made from throat plates

Such neat and tidy industrial design

A well known name in industrial machines this time in a domestic model, beautiful metal dials and some zippy mid century modern detailing

Amazing the number of different sewing machine manufacturers

An accessory cupboard

Love the colour and the presentation

Neck really seemed to play around with alternate ideas, note here the work area is on the inside of the machine

Theses rotating throat plates for different stitches in the Necchi machines are crazy but interesting

An industrial leather machine

Industrial embroidery machine

 A tiny white featherweight in the room of children's machines

Another child's machine

And another one, note the care in display

My heart stopped when I saw this. 

When I was 8 years old our neighbour across the street gave me one exactly like this - she had brought it with her from Czechoslovakia. It made a chain stitch, no bobbin, and was held to the kitchen table (Formica) with one of my dad's vices from the garage. I turned the handle and poured out a ton of doll clothes that I sold to the neighbourhook kids for a nickel or a dime until the local mothers marched down and shut down my sweatshop.

It made a very nice stitch.

A baby treadle

One of the delights of the museum is the care in presentation. Here a row of pink machines on a pink shelf

The blue wall, my favourite

A lovely lady who came a very long way for my class.