Back In A Week

Every garment is a mix of how the pattern was drafted, the alterations made, and the fabric factor. Sometimes you can't see the results of one (alteration) because of the other (fabric factor) which is what happened yesterday. There was no more lace knit so I used a grey that felt similar and it wasn't. It was too stretchy. As many constant variables as possible seemed like a good idea SO...

... in-between grocery shopping and a coffee date, I hit the bargain center at Fabricland and bought a major amount of an incredibly stable knit that I've used in the past and knew that - luckily - they had more of. It's now washed and labelled as my muslin knit. And then I searched through my pattern stash looking for the simplest t-shirt pattern possible which turned out to be the top half of the lining of this Vogue 1314 dress. The front and back are cut on fold, the front has a dart for fitting, and the sleeve cap is drafted high which is turning out to be a factor of good fit for me.

A few years ago, I spent considerable time developing a moulage using Lynda Maynard's book DeMystifying Fit which teaches how to place the moulage under the commercial pattern and adjust it to fit your body. If I had to point back to a significant event in my sewing history, using this book was one of the biggest ah ha moments ever. What I learned in that process changed how I sew and illustrated how all patterns are simply a starting point. They all need work to make them work for me - some more than others.

As lovely as it was to cut on a size eight with that one pattern, it was simply that that pattern is drafted wide through the shoulders. I chose the eight because it most closely matched the width of my moulage when almost always it's a fourteen that matches through the shoulder and ribcage to waist. But, just to confirm, I checked the moulage against several patterns in my stash and the closest match was again the fourteen. That's a relief since the majority of my patterns have been collected for that size. 

Having used the moulage for several years, I know that I always reduce the depth of the armhole. As wonderful as it would be not to have to do that all the time, it turned out to be a fluke of that pattern as well. Sigh. At least I know how. It would be so easy to use shoulder pads Carol only I don't have sloped shoulders, I'm petite, so I need to take out across the entire chest area front and back.

I would have preferred to show a perfectly developed muslin except that by the time I'd done everything else that needed to be done, there was only time for this one which I think is one step away from perfect. Realizing that I could take more off but couldn't put it back on, I made a 5/8" narrow chest adjustment instead of the 1 1/2" with the previous pattern. It's very close. What I've learned is that I will need to make a NCA but the amount may vary which is true with almost all adjustments in length or width. With the armhole depth, I most often lower the shoulder 1" but depending on the pattern it could be 3/4" or 1 1/4". Again, that's where the moulage helps. I use it to compare the shoulder and underarm points and keep the distance between consistent.

The one part of the moulage that wasn't fine tuned the way I wanted it to be was the shape of the armhole. Now that I've learned about the narrow chest adjustment, I can work on that again - tenaciously - like a hound dog after a rabbit. That made me laugh. Thanks Corinne. It is so true. I get an incredible amount of energy and excitement from working on and resolving a problem like this. LOVE it!

Along with simplifying the pattern choice, I decided to simplify the potential fitting issues and work my way down the body to developing a good T & T. That's why the sleeves are above elbow length and why the side seams are only sewn to the waist. I'm avoiding other curves that will need to be negotiated and will work on them one by one. As you can see in the back image, a sway back adjustment will to be necessary and I'll add a center back seam for better fit.

It's intriguing to me how a random line in an article resonated so strongly and has become the answer to something that has been driving me crazy for years. When I thought about what I wanted to accomplish in the front of the armhole and the results of the narrow upper chest adjustment and about the fact that I am often taking garments in at center back, I decided to try the same adjustment in the back. Again, it was not enough but it is definitely going in the correct direction. The wrinkles illustrate the need for a larger adjustment and increased bicep width which - luckily - the adjustment does.

The horizontal fold in the picture above is the adjustment to armhole depth. The vertical fold is the narrow upper chest adjustment. To make it, draw a line from center front to the underarm and a second line from the first one to the middle of the shoulder. Cut on the lines around the armhole. Slide the armhole forward the degree of the adjustment and tape the pieces back together. Going straight across will narrow the shoulder as well. Since I didn't need to do that, I slide the bottom only leaving the shoulder length intact while changing the shape of the armhole. AND THEN...

... add the same amount to the side of the sleeve. For this muslin, I made a 5/8" narrow chest adjustment to the front and the back so I extended the sleeve by 5/8" front and back which increased the bicep width by 1 1/4". Check to make sure that the sleeve is still on grain. Adding to both sides made it easy to maintain. Adding to only one side, or adding more width to one side than the other, might require fine tuning to maintain grain so the sleeve will hang straight.

The narrow chest adjustment is going to be another big AH HA in my sewing history. The impact is tremendous and is going to take the look of my garments up a significant notch. I have every confidence that when I make a larger adjustment front and back, the armhole will have the correct look and shape, the cap will hug my arm smoothly, the bicep will have enough ease, and the sleeve will hang straight. YES. A whole lot of issues resolved with one adjustment.

Yesterday, I went for coffee with a neighbour. In the getting to know you stage, she asked what I was working on and when I told her I really loved to sew and was working on better fit with the armholes, she said oh, I used to sew but I'm lucky enough to buy off the rack. With a quick glance I could see that she too needed a narrow chest adjustment and that the shoulder width on her t-shirt was too wide and hanging off and that it needed a full bust adjustment. What I've realized with sewing is that you can never go back. I now live in mortal fear of dying not only in a beige room but in an ill fitting garment because I couldn't sew anymore and had to make do with RTW. Please God no!

Pivot and slide is a bit difficult to describe. It'd be so much easier with a video but I haven't advanced to that stage yet so... I'll use the side seam as an example. On the back, at the top of the underarm I am a size 14 but at the hip I am a size 22. I make a mark on the tracing paper at the top fourteen point and then at the bottom 22 point and then I pivot the bottom of the paper forward around the 14 point until the 22 point is on the 14 line. I then trace the line from the 14 to the 22 point maintaining the drafted shape of the line over the size change. This is pivot and slide.

When I'm doing an adjustment like moving the bust point down, I use the lengthen/shorten lines and the grainline as guides tracing those onto the paper first and then marking the side seam above and below the bust dart. Next, I draw a line below the lengthen/shorten line equal to the distance I want to move the dart. I slide the paper up until that new line is on the lengthen/shorten line while keeping the grainlines aligned. I then trace the shape of the bust dart and true the side seams. This is slide no pivot.

I was up sniffling and sneezing in the night so I hope I'm not getting a cold. If so, I won't be going but otherwise bright and early tomorrow morning I'm heading to Calgary for a week of painting at my daughter and SIL's. Since there's only so much you can say about painting, it's highly unlikely I'll be blogging. I need to clean house and pack and a few other things but - if by some miracle - I get another muslin done before I go, I'll post those results. Otherwise, see you in a week.

Talk soon - Myrna

Grateful - AH HA moments

P.S. You can buy Lynda's book part way down this page on Kenneth King's website. It's worth every penny.