Paper Mache & Sewing

When you work with paper mache, you have more success using smaller pieces of paper. The smaller the pieces, the easier they are to smooth over a curved surface - typically a balloon. In attempting to fit my figure, it occurred to me that paper mache over a balloon has similarities to fitting clothing over a curvy figure. The more seams, the smaller the pieces, the higher the success rate.

The narrow shoulder adjustment is definitely a step in the right direction. As you can see, the line of the armhole seam is "normal" and far more attractive. The sleeve is twisted. I'm working on that.

Looking at the back, it's possible I'll be doing more work there in the future. Maybe. I'm taking it one step at a time so as not to overwhelm myself and because everything affects everything. Once the front is where I want it to be, I'll be able to assess if the back does or does not need work. This muslin was drafted with the regular depth of armhole. I was hopeful that would work but it was a long shot considering that I've been petite-ing and buying petite clothing for years. It didn't. Work that is. There was a lot of bulk and wrinkling under the arm - much worse than the picture seems to show.

The fit is better once the shoulder seam is pinned in an inch. It's significant enough to conclude that I need both petite sizing and a narrow chest adjustment. What's interesting is that if you draw a line 1" down from the size fourteen shoulder, you'll be drawing on the size eight. The armhole width I traced for this muslin front and back was also the size eight. I've been sewing a fourteen up until now and I chose the size eight because it most closely matched my T & T width which means it could just be this pattern so I'm not going to jump to conclusions but it did lead me to wonder what is the best way to make the least number of alterations with the highest success rate? Questions like that are dangerous. They send me off in the direction of endless experimenting except... I like following up  ideas so much so that I got up early today to make sure I'd finish the next muslin before heading out to do errands. 

This discovery really made me think. The side seam closest to the top of the picture is the size fourteen and the lower one is the difference in the line when I slide the pattern to take out 1" in armhole depth. As much as possible, I used a slide and pivot method to trace the lines of the pattern and avoid drafting errors. These results were a huge eye opener. In the past, I would have folded out an inch and then blended the lines. I can see now that that method distorted seam lines.

I'm not going to bore or confuse you with all the steps I've been working through while experimenting. I sewed several muslins yesterday - just quick and dirty - to try different starting sizes and the corresponding adjustments. The goal is to get to a decision I can use consistently. This morning, I'm sewing an eight with changes. If it works out, this choice has the least amount of adjustments to the pattern. Hopefully, it's the one, something I'd love to have happen before the weekend. On Saturday, I'm going to my daughter and SIL's in Calgary for a week to paint their apartment. Success before I leave would let me ponder the possibilities while I'm gone.

Talk soon - Myrna

Grateful - While I was working yesterday, I kept thinking oh, I need to share that with the blog or won't the blog be excited to hear about this. All of you who are collectively the blog have become an important part of my life. It's wonderful to have this outlet for sharing discoveries and talking sewing. Thanks for being a part of my story.