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Posted by Kate Dicey on July 6, 2006, 11:43 am
Liz S. Reynolds wrote:
> Hi, guess I'll hop on the bandwagon and chat about what I'm working on...
>
> Yellow linen dress, in a self-drafted pattern. I mentioned this one before.
> It would be finished by now, except I decided I wanted to embroider the
> skirt and sleeve hems. I found just the right shade of yellow embroidery
> thread (I'm going for the subtle, textured look here) and two nice
> designs. Now I'm trying to figure out how to make them 'endless' and use my
> new endless embroidery hoop. Can't sew on it anymore until the embroidery
> is all done. Then it's hem the sleeves and skirt and set them, finish the
> neckline and done!
Sounds lovely. I dearly love self coloured embroidery. :)
>
> Purple top. This fabric is a silk/cotton blend, thin and lightweight but
> with a nice crisp hand. I'm using a Vogue pattern for a lined top, choosing
> the sqare neck and short sleeves (mixed view). Sorry, don't have the number
> with me. It's an easy pattern, but I've had difficulty before, mostly from
> choosing very contrary silk fabrics. I'm lining with the same fabric.
Excellent! :)
>
> I've learned a couple of things from my foray into pattern drafting. The
> first is that despite being very tall, my waist is practically in my
> armpits, and the second is that my <ahem> bust points are further apart
> than Vogue places them. So, I've shortened an inch from above the waist
> (but didn't bother lengthening at the bottom, perhaps I should) and moved
> the front darts each a half-inch towards the side seam. I'm really looking
> forward to trying it on and seeing the improvement!
I'm playing with Wild Ginger's Boutique and celebrations at the
moment... And looking to get their Curves before September! I'll admit
I've gone from a sceptic to a religious convert in a week! :P
>
> This thing is made by assembling the shell and the lining separately. Then
> you stitch them together at the neck and bottom hem and turn, then set
> sleeves. The major problem I have with my earlier attempts at this pattern
> was that the lining and shell weren't precisely the same width, so the
> shell bubbles a bit along the bottom.
I use the same pattern pieces for outer and lining when doing this. The
one I'm doing at present gets sewn at neckline and down the back, and
the hem (with seam splits in it) and armholes (no sleeves) get hand
finished. :) Silk crepe de chine, lined with silk shot habotai!
>
> Any suggestions for how to avoid that? Obviously accuracy in cutting and
> stitching are key -- and my eternal bugaboos. I use a rotary cutter now,
> I've marked all the stitching lines in chalk, and I am hand
> basting. Anything else I can do?
Pray! ;)
Honestly, it just takes practice: the more you sew seams the better you
get at them. Go slowly rather than trying to do them too fast. I
always think it takes less time to sew a seam once slowly than to sew it
fast and unpick it and sew it again... On light weight fabrics, lessen
you presser foot pressure.
--
Kate XXXXXX R.C.T.Q Madame Chef des Trolls
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.katedicey.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!
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