Book Review: Sewing Lingerie (1991)

As part of the Singer Reference Library, the Sewing Lingerie book from 1991 covers lingerie construction from fabric, lace, and elastic selection to how to construct beautifully detailed custom lingerie.

For the lace instructions covers lace overlays, appliqué, motif matching, and lace insertion techniques. I was amazed by how thorough and extensive the information all presented with step-by-step photos. While I lack the motivation or inclination to make my own lingerie past simple knit underwear, this book should be all that is desired for anyone else to take on the task. Other things included are how to cut woven fabric on the bias and takes you through the construction of basic bikini briefs to slips, tap pants, teddies, dressy robes, kimonos, and flannel-lined silk robes.

For a more thorough review, check out this one by Renee from Miss Celie's Pants.

The fact that the book is long out-of-print should not be a negative. Though the book can still be found in some local libraries, the book can also be found through numerous Internet booksellers. I purchased two other volumes of this Singer series (The Perfect Fit and Sewing Pants That Fit) from Alibris.com for only $.99 each! Though I might not see myself using this book to its fullest, I will probably locate and purchase a copy just for the individual techniques. Therefore, I highly recommend this book.

Book Review: Sewing With Knits (1992)

Sewing With Knits (1992) is part of the brilliant Singer Sewing Reference Library series and covers construction of knit garments from A to Z. The book explains fabric types, care, how to select the right elastic and all the seam finishes you would want to know in order to make your garments look professional, there are no wavy seams here!

Some of the things covered in this volume:

• How to sew knits, from interlock to stretch velvet to two-way stretch fabrics
• Eight different ways for finishing necklines (p.36-45)
• Create perfect knit plackets and welt pockets (p.76-79)
• Five different elastic waistband treatments (p. 90-95)
• Construct neat and tidy buttonholes using fusible web (p. 109)
• Blocking sweater knits (p. 20)
• Dealing with knits fabric that have nap such as velvet, velour, stretch terry (p.104-105)

Two really cool tips too good to keep secret:

• The best overlock thread colors to have are not neccessarily black and white, look what can be accomplished with just an off-white, gray/taupe and a rosy shade of red (p. 23)
• Lining the knee area to prevent baggy knees in knit pants (p. 60-1)

In addition, a special section on swimsuits and leotards (pages 112-123) shows how to:

• Adjust paper patterns for swimsuit torso adjustments
• Apply elastic or elastized binding
• Create partial linings for swimsuits
• Constrict bandeau top linings with or without bra cups
• Produce professional elastized straps

Last but not least, I am again impressed with how well all the information is presented with clear step-by-step photos.

This book is long out-of-print but can be easily found on Etsy, eBay, and used book sellers like Alibris.com and Amazon. If you're lucky, you can also find it in your local library like I did but I think you will probably do better to get your own copy. Watch out for overpriced copies though, I've seen them listed for far over $20(!) when I found my own copies of other volumes in this series (The Perfect Fit and Sewing Pants That Fit) for only 99 cents each! Don't get hoodwinked. I highly recommend this book and now that I have read five books in the series, I will be looking out for the rest of them too.*

*Tailoring (1988), Sewing Activewear (1987), are a few I am interested in.

The Great British Sewing Bee!

Makower London Collection Icons

Okay, has everyone been watching the Great British Sewing Bee on BBC Two? I have and I love it. I know there has been some controversy on other blogs about certain aspects but I'd rather not get into that.* The most important point is that there is a TV program/programme about sewing where technique and knowledge are paramount and ornamentation is second. The show is very unlike the Project Runway franchise where the contestants are meant to be more focused on design and flash instead of quality of construction.

• What I like about GBSB is that the challenge projects were selected by an actual professional sewer, Claire-Louise Hardie of The Thrifty Stitcher. She also timed all of the projects to make sure that the time limits were do-able. She is currently writing on her blog about the GBSB: from the preparations made before filming to episode commentary once the latest episode has aired. 
• I love the fact that they acknowledged the many types of sewing; dressmaking, menswear, alteration of ready-to-wear, home decorative arts, and costume. One doesn't have to be able to drafting their own patterns to be considered skilled in the art. 
• The sewing history bits were great and informative. How many people outside of Great Britain knew about all the sewing-related street names that exist in England?
• Love that it focuses on details we might not be as aware of now, such as menswear's traditional rules, while ready-to-wear womenswear has become less strict, ex. the direction of men's flys and shirt button plackets.

Having seen the episode 3 semi-finals, it is clearly down to Ann and Lauren for the win. I adore and respect Ann Rowley, administrator of the Stitchers Guild forum on Artisan Square, and would love to hang out in her sewing room and pick her memories. I am also increasingly impressed by Lauren Guthrie, now the owner of fabric shop Guthrie & Ghani. She is great news for the future of personal sewing. Though very young, she is knowledgeable and technically proficient in the art and has a great attention to detail. She understand the patience it takes to create a quality product. Those rouleau ties she constructed were amazing! I absolutely hate turning fabric tubes inside out and I can't believe she was able to turn those incredibly teeny ones. Impressive, indeed.

If you are in the US, the official show website will not allow you to view full episodes. Instead, they can be viewed on YouTube: Episode 1, Episode 2, and Episode 3. Here is Episode 4 - The Final.

*The show does have problems: the judging format and those silly sewing project segments. Seriously, if they are meant for beginning sewers/sewists, then the instructions are given too fast and are far too vague to actually help.

More On My Moss Muslin - Part 2

Yup, my Grainline Moss is still not done.

The Before

Above is what I started with, so my first step was to add some darts to the back for shaping. My first darts were only in the yoke and waistband as a test.


  

Notice the extreme bump-out out at the skirt portion. It was because I didn't extend the dart into the skirt portion. However, it did show that my thinking was going in the right direction. Seeking help, I emailed the designer Jen Beeman and according to her I had two choices: 1) alter the waist/yoke only and make a visible dart in the skirt or 2) alter the yoke pattern and adjust the skirt pieces by removing half the intended dart's width from each side in order to eliminate the need for a dart. I chose 2 for a dart-free skirt.




Jen Beeman's hand drawn instructions

I extended the dart about an inch or less down into the skirt. If the end point is perfectly placed it works. I outlined the dart with colored pencil while it was still sewn together, unpicked the entire back portion separating the three elements, and then traced the dart lines on each piece. I also traced these dart markings onto the pattern pieces, cut them along the dart legs and taped them back together. Using a piece of tracing/artist paper along with my design ruler I softened the angles. I will make another muslin (just to be sure) instead of cutting into my fashion fabric.

New patten pieces. Quite a metamorphosis, right? From practically straight across to extremely curved.

In addition, to the dart changes above I added a little more curve to the vertical back seam and added some width to the hip area at my widest point to address the "protruding thigh" issue. These changes seemed to have worked until I returned after the holidays and found the skirt was a bit too big now. (Yes, it could only happen to me!) I also believe the angles on my new pattern pieces were too sharp. So, I refined the yoke pattern piece and tried again. However, as the second photo below shows there is still a little puffiness where the yoke meets the waistband, so I think the waistband curve may be too extreme. So I will try again with even more refined pattern pieces.



New pattern piece for the yoke incorporating the darts.

  

New side view with a bit more pattern alteration to do.

Note: I may have seen a solution to my waistband problem, or at least half of it. Adrienne of Stitching on the Edge chose to fully construct her front and back skirts separately, including the waistband. This means that I only have to perfect the curve on that one section that needs to curve and not the front waistband section.

Now the front is a bit loose in the center? Why?!

Messing With My Moss Muslin Part 1

Messing With My Moss Muslin - Part 1

Well, I have made it to the tenth project on my official list. Two weekends ago, I constructed a muslin for the Grainline Moss Miniskirt.

I am so glad that I sewed up a muslin for this skirt. It looked good and fit on the front side. Though I used the correct size for my measurements, the distribution of my "stuff" requires a little more width at my hip and perhaps a little bit more length center front for a protruding abdomen. My copies of Sewing Pants That Fit and A Perfect Fit informed me that I also needed an alteration for protruding front thighs.

See the indentation under the stomach and the horizontal stretch below that at upper thigh level.

However, the back was a fitting mess. It seems my "badonkadonk" is just too "bootylicious" for this skirt! The shaping that was designed for the back skirt pieces was not enough for me.

There is a 10" difference between my hip and waist measurements and a lot of gaping above my most protruding part. The problem must be the way my "stuff" is distributed back there. The center back waist-to-hip area needed to come in a lot. I placed two 1" wide darts in the yoke and waistband part only. This seemed to work but I still needed to know how to alter the actual pattern pieces in order to cut my fashion fabric.

At first, I thought of opening up this post to reader ideas when I realized I could do one better. I emailed Jen Beeman of Grainline Studio, the designer of the pattern, and she supplied the details on how to complete the skirt. She even hand drew me helpful illustrations and actually did all that over the Thanksgiving holiday! Way to go, Jen, thanks!

Next time I post, hopefully it will be to show you the corrected muslin and altered pattern pieces or the final garment. However, I know it won't be this weekend as I will be attending the MD/DC/VA sewing blogger meetup on Saturday!!!!!

I Won A Giveaway!



Patternmaking by Dennic Chunman Lo

I can hardly believe it! I rarely win things and definitely not things that I really REALLY wanted. But this time, I did.

Thanks to the generous giveaway last month by Shams of Communing With Fabric, I won a fabulous copy of the above book, Patternmaking by Dennic Chunman Lo, the director of the Creative Pattern Cutting program at the London College of Fashion. He is also the designer of his own Lo and Cabon label.

The thing I love most about this book is that it provides a detailed step-by-step guide to creating the basic pattern blocks for a bodice, sleeve, skirt, dress, and pants along with information on how to create patterns above and beyond the rules, ex. the book's cover photo. This book looks at pattern making as it applies to the actual human body by giving written and photographic examples of  the body's range of motion and the considerations that must be drafted into a block to accommodate them. There are no complicated formulas to memorize and everything is created by using true body measurements. Although, the book uses a standard English size 12 in the examples all you need to do is replace those measurements with your own.

Patternmaking is part of the Portfolio Skills series of books for student designers (architecture, advertising, fashion, etc.) that are written by top professors at leading art and design schools. They are all published by Laurence King Publishing, Ltd.

For more information on his course, click on any of the links in this post. You will find more detailed reviews of the book on the Flossie Teacakes and Fashion Incubator blogs. In addition, you can also check out this video by Mr. Lo himself:


Pattern Cutting by Dennic Chunman Lo from Laurence King Publishing on Vimeo.

My First Quilt Is Done!


Unfortunately, the sun wasn't out the day we photographed, so here it is held up in the fluorescent lighting of my office. I hadn't named it before but I will now, the Moneta d'oro (the Golden Coin) quilt.

Instruction:

I am so happy that I took this class, I highly recommend it. You learn the correct techniques for making a slightly larger than crib-size quilt  (35" x 49") based on the Twisted Coins design in four 2-hour sessions. All of the instructions for this and fourteen other quilts were from the book, Piecing the Piece O' Cake Way by Becky Goldsmith and Linda Jenkins. This book was required for the class and I also recommend it.

Front

Back

Expense:

In total, the project cost more than I expected, even with my store discount. You see, I had never gotten around to buying a rotary cutter and mat before this. However, I was able to purchase the mat, rotary cutter, and a "6 x 24" quilt ruler at a 50% discount from Joann's for $46.00 with some of my graduation money.*

The fabrics for the front (1 large piece and six fat-quarters) and thread cost $27.00. The next purchase (white quilting thread, batting, and fabric for back panel) cost about $29.00. Required notions like a walking (quilting) foot, curved safety pins, and a pack of needles totaled $29.00. So, in total, this project cost me $131.00 or $89.00 not including the items that I would have probably bought anyway; the rotary cutter, mat, needles, and white thread. Oh, and I have enough fabric left to make a matching quilted pillow or bolster to coordinate with the new Moneta d'oro throw on my couch.

I can't remember right now, but I have a post on here that listed things I wanted to accomplish. I can now check off Make a Quilt!

* Thanks Aunt Teresa and Erica

Images: courtesy of Joanna Wilson-Green and myself

Extra...Extra.... Twisted Coins Quilt Update!

Sorry, for the disappearance, I'm really missing my computer and my digital camera. Had no idea until now how much blogging effects my life. It feels weird not to be photographing things for the blog. Well,...

I had a friend help me out today with their camera. Last night, I finished my quilt top and I wanted a picture to show. The first few ones are crappy phone pics of the piecing work I did first and then the lovely reveal.


Starting on the blocks.

All of the pairs are now laid out, ready to be sewn together to complete three columns of thirteen units each. Luckily, I was able to put together a design where every row across contains three different fabrics even though there were only six different fabrics used in the entire quilt. At the bottom edge of the pictures you can see the white and black dotted fabric I chose for the background. At that point, I was having some doubts about the choice. But I'm glad I didn't change it because....

I love the completed quilt top!!!!
In the next class, we will begin quilting it by machine. My homework is to buy the backing fabric and batting for it. I'm thinking of using the fabric below for the back, but I'm still going to take the top with me and browse the store shelves for other possibilities while I also pick up my paycheck (since it is paying for the materials.)
 

Gray Lolli Dot by Michael Miller

Update: We were sold out of the Lolli Dot so I chose the Citron Cote d'Azur for the backing fabric instead. The floral used in the quilt is the Gray Cote d'Azur on a dark gray background whereas this one is on white.



Citron Cote d'Azur

My First Quilt

Well, I am finally taking that beginning quilt class offered by my part-time job. The style of quilt I will be doing has changed because I am taking a different session. But this is better because I don't have to go in on Saturdays and then go back and work at the same place the next day. It would feel like I had no weekend at all. This class, tomorrow evening is after my full-time job. I'm more used to that having taken so many night classes over the years.

Twisted Coin Quilt

I will be making a variation on the classic coin quilt which will provide me with some experience in block piecing, sashing, binding, and actual hand/machine quilting.

This is the fabric that inspired the colors I chose.

Though my apartment is made up of strong bright colors, this collection of fabrics, Citron Gray, has intrigued me ever since I started working at the quilt shop. The line is by Michael Miller Fabrics and has proven very popular in the store, we also have a display quilt using these same fabrics. Because of that display, the line has become very popular. I had to quickly make up my mind which fabrics I needed and how much of each so I could buy my fabrics before any of it sold out. Also, to add some graphic variety to my choices I included a graphic black, gray, and white stripe from the Riley Blake Tuxedo collection for something non-spherically based.

Click image to see fabrics larger.

All of the fabrics in the middle of the above image are the ones that I settled on. Not pictured is the dark gray that will be the quilt backing because I might change my mind and buy up the white on dark gray polka dot for that if it starts to look too busy. Also not clear in the picture is a mild light gray print that I couldn't find a larger picture of, it is not just gray. The majority of the quilt, the background, will be the white fabric with the tiny black dots, and the "coins" will be made from those other six little bundles (fat quarters).

This quilt was also a perfect reason to finally buy a rotary cutter and mat, which conveniently I was able to buy with some graduation money. I can't wait to start!

My Sewing Library UPDATED

Almost three years ago, I wrote a post listing all the sewing books that I had at the time. Since then, I have accumulated a few more including some quilting books too.

Posts about some of my other book additions are here, here, and here. In addition, I didn't write about receiving the Colette Sewing Handbook as a birthday present.

Today, I'm writing about the last three garment sewing books that have joined my collection:

Vogue Sewing Book, 1982 edition - My sister bought this for me from a library book sale. It's not as cute and kitschy as other sewing books from the other pattern companies, but it is very comprehensive. I recently used their instructions to create a blanket-stitched thread loop to corral a button on the back of a blouse.

The Perfect Fit: The Classic Guide To Altering Patterns, 2005 (Also published earlier as The Perfect Fit, 1987, as part of the Singer Reference Library*) - This book is very comprehensive and easy to understand with clear pictures and explanations. You may have heard of this book, it is highly recommended by many sewing bloggers. However, when I tried to find my own copy I found it difficult to track down which one they were talking about.

So, in order that you won't have to go through what I did: the book was published twice, once as part of the Singer Reference Library series of sewing instruction books and again separately on its own with no reference to Singer. However, it is the same exact book (see below), they even share the same cover image.

Sewing Pants That Fit, 1989, part of the Singer Reference Library - This one was a bonus when it was advertised on Alibris.com for only .99 cents! I had only meant to buy the book above but how could I resist one specifically on pants, especially since I have FIVE pairs of pants on my To Do sewing list.

Hopefully, I can keep this "sewing book problem" down a bit. I still want the English language versions of all three Drape Drape books but I could settle for access to them through a loan or a library. I have not found a store that carries them. Basically, I would just like to riffle though the actual books myself. Tempted to see if my part-time job would special order them as they have carried a few other Japanese sewing books: Cut-Up Couture, Shape Shape, I Am Cute Dresses, and Simple Modern Sewing.

UPDATE: Just found another printing of The Perfect Fit with a new updated cover, but it still has the same old photos. Basically, if the sewing book is called "The Perfect Fit", it is probably this same book.  

 
*The Singer Sewing Reference Library - I already own one book from this series of hardcover books so I already knew how clear and concise the instructions would be. I highly recommend this series.

Just Slow-Poking Along...

Progress, but no progress worth photographing. Just comparing my coat armscye to other well-fitting garments. I had no idea that pattern alteration would get me so anxious. I just want this to work so much that I'm scared to cut into the pattern. I should just trust my instructions.

Next project: A stuffed toy for my step-grandniece. There are so many choices to choose from, but I only have until next Wednesday.

By the way, I now have my own practically never-used copies of both the1961 Better Homes & Gardens Sewing Book for just $7 and the 1971 copy of Designing Dress Patterns, Third Edition by Helen Nicol Tanous for $2.44!

I ordered them from Alibris.com,* my favorite place for used books and better yet, these books are in excellent condition; no marks, discoloration, warping, bent or ragged pages, and the covers are in excellent condition too. The only negative is that being in storage for so long, they have a horrendous musty odor. So no pictures until they come out of their "cage" (a tightly closed plastic bag with a box of baking soda). But, really they look just like the photos above!

*I have yet to get a book from Alibris that wasn't in near brand new condition. You just have to look for sellers with the best ratings and very thorough product descriptions. These made both books sound worse than they really are.

Taking A Measure...

Sorry, no progress to show. All of my garment construction has been happening in my head...I have been researching fitting and adjustment materials to improve the fit of my garments.

I was first looking for info on narrow back adjustments for the coat, which lead to looking in those same sources for remedies to the fit issues of the Colette Pastille (too-long bodice, narrow back adj?), my potential Colette Clovers (full belly adj, crotch length, sway back?) and instructions on grading my Vogue 1922 pants pattern up two sizes.

It led me to decide to wait a bit on alterations. The research led me to the conclusion that what I really needed to do first was the basics: I needed to record my personal measurements. This is also the first step to drafting my own patterns.

To help others here are some sources I have found interesting:

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Pattern Alteration series

Threads articles on measurements

Sew Stylish Ready...Set...Measure!, p. 80, Volume 1

Fast Fit by Sandra Betzina

Kwik Sew Measuring and Pattern Alteration Guide

Design It Yourself Clothes: Patternmaking Simplified Taking Your Measurements, p. 30.

The biggest thing I found was that different sources have different ideas on what "the" essential measurements are and also have different ways of correctly measuring them.

So I am going to pick one source and follow through with that system's plan for doing adjustments since those personal measurements are essential to make the correct changes. I will be using the AgriLife Extension series for both my measurements and for alterations for Vogue 7714, the Pastille and the Clovers. I will use the Threads instructions to grade up my Vogue 1922 pants pattern.

The best thing is that once I have my measurements recorded I can compare them to paper patterns and make some changes even before the first muslin is made.

Save time and fabric? Sounds good to me!

I Forgot... I Have Always Loved Dusters (2)

Yes, I forgot that I have two similar long jackets (dusters) in my closets! Albeit two that were destined to Goodwill because I never wear them anymore. However, I still adore the brown, 100% silk Ann Taylor jacket, it was part of a fabulous suit. Because it is a size 2(!), I eventually outgrew the pants. The blue one is a perma-crinkle 100% linen jacket by Mandolorama (?) in Euro size 42 that I bought in New Orleans. So, I suppose I was missing this type of item in my closet and that's why this coat became so important to me. Hmmm.

So lucky me, I can compare the fit of each jacket to my muslin in order to pinpoint what it is I have to change to get the final shape I want. Note: These two jackets don't really fit anymore because of my hips, so they don't look good buttoned, one of the reasons the new jacket will not have any closures.



Front view of the muslin looks good. Compared to the other two I think it may have a better fit in the shoulders, while the others hang over the shoulder points a bit.





Sleeve cap, I have no idea which one looks the best. I know the muslin has too much ease because I had to gather a bit, but in regard to the shape of the others, I have no clue.


It looks like the brown might fit better? What do you think?

 

Back span, with arms raised, I don't like how the muslin shoulders stick up but they do look better than the blue one. The blue also has these horizontal wrinkles along the back I didn't know about. I was surprised to see them because the jacket didn't feel tight at all when I raised my arms.



The brown one, again, looks the best. It is of course a much more fluid fabric than the crisp linen and a cotton comforter cover. Most importantly, you can see that both finished coats have some shaping at the waist while the green muslin falls straight down from shoulder to hip.

 

Rear view is the big problem. What I don't like: how the muslin bags out above the rear, is too wide everywhere above the hips, and has those vertical lines alongside the armscye. You can see that the shaping at the waist of both the blue and brown flatters the rear end view. Both of those jackets also have a center back seam which might be my salvation and a better solution than a narrow back adjustment*.





Side view, again too much fabric in the same exact spot: around the waist and above the rear. The shaping on the other two give a slight bit of shape to this view too.



My next step is to compare the measurements from the finished coats to the corresponding points on my muslin and see where I stand.

* Though I did find excellent instructions for one on the web from Threads, various blogs, and this great pattern alteration series from the Texas A&M AgraLife extension program.