'Song To The Siren' Slip - Vogue 2745

Pattern: Vogue 2745 (2003)

Pattern Description: Close-fitting, bias, pullover A-line slip has self-lined bodice and ribbon shoulder straps.

Pattern Sizing: Sizes (14-16-18) I made the bodice and waist in size 14 and a 16 at the hips, according to the finished garment measurements.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, exactly!

Were the instructions easy to follow? It could not have been easier to make.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked the simplicity of the design but loved the structure of the lined bodice and that I could use satin ribbon instead of having to make tiny straps.

Fabric Used: 2 1/2 yards 52" Spectrum Lines India Silk (100% polyester) from Jo-Ann Fabrics, Gutermann 100% natural cotton thread in Dark Turquoise #7540, Coats & Clark Dual Duty XP polyester thread in Taupe Clair #8550, 1-1/4 yards 100% polyester 1/4" Offray ribbon in Magenta.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: First things first, knowing I would likely need to alter the pattern pieces, I traced the bodice with Pellon 830 Easy Pattern tracing cloth which is like a translucent woven interfacing. It's very durable and probably could be sewn together like Swedish tracing paper but I chose to use it for tracing only.

Thread tacks for pattern markings

Muslin bodice

I started with cutting and making a muslin of the bodice. Unfortunately, I used an annoyingly slippery fabric. It shimmied out of shape after being cut so I really had no idea how accurate my decisions were based on that muslin.

 

However, from observing that "test" garment I cut the pieces in size 16 (finished garment measurement of 39.5" means 3" ease! !) so of course it was too big but I was just too scared to do otherwise because I'm a C-cup instead of the B-cup draft for this pattern. I didn't want to have to do a FBA for a slip! I decided to keep the size 16 for height and even added a half inch at the bottom for my additional "fullness" but I cut a size 14 for width, and hoped that would work. Luckily, it did!

The final fabric was SO much easier to cut out despite having to be cut as a single layer. As it turned out it was also easier to sew and press. I adore this fabric, seriously.

After sewing up the bodice and stay-stitching the skirt sections I pinned the pieces together and realized I had made a rookie mistake and hadn't cut the top part of the skirt down to match the new size 14 width of the bodice...duh.

So I recut the fabric and the pattern. I then sat down for a hand basting session to join the bodice to the front skirt, (overlapping a bit at center) and attach the facing to the back skirt. I believe basting by hand is the best way to tame any slippery fabric before sewing it by machine.

I slipped the dress on again. You know, my fear of a dress not fitting over my hips is real y'all! I have to check them all the time especially since the muslin for this was cut from the discards of a disappointing wader with that exact problem.

Even though this was made from polyester I still let the dress (with the sides loosely basted) hang for 24 hours, just in case. It did not stretch so I finished the side seams. The next steps to complete were the hand stitching to secure the back facing and attachment of the straps to the back.

Check out that delicate baby hem!

Of course there was the temptation to not hem the slip since the hem was cut by rotary blade; however, I knew the fabric would behave amazingly so I made a narrow hem on the dress.

In the end, there was still some gaping and I did have to tack little darts on the sides of the cup. It was nothing even slightly scandalous but I just didn't like how loose it felt.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes, definitely. It may take some time and patience to track down a copy of this c. 2003 pattern on Etsy. It is extremely flattering because of the bias (I may have preened a bit in my mirror) and easier to complete because the straps were made from ribbon and the construction of any fiddly rouleau loops was not needed.

 

Conclusion: This was exactly what I needed and wanted. It worked as a two-in-one garment, which I wore both as a stand-alone dress for all the pre-wedding setup and as a slip under the main silk dress (also from this pattern) for the wedding and reception.

Links:
Surprise! Actually Buying Fabric With a Purpose!
A Change To The Wedding Guest Dress
Wedding Guest Dress - Finalizing Details
''Rollin' In The Deep' Green Frock -Vogue 2745

*Song To the Siren, This Mortal Coil, 1983 (by Tim Buckley, 1970)

Dotty Duster Coat - New Look 6656

Pattern: New Look 6656 (2006)

Pattern Description: Collar-less, unlined, above-knee duster jacket.

Pattern Sizing: Size A (10-12-14-16-18-20-22) I made view A in a size 14 at the shoulders and bust increasing to a 16 at waist and 18 below.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing it? Yes, yes it did!

Were the instructions easy to follow? Extremely, it had a very simple construction, with no tricky or difficult steps involved.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? What I appreciated the most was the inclusion of a center back seam for shaping. Also the waist shaping of the side seams match my body type (10" difference between waist and hips) although it might be too much of a difference for a slimmer-hipped woman.

Fabric Used: 2 yards of black, white, and gray polka dot print moleskin from Jo-Ann Fabrics (on sale for $7.49 per yard, orig $29.98), Pellon SK135 Sheer-Knit fusible interfacing, 2 packages Wrights 1/4" double fold bias tape in Black, vintage Wright's Trims non-shrink seam binding in Navy #55, and Gutermann 100% polyester thread in Black #10.

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made?: I first made some changes to the paper pattern: I cut View A out in size 14 at the shoulders moving out to a size 18 at hips.

Comparing the pattern pieces, New Look 6656 had a strange drafted protrusion at the upper back that I cut off leaving the back straight above the curved "swayback" shaping. I found the back neckline uncomfortably high on my neck so ended up cutting both necklines and their facings in a size 12.

The sleeves for this design were meant to be cropped or extended with a contrast cuff. Instead, I combined the two pattern pieces and cut my sleeves out at full length.

Construction: 

First thing, first, I discovered when I checked and straightened the fabric grain by pulling a thread that the print was slightly off grain.

 

 Correct => Incorrect

Second, when finally confronted with cutting out this fabric I realized that I had misrepresented the fabric's orientation to myself all these years. I had imagined a coat with vertical lines when in fact the fabric has the dots running horizontally! Which now meant that I should really try to match the seams, right? That resulted in me spending a lot of time lining up, marking, and cutting out all the pieces in a single layer.

I then attempted to match the side seams, though the bust darts made it more complicated. The moleskin was a but stretchy which made matching a little difficult as I had to keep tugging the rows into place. Eventually, I was able to have white rows of dots line up across the seams; however, if you look close, you can see that the two adjacent rows of gray dots weren't matched correctly and different shades of gray were lined up! Luckily, the most important seam, the back seam, came out perfectly.

However, I shouldn't have had that problem though because the fabric was a bit translucent making the matching pretty easy.  I was able to lay a piece atop another piece and see the design on both. Oh, wait... I could see the design/shapes but not differentiate between the very close shades of gray. Okay, I feel better now.

Later on, I also added stay tape to the shoulder seams to combat the possibility of them stretching. It just happened that I received this vintage seam binding in navy (from a giveaway) that I could use for this "vintage" project.

Turning out the squared lapels was very important to this jacket looking great. Therefore, I trimmed the seam allowance to eliminate bulk. Of course, later I remembered I had tips and tutorials saved on the best ways to do this. Ugh!

In fact, right after this jacket was completed I saw this very promising technique on page 73 of the February/March 2017 issue of Threads magazine.

I finished the raw edges on the facing by turning under and stitching. At this point, the fabric had revealed that it frayed extensively and since this coat would not be lined I wanted to finish as nearly as possible the other raw edges that would be subject to regular friction.

Side A or B?

I had the choice of going with my typical finish of simply turning the seam allowance under or I could be daring and try something more decorative like a bound edge or a Hong Kong finish.

Because of the graphic look of the jacket and how precious this project had become over time I chose to use bias tape to bind the exposed seam allowances.

On the back, I bound the seams separately so they could lay open and flat; but I chose to bind the sides and sleeves together as one flat seam. I am so happy with how this turned out.

I'm extremely proud of my sleeve caps. The ease allowed in the pattern was perfect, I was able to achieve a smooth cap but it was not effortless. I first machine basted the sleeves in but my turquoise staystitching (absolutely necessary!) showed that they didn't go in exactly on the seam line. I then unpicked the seam and basted them in by hand and stitched directly over those stitches. Voila!

That success was followed by more bound seams for the underarm and shoulder seams before attempting the most difficult, the binding of the armscye. Luckily, that went well too and I am in love with all of my bound seams and how professional the whole thing looks!

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?  Yes, I would. The alterations I had to make were needed for my particular body and didn't seem too bad to me. The difference between my waist and hips was perfectly accommodated for in the pattern. Otherwise, the construction is perfect for a beginner. I also love the slight bell shape of the sleeves.

Images: Calvin Klein and @meccok on instagram

J. Jill duster

Conclusion: I have had a few inspiration pics for this type of coat over the years and I have finally made one for myself. The J. Jill pic above is from their 2010 catalog and is the original inspiration for this duster and shows how diligent I was in getting all the details right despite going with a woven versus their knit version.

I think this will be a great addition to my wardrobe, easily able to transform a simple top and bottom into a chic ensemble. I hope to use this pattern many times and definitely want to make an evening coat out of a patterned satin brocade.

Duster History Posts:

The original idea from 2010!!

The first try

The second try