Musings on fitting

Does anyone else loathe fitting? Nothing else in sewing (or any other craft really) frustrates me as much as trying to work out how to adjust something to make it fit me correctly. Give me a BWOF pattern sheet to trace, or a vast playmat to quilt, or sharp cornered seams to match - just anything other than having to fit something on myself!

In conjunction with trying to work out the actual adjustments needed to translate from a "standard" shape to my very unstandard shape, I've been trying to work out what it is that frustrates me so much about it, in order to see if I can make it a little less painful (as there's really no point sewing clothes for myself if they don't fit well). Not to mention that I find myself putting off sewing as I'm dreading the fitting stage.

So I think my conclusions are:

1. It's really hard to pin out alterations on yourself.
2. It can be super frustrating trying to work out the correct alteration to fix problems, and having to keep taking garments on and off.
3. A fair amount of frustration with fitting stems from dislike of my body.

So, what to do about these? I guess the first one is just something I have to live with (at least until my husband develops a hitherto hidden talent for basic sewing skills), and I'll just have to make better use of photos, and get used to taking things on and off much more to adjust them properly. I actually had a bit of a revelation about this recently, when it was pointed out that if I'm muslining, I can put the opening wherever is easiest for me to pin together - i.e. put it at the front rather than the back!

The second I guess will get better with experience, so for now I just have to suck it up and get on with it. To be honest, it's already better than it was when I started sewing as I have more understanding of how to "read" the toile to work out the fitting problems, and more of a library of alterations in my head in order to fix them. The books I currently use most to help with fitting are Fast Fit: Easy Pattern Alterations for Every Figure by Sandra Betzina, and The Collins Complete Book Of Needlecraft (OOP - I inherited this from my mum) - and also good old Google! There's such a wealth of information out there on the interwebs.

The third is a little more tricky, and is going to need rather more work. I've been making a few changes to my diet and activity levels, so even if I don't change size or shape much, I'll at least be reasonably healthy and know that my body reflects how I should be, rather than be simply a product of something I have done to myself with crap food and a sedentary lifestyle. Oh, and I'm starting to invest in good undies. I've also been looking more closely at other bloggers' pictures (haha how to make everyone self-conscious :) and realised that many of them aren't so different from me - I've realised that two bloggers in particular I especially admire are almost the same size as me (although slightly different shapes), and they both look completely fabulous! Therefore I obviously do too...!

What are everyone else's tips on fitting? What's your bugbear when sewing?

Pattern review - jeans skirt

Pattern description

Self-drafted jeans skirt.

Pattern sizing

This was drafted to my personal measurements, using a slightly modified version of the technique in "Metric Pattern Cutting" learnt at the custom pattern course at London College of Fashion.

Fabric used

Medium-weight stretch denim from A-One Fabrics on Goldhawk Road, with grey topstitching and dark grey rivets. The waistband facing and the pocket bag are made from grey cotton salvaged from a pillowcase.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope when you were done?

Well, it looked like by sketch! (Incidentally, photographing this skirt on Wilma has alerted me to just how differently she is shaped compared to me. The skirt looks like it fits terribly on Wilma, but actually fits me perfectly.)

Were the instructions easy to follow?

I obviously didn't have any instructions, so before I started sewing I sat down and figured out the construction order, and wrote it all down so I didn't get confused. This was only my second attempt at a lapped zipper (the first was a disaster), and I'm very pleased with it.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

The perfect fit! This has given me more confidence in using my self-drafted patterns - I'm going to psych myself up to tackle a self-drafted top next time...

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made

As drafted, the back vent was way too high, so that was lowered in construction, although I think I probably lowered it a couple of centimetres to far. When I tried it on for fitting during construction, I noticed the centre back was jutting out, so I raised the side seams on the back section.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

I probably won't sew this exact same skirt again, but I'm definitely going to use my skirt block to draft more skirts for myself. I would highly recommend others drafting their own skirt block - fitting on this is very easy (much easier than the bodice), and alterations for a variety of styles are simple too.

Conclusion

I'm very pleased with this skirt. It was another wardrobe-hole filler and has been very successful, and has already got a lot of wear.

Pattern review - high-waisted black skirt

Pattern description

BWOF 1/2009/112

Pattern sizing

36-42. I cut the 42, but with a bit extra at the side seams - I measured the pattern flat and figured it would be ok as I was using a stretch fabric.

Fabric used

Black doubleknit bought in A-One Fabrics on Goldhawk Road. This was actually bought about 3 or 4 years ago for the express purpose of a high-waisted skirt, and I've finally got round to it! The yoke is interfaced with tricot fusible, and faced with lightweight black jersey.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope when you were done?

Yep, pretty much, with a few tweaks.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

Yes, they were very clear, but it's a particularly easy pattern. I winged it on the exposed zip, using a RTW dress as a model.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

The silhouette is very flattering, and making it in stretch means it's very comfortable. The shaped and panelled yoke is a nice detail.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made

I added about 2cm total at the side seams, but since making it I've lost a little weight (woohoo) and now need to take it in a bit). I think it could do with being pegged a bit more at the side and back seams as it's not quite as "pencil" shape as I was intending, so I will do this alteration when I take it in. The waistband facing is cut slightly smaller than the actual waistband to keep it from stretching. I added an exposed metal zipper, neatened with grosgrain ribbon. I didn't add the belt loops as I didn't want to add bulk to the waistband as I knew I wanted to wear a tops untucked with it. However, I might add thread chains as when I wore it with a belt I had to keep moving it around to keep it in place.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

I might make a variation on this design, maybe in a brightly coloured twill. I would definitely recommend it, it's a very flattering skirt, and very quick to cut and sew up.

Conclusion

I'm very pleased with this skirt. It was made to fill a hole in my wardrobe, and succeeded in that. I've worn it many times, and it's also versatile - worn with a pretty top tucked in it's great for evening, with a jersey tank it's a comfy daytime look.

Draping galore

As expected, the draping course was AMAZING. We covered the basics of draping, starting with preparing the stand and fabric. We draped a basic skirt and bodice, an A-line skirt, a circular skirt, a ruched front bodice, a sleeve and two collars. Doesn't sound very exciting, but it's provided the basics to understand how to manipulate the fabric into whatever I want! Well, maybe not quite anything just yet, but soon...

The teacher was excellent, and the other students were a very lovely bunch of ladies. (The weird thing is that one of the other students is moving to Switzerland too at the end of April! Unfortunately to Zürich, but hey, Switzerland's a small place...). Studying at the LCF is also very inspiring, surrounded by all the industrial machines, cool looking fashion students, and amazing fashion photography, and it's great having a proper workspace. Speaking of which...

Here's my workspace! I was so engrossed in what I was doing that I forgot to take many pictures, in fact only three in total - here are the other two:

I'm now desperately looking for a reasonably priced dress form as I can't drape on Wilma - as she's adjustable, there's big gaps right where I need to mark and pin along the centre front and back and sides. I wonder if I can make a cover for her as an interim measure...?

After the course had finished, I had a morning in London to spare, so went to the Yohji Yamamoto exhibition at the V&A with my mum. I didn't really know what to expect, or much about his clothes, but oh my, it was definitely the right thing to see after a course on draping on the stand! The clothes were beautiful and intriguing, and the best thing was that we could closely inspect them as they were laid out without any barriers or cases! Unfortunately photos weren't allowed (and I couldn't sneak any due to the burly Japanese security guards), so here's a few from the V&A website:

ETA - There's a very interesting "behind the scenes" blog on the V&A Yohji Yamamoto website, written by the exhibition curator, Ligaya Salazar.

My very own "fashion week"

So, I've just landed at Heathrow to spend a week in London. And I'm very much looking forward to it - because I will be spending the week at the London College of Fashion on a course to learn how to drape on the stand! Squee!

I did a course a few years ago on personalised pattern cutting (i.e. making a block to your own measurements - or your client's - ha!), and it was great fun and I learnt an awful lot, so I can't wait to get started on this one. It was meant to be running last week, but had to be moved, and in doing so the location was moved, which I'm exceedingly pleased about, as instead of trekking over to Old Street every day, I'll be in my old stomping ground of Hammersmith/Shepherd's Bush, handily located for curries on King Street, shopping at Westfield, and of course fabric shopping at Goldhawk Road. I think I may end up paying some excess baggage on the way home - I'd intended to bring as little as possible in order to bring back vast quantities of fabric, but ended up bringing far too many clothes - well a girl has to have choices if she's spening a week at a fashion college!

In other news, I've been doing A LOT of sewing lately in the run up to this week - in the last ten days or so, I've sewn two skirts (one of which is a jeans skirt), one top, and altered a dress. Which is more than I sewed the entire of 2010 I think. Vie been on a major mojo bender - I've also planted up innumerable plants on our balconies, including lots and lots of veggie seeds. Hopefully this continues! I think the sunny weather has helped :)

I don't think I'm going to be able to post photos whilst I'm over here, so expect a glut of photo heavy posts on my return...

Birthday fun

Well, I went to London for a week in the middle of February to see friends for my 30th birthday celebrations (eek! where have my 20s gone?). There were a few fashion and sewing related things to report here.

I wore *two* dresses I made (not at the same time, silly) - my leopard and green Budapest dress, as featured on these pages previously, and a new green silk/cotton BWOF dress (review coming up).

I had been intending to wear the one I wore on my actual birthday to meet my parents, rather than the leopardy one, but when I put it on, there was something just not right about it. I don't know if maybe it had shrunk in the wash (the fabric had been pre-washed before sewing it) or if all the birthday drinks had gone to my subcutaneous lipid cells, but it really wasn't comfortable any more. I needed to make alterations anyway, so that is going in my reworking pile.

The next day, my lovely husband (get a room!) organised a party for me at a surprise venue, and my glamorous dress turned out to be very appropriate, as we went to the Tassel Club, a burlesque and cabaret club!

It was a tremendous amount of fun, especially as I hadn't seen some the friends that came for many many months. Burlesque has had a lot of press in the last few years and has become quite a fashionable activity to both do and watch - in fact I went to a burlesque dancing lesson last summer as part of a hen party. I'm not entirely convinced by the argument that it's empowering, as it's still defining women by their sexuality, but at least it is a much more democratic sexuality than what is overwhelmingly seen nowadays, in that it celebrates a more natural body (well, discounting the makeup, hairspray and depilation), and a variety of body shapes.

On a shallower note, OH MY GOODNESS THE HAIR! THE MAKEUP! THE CLOTHES! One of the (immaculately coiffed, immaculately made up and immaculately dressed) ladies who worked there complimented me on my dress, and I was enormously pleased to be able to say "I made this!" We were standing next to where all the performers walked through, so I was able to have a good look at their beautiful costumes (and plenty of boobies too). And as for the clientele, well, that it one place I'm never going to feel overdressed...

Oh, and I've got my first commission! No less than a bolero tail jacket for one of my best friends to wear at her wedding - oh my!

PS Apologies for the appalling quality of the photos in this post, I have resolved to take more pictures of the dresses on Wilma, and train my husband in better photo-taking!

Happy New Year, lists galore (yeah, a bit late...)

Happy New Year to everyone, I hope you all had a lovely break over the Christmas period and had time to do plenty of sewing? And, yeah, this post has been sitting in my "drafts" folder for over a month now - where the hell does the time go?

It seems to be pretty popular in the blogosphere to review the previous year and make resolutions for the next, so I'm (sort of) going to do that too! I love following the crowd...

Well, 2010 was a pretty big year for me, mainly because of my move from London to Geneva. Ten months later and I'm still "settling in". When will that feeling go away? So many things about London I didn't realise I would miss so much until they weren't there any more - not least the fabric and haberdashery shops. Haberdashery's not so difficult to get hold of here, but the fabric appears to be INSANELY expensive. Like "44 CHF per metre for plain silk charmeuse" expensive (compared to £6 per metre equivalent on lovely lovely Goldhawk Road). JEEZ. On the positive side, however, I have gained a (almost) dedicated sewing room, plus the time to actually get down and sew. Delicious.

In terms of sewing, my output was depressingly low, but I think that was mainly due to getting stuff packed and unpacked and then getting settled here:

1. Leopard and green Budapest dress
2. Yellow knitted circle scarf (unfinished)
3. Alphabet quilt for my nephew (unfinished)

Is that really all I made???? Well I guess that's motivation to have a slightly more impressive list next year!

I did also do a little Christmas sewing, I will post pictures in a separate post once the items have actually gone to their owners (what? I'm stretching out the excitement of the yuletide period for them).

As for resolutions, well I have some personal ones, which I'm not going to share with the, ooh, positively millions of people who are reading this (ahem), but the relevant ones for here are:

1. Sew at least one item once a fortnight
2. Set myself sewing projects each month
3. Blog at least once a week

And progress so far? Mixed:

1. I'm doing pretty well on this one actually! I'll post some of the stuff shortly that I've been producing.
2. Only informally done so far. January was a bit vague, it was sort of sewing some basic jersey tops (boring, but needed), and sort of sewing a dress for my birthday. February is slightly more solid: sewing a dress for my birthday party (distinct from the birthday this year!). Again, posts to follow, honest. Which brings me onto...
3. Er, yeah, well, this hasn't gone soooooo well! Room for improvement.

A bit more generally on number 2 (snigger), my wardrobe has been a bit in limbo since I stopped work when I moved over here and I want to get it sorted. I much prefer wearing a slightly dressier, "put together" look, which perfectly suited an office job, but isn't always the most appropriate thing to wear for my current life. I also often want to wear more comfy/casual clothes, but I also want to feel and look good, and the clothes I have that are comfy and casual generally don't really fit the bill for looking good...

Items planned:

• Jersey T-shirt tops
• Some sort of pretty tops that fit me (specific there, eh?)
• Big cowl neck jumper (inspired by *ahem* Project Runway)
• Warmer/sturdier revised version of green vintage jacket
• Sweatshirt jacket
• Winter coat (hmm, maybe a bit late for this season)
• Wool skirt
• Sweater dress
• Jersey house dresses
• Shirtdress
• Birthday dress (1 of 2 done and worn)
• - Wide(ish) leg trouser-jeans

Well, watch this space to see how I get on with this...