Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The Tailored Suit: Getting Started

As you know, next up on my list is the Tailored Suit Challenge:



I figure, this is a good time to recap the concept behind my recent sewing projects...

It's worth restating that these are "my" challenges; I am not participating in a group project. Natch, everything I'm doing here has been done before, many times, by great bloggers and sewists - many of whom have led others in their sew alongs or challenges. No doubt, that's how I came up with my ideas :-) I am particularly grateful for the work of Collette Patterns, Gertie, Peter, Sunni - and probably many others I'm neglecting to mention right now (in my fog of spring cold sickness). Point is, there's a lot of context in "good sewing".

Why have I, at this juncture in my sewing journey, decided to take this approach?
  • I love methodology. This kind of process-driven project is how I get my kicks.
  • It's a skill-improvement extravaganza!
  • It's practical: a way to make something in the most streamlined, and probably cost-effective, fashion.
  • This may be totally inaccurate, but from palette-to-garment seems very "industry-plus" to me. It allows me to pretend I'm at my own College of Fashion Design where the curriculum is dicey but the grades really mean something.
  • It's a marketing gimmick. (What?!, you say. What need of marketing have you?) My friends, while I may not monetize this blog in any way, I greatly value your readership! Your comments, your advice, your innumerable experiences make this a community I want to live in. I'm always trying to come up with new ways to entice you to play along. This format seems to be popular - at least so far :-)
  • It's a community learning platform. While I'm not leading anything but my own process, I am committed to sharing what I learn and presenting it in a way that may be useful to someone like you or me at some point in the future. To wit: How I wish I'd seen a collation of posts about inserting zippers into bias cut skirts before I started my Ginger...
I always welcome your participation. Maybe you've been thinking of using the Craftsy online course, The Starlet Suit Jacket, to tailor your first suit. That can take you all the way to a beautiful finished garment, while you interact with an instructor and like-minded sewists. But I'm going to bitch about this thing in ways and at lengths that only I can. It's a skill, people.

Just think of it as my value-add.

Furthermore, I'm going to talk about my end-to-end process - from planning, to purchasing, to muslining and on. Having watched the Craftsy course once now, it doesn't really speak to all of those things in depth because it can't. Its job is to give you the optimal amount of information about the very-involved tailoring process, and it's awesome at that.

Now, onto the Tailored Suit Challenge itself, this version of which would not be possible without Gertie's latest Craftsy online course (The Starlet Suit Jacket).

To my friends who could care less about sewing: I promise to write about all kinds of other things too, so keep reading, ok?

26 comments:

  1. I read this entire post (you expected no less - right?). Very interesting approach indeed. I'm looking forward to every single step of your process.

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    1. I applaud your attention span ;-) I'm so glad you'll be reading.

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  2. I won't comment much on the sewing posts, but that doesn't mean I don't find them entertaining. So I'll be tuning in regularly -- have fun!

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    1. Thank you! Believe it or not, I'm starting to feel the knitting bug again. I think that's what may occupy my early-mid summer.

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  3. Monetized or not, I love your commitment to excellence, in sewing and blogging! BTW, as much as I adore Gertie anyway, your challenge was directly the cause of my buying this course as well. I figured your experience would add to mine!

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    1. What a lovely compliment Laura. Thank you! Your experience will also add to mine - so make sure you keep telling us what you've discovered. xo

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  4. I like reading whatever you feel like writing it seems. It's all good by me. I like reading about projects that I'm not interested in sewing yet myself because it's all knowledge collected and then it won't be so scary when I am ready and interested.

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    1. Isn't it true. I can't say how many times I've bookmarked things for future reference (only to forget about them, but still). It gives me confidence to see other people's projects. That's one of the things I love about the Craftsy format.

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  5. "But I'm going to bitch about this thing in ways and at lengths that only I can. It's a skill, people." I laughed so hard at this I snorted. ;-) Good luck with your jacket, I'm looking forward to your trials and comments. :-)

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    1. I'm so glad you snorted! I hope no coffee was involved :-)

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  6. I, too, am taking the Craftsy course. I have started a muslin, but that's about it. I'm glad to have some more input on this tailoring project. I am slowly watching the lessons and absorbing them until I'm ready to jump in and sew. I'm looking forward to your sharing.

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    1. That's one of the great things about that course - you can go back again and again (and absorb a new element each time). How did your muslin work? Was it true to size for you? Lots of adjustments needed? Do tell...

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    2. I think it is a pretty good. I cut one size larger than my measurements because I don't want as close a fitting jacket. (I want to be able to layer it) I think I may need to shrink the bust a little at the princess seam, but I'm not exactly sure how to do that. I have found a lot of tutorials on FBA but not any on SBA. I know you don't have that issue!

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    3. I just did a post on sizing this thing. Hope you'll weigh in there too!

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  7. !!! I was thinking about sewing today, when I saw a Bottega dress that desperately needs an alteration, IMHO . . . .

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  8. I would be terrified about this project and sharing the ongoing process! I might just send you my Minoru pattern to make for me. I look forward to reading your journey into tailoring - warts an all. Somehow I think this might be plain sailing for you after the bias Ginger!

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    1. Katy: No go on the Minoru - that one totally freaks me out! :-) We can only hope, after the bias Ginger, that I've got myself a bit of good mojo.

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  9. I read this post all the way through even though I have less than no interest in tailoring. This is something that does not in any way sound like fun to me, but I will happily read about you doing it and I will help you swear and curse should the need arise.

    My opinion on the fabric, the darker one, like you said more wearable, and though I love purple it does regularly go in and out of style. You don't want to put this much work into something that could look dated soon. JMHO.

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    1. I love a rousing chorus of swear words, as required :-)

      Just want to be sure I understand your second point: Do you like the darker purple, vs the lilac, cuz you think that shade will be less about current fashion and more enduring? Or do you actually prefer the lilac? Part of me does prefer the lilac even if it isn't practical.

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    2. my monitor was not reading the darker colour as dark purple, but having said that I would still go with the dark one. I like the lighter one, but maybe it's a little church lady? I say that cringing, really hoping you won't hate me.

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    3. Ha! Glad I got the darker one :-)

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  10. I love the collected knowledge, too. And definitely work similarly... I'm a methodology nut--it's part of what makes me want to create. I've finished so many things just to figure out technique. (Samples.) Anyways, that's a darling suit and look forward to your makings. I like the Craftsy format a lot (signed up for a class, really, just to investigate!).

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    1. Isn't it a great format! I'm glad to see I'm in good company vis a vis method. When you say samples, do you mean little patches to test a process, or do you mean actual sample garments?

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  11. Hi! I'm making the Starlet suit too, and I wish I had been as careful as you were with fabric choice (haven't even picked buttons yet!). Can't wait to fit this muslin so that it's a totally gorgeous fit- and I've never done an FBA and also want to avoid it, but i want the jacket to be hot, so we may be on the same track with that process too. Here we go!

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    1. I'll be interested to hear about your process. What size are you making?

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