The Tailored Suit: Assembling the Shell

I've been insanely productive this weekend - which is awesome - but I'm amazed by how much goes into a tailored jacket. The steps are endless!

On a positive note, cuz I like to throw a few of those in every once in a while, I have had a great time since I finished cutting those bound buttonholes. I've probably put in about 16 hours this weekend and it really shows!

Here you can see the hair canvas on the front panel and the hair canvas of the back stay (on the right side of the pic). I used hair canvas for the stay, although Gertie recommends muslin because a) S suggested it will stretch less and b) I'm so out of muslin it's ridiculous. Hair canvas, though, I have quite a bit of (so far).

See the lapel roll. I'm very happy with it's proportions. It might seem small here, but when it's on, the lapel and bust area are well-matched.

Here's a long shot of the entire shell. I'm really happy with the shape...

Finally, here's the under collar assembled but pre-pad stitched. Since I took this photo I have done the pad stitching and shaped the undercollar on my tailor's ham.

 Believe it or not, I still have this left to do:

• Insert sleeves
• Insert under and upper collar
• Assemble facings and sew them in
• Assemble lining and sew it in
• Hemming
• Completing the bound button holes
• Trimming (i.e. shoulder pads)

 Then there's the small matter of sewing up the skirt.

I've tried on the shell and it fits very well in the bust. But I don't really know how the sleeves are going to insert. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. S, my fitting friend, has kindly offered to come over and help me to sort it out, if necessary. One thing's for sure, I'm not going to do the bias easing on the sleeve head until I've tried to pin the sleeve in, as is. I am prepared to have to make some adjustments here. Please keep your fingers crossed for that step. And stay tuned for more.