Vogue 8323: Giving it Another Go

Vaguely mollified by this experience, I opted not to start the day with sewing but rather with pattern alterations. Yeah, I don't know if that's a good idea either, but my brain was 'fresh" after a night of sleep.

You may recall this garment, V8323, made in a gorgeous fabric, in September, and relegated to the lawn give-away pile after a series of compounded fit issues. What was the problem with that version? Well, you'll recall that I originally altered the pattern to fit when I was totally new to sewing. At that point, not really clear about what I should be doing (and given that this pattern is drafted for a giraffe having tons of length between the bust apex and shoulder shelf), I chopped off inches from the shoulder seam. I don't know that that's what I'd do at this point - but given the options, it wasn't the worst idea I've ever had.

The problem is that it messed up all of the other vertical proportions (bust apex height, waist height, length at the hem etc.) It also didn't fix the issue of insane shoulder width (a problem corroborated by just about every reviewer) or the position of the princess seams.

I was left with a pattern:

• Still too wide in the shoulders by about an inch on either side

• Way too high in the bust apex (even by small-busted young person standards) - like 2.5" too high (the amount I removed from the shoulder height given that I have a short span from my upper bust to my shoulder shelf). This is one of the perks of being a short, small person.

• Too short in the waist (where the surplice crosses over). The over-high bust apex naturally contributes to the issue but it's like the whole garment rides up.

• Weirdly proportioned in the princess seams. I've actually learned something during my sewing experiences over the last 2 years (which finally clicked over the past couple of months) that'll likely make my next foray into bra sewing the one that works, fit-wise (if potentially not support-wise). Yeah, Gillian, you read that right. It's not rocket science but I'll give the explanation a go:

• I've always assumed that my significant bust projection, which really makes itself felt from the centre gore (i.e. chest wall over the breasts to the nipples) means that I need to add lots of length / width / fabric over the interior span of my breasts. In fact, I need to put the extra fabric over the outer breast (where I have very little fullness) from the edge of the breast root (at my side) to the nipple. Why, I really can't say. It's still melting my brain a little. But every princess seam adjustment that I've ever made has  has corroborated this fact. And, as I think about it, every foray into bra sewing has left me with fit issues (too much fabric) in the upper cup. I can see now, I'm going to need to increase the size of the outer cup substantively and decrease the width and length of the (already smaller) lower and upper cups.

• All this is to say that my (as drafted) princess seams, on this garment, are positioned (over the bust only) a good 1.5 inches too far towards the side seams. 

And after 2 hours, I think I found the fix (or at least a move in the right direction - one doesn't want to get overly confident):

The two pieces that the photo focuses on are the side front and front. (The front has a cut on facing which is that flap piece to the right side.)

What I've done here - though it doesn't look like much - is:

• Lowered the bust apex by 2.5 inches. This PDF shows you how to do that easily. 

• Narrow the shoulders: I turned the shoulder princess seamed side front (and back, for that matter) into an armscye princess seam. This got rid of tons of width I couldn't manage, given how many pattern pieces converge at the shoulder. It also meant I had to re-widen the front piece (and back piece) by 0.5" in the shoulder width or things would have been too narrow (given how many times I've already hacked at the width of the pattern pieces).

• If it works, this will also diminish the excess of fabric over my upper bust (where I'm short and proportionately flat).

• The crazy new bump-out on the side front is my standard-issue princess seam adjustment to allow for extensive bust apex projection that doesn't extend to the side bust. It's even like a semi-sphere, cuz my breasts are evenly full.  This alteration is what's going to reposition the front/side front princess seam over the bust in the appropriate place (more towards my full bust, rather than the outside of my bust). I had to remove the equivalent fabric from the front piece to maintain the size. Effectively, I cut the bust curve (now on the side front piece) out of the side of the front piece. I then traced it onto new paper because things were getting messy. It's weird, I get it. But my full bust projection is more significant than most patterns ever draft for. Because you rarely see it, it seems that much stranger.

• Finally (and I'm least sure of this alteration - having never done it on a pattern piece like this before), I lowered the waist (where the surplice and facing attach together to produce the cross over neckline) by extending the facing down by 1.5 inches (the desired amount). To maintain the basic shape of the piece, and the proportions, I added a bit of width, below the facing, at the front side seam, tapering to nothing at the hem.

• I'm still trying to figure out how to manage the excess fabric (long, straight diagonal line) on the front facing. It doesn't match the concave curve I've created on the seam to which it will attach (the front/side front princess seam). Having just looked at the construction (on my finished top - the one that highlights all of these fit issues) I can see that I'm going to have to mimic the curve. (Off to fix the piece...)

So there you go. It's a Very Easy Vogue knit pattern (you know, the one hour kind) and I've spent 2 hours altering it (and that's just on this go-round). I wonder at what point one just starts to draft patterns for oneself. I guess it's when she's done enough successful altering of wacky patterns, that she feels confident starting from scratch. But then, why bother at that point?

I'd really love for this to work out. I have beautiful fabric with which to make it. I've considered as many fit elements as I have the experience and brain-power to manage and I'd so appreciate a new top that I've sewn (rather than another useful learning opportunity that ends up going to someone else or into the garbage). Wish me luck.

PS: Next up I need to actually sew that Jenna Cardi hack and cut the fabric / sew up V8323.

2015 Fall Capsule Collection: Sunny Knit Top Alterations

Here's the difference that some very simple - if very substantial - alterations can make:

StyleArc Sunny Knit Top - Size 10 UNALTERED (out of "envelope" as it were)

StyleArc Sunny Knit Top - Originally Size 10 (rather substantively altered)

What you may notice is that the pieces look largely unchanged, shape-wise. Regrettably, in the original photo (unaltered) I positioned the tunic "skirt" upside down so what you're looking at doesn't seem consistent over both photos. Trust me, the only difference shape-wise, in the skirt, is the angle of the side seam (which is much straighter in my new version).

The original pattern is 58" in circumference - reflecting itself in width and length and yielding a drop shoulder of what I assume to be ridiculous proportions. Never mind what fabric I might use to make an unaltered version, it would look like over-sized crap because there's just to much fucking "over" in this over-sized pattern, IMO.

What Did I Do?

• I removed 4 inches of width from the centre front, vertically, from top to bottom. The net impact is that it shortens the shoulder as well as diminishes extreme over-sizedness.

• I recut the neckline (which was messed up by the narrowing) but made it less wide on the shoulder top (i.e. more crew than boat). Narrow shoulders and boat necks don't get along. If you are slight of shoulder (if they slope or they're chubby), then stay away from the boat, as I'm sure you've already surmised. Of course, do what you like from an aesthetic perspective (who am I to judge that?) but the annoyingness of your neckline approaching your shoulder near-constantly - especially if you get cold or have boobs - is enough to tax the staunchest small-statured, boat-neck lover.

• I took another 0.5 inch out of the side bodice from top to bottom, vertically, to "shorten the shoulder" and to remove excess size in the side zone.

• I did the same thing in the skirt but I left the original hip circumference (40") because that works well with my measurements.

• One thing I'm going to check, before cutting into the fabric, is that this is consistent with a couple of other "cocoon" (though on the slim end of that equation) sweaters I own.

• While the unaltered length is stated to be 27" (way longer than I need), somehow, likely because of my mods, my finished length is 24.5". I'll cut from the hem of the fabric, if necessary, to shorten further as I experiment with my first version. I don't know if  the "skirt-meets-bodice" seam is going to be in the right place but, remember, I have depth in my front chest and that takes up length.

• I'm considering taking an inch out of the length of the back-bodice (to compensate for the extra vertical length I require to work over my boobs). Not sure if I should muslin as is - just cuz I really don't know how this sort of alteration will play out in a finished garment of this style. 

• I'm also considering raising the armhole slightly. That would serve to shorten the side-garment further.

As you can see, I've cut 5 inches out of this pattern's girth and I don't know what the impact of this will be on a finished garment till after I make it. My seams align and I believe I've retained the original shape. But I'm a narrow, small-boned person who cannot be swathed in 1.5 metres of fabric without looking like a sloppy lump. I'd like this to be a casual, but elegant top. And I don't believe, between my dimensions and those of the unaltered pattern, that could occur, just out of the envelope.

Of course, I'll report back after I've made this, but I sense that this will require pretty serious downsizing for most anyone, unless tall and/or wide.

Anyway, thoughts or feelings? If you've made this, or if you're great at reading schematics and understanding exactly how something will look in the end, your feedback would be most welcome. Stay tuned.

Spring Sewing: Rosie Top - All the Other Muslins to Come

Do not think I've lost my interest in fitting the Rosie top, though truly I am coming to hate the process (as I always do). This is fitting a woven bodice, after all.

Fact is, I ran out of the burgundy fabric. Instead I used some butterfly charmeuse, alotted for lining. It has about the same stretch and it's drapey - but in every other way it's all wrong. It was a bitch to sew, it's shiny and slippery. Ugh. Really, 90 per cent of the time, one should use stash fabric for the purpose intended.

Needless to say that the butterfly fabric version is yet another muslin. Which it would have to be, even if I liked the fabric, because the fit is nightmarish in a whole new series of ways.

Seriously, when I read posts about pants-fitting, and the fitee in question is losing her mind because the scenario (given her proportions) is so challenging, I feel nothing but empathy. That sewist's developed upper legs or wide derriere or shelf-hips or sloped waist or thick calves are analagous to my boobs (which seem to pop off the front of my chest like alien creatures as soon as a woven fabric is involved) and my super short/high armscye.

People, this is painful and I don't know how it's going to end. I can simply say that I'll keep going...

So, what happens next?

Well, I just spent 45 minutes on the phone with Fabrications (best customer service ever, not joking) ordering 5 yards of silk crepe and rayon challis (both of which have the same amount of stretch as the burgundy fabric that is, so sadly, gone). That's enough to make 3 more Rosies. Theoretically, two will be muslins and one will be a beautifully-fitted, finished garment. But I'm prepared to accept that they may all be muslins. I have to wait for my fabric to arrive before I can make another of these - a week I suspect.

(Side Note: My sister is in the wedding party of a mega bridezilla who made her buy a dress on Etsy that is a) hideous and b) horrendously fitted. My sister's hysteria, bolstered by photos that show the truth of things, has inspired me to refit the dress in advance of the upcoming wedding. Point is, as soon as that dress, and a bit of extra fabric, arrive in the post, it's going to be all sewing for others, all the time - if with short turn-around.)

What I've Learned from Muslin 4:

• I had to lower the bust apex by another inch. Ahem. Let's not discuss this.

• I had to do my ever-present "small bust adjustment" above my "large bust adustment". That means that, given my full bust is 38" and my upper bust is 33.5", I get a lot of fabric pooling above the full bust to the neckline. I've had to take 0.5 inches off of each princess seam above the full bust. Don't know if this will be enough but it's a start.

• I had to adjust some seam lines - I forgot that darting the side front would shorten the armscye. Given that there's a kimono sleeve, I've just opted to shorten the back sleeve at the underarm. Of course, this might not be optimal, but we'll have to wait and see.

Potential Alterations that I won't be able to confirm till I make the next muslin (you can't do too much at one time or you can't keep everything straight):

• I also might have a big problem - but I'm not going to know until I make this round of revisions: I might need to pull out more fabric from the armscye in a dart that, currently, goes to the bust apex - effectively spanning 2 pieces. I don't know how I'll do this on the front piece in such a way that I can actually close the dart. This would be less concerning on a garment that doesn't already have a (conflicting) princess seam joining two pieces together.  

• I suspect I'm going to need to make the waist smaller again.

• I might need to make the peplum longer.

• And finally, those princess seams really are trickily positioned. I might have to realign them (closer together - by removing width from the front piece, Lord help me).

So you can see, I'm basically making my own top, with some nice bits of pattern paper from StyleArc. You can take comfort knowing that this will certainly be easier for anybody else than it has been for me.

I should disclose that I'm not looking at fitting books during this process. I find them confusing. I've come to realize that I need to make things and fit them on my body, as many times as it takes. Flat pattern alterations are meaningless to me if I can't see how they come about by draping the fabric over my own body. I'm pleased to say, though, that I've picked up a lot by reading when I'm not in the sewing fray: lowering the bust apex, for example. (Well, I'll disclose that I didn't look it up but I remembered how to cut the too-high apex out of the pattern piece (in a little box) and lower it to the desired height.)

If I choose to view this process as a weird experiment that takes a bunch of fabric, lots of time and the creative impulse, well, then I cannot lose. I promise I'll keep you posted.

Till then, I've got a knit to sew up.

Spring Sewing: Rosie Top - The Next Muslin

I don't know what made me think I'd only need to make one muslin of this Rosie top but, man, it is a production. By contrast, I'd rather muslin pants any day of the week...

On the plus side, it's a fascinating process. Really. My bodice proportion is SO renegade.

I'm am grateful to have just about enough of my burgundy fabric left to give it one more go - because so much of this fit is tied up in the beautiful crepe. Part of me is horrified that I may sacrifice it all to muslin but, really, this fabric is doing yeoman's work and we're in it together. Were I to use a new fabric, I'd practically have to start from scratch. Do not be misled, my next life plan is to find mega-drapey, top-weight woven (crepe - silk or otherwise) with 20-25% mechanical stretch (or lycra - I'll take lycra!). And then I'm buying it, shipping be damned.

But let's have a look at the insanity, yes?

Rosie Top modified as per dictates of muslin 2. This is the pattern for the next muslin (or wearable top?!)

Alterations as per the info provided by muslin 2:

• I added back all the width of the original pattern at the peplum hem (the pattern refers to it as "the skirt"). Mind you, I didn't add it all back at the waist.

• In fact, this time I had to take out an inch, over all, from the side seams at the waist. I've decided I want a fitted top, nay, I require a fitted top, so I'm going to insert a side zip at the waist. I suspect, if you are hourglass shaped and you desire a top that isn't shapeless in the waist (to allow you to get it over your bust), you're going to need to do a side zip or make this in a true knit (like ponte).

• I lengthened the back skirt to reflect the 2 inches I removed from the back waist. It was coming up too short.

• I lowered the bust apex by 2 inches. So much for "it's not cut high in the bust!". Note: I did dart at the armscye (between muslin 1 and muslin 2) so that raised the apex artificially - though not by 2 inches, I'm sure.

• The full bust was ridiculously tight. When I vertically slashed the muslin, to see what would happen, I discovered I need another 2.5 inches of extra width at the apex of my bust.

• This time, the princess seams were ridiculously wide - splayed to the outside of my breasts. I can see how someone else had this issue. If you have a small bust, chances are that all you need to do is make the front piece (top left of the photo) narrower. However, as I seem to have to add another 2.5 inches to the full bust (I know, it's insane) this makes things that much more tricky, given that I want that seam to go over the bust, or very close to it. My only recourse is to add width onto the side front piece (top centre of the photo). First I removed some volume I'd added to the front piece above the bust (unnecessary). Then I lengthened the front piece by 0.75 inch to account for the extra length required in light of the alterations of the side front piece.

• I realize that the new bust curve on the side front piece looks insane, I'd prefer to create it over 2 seams (front and side front), as is the usual technique, but that's not going to narrow the princess seams.* I mean, it's going to be an interesting exercise in easing, if nothing else. Thing is, the waist on this is high (not empire, but definitely at the "real" waist). Given that I've got a short waist and large tits, I don't have a lot of room to maneuver. The way this will work for me is in that it will be incredibly fitted under the bust (see that dip below full bust moving towards the waist).

• Updated to reflect further consideration: While I didn't narrow the front piece from the centre (see asterisk below), given that I'd already widened it by an inch (wherein it went from being a good width to too wide), I removed the extra inch and added it, where? Well onto that side front piece. So now it looks even more curvy insane than it does in the photo above. But the princess seam should sit where I want it to.

By the way, I have no idea of what the next muslin will reveal. I felt confident that I'd resolved the issues on the (last) garment but it was destined to become muslin 2. So, I take it, I've got to keep an open mind. What does it matter how long it takes me to fix this? If and when I do make a woven top that fits, I'll have that much more information at my access - which will only help me when next I decide to tackle a woven bodice.

In the meanwhile, that's why we have knits.

Thoughts?

* It just occurred to me that I could have narrowed the front piece at the centre (removing inch, for example) and then adding on to the front piece side seams on either side. That would have allowed me to put the extra space on either side of the princess seam. But that seems unnecessarily convoluted. Of course, it may have displaced the volume better and would make the sewing of that insane princess seam less complicated...

In Which I Liken Making A Top to Extreme Skiing

I was going to tell you about the yoga pants I made over the weekend but then last night I went off-road...

Note: For those of you who have any interest in KS3115 yoga pants: Don't worry, you'll have lots of opportunity, very soon, to hear all about them - how I slightly modified the pattern (yet again), how they turned out (well, but they'll be better next go around, on the weekend, one hopes, since I've made more changes still). Fear not.

Anyway, my version of off-road is not exactly extreme skiing (a propos of which: watch this doc. It's fascinating and I could give a shit about extreme skiing). My version involves looking at a pattern envelope next to an extra half-yard of fabric and thinking: hmmmm, I could totally make that exercise top to match those yoga pants which would totally spice up my fall capsule collection. And by that exercise top, I mean the one in View B, with the v-neck:

So out came the scissors.

Remember, my goal is fun and not complicated and I suppose, for the most part I succeeded. I mean, I made a top on a Monday night. Note: That's largely because my headache took a vacation and my kid banished me from the room with the TV as she had a friend over. (On that topic, my child feels that I am a terrible embarrassment and will not bring friends to the house. So, the fact that she had a sleep-over here for a change, even if it means I had to put 20 dollars on the table for pizza and stay off the main floor, seems like a step in the right direction. Yes, I have become this bedraggled shell of a parent.) But back to the story...

I opted to cut the shoulders in a small, grading to a medium at the underarm. I never do this kind of alteration but everyone else does, and it seems to work for them. On the plus side, the shoulders fit perfectly.

Other pluses include:

• The top is totally wearable for exercise, or for real life (when made in work-appropriate fabric). 
• The instructions are excellent, as are those for the pants. 
• You can actually make a top on a Monday night, even if you don't sew quickly.

Weirdly, when I made this top - and thank goodness I did things like pin together the side seams to check the fit before serging - there was a huge excess of fabric from the front armscye leading towards the bust apex. Like, enough that I had to take out a dart, on each side, that was 2.5 inches wide.

Did I mention that, when you create darts of that width (it wasn't a long dart, happily, or I can imagine what kind of a disaster that might have been) ON THE FLY, some pretty scary things can occur. Like one dart can end slightly higher than the other. Or, both darts can be, say, an inch too high. Then there's the fact that, unless you want to cut the darts - which is something I avoid unless there's a lining to protect the cut fabric from the wrong side - you have to deal with a freakin' 2.5 inch armscye dart - the armscye you will shortly thereafter have to bias bind around. But wait - there's more: How many stretchy exercise shells have you seen with armscye darts, pointing to the boob??

Let's leave all that for a moment. Let's wonder how it is that I managed, while making a size medium (the bust measurement for which is 38 inches sewn, mine is 37.5 inches), to have 2.5 inches of extra fabric to remove from the side of the armhole. Does it have something to do with the fact that I graded from a smaller to a larger size? I really don't think so. Does it have something to do with the fact that I should have made the small? I mean, with negative ease, that theory is a possibility. But I assume the finished sizing accounts for that.  I should say, this extra armscye fabric thing does happen to me when I make woven garments, but never with stretchy knits that aren't particularly tight anywhere. This top fits, not loosely, but certainly not super closely.

I do love the fact that I made a top that fits (albeit with weird bust darts) and that I averted near disaster, as said disaster emerged, with nary a moment of fear. I kept my wits and actually drew the dart onto the paper pattern (to the best of my ability given that I was working with a half-constructed garment). See, even at that point, I knew I'd want to try to make this top again, on the weekend, when I make the next pair of yoga pants. (Oooh, more coordinated outfits!)

Then I realized that I can't rotate a dart at the best of times - this theory defies the laws of physics, people! - so, this morning, I called S, my fitting friend (whom I haven't spoken of recently, but with whom I have many meaningful sewing and other conversations).

In five seconds, she was able to explain that, to remove the dart from the armscye area, aka correct the fit by rotating the dart, I need to:

a) draw a vertical line from the hem to the bust apex, then
b) close the armscye dart, then
c) cut the vertical line from hem to the bust, to re-flatten the pattern, and create a dart there (to the extent that it's necessary. I sense it might not require a lot of spread from the hem as my armscye dart is quite short in as much as it's wide...)
d) In as much as I will not close the new, vertical dart (cuz darts on exercise wear are weird), I will have to remove any excess fabric, which will have collected at the bodice front as a result of not closing that the vertical dart, from the side seams.

FWIW, I'll also have to cut about an inch of length from the armhole binding next time, because I cut the binding in size medium and my armscye is actually a morph of small and medium. The extra binding length, plus the dart, has made that section of the bodice a bit less firm and fitted than I'd like.

This actually seems straight-forward from where I sit now. In front of my computer with a snack. Can't wait to see what the weekend brings!

Today's questions: Have you made this top and, if yes, what do you think? Have you encountered the extra armscye fabric dilemma when working with knits? How did you fix it? To what do you attribute it? Let's talk!

The Summer Series: Fitted Boucle Jacket (aka Is Time Standing Still?)

I feel like this Boucle Jacket is never going to end. It's not that I don't enjoy making it; all in all it's pretty easy to construct... But my gauge has been so fucking all over the map that I've had to rescale the pattern numerous times since I first undertook the pattern alteration project of the year.

Right now I'm knitting both sleeves (flat), simultaneously from one ball. What that means is that I'm knitting one sleeve from the inside string and one from the outside string. (When the skein finishes, one side will be attached to the other so I'll have to cut the yarn to liberate each string.)

This method has its pluses:

• there's only one ball of yarn to worry about at any given time
• both sleeves will be identical (as they're knit from the same needles, one row of one sleeve followed by the same row of the other)
• I won't have to knit the second sleeve independently of the first - which can be a slog 

It's also got some detractors:

• OMG, till I figured out a system (which takes constant vigilence), my two strings were interminably tangled - this adds time to the project and it's obnoxious
• If you ever thought knitting a sleeve takes forever, try knitting 2 at the same time...

I don't know if I'll do this in the future, but I'm glad to be giving it a go and, really, ask me how I feel when I don't have to knit another sleeve in 80 more rows.

My needle (cheap brand - never to be bought again - it was from my experimentation with cheap brands phase) started to detach from the cable, making things ever more tenuous but, I'm thrilled to advise, I've become that crafter with all the crap at her access to fix things.

The Krissie of yore would have thrown up her hands and bought a new set. Crafty-Krissie took her fabric plus glue and put it all back together. So far so good!

Perhaps the most surprising element of this project is that I've used up almost 1600 yards of yarn - so far - to knit what is effectively a size small garment. By the time I'm done, I sense I'll have gone through 1800 yards (all the bits and pieces like cuffs, pockets and collar considered). I wondered how I'd ever make it through this much yarn when I originally bought 2000 yards to make the Late Day Abbreviated Coat (which was not destined to be). The Boucle jacket instructions didn't indicate how much yarn I'd need but it didn't matter cuz I assumed it would never be more than the amount I'd already bought.

My modern sweaters (and I do like them fitted) come in at between 850 and 1000 yards. Really, I have no idea how the Boucle Jacket has taken so much freakin yarn. Note: I have measured everything and blocked the completed pieces exactly to my desired dimensions (which seem right). I guess that jackets go through lots of wool. They are longer. They tend to have bits like pockets and cuffs and collars. But seriously, how on earth does that amount to 2.5 times more yarn?? Hmm... Maybe it's the diff between knitting with 1 inch of positive ease vs. 4 inches of negative ease.

So, today's questions: Have you ever knitted a tailored garment like a jacket? If yes, how much yarn did you go through? Could you ever bring yourself to buy 2000 yards of the same yarn? (I found it HARD. I assumed I'd never get through it all and I wouldn't want 2 garments made of the same stuff.)

Pants: The Gift That Keeps on Giving...

I made the V1166 pants again in the same stretch denim and, gotta say, the fit is improving. You might recall that, for this iteration, I:

• Lowered the waist by 2 inches
• Increased dart length and width slightly (1/4 inch on all sides)
• Lengthened the pants legs by an inch
• Increased waistband by 4 inches to accommodate the increased width requirement of the lowered waist

I will maintain all of these alterations but I need to add a couple more:

• Lower the waist 1 inch more (for a total of 3 inches). No need to increase the waistband because the 4 inch increase from the previous alteration is adequate.
• Lower darts another .25 inch
• Take .25 inch out of the front crotch starting 2 inches from the base (i.e. the lowest point of the curve)

The front crotch alteration is a wild card adjustment, but I fixed 2 pins in place (seriously carefully!) and determined that it pinches out that puffy lower front thing. Seems that darting the front can only do so much because the excess fabric is lower than the dart extension.

Again, in the latest version, my outer side seam allowances were more than 1.5 inches because of the stretch in the denim. I really should cut the pattern rather than the fabric next time. I have wasted so much! (Natch, the minute I switch fabrics, all bets are off...)

Some thoughts so far:

• What were the Vogue people thinking when they determined the rise of the original pattern?! I know I'm short-waisted, but seriously - I will have removed 3 inches of fabric from the waist when all is said and done. And they aren't "low rise"!
• I'm amazed by the volume of alterations I've made overall - and that practically all of them are on the front legs. I placed the new front leg pattern over the (uncut) original and it's an entirely different size and shape. I mean, there are NO similarities at this point. The crotch is a different curve and length, the overall length is different, the waist is lower, the legs are narrower (by an inch). And there I thought (admittedly, only for 5 minutes) that they were perfect right out of the package. Hmmm...
  
• I'm intrigued to be creating a sloper - because, it appears, that's what I'm doing. I wonder how it might translate onto other patterns in the future.

The most fascinating element of this process is how sanguine I appear to be. Maybe it's the vacation. Maybe I've had to develop a new pace and some perspective on account of the injury from which I'm still healing. Who knows? All I can say is, I know I should be moving back to the bra experiment, but that fills me with anxiety and I'm not quite ready. Besides, I'll have to rip up a perfectly nice bra and that's vaguely traumatizing.

I believe that every woman (person) has a certain body part, the shape of which is perplexing. For some it's a round, high ass. For others, the thighs are wide. There are those who just can't figure out how to flatter the arms. My "issue" (and I have chosen not to judge it, I am merely observing) is the boobs. Well, it's the boobs being large while the back and shoulders are narrow and the front torso is about average (relative to my pattern size). I've adapted to the FBA (full bust adjustment). That's a scary alteration, btw. About as complex as it gets. Then all the variables add to the complexities and, before you know it, you're hyperventilating.

This doesn't mean that my lower half is standard issue. I mean, this fitting process is proving that at every stage. But somehow the alterations seem knowable - more linear, in general. When I buy RTW pants, it is not an unpleasant process. Many times, I try on items that are ugly and ill-fitting, but I simply blame the garment and move on. I really don't take it personally. Not like when a blouse with buttons doesn't fit, or when a jacket won't close.

Why is this? I am, apparently, no more physically unusual in my upper body than in my lower body. (And BTW, neither are you.) Do I simply like pants more? Is it a matter of a top-half mental block? Are pants easier (in my books, definitely, but some people swear that they aren't)? Is my spatial reasoning that much improved these days? Is it beginner's romance?

What do you think? Whether you sew, or no, do you have a preferred body part when it comes to fitting and buying or making clothes? Has sewing liberated you from this? Which do you find more difficult to fit - pants or tops?

Changes Afoot

When I wrote about those Vogue pants fitting right out of the envelope, I must have been high on pain medication. Seriously.

I decided to try the muslin on again - just to do a final little check before gearing up to cut the fashion fabric and the lining. Intriguingly, the crotch was too low and the legs were too wide. It was almost like I should have cut the 12! (Note: I think the 12 would have needed a bit of enlarging in the waist, what with my once-pregnant abdomen requiring some give. Oh, who are we kidding. I would have needed biggening even before I had the child. Nonetheless, that would have been a quicker alteration, yes? Other note: The pattern I bought came in 14/16/18/20. The size 12 is in the packet I didn't buy.)

Do you know that there are lines on pants patterns (well, on this one anyway) which advise you where to shorten the crotch? It's such a good idea. I took a half an inch out. Looked good on the muslin (though I was scarily, and unusually, unscientific about the whole thing). Again, drugs - they're your friends, they're your foes. Then I took 1 inch out of the outer leg seams grading from nothing about 2 inches above the hip, all the way down to the hem seam.

Understatement: I would be so pleased if these look very nicely fitted when they finally get made. (A propos of that, I have a terrific sewing-Xmas story to tell, coming up soon.)

Brief Foot Update: I'm really on the mend (knock wood). Able to put weight on my foot again, though I'm not doing it for too long. Since physio started, I've actually been moving it more (and more directedly). I'm not hiding from the discomfort. It's part of the healing process. I don't want pain to keep me from stretching muscles that may otherwise atrophy. Something to consider when determining whether pain is "good" or "bad". Good pain generally feels less intense as you repeat the action, and usually the pain changes with movement. Bad pain just crunches in a severe way and it doesn't improve with repetition. Perhaps this is obvious to y'all, but it's a question I was asked often when I taught yoga, and I didn't really have as clear an answer as I would have liked back then.

Faith-Based Education

There's just no getting around it. Sewing is an iterative experience. It's about the journey (ugh). It takes patience. And the yield for patience? I regret to inform you that it's recognizing the need for more patience still.

See, the universe doesn't care if you've spent 4 days carefully considering the geometrical implications of your pattern in your bid to alter it successfully. The sewing goddess does not concern herself with your fragile ego - your near paralysis at the thought that what you've been striving for, lo, 3 painstaking versions over, may never come to be.

Sewing, like so many things in this wonderful world, is an act of faith.

To paraphrase Kenneth King (big shot teacher), if you don't wreck thousands of yards of fabric, you're not really learning to sew. That makes me feel good and terrible, all at the same time. I mean, hello, I'm well on my way to meeting that goal :-). And yet, really, who has that much fortitude?

I spent the last week altering my gather dress in the following key ways:

• Redrafted the skirt in an ML (rather than the too-big, Large), added 1 inch to the hem.
  
• Grafted it onto my still Large bodice pattern.
• Adjusted the Large bodice with a 1 inch FBA (that was incredibly challenging given a) I didn't know what I was doing with such a weird pattern i.e. where does one cut that sleeve off exactly? and b) I had to figure out where the apex was, then dart it at bust, then move the bust dart to the waist, then slide the waist dart out the side seam (of which there isn't one?!)

To keep the same proportions, while hacking at the pattern, was quite an undertaking, she says with outrageous understatement.

Then this weekend, I cut some muslin (the real, woven cotton kind - without stretch), and got to work. Ten hours - and one freakin' invisible zipper later - I tried it on to learn that:

• The arm holes are so tight I had to open them and cut half an inch off of each immediately.
• The bust is still way too small. Admittedly, I'm kind of an idiot - I couldn't figure out how much of an FBA to do on this pattern. Last 2 times I've increased the bust dimension, I've completely overdone it. This time, on a hunch, I was modest and it wasn't enough.
• I think I need 0.5 inches onto the back seam (or should I do it on the fold?!), just to give everything a bit more room. Cotton has no fucking give.

Seems I traded one batch of problems for another.

When I get over the horrendous disappointment, the feelings of inadequacy, I suppose I'll redraft and try again. Gotta say, though, I loathe muslin (the fabric and the concept). I suppose I should be grateful I didn't waste a ton of time making something - and beautifully finishing seams - that was not going to fit. But I do think next time I'm going to throw some real fabric at this. I have some woven synthetic crepe that has a beautiful hand, drapes nicely and has a modicum of give. (It was on sale for 5 bucks a yard.)

I don't know if, every time I try a muslin, the fit fails miserably because I'm only doing them on the things I have true fit concerns about or because the unseen powers feel my ambivalence. I'm a pragmatist and I'm extremely goal-oriented. I do believe a garment shouldn't need 6 cycles of construction - wrecking fabric (albeit hideous fabric), and eating time as I go.

I know I'm learning a lot with every experience, but how do I find a way to be ok with this non-starting? Somehow, I truly believe that my (extreme) effort should yield results rather than my talent, knowledge and experience. Crazy, I realize.

Anyone, got some feedback for me? Maybe you sew. Maybe you do something else that's really hard? Do share your thoughts.