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June 9, 2023
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So after last week's "How to know when you're finished" email, wouldn't you know it - this week is, "It's Okay to Come Back and Fix It!" email. And yes it's okay.
So what's the difference here between being nit-picking and not nit-picking. The bottom line is that if you can tell that one or two simple solution(s) will make it work, then that's the difference. Although, I'm doing a "remake" now that's fairly extensive, but I know in my heart it will make the garment sing, where as it was really off tune as it was.
Now - here's the caveat. I've been fitting and sewing for myself for about 50 years. I don't wear clothes off the rack - ever! I've tried a couple of times, and then sat down and made my garment and it is so far and above better, that I wonder why I even thought about buying something, because, for me, it's always a waste of money. And believe me, I've been trying to do some self-analysis on why someone like me would fall for the, I'll
just go by and pick up a pair of pants at the store that won't cost that much and be done with it type mode, when I KNOW, deep down, that it will never, ever work. I have bought maybe 3 tops in those 50 years since I've started sewing, and they've been satisfactory, but nothing spectacular.
So project number one:
I love my backyard design school at Oklahoma State University that has a design school that is to die for. The professors up there are really committed to making sure the students have an excellent working curriculum and information to go out into the design business and make something of themselves, whether it's at Michael Kors (and yes they have graduates that are working there) or Penny's (and don't laugh - a lot of designers get their street creds at companies like
Penny's and go on to greater things).
Their final grade and exam for the seniors is to put on a full fashion show, with presentations on who their market is, and why their designs work for that market, and meet the deadline which is great experience. They make me their "Construction Judge" and I am rather ruthless about this, then attend the fashion show which is always great fun. I love every bit of it.
This year they had a pop-up shop and had received donations for all the goodies in the shop and of course I had to shop there to show my support, and lo and behold they had gotten some garments in orange (the school colors) from Eileen Fisher. I was gobsmacked, and found a top that was really great. Well, the fabric was fabulous being knitted linen in a wonderfully-weighted, slub-weave, but not heavy-weight. Perfect for summer and going to the grocery store which
has temperatures colder than the North Pole.
Well, guess what? Even from Eileen Fisher, there were fitting problems. Here we go again. Anything I buy from the store has issues - usually major issues.
This may load slow because of the detail, but the devil is in the details. 1. The top is meant to be around the neck, or to my mind it is, but hangs off the neckline and if I have my silk jersey cami under this, it slides right off my shoulders. Not good.
2. Where's the shape? Obviously this garment was meant to be worn by a box and not a human!
So now what's going on that makes this work. Some very subtle shaping.
1. I took up the back so that it lays close to the neck and not away from the neck (note the shoulder seams are ON the shoulders now).
2. I always do a tie (which can't be seen) right below the bust and above the waist which makes the lovely shape around the waist on the side AND there's a lovely waist dip in back. Suddenly the thing has shape!
So what made me think that 1. I could fix this, 2. that it was worth it and best of all 3. what to do to make it work wasn't going to take that long.
When I originally saw the piece, the color was great and it was from fabric that I can't get or at least is out of my reach. I haven't seen beautiful fabric like this unless I'm in a major metro store or outside the US. Places like Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, New York and L.A. (because of the theater and film industry), have excellent choices of fabric.
So the fabric was a huge factor in my "purchase" (this was actually a donation to the school as Fisher had donated the items to the school to sell).
Also because of working with my core pattern that contains all the information of the line and style that is most flattering, I know what looks good on me. I know how to sew those seams and tweak those looks to make it look right. One of the major problems with waterfall type garments is that they hang straight with no form (see the top photo above). That's great if you're a designer and you're designing for all different shapes, but hey, that's part of
why we're sewing - so we can design stuff that looks grand on us.
Here's another example of waterfall gone wrong (at least for me).
The one on the left was not even close to being fun, it was droopy, not drapey and it felt like it was a drag and dumpy to wear. So I had this voile on the right - a woven, but I don't have a problem with my thin arms and around my neck (I have a thin bird neck). All my problems are around my hips, thighs and fanny. So to have this fullness around my neck counteracts that fullness below my waist and the florals end up being much happier and festive look. I
actually love this top now, instead of dreading wearing the older one.
This was a little more extensive, cause I had to take all that old stuff off, and cut and put the new on. You can guess which took the most time. It took me days to get all that old stuff off and an afternoon to put the new on and finish it up. But in the end, I have a top that is cheerful and happy which is way better than the droopy, draggy thing before. Besides flowers seem so much more fun and happy than squares. So this was probably the most
time-consuming of all the other projects I've lately gone back and redone. But I love this red. It goes with a lot of other reds in my closet, and I can't get any more of the fabric, so the time is worth it cause of the color of the fabric.
One final example and this is more of a case of structure. I've done my fair share of tailored jackets with the rolled collar and rolled lapel, but also used those same techniques to do shaping of clothing in a certain way, but it's a very natural way without being too stiff or contrived.
So when I assembled my latest ponte jacket, I noticed that I had marked the "roll line" incorrectly. If you notice the roll line that I sewed in on the lapel, hits at the notch, not at the correct roll line (where the collar shows it should meet. This may not look like a bad deal, but when the collar then "rolls" back, it's at the notch point and not deeper into the lapel.
Notice this notched lapel (the notch is where the collar and lapel have a V indent), and how it rolls deeper into the lapel.
This is how the red jacket lapel should roll - to make the lapel wider and the roll line deeper into the jacket or lapel.
So taking out all the hand pad stitching is important as this lapel needs to roll correctly. I could press this till it responded and fold where I want, but the truth is that it wouldn't last.
Ponte doesn't respond well to hard pressing like a wool or linen or cotton jacket would. That's why the pad stitching is vital in the ponte jacket. The truth is that these lapels were pressed within a inch of the melting point of the leisure suit fabric.
Whereas if you take today's ponte which is a much finer and better double-knit type fabric, and use these old-school tailoring techniques, the jacket turns out positively remarkable.
That's exactly what's happened with this high-end ponte jacket. The hand ticking as top-stitching, the beautifully rolled collar (compare the collar above and this collar, which rolls, and is not hard pressed). These are the features of a beautifully tailored jacket.
To not take this jacket apart and sew in the roll line correctly is completely missing the whole point of making the jacket. I might as well get into a time machine and head back to the 1970s.
So for various reasons...
the orange waterfall had beautiful fabric, but fixable design flaws
the floral waterfall had droopy waterfall, and adding woven makes it fuller, flouncier and funner for spring and summer
and the ponte tailored jacket will have a much handsomer roll line and lay beautifully rolled on my body,
all had good reasons for going back into the garment and making it worth while to do.
All three are good enough reasons to go back into a finished garment and make it work correctly. The difference here in breaking the rule of finishing the garment and walking away, is that once you know the whole of making a garment, you can assess: is it worth the extra time?...is the style worth it?...is the fabric worth it?...is the lay of the garment worth it? Then you can answer if it's worth the extra time.
When you know the rules, then it's okay to break them. And most of the time, it's worth the extra time. I've only found one jacket that wasn't worth the time and had to trash it. After all the jacket's I've made, that's a pretty phenomenal statistic.
Taking a few extra days (at the most) to make a garment that you will more readily reach for in your closet, is almost always worth it.
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The SewingArtistry Resource Library is designed to contain information to not only make your sewing better, but to aid you in fit and flattery of your shape, size and style. Check it out.
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The Ponte Jacket Class has been rescheduled. We had so many who wanted to take it but couldn't get here or for one reason or another didn't work out. We've rescheduled it for September, when we are more interested in jackets, and particularly something that will make us look professional and responsible - because there are times when we need that look. You can click here to get more information for the class on September 20, 21, and 22nd. If you need any information about places to stay or other accommodation questions, simply respond to this email and I will get back to you. I love my city and love showing it off!
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