v 2127 1998 Issey Miyake woven top: tracing and altering a vintage pattern

Tracing off 2127, because these patterns are too valuable to cut. 

All ironed and ready to trace

And there's going to be some pretty heavy alteration work to size it up for me. I went by the stated body measurements to determine how much to add (not going by finished numbers, as the wearing ease for this top is an important part of the style). I traced the pattern and then carved it up 

I use a soft (2B) 2mm lead for the broad strokes and a Flare pen for the final. I try not to put any lines or marks into or on the original, so no ballpoints or hard pencils. Also: don't use Sharpies as they will bleed through.  I don't usually do much erasing, I find a soft fat lead has just the level of traction and visibility for this work. I mark all the marks and copy all the information on every piece because I won't have the original around to verify. If I am going to make lots of nonstandard alterations, I will trace a copy of my copy to alter that.

I didn't bother with that nicety this time. I did not trace the pants, either. This is probably going to be a one and done make.

This was a second pass at altering the sleeve, as I tried on the sleeve and needed more more in the biceps (vs just 'more')

The lines point to the problem: more arm than sleeve

Comparing the marks on the sleeve to the sleeve pattern and splitting it  for retracing in the photo below.

I will do another post on the instructions and the results.

Stay cool kids.

 

Follow by email? A little housekeeping news

 

If you get this blog by email, that is going to change.

I can let it go, or find a service that will accomplish that.

Whaddya want? Any suggestions for replacement services?

Let me know in the comments.

Back Off, Interwebs

 

I get at least one, if not two, emails from Spoonflower every damn day.

(this is going to be a rant, you can tell, because the very first sentence has 'Spoonflower' and a profanity already)

BACK OFF.

The more a company emails me, the less I care. My own company is so guilty of this, they ALREADY are marked as a spammer in my WORK emails (and I didn't set that).

Spoonflower is the ad I see on every webpage as well.

Yes, I design on SF, and I spend time on their website, but I honestly feel stalked by them.  And this email is just taking it one step too far. 

I have not been browsing the site; I have been logged in and managing my account. I am getting mails from them as a designer reminding me that I get a discount and that they are having another sale for bulk purchases. Not to be confused with the fat quarter sale they just had. I have lost count of those sales this year. The minute I need one, I know they won't have one, and that's okay.

It just all sounds desperate. And I hope it's not, because they provide a useful service. I know from their videos that they scaled up to meet increased demand over the pandemic, and maybe that demand has dropped but the payments on the new machines have not.

The more I hear a message, the less I hear it. The public service announcments on the bus reminding me to wear a mask. The death toll on the radio. The emails from Burda.

I do open the emails from Burda.

Courtesy of the Uniqlo deluge, I spent some quality time at work on this

Because not all chores happen in a barn

And then there's this

https://link.spoonflower.com/u/gm.php?prm=9NpFQnqOJC_760824686_257417_630&_esuh=_7_e6c9e3da3d0f53b45f8f8efbfc2dd79499b5e627c9d6f0c13ba3877bac09d7de

Sewing for Everyone's Body: See It, Be It

New to sewing?

Welcome to the Pride Edition of: If You Want It, You Should Wear It.

I am very Team "See the Thing, Make The Thing Fit You". If you see yourself as Princess Aurora, you should dress as Princess Aurora. Or Glinda. This is why cosplay is so attractive, and why most of my IG feed is cosplayers.

 So Much Creativity. So Little Judgement.

See It. Be It.

Here's me:

Are we clear? Good. 

It's easier to find a pattern and make it fit you than make you fit the pattern you think you are supposed to want. This is why sewing is a superpower, because we can see how to make the thing work for us. And we all know how powerful the image we present to the world is.

Even if it's really goofy and too warm. And nobody got it.

Look in all the pages of the pattern books. You never know what will spark joy.

If you have ambitions bigger than your present set of talents, there's information galore to bridge that gap.

Some times we go back to the classics so we are reminded of what we thought we knew. I will sit down and watch 'Singing in the Rain' and read 'Better Dressmaking' and the collected works of Kenneth King to remind me what I'm doing and why I'm here.

But on the interweb of sewing, when you want that reminder,  those classics are this:

http://www.ikatbag.com/2014/03/subtelties-in-drafting-sleeves.html

original idea at http://www.dellacivetta.org/lorenzo/techniques/drafting-sleeves/

There are many tutorials on sewing and drafting on their site, but this is the beginning introduction to Ikat Bag's gifts I point people to. It's friendly and really sums up what you are going to get: a clear eyed and friendly instruction in how to make this pattern stuff work for you, with incredible common sense presentation. 

And the other thing, a set of well considered generic patterns so you don't experience unwanted nudity, is located at:

https://freesewing.org/

Come for the patterns, stay for the community. They aren't kidding. Join the fam!

Key to this site: there's an instruction set for how to take your measurements. Please follow this, take your time, do it right, and it will all be sugar and happiness. Or jalapenos and happiness. Whichever.

Don't let anyone shame you into thinking you aren't good enough; how will you get better if you don't screw it up?

Are we really out of ideas now? Summer Jumpsuit Romper Playsuit, 2nd Edition

I think my mom made me one of these.

Hello sailor boy!

These overalls are a thing, all over the interweb, you will have to go look for it, I don't want the link-backs:

mrswongyeo.com/home/beaton-linen-overalls-review

Or perhaps:
https://ralphpink-patterns.com/products/florence-play-suit

This is a classic, and a first sew for a lot of folks:
https://www.peekaboopages.com/2012/07/vintage-pillowcase-romper.html

 Kari Jumpsuit, Seamwork photo

 https://www.seamwork.com/catalog/kari

from the webpage: "If you’re craving a garment that’s the ultimate for summer comfort, sew the Kari romper. This romper has a trapeze silhouette that disguises as a dress in drapey fabrics. Shoulder ties add a playful detail and make for easy fitting—and yes, it has pockets!"

One style to rule them all?

McCalls 8165, website photo

"Very loose-fitting pullover dresses & step in jumpsuit have sleeve & length variations." Does not come with pockets as a part of the pattern.

Amy Jumpsuit, Closet Core Patterns photo

https://store.closetcorepatterns.com/collections/sewing-patterns-all/products/amy-jumpsuit-pattern

"The Amy Jumpsuit is comfort and breezy elegance all in one tidy, minimalist package. With a figure-skimming silhouette and ultra-wide, cropped legs, it's got the soul of a floaty slip dress in the body of a jumpsuit you'll never want to take off." Pockets optional, included with pattern.

I know I had one of these that my mom made as a kid in the late 60s. Searching patterns I came up with 

https://www.ellieandmac.com/collections/adult-romper-patterns

https://www.etsy.com/listing/841476661/the-paschima-harem-jumpsuit-digital?

Oh, just go search on the term 'baggy linen overalls sewing pattern' and you'll get the idea. Also so many freebies for the self-drafters!

Meanwhile, in real sewing news,  a  link to  Spitalsfield Life: church embroideries and the broderers. You know, skip all the jumpsuits and read this great profile of the ladies who keep the faith shiny.

https://spitalfieldslife.com/2021/06/02/the-broderers-at-st-pauls/