McCall's 6436

Lots of stuff happening and most recently, some major surgery. I'm recovering quite well and have a finished object to share! Not on my person because I am not presentable! But, Lily is me so you can see how well the fit is on this shirt. 

I bought this cotton/rayon blend shirting from Fabric Mart in the spring to make a casual shirt (it washed up so nicely, I ordered 4 more yards to make a jumpsuit). I really did intend to make something with a yoke and back pleat for a casual style, but looking through my stash, McCall's 6436 spoke to me.

It has several pocket options, epaulettes, a 2-piece sleeve and cup sizing. It should be labeled a tunic because it is LONG!!!

M6436

I cut a size 16 A/B cup. I fit the pattern on my Beatrice form and made the following adjustments:

• shortened 1.25" between the waist and hip
• narrowed shoulder 3/8"
• lowered bust dart 1/2"
• added 1" to neckline opening and adjusted collar and stand to match (I have a large neck! But this was a tad bit too much. I added 1/4" to front and back. Next time I'll add 1/4" to back and 1/8" to front for a total of 3/4")
• 3/8" high round back adjustment
• sewed back seam of sleeve at 3/8" through the bicep

It has vertical back darts and shaped side seams but manages to not be super fitted. 

I usually cut pattern pieces out as I need them, especially if I am not worried about being short on fabric. I chose the inverted pleat pocket with flap and cut out the pocket pieces and front piece. I cut out the button bands and interfaced them. I marked the seam allowance of the inside edge at 5/8" and then trimmed it down before pressing it. (This fabric took every marking tool extremely well! Wax chalk, Frixion pens, my disappearing ink pen, wax paper...it was all good. I did use tailors tacks in a few key places.)

The next day, I cut out the back piece and sewed the darts, and shoulder seams. I also started the sleeves by cutting out and interfacing the cuffs.

Next, I cut the sleeve pieces out, and constructed one sleeve. I also sewed the side seams and hemmed it (by serging and doing a double turned 5/8" hem). The following day, I constructed the second sleeve and cut out and sewed the collar. 

The collarstand and collar construction was the last thing I did! LOL!!! It's so tedious but so critical to get it right! 

I made my markings after interfacing the stand to be sure everything matched up - I always draw in the stitching line along the curved edge. I also mark and press up the seam allowance of the interior stand. Another good tip - sometimes less is more when it comes to grading. It is critical not to trim things down too much or it's hard to fold it all up neatly inside. 

Next up was sleeve insertion. This fabric washed well, pressed amazingly well, took markings well, topstitched nicely...it DID NOT want to be eased! Oy! Now, this sleeve doesn't have a ton of ease which is nice, but the top portion does need easing in and it took a little work and restitching to get them in nicely.

I only had 9 of these buttons but they were really the right choice...so I used a different button on the sleeve cuffs. Shhhhh. No one will know!

I am really happy to have this in my wardrobe!! The fabric is fluid enough that it can be tucked, it can be tied, it can be worn open or closed. I'm very happy with it!

My current  knitting WIP is a drop shoulder sweater with a bit of fair isle on the sleeves. 

 

Vogue 1250

This pattern was SUPER popular back in the day! There are 127 reviews on Pattern Review and many, many people made the pattern multiple times. It's a winner. 

I was stuck on how to use Lily to fit a knit pattern. If sewing pants I would choose a size 18 and make crotch adjustments, with skirts I use a 16 front and 18 back. For tops I used to use a 14 neckline but that's not right anymore. Ultimately, I looked at the intended amount of ease and decided to use my normal Big4 sizing choices: 16 top and 18 for the back skirt.  

If you somehow managed to own this pattern but have never sewn it, it has a very interesting construction! There are 2 main pattern pieces - a front with back skirt integrated into the pattern piece and a back bodice piece. There's also a binding for the back neckline. 

I think this construction is pretty standard for cowl necks, but I am always enthralled with how neatly it finishes. There is a pleat that ends right where the cowl begins. I pinned and basted the pleat by hand. When I turned the cowl facing back on the shoulder seam, I hand basted the corner where it intersects with the back neck binding and then ran it through the serger to sew it. It ensures nothing stretches out of shape or shifts. 

For the armhole, I suggest pinning front and back bodice together, stitching for reinforcement at 5/8" about an inch and then clipping. This will allow you to hem that armhole opening neatly. Where it called for "narrow hemming", I just turned up 5/8" and coverstitched.

There were lots of versions of this by the fitting mavens of the sewing blog community and after reading a bunch of posts, I decided I would be fine just cutting the CB seam of the back skirt at an 18. Many cut along the side dart (where the side seam would sit) to add width, but I don't need extra on the front skirt...just the back. 

Here you can see the dart that closes this seam - this is where others added width. 
I just cut the CB seam (left) at the size 18 mark.

the white arrow shows the dart end!

I added 3/8" to the waist on the back bodice piece to match up to the size 18 skirt back and shortened the bodice 1 1/4". Did a 3/8" high round back adjustment, keeping the space created at the neckline (did not sew the dart). I only had 1 5/8" of fabric and the integrated front piece is a hog, so I added a CB seam to the back bodice (no fitting here, just a seam for construction and I added the seam allowance directly to the fabric).

I added 3" to the front cowl tapering to nothing at the point (do this! it helps it sit better!).

Lastly, I decided to do a 5/8" coverstitched hem (instead of the 1 1/4" included) because I liked the length.

The horizontal seam in back sits low and I was worried about it bisecting the body in a weird way. It's fine! I think it's important to get the back length of the bodice right in order for this seam to not feel "wrong" on the body and to avoid pooling. 

 

The wind was blowing fiercely, but you can see I achieved a nice fit through the waist and lower body. Yay!

I picked this fabric up from SAS Fabrics while I was in Phoenix. I went to take a pic of the finished dress on Lily and was like, what the heck?! (WTH funny vid) I did NOT see this pattern in the fabric. I moved the phone camera and looked at the dress - nope. Put the camera up - pattern. IDK what kind of optical illusion is happening! 

It is off center but I can't be bothered by that because I LOVE THIS DRESS!!! And, I just don't see the pattern when it's on my body - LOL!!!!!!

Alterations Summary:
size 16 with size 18 skirt back
add 3/8" to back bodice waist
shorten bodice 1 1/4"
3/8" high round back, adding neckline width too
2.5" added to cowl at CF
hem at 5/8" instead of 1 1/4"

I also worked up a top version using fabric from the other dress I made over the weekend. I told myself 20" but in retrospect, that doesn't even sound right! arrrgh! 

It will only be able to be worn tucked in because it's just long enough. I got this blue suiting from SR Harris and am going to make another pair of Burda 2/2013 SOON!

A Dozen Drafts: New Look 6600

I hate this dress.

I don't hate the pattern...or the brand, just the dress. 

This is a true wrap dress that would work well with a drapey linen or voile. This rayon challis-like fabric did not have enough structure. I was worried about something too firm with the fit of the skirt, but the drape of this fabric made every part of sewing it a horrible experience. 

I started with a size 16, 18 at the waist and hip. I made my half muslin and compared to the McCall's and Simplicity, the starting point was great! On the right, you'll notice I made a point of where I thought my shoulder was...but you'll see in the photos below that I was WRONG. My shoulder point is a good 3/4" away from where I thought it was on the form. This explains why the couple McCall's I made since getting the Beatrice were still wide in the shoulder. Huzzah!

Front:
1/4" armhole tuck
shortened 1" at waist

Back:
shortened 1" at waist
added 3/8" to neckline at shoulder
added 1/8" to shoulder at neck

(should have done the high round back adjustment)

I shortened the pattern 6 inches, ideal length for me would have been about 2" shorter. After stitching, I ended up taking in the side seams another 3/8". Typically with skirts, I cut a 16 front and 18 back. Also, I didn't use the facings and bound the armholes. I stitched a 1/4" guide for my bias tape (cut at 1 1/8") and then trimmed it down, turned in and topstitched.

I just couldn't get good pics, I was so over it. LOL!

Aside from my posture being worse than Lily's, it's cool to see  how the garments are the same 

on me and the form!

I really need to start adjusting for my low left shoulder.

I'm going to be so sad when these cord stops are all used up. 

They were a great addition to my stash! One of those one-off Fabric Mart finds.

I feel that the fitting process with this pattern demonstrated my ease working with New Look patterns in the past. I do feel that I should have draped the dart as it isn't quite right (same with the back skirt darts), so that's something to keep in mind. 

I'll continue to snag the NL patterns I'm interested in as they're a good fit for my body. 

some fabrics I pulled while organizing my sewing space

The mustard print and solid blue are woven, all others are knits

Fabric Mart | LA Finch x2 | SR Harris

LA Finch | Fabric Mart | SAS Fabrics | Fabric Mart

As mentioned in my abruptly ended wrap-up post, I have sewing mojo but am lacking energy. I cut out Vogue 1250 (an oldie but goodie!) and McCall's 8174 today in preparation for some sewing this weekend. I'm also hoping I get to a top from the yellow silk charmeuse I got at Fancy Tiger Crafts, as well as turning that yellow tie-dye into another nightgown using Burda 5/2016 (THIS nightgown is my absolute fave and it is now 6 years old...time for another). 

WIPs and Fitting and Stuff...

This has been a weird month. I feel like nothing has happened and yet, we're halfway through! It's currently snowing in Minneapolis. Meh. 

I ordered from LA Finch for the first time ever! The last time I was in Long Beach visiting the kids, I posted my trip to Mood and someone mentioned I should visit LA Finch, but, they were closed. All the days I've spent in Long Beach on my visits and I had no clue I was so close! My daughter and son-in-law's place is a 5 mile straight shot down Long Beach Blvd! Next time :)

I was drawn in by the 4.5 yard (3 cuts, 1.5 yards each) of the rayon twill plaids. I was hoping at least 2 of the fabrics would coordinate and, yay! I like the red and green together. I am going to make a mixed-print shirt in the fall. 

Then I saw the pink ribbed knit (after having just purchased the True Bias tank/dress pattern). So I snatched that up (it's a bit lighter weight than I'd hoped). The white knit with tonal stripes was a remnant, so I scooped that. The yellow challis I was on the fence about but it gets me close to the mustard color that I like, but not ON me. This is nicely in the middle and I plan to make New Look 6692 or Simplicity 9326:

Speaking of New Look...

My A Dozen Drafts project is in progress. I am making NL6600 and had very minimal fit changes to make. I haven't made a ton of NL patterns but I've generally been happy with them. This is the fit on my Beatrice, straight out of the envelope, pics from my IG stories:

A couple of things that I'll dive deeper into once I'm reviewing - I realized I've incorrectly identified my shoulder point on the form!! It makes so much sense on why my last two makes were still a little wide in the shoulder. I blamed McCall's giant shoulder, but I have it marked out about 3/4" further than it actually is. Again, why I still want to do an in-person class to draft a sloper, because it isn't readily apparent where certain markers are on the body. 

Specifically to this pattern, I should have lowered the bust point a bit but otherwise, it explains why I've generally been happy with the fit of NL patterns. I shortened the bodice an inch and it fits SO well through my back. Woot!

you can see in this pic that the bust dart is a little high

This fabric?! Oh my word. It is so difficult to work with. As a sewing friend said, it's a very sassy fabric! It won't listen!!! So while I'd planned on the print being vertical on the body, it was NOT working to go on the crossgrain so I gave up. This pattern takes surprisingly little fabric (caveat: sleeveless and shortened 6") so I have another cut that may work for a #2. 

Speaking of the Beatrice :) 

I still owe a review. I want to learn where *MY* markers are on it though. This dress was started during the pandemic (Burda 5/2019). I got it to the basting stage and bwahahaha! It did NOT fit. I folded it and put it away. 

Now, I have decided it isn't worth trying to make it work, but I will remake this dress 1) in a bigger size(!) and 2) with the necessary adjustments.

Shoulder is wrong:

While I commented that the back 'v' fit well...that's not true as the whole dress is too small and who knows how the back will fit in the right size.

maybe 2 sizes bigger? lololol!

ain't no butt room!

my waist point (twill tape) vs the pattern seam (my finger)

And we can again see the INCHESSSSSSssssssss of too smallness.

But my NL dress is working out well, so let's stick with that :-p

On the machine knitting front, I bought this Target cart to hold my Hague linker. It's fine but I hope I have the chance to get an actual stand. I'm going to a MK seminar next weekend and I may find one there. Otherwise, I'll eventually order one from Hague (in the UK), but I will have to be able to get an electric winder too to make the shipping worthwhile :-D So annoyed I didn't know they were available when I ordered the linking machine!

Thought I like the extra shelf options!!

And, I finished the cardigan!! I think it's about a size 5/6 so I made it with my friend's 4.5 year old in mind. I used the linker for all the seaming - the raglans, the band, and the side seams. The lavender yarn was actually a bit thick for the linker so I used the teal, I hope to find the perfect "linking yarn" that I can buy in a few colors (sort of like serger thread!). 

And I started a sweater for the youngest grandson. Not an exact match to big brother's but using the same yarn colors. 

I have ordered yarns from ColourMart (they specialize in luxury mill ends) because I can't keep being afraid to try! What's the worst that can happen? :) 

I leave you with this pic of the grandson who decided he wanted to go outside event though no one else wanted to, because it was 21 degrees. Can you spy him over by the shed? hahaha! 

A Dozen Drafts: McCall's 7834 (1 of 2)

My Simplicity is almost done (needs a hem) and it looks really good! For March, my challenge focused on McCall's patterns. I realize the gathered skirt takes me a tad bit away from my original mission, but not by much. 

I cut out a pattern size 14, which is the largest size I had in my envelope (no clue why I didn't buy the larger size) and sewed a half muslin. When I put that first muslin on Lily, I was so confused about where to even start. I went through my Pattern Review and blog history and realized I've sewn very few fitted, woven McCall's patterns. 

Now, if I'd had the larger envelope, I likely would have cut a 14 front, graded to a 16 at the waist, and 16 back. So while a smaller pattern can account for some of the issues, there was just a lot that was SO far off of my body!

Muslin #1

On the front bodice, we have a dart that's incredibly wrong for me, and the (again) obvious need for a tuck at the armhole. The second photo shows that the shoulder is a bit too long. I later realized that the neckline seamline wasn't quite reaching where it needed to.

The back bodice was a mess! 

Never mind the waist, the back waistline has elastic in it, so that gets pulled in quite a bit. But I felt at a loss with how the entire upper back was fitting. There were so many cuts and slashes and marks and...whew! 

Muslin #2:

Things got even crazier! LOL!

I realy didn't know how to add the neckline space that was needed. Turns out, according to my books, I should just raise the stitching line by the amount needed, so this slash across the chest was ignored. And if you look closely at the waist, it wasn't actually lining up where it needed to be. 

I had also aded an underbust waist dart here (later removed), and was still working on where the dart needed to be. The shoulder was narrowed here as well. 

Photo 2 of the front shows a bunch of mess. I cut the side seam with a bunch of extra fabric and drew in the stitching line and where I thought the side seam needed to be. I also slashed at the belly to allow more room (remember the dart?). 

Lastly, you may notice that the waistline isn't level. 

The back is looking much better at this point. I shortened it 1" at the waist here. I'd also taken a 1/4" tuck out the back armhole. 

I then sewed the front and back pieces together and tried it on (filling in the slashed areas as needed). When I got my Beatrice and set it up, I wasn't sure how I determine where the actual placement for neckline, armhole, shoulder, and side seams needed to be. I made some educated guesses (placing the necklace I wear daily on the form to gauge that, measuring my shoulder in a nice fitting top, etc) but it wasn't quite right. The muslin fit a lot different on me in those places than it did on the form. 

I added back the fabric I removed from the back armhole, I added 1" to the waist circumference of front and back, I removed the dart from the front waist and took a tuck to allow for the shortening of the back piece and to level the front bodice (posture+bust). 

I transferred the changes from muslin 2 to the tissue and cut out a sleeve. I had just taken a course at the virtual Sewing Expo about bodice and sleeve relationship and didn't really like the fit of the sleeve. I was so confused about the poor fit that I had to check the armhole against what was touted in books as a "good armhole".

Looks okay? It just had SO much sleeve cap ease

I attempted to shape the cap better while removing some of the ease, but realized I didn't know how to account for the large amount of additional width I needed to add to the bicep. The pattern has a 13.5" finished bicep and mine is 14.25" which, in this woven, semi-fitted bodice, I wanted a minimum of 1" of ease. So I added 2" to the bicep (finished width of 15.5"). 

The pencil lines and highlighting shows my attempts at making the sleeves fit better (I sewed 2 sleeve muslins before going back to something closer to the original cap). 

Last shot! Whew! Now, we know I would normally never in a million years consider multiple muslins, but the whole point of this exercise is to know what needs to be done for the pattern companies I tend to be interested in. But things were looking good here!!

When I shortened the back I folded out 1" which meant removing 2" of length. ooops. So never mind the side seam difference :-D

After trying this on, I was confident of the armhole/side seam point and allowing a measuring tape to fall showed a closer idea of where the side seam should be (line marked with the small pins). And while it looks like there's more room needed on the front, really, it was needed in back. The front side seam is shaped and the back is rectangular (because of the elastic). When I gathered the back waist to the length it would be with the elastic, this became clear, and I added the 1" to the back waist mentioned above (graded to nothing at the underarm). This also resolved the seemingly excess fabric in the front waist. 

I also realized I needed a little bit more of an adjustment for my rounded upper back. This adjustment went from 1/4" to 1/2".

Summary of pattern adjustments

Front:

Add 1/2" for neckline

Add 1/4" to front length

Remove 1/2" for narrow shoulder

Lower dart 1" 

Add 1" to waist circumference

Tuck at waistline 1" at side seam to match back, tapering to 1/2" at CF

Back:

Add 1/2" for high round back

Add 1/4" to the back neckline

Remove 1/2" for narrow shoulder

Add 1" to the waist circumference

Remove 1" from bodice length

Other:

Adjusted collarstand and collar pieces to match new neckline

Added 2" to bicep and shaped the cap while removing some ease

Added 2" to back skirt by cutting 1" away from the fold

Shortened lower ruffle on view B skirt by 4"

Used smaller buttons 

The bodice fits SO nicely. I am very happy with it and will post a review and pics in a follow-up post tomorrow or Tuesday. 

ETA: Finished garment post HERE

A Dozen Drafts: Pattern Fitting Challenge - January

I named my challenge!!! 

In my last blog post, I mentioned my January project will be Simplicity 1325 because I've always wanted to make it and it seemed simple enough to complete before the month was out.

Well, I rough cut the pattern pieces and was trying to fit them onto the form like that, but it was too confusing. So I figured the bodice should be cut according to the shoulder and neckline size, and the other parts should be adjusted to fit. 

The first thing I noticed was that there are no waistline markings on the bodice. STRIKE 1! 

The next thing I noticed was that there was no indication of where the back neckline was supposed to hit. STRIKE 2!!! 

NOW, I understand what my more experienced sew-sisters are talking about when they criticize patterns! It was a rough start to even begin to gauge fit when I didn't know where to line up the waist and if the back neckline was in the "right" spot or not. 

When I did my first draping exercise, I learned I have this hollow at the front of the armhole and under the bust. The only way it smooths all the way out is when I have a bust + waist dart, and a tiny armhole dart. My belly does start pretty high on my body, so that is the dead space beneath my bust and above my belly protrusion :-D It's fine.

I cut the right half (front and back bodice) from muslin and the bust dart was in the wrong spot, the bodice was too long, and the CB seam was not aligning. I have been trying to figure out shoulder adjustments for the last year or so and I think the problem is actually a rounded upper back (probably some forward shoulder action too!). Also, I am adding just a little bit of additional ease than what's seen here because it IS a pinafore -aka- meant to layer.

I'm going to leave that back armhole ease because of layering. If you look closely on the front, you'll see where the original dart was (pink + stitching lines) and how I had to redo the dart. You can also see the original cutting line (pink vertical line). On the back, there's a faint pink line below the blue line, which was the original back cutting line. 

At first, I was going to add to the CB. But I think I'm supposed to slash and align the muslin with where CB should be, and then fill in the slashed area. I have to double check my books on that! :)

Next, I was really unsure of what fabric to use for this. I knew I wanted it to be versatile enough to work with several knit tees and tops, turtlenecks, tie neck tops and button fronts that I have in my wardrobe. I had so much of this suiting on hand - it's a cotton base with cording/thicker threads woven throughout. It's been in my stash for years! 

I did a quick half scale circle skirt front, and used my draped bodice to rough cut & pin a similar style bodice front. I think the fabric being cut on the bias helps the skirt drape quite a bit...and I like the horizontal "stripe" in the bodice paired with the bias cut on the skirt. And I think the colors will work with quite a few garments I own. Probably not as versatile as a black or charcoal, but definitely more fun!

I really like it!

Today I'll be making some adjustments and getting it cut out. I can finish this by Monday, right? :-p