an overshirt for my summer uniform, Simplicity 1538

If at first you don't succeed, toile, toile again.  However, I wonder if I am just charging on, making whatever I please with whatever fabric I please and using the excuse when it turns out less than expected:  oh, this was a toile.  Still, it is a very pretty toile.

This piece of fabric was 2 1/2 yards of plaid cotton blend, 60" wide. This fabric was milled in Italy for a NY designer.   When it came in the mail, it was 15 oz. total weight,  90" long, actually nearly 3 yards, for a total price of $13.  Fabric Mart described it as a Dusty Lavender/Dark Avocado/Dusty Rust/Black Cotton/Polyester Yarn-Dyed Plaid,  $5.25/yd.  Since it was initially very stiff, it was described as "will stand away from body".  At that point, it stood up on its own.  After it was machine washed and dried it softened to a taffeta-like consistency and remained 60" wide and over 2 1/2 yards long.  This is an unbalanced plaid so it was cut to flow from one piece to the next rather than plaid matching the pieces in the usual way.  

The first task was cutting out the fronts in the appropriate spots on the plaid to allow the plackets to fall in the black vertical portions.  The pockets are to be cut on the bias.  That is necessary because the dart lies under the pocket, making it impossible to match the plaid all the way around.  Instead, these are cut to match the front.  The bias cut did not look right in this unbalanced plaid.  The first pocket was sewed on the left front, starting at the corner immediately above the dart.  Lining up the plaid there put the mis-alignment on the side of the pocket toward the center.  The right-front pocket is marginally better aligned but brought to my attention that the plaid is not quite square.

Note:  The pockets are small, about 4" square.  

Cutting out the back, a large piece, made it obvious that the plaid is not quite square.  Probably why this was considered deadstock, perhaps another term for designer cast offs.  The difficulties in cutting made it apparent that plaid is not a good option for a toile, as it puts too much work into something that may not fit and may not be worth adjusting.  The yoke was cut horizontally, per instructions.

The sleeves seemed long, so they were shortened by 3".  Plaid matching is a guess, trying to put the prominent black stripe somewhere along the armhole since most of the front armhole sits in that stripe.  In hindsight, the stripes alongside (or below) the black should have been the point of match--maybe matching the sleeve notch would work?  The sleeves are too short, but not drastically so since the shoulders hang over about an inch.  

Note:  the continuous lap needs to be cut longer than the pattern piece.  The sleeves should be a couple of inches longer, but not as long as the pattern piece.

Plackets are on.  No real problems, except to say that sewing the right side of the placket to the wrong side of the shirt and then folding it over to the right side makes it quite difficult to cut it out so that the plaid matches.  As far as mods, there is only one line of topstitching because this shirt is less western and my topstitching skills are not that good yet.  Cutting out the band and collar, cutting the interfacing, and then fusing it on took as long as sewing the collar and attaching the band to the shirt. Collar, buttonholes, buttons, all done with no problems except that the buttons are hand wash only.  I wash my clothes in cold water and hang to dry.  However, the buttons may not be a problem unless the shirt is worn frequently.  That is doubtful because it is still quite stiff and a bit confining. The fabric has the feel of rip-stop nylon--high quality nylon, like a rain jacket.

Hmm, the verdict is pending on this shirt.  (the color in the photo above is off) It looks good to me.  If it turns out to be more comfy than it currently seems, it would be possible to cut off the short sleeves, thereby reducing the shoulder overhang, and add longer sleeves.  There is enough fabric left to make another set of sleeves and cuffs.  Extra fabric is a good thing!

My Summer Uniform, a plan

Now that my sewing output is more varied, encompassing a casual jacket or two along with the usual skirts and dresses, a plan for a standard "outfit" has come together.  (According to some, this is called a capsule wardrobe formula.) It's true, my idea is to formulate a plan for a summer wardrobe.  This plan has three pieces:  a skirt (or pants), a t-shirt, and an overshirt (or jacket, or sweater, or vest).  Adding the third piece, the overshirt, will provide a little cover, both for occasional cool temperatures and to dress up my usual casual attire.  It will take a lot of sewing, but if I work with what I have and stay on goal, it should be successful.

The idea came with my most recently sewn item, a simple gathered skirt with pockets.  The inspiration came from the fabric, a luxurious linen from Taos Adobe.  This skirt was my big sewing success, quick and easy to sew, comfortable to wear and easy to use (the pockets).  The pattern was the Pocket Skirt, a Paper Theory pattern available online from Peppermint Magazine.   The fabric was 2 yards of black linen with a total price of $26.00.  It was a lightweight, sheer linen that needed a lining (100% cotton broadcloth from Hobby Lobby, $11).  The skirt is not fully lined.  The lining was cut at the end of the side top piece, making it end at my knee.  The linen skirt is almost another 10" longer after hemming and provides a satisfying swish around my calves.  

After all 4 seams were sewn and the edges serged, the lining was serged to the skirt at the top edge.  Then the lining and skirt were stitched together along the fold line.  Finally, the band was folded over and topstitched down through the serged stitching.  The pockets are the right height.  This skirt took the full 2 yards, with maybe 1/4 yard leftover.  It is a successful toile that will be repeated. There's 4 yards of cotton voile in my stash that might be enough make a skirt and a shirt.

Quirks of an old sewing pattern and a sewing blog

First, there came a soft, thin cotton fabric that did not make it to my stash.  It was much nicer than I expected for a mere $3/yard, $9 total.  Fabric Mart described it as "Rainy Gray/White/Dark Blood Red/Wheat 100% Cotton Vertical Stripe Weave Shirt Weight".  The cut was slightly over 3 yards and remained very close to 45" wide after washing.  It irons nicely but reverts to a slightly rumpled look after ironing.  Sewing this into a shirt was a break from my Green for Spring theme, but it might fit into my closet considering the recent additions of a black skirt and black pants.  

The pattern is for a shirt from 1977, McCalls 5647.  Although a newer pattern would provide more options in sizing and styles, the vintage pattern was chosen for the short sleeves.  This fabric is thin and might be wearable in the summer heat.  It has pleats and 3 length options.  My earlier success with a McCalls pattern from the same era and in the same size made me think 5647 would be a good fit, both in my wardrobe and for me.  However, the style and cut in this short sleeved shirt were different.  The safe approach was to use this inexpensive fabric and hope for the best.

The sizing in 5647 seemed quite large for a 12, bust 34, but that is deceptive.  There is 10" ease at the front, but there is a 3" pleat.  The back is even smaller.  

Notes:  The stitching line around the bottom of the slash line measures 3/4" wide.  It is an inch high, but that probably does not matter.  Its purpose is to reinforce the bottom of the slash.  The 1 1/4" wide stitching lines below the placket, which are merely the front folded over, eliminate any way to match the stripe unless the stripe pattern repeats at 1 1/4".  The notch on the left front facing and on the front, the matching notch, are cut inward--a bit confusing and thus worth noting.

With the front placket completed, the pocket was attached to left front.  The raw edges on the inside were finished with a little zigzag to stop them from fraying.

Laying the pieces out for cutting was done in the traditional manner, with the stripes running lengthwise on the collar and stand, vertically on the front and back, and horizontally on the yoke.  Pocket stripes are vertical so that the pocket can be  matched to the shirt front.  

On thinking through the pattern construction steps, it is apparent that shirts have few exposed seams, just the ones on the side seam and armhole.  This is an advantage that makes me view sewing shirts more favorably.

Collar construction was tricky.  However, it went on smoothly.  Hand stitching the points on the stand neatened up the attachment to the shirt.  Although the collar facing was secured by topstitching it was also hand stitched on the edge for comfort.  Watching a Pattern Scout video revealed that the collar should be shaped by ironing it before sewing.  The video also included a neat trick for sewing the end of the stand around the placket by tucking the placket inside the stand, sewing the stand ends on the wrong side and then pulling the placket right side out.   

The sleeves are short.  There was enough fabric left for long sleeves, even after cutting out the short ones.  The thought of trying out one of each tempted me, but the short sleeves are fine.  The sleeves have a cuff that is hemmed in a clever fashion, encasing the raw edge of the hem into a tuck that forms the top of the cuff.

Setting in the sleeves is truly old school.  There is only one line of gathering stitches.  A thread is pulled at the top of the sleeve to gather the ease.  The stitching runs around the armhole, with stitch length shortened to form stay stitching in the lower armhole and lengthened to form gathering stitches between the notches.  This is such a novel, multi-purpose approach, much simpler than the current method of sewing in two lines of gathering stitches, one on each side of the seamline, and pulling the loose threads of both to make the easing even.  It worked well.

The shirt was hemmed about an inch shorter than the tunic length.  It is a basic wardrobe piece, but it is too close fitting for my taste.  Also, the pocket is too high.  My dislike of the high pocket is either an indicator that it is just too small for my proportions or it might just be me, because other shirts have pockets at this level.

I could get rid of this pattern.  There is no bust dart.  It is slim-fitting, making me assume that the size 12 only worked in the other pattern because the fit was oversized.  I could make it again, enlarging it as best I can, but I don't love the style enough.

If you are still with me, let me admit another failure.  I lost my blog post editing, temporarily.  I attribute it to a new security requirement.  Thanks, google.  In poking around my blog setting to try to determine the source of the problem, I noticed that I had failed to change my e-mail address--years ago.  All this time, I thought I had turned off the comments.  No.  I just didn't get the messages that I had a comment awaiting moderation anymore.  Now I am debating.  Do I need comments?  Can I even turn them off?  This debate is not major.  If you would like to comment or ask a question, I will get a notification now.  I can review the comment and decide whether to publish it.  I can also respond, most likely by posting a comment below yours, which is no use except to anyone who reads the comments later.  I may be able to respond directly if you have a profile linked that includes a contact address.  I have opened the comments to anyone, but they are moderated.  

My purpose here is to provide a record of sewing up a pattern as an aid in sewing up the pattern a second time.  Increasingly, I find that I remember the pattern steps when I attempt it again.  I do consult my notes here, but my skills are reaching the point where I don't need them.

All to say that if this blogging stops, that doesn't mean I stopped sewing and knitting.  Comments are nice, but I dress for myself now.