Garden Path - Jacket - Part XXXIII

Construction, Part 3

Today I attached some narrow trim to the one of the fronts which really is some progress!

As you can see from the photos below, the narrow trim is attached to the fronts with purple beads at the peak of each scallops. I chose purple because I wanted something that did match so the trim would appear to float rather than just sewn on. The beads I'm using are size 8 in fuchsia lined aqua - that's the color name on the tube.

The photo below is a close-up, you can see that the basting is still in at this point. The basting is important because it holds everything in place while it is being beaded.

Here is what the front looks like now, ready for the next step of construction:

Without the basting, the trim looks a little bit better. You now can see that the purple beads are not very obvious:

Tomorrow I will put the trim on the other side. I then can start to prepare the flower border for attachment. Meanwhile, this evening, I think I'll make some crickets.

Parting Shot: Bicycle. Now that the kids are back in school, I can start riding my bike again. Although I workout 6 days a week, I really haven't done any real riding (used to ride 8-10 miles 6 days a week in lovely, hilly New England) since before the children were born. Between the children and teaching full time, I didn't have the time or energy to ride. I feel ready now, so I've cleaned up my bike, put a new tube in the back tire, new batteries in the computer and have been out a couple times already.

Garden Path - Jacket - Part XXXII

Next Embellishments

Thank you all for the comments regarding the children and their first day of school! They both are very happy to be back in school, so yes, they love to read, too. My daughter took her new book cover to school (after a little more embellishing and assembling by mom) and it was loved by her classmates. It is amazing what a little paint will do for the good old paper bag book cover.

It looks like I'll be ready on Monday to start work on the next embellishments for the garden border - these will also be the last embellishments, at least I think so While this garden is pretty, it needs a little something extra that all gardens have - insects!

Do you remember the crickets from Midnight Garden? They're back! They'll be green this time, as I have the perfect green beads and sequins for them. Joining them will be ants, ladybugs, bees, butterflies and a dragonfly all made of beads and sequins.

I've already started to put together the ziplock bag for the insects. Eventually, each insect type will have their very own smaller bag after I determine which beads and sequins will be used for which insects. This is much like the system I have for all the flowers. Each flower has a bag with the templates, beads, sequins and thread to make the flower. Once the flowers are done, I will take all their beads and sequins and put them in this bag for auditions.

I started on the artwork today and will be working on the final drawings tommorrow. Since they're small and reasonably simple, I should be able to finish them quickly. I've drawn inspiration from two places. One is my vintage embroidery transfer collection:

The other is from the various butterflies that Allie has stitched and used in her pieces, along with those ants that travel along the banner at the top of her blog. Her butterflies are beautiful - scroll through the link, because that link has all of her butterfly posts.

These are little creatures, so once I figure out how I want them to look, making them should be quick!

Q/A: Regarding the hat I tested for Katrin, xstpenguin had this question: "Can you tell me what you used for interfacing and in the brim?" For the interfacing I just used a medium weight fusible since the outer fabric was a heavier weight home decorator type canvas. I used buckram in the brim because I had a scrap that was just large enough to cut the two brim pieces. Lacking that I would have had to used a couple of layers of a heavier fusible or actually bought something appropriate.

Parting Shot: A Flower. The sunflower finally has a flower and now we're waiting for the typical yellow bloom. It is hard to believe that this plant which is now 7 feet tall was started from one seed planted by my son back in April.

Garden Path - Jacket Part XXXI

Construction Part 2

Today I was able to get the edges of the fronts and back done. This is a major step and I really feel that I'm in the home stretch with this project. There is still a lot to do, but I've put the majority of the work behind me. Here they are now:

Now the edges are cleaned finished and ready for the narrow trim that will be on either side of the wide border.

I will start work on that next week, as I am going to use the rest of this week to finish the flower border. I still need to attach the lily and try to get all the bead work done on it this evening. I've already removed the big rose and am working on finishing the stem ends and leaves differently to accommodate the lily instead of the rose.

By Monday, this border should be all done and ready for finishing!

Q/A: Myra had this to ask, regarding a term used in yesterday's post: The sleeve head makes all the difference in the appearance, but what is feathering? Feathering refers to pulling out, tapering and thinning the edges of batting or other similarly textured material so that there is no hard, cut edge. A hard edge could possibly show through on the right side of the garment, which of course, is undesirable. In the photo below, the piece on the left has been feathered while the piece on the right has not.

Parting Shot: Book cover. My daughter needs a new book cover for one of her textbooks and wanted to make another painted paper bag cover. We custom mixed some Lumiere paints and she's just thrilled with the color!

Garden Path - Jacket - Part XXX

Construction, Part One

This is the 30th jacket post! You do know that means the project is getting closer to the end, right? I made a list today and it looks reasonable for me to have this ensemble completely done by the end of September. That's my goal, and it is very doable. The jacket border just needs another lily plus the filler leaves/flowers, and after that it is all construction and finishing work.

So far, I've assembled the jacket fronts and backs and set in the sleeves, plus made the same pieces in the lining. Once these pieces are completely finished at the bottom edge, I will not be able to get to the inside easily, so all the inside finishing such as shoulder pads must be done at this time.

This jacket definitely needs shoulder pads. Not only does it need those, but it also needs sleeve heads. Working with quilted fabrics is much like working with fabric that is much like medium weight to sometimes coat weight wool with the exception that the quilted fabric is not as easily molded as the wool is with heat and steam. I have found that for my personal tastes in design and art form, my quilted fabrics actually work very well with traditional tailoring methods and materials such as sleeve heads and hair canvas.

To start with, I've used 1/2" shoulder pads for this jacket. For regular apparel I rarely use this size, usually it is something smaller in height. Because I have sloping shoulders and because the shoulder is fairly well defined in jackets from the late 40's/early 50's, the 1/2" shoulder pad gives me the right look.

I've also decided to add sleeve heads to these sleeves. Even with the shoulder pad, the shoulder was not quite filled out enough due to the weight of sleeve fabric. I did a little research using both Claire Schaeffer's Couture Sewing Techniques and Roberta Carr's Couture The Art of Fine Sewing and made my own using the silk batting that I use for the quilting. I used a full thickness, cut a long rectangle, folded it in half lengthwise with one edge slightly longer than the other, rounded the corners and feathered the edges a bit. The reason for the rounding and feathering is so that there is no show through from the right side - not likely with the quilted fabric, but it is the right way to do things. Once made, I hand stitched the sleeve head to the seam allowance right at the seam line so that it extended into the sleeve.

This is what is looks like if I turn the sleeve inside out a bit so that you can see the sleeve head:

Now this seems like a lot of fuss over just the shoulders, but take a look at the two shoulders, first with shoulder pad and sleeve head:

Second, without:

See the difference? The first one does not slope as much, nor is the sleeve cap dimpled in. To be honest, it really didn't take that much extra time to put the sleeve heads in, but it really makes a big difference.

Here is in the inside of the shoulder, all completed:

These pieces are now ready for the bottom edge to be finished and the first part of the borders and trim.

Parting Shot: First Day of School. Here they are, ready for the first day of school! They're both excited to go back - they like school. My daughter is now in Jr. High, and my son is still in elementary.

Testing, Testing

I don't think most of you know, but I am a pattern tester for Katrin. She sells various patterns for some of her cool creations in her DaWanda shop, Sew-Mad and she's just come out with a new hat pattern.

When I test a pattern, I not only read through the directions for clarity and good English translation (her native language is German, and yes, her directions are clearer than BWOF!) but also make a sample to make sure the pattern pieces all go together properly.

This newest pattern is for a hat, but I've tested bags and wallets in the past. This is a great pattern and very easy to make! It has just 3 pieces, lots of brim options, is finished nicely inside, takes very little fabric and can be made in very little time. I made my test version in less than three hours with materials I already had in my collection - total cost: $0.00.

Here's my test version, I've made the hat with the brim that is wider in front and narrower in back. I've also added a flower pin for fun; it can be removed if I don't like it.

As you can see from the photo below, the inside is lined and is finished with grosgrain ribbon.


If you'd like your own pattern, visit Katrin's DaWanda shop, Sew-Mad to get one! She does do international orders (I believe that most of the patterns are downloads so no shipping!), so as long as you've got an email account you're set. Her shop is mostly in German, but if you have any questions, just contact her through her shop or blog and she will respond in English if you prefer.

Parting Shot: Up High. Wellington has found a new place to sleep: way up high on the shelves in my sewing room.

Garden Path - Jacket - Part XXIX

Lilies and More, Part 2

I've got one lily done! I am so much happier with how this one turned out:

I also got one of those large roses replaced, and the other two will be replaced later this week. Here's the gerber daisy replacement:

Lastly, I still need to add some very small flowers around the lily, you can see the start of the bead selection process below, where I'm trying to find the right bead and sequin combo for the centers. If those blue and purple little flowers look familiar, they are. They're another flower that's being reused from another project - those are the smallest size of the Forget Me Knot flowers.


Once I get these flowers done, I'll be done with the flowers. I will still need to add in some leaves for filler, and then it will be on to the next embellishment phase. Oh yes, there is more to come!

Parting Shot: Pumpkin Update. This was the little pumpkin with the flower attached that you saw last week. It has grown to over 4 times the size it was last week in just a week. It is now the size of my son's hand, and it still has growing to do. These pumpkins won't get really, really big, as they are only the smaller pie pumpkins. He's actually got quite a few pumpkins growing now.

Garden Path - Jacket - Part XXVIII

Lilies, Part 1

I've got all the flowers stitched on to the border except the lilies. No problem. I made all the lily parts, stitched the lily on, took a good look at it and - I'll give you one guess here - I hated it. Take a look:

I asked the children what they thought. I got replies like, it looks like an octopus or a Christmas tree star. One of the children astutely pointed out that it couldn't be an octopus because it didn't have eight legs, it only had six. Regardless, this was not the reaction I was hoping for. At least with the other flowers they can be readily identified as flowers!

Well, that of course brings me back to the drawing board. A very long time ago when I started this project, I made both paper and metal templates for almost all the flowers, lilies included. I pulled out the metal template, some white satin, and the wood burning tool and cut some samples. This one at least looks more like a lily:

For Sample #2, I decided to make a new template and to try to turn the petals under a bit. My daughter wanted flowers instead of balloons for her birthday party (you know they're growing up when they don't want balloons anymore!), so she picked out some peach colored lilies and alstromeria. Fortunately for me, I was able to steal a sample petal and make a new template. This is Sample #2, with a little help from a Sharpie marker, too:

Sample #3 is the best of the lot, with some petals curving under and some not, for a little more depth and texture. You can see the new template in this photo, too.


Now, will it fit and how will it look with the other flowers?

Not too bad actually! I went to Jo-ann's this afternoon in search of cheap orange satin and to my delight, they've already put out such fabric for making Halloween costumes.

Now, I've also not been in love with the very large roses. For some reason, even though they are big, the daises and coneflowers overshadow them. I've decided to remove them, just the very large ones, not the medium ones or rose buds. I actually like those because they do not have beads, sequins or any sort of sparkly thread. They are neutral in that sense and provide a resting place for the eye from the glitter.

The large rose at center back will be replaced with a lily, and the two at the side seams with a new flower, the gerbera daisy. This daisy is larger than the white variety, will be bright pink like the roses, and is large in real life, too, with blooms of 4 to 5 inches. I will make the centers in bright green, which will be different from the white ones.

Between tonight and tomorrow, I'll be doing quite a bit of removing, making new petals and attaching new flowers. I hope to get that last piece of narrow trim done, too.

Parting Shot: Nice Roses. I am certainly not going to rip these ones apart! My husband sent me roses for our anniversary tomorrow - 16 years!

Knit Top Modesty Panel Tutorial

By request of Trudy, I've put together a tutorial for making a modesty panel. Let me start off by saying that Jalie 2804 includes this panel already in the pattern - it is an optional piece. You can see this piece below printed on Jalie's instruction sheet, it is letter F.

If your pattern does not have this piece, you can make your own by following the steps below. This way, you can make for yourself this piece for any pattern you desire.

Step 1: Make a full bodice front pattern. You'll need a full bodice front to start the drafting. If your pattern is a crossover style top, you won't have a full front. What you will need to do is flip over the pattern piece and trace another front. You can then overlap the two pieces, aligning center fronts, side seams and any other markings to make a full front.

Now, trace the other half and you'll have a pattern for the full front.

Step 2: Mark bottom of panel piece. For my daughter, I've come down 4" (10cm) from the underarm point and drawn a horizontal line across the front bodice. For an adult or an adult with an FBA, you might need 6" or 8". The extra length will help the piece to stay in place a little better without potential for riding up over the bustline.



Step 3: Mark the top of the panel piece. This part is a bit tricky, as everyone has their own modesty comfort level, so the height of the piece will vary with the wearer (or parent!). It is better to mark too high and cut off extra than to still be too low. Draw a horizontal line across the upper bodice at the desired height.

Then add another horizontal line 3/8" above that line for an allowance for elastic or finishing.

Step 4: Draw in the armscye. This panel will be sewn into the side seams and into the armscye during construction, so the shape at these seams will be the same as the bodice front, with one small change. The top of the panel needs to be a little smaller than the actual bodice piece. This will cause it to stretch when worn and hug the body better. Just a little will do it - 1/8" on either side for a child or 1/4" on either side for an adult. Any more and the armscyes at the top of the panel will be pulled towards center front, which looks a bit odd. When drafting, taper from the 1/8" down to the actual armscye in a smooth line.

Step 5: Add a curve to the top of the panel - optional. You can leave to the top of the panel straight if you'd like. It does look nice for it to have a slight curve. To do so, make a mark at center front 1/4" below the top cut edge. Then taper from the armscye down to that center front point on either side in a nice curve. You can see in the photo below that the front dips a little below the orange horizontal line.

That's it - it is easy to draft.


Now that you have a pattern piece, what do you do with it? First, you can finish the top edge by zigzagging a piece of elastic to it, turning it to the inside and top stitching or you can just turn the seam allowance to the inside and top stitch it. The elastic is preferred for hugging the body better. The bottom edge could be hemmed too, but since this is a knit, it really doesn't need it and adds bulk to the bustline/torso area. Then, once the front bodice is constructed, place the right side of the panel to the wrong side of the front aligning the side seams and armscye. Baste these pieces together along the seam lines and continue construction (adding sleeves and side seams) as usual stitching the panel in along with the other layers. If you're unsure of the height, try it on or hold it up before finally stitching those sleeves and side seams.

The draft shown above is for Jalie 2449, the crossover top, which does not have this panel. I'll show you the results either Saturday or Monday.

BTW, for Myra: the fabric for my daughter's latest knit top (Jalie 2804) came from Kashi at Metro Textiles in NYC.

Parting Shot: Little Pumpkin. My son was excited to find a few pumpkins in the garden yesterday. I'm relieved, too. I was afraid he wouldn't get any pumpkins, as we were seeing a lot of flowers, but no pumpkins. We might get a couple of watermelons, too, if the weather is warm long enough, as we saw a couple of those, too.

School Clothes 2009

Jalie 2804 - Crossover Empire Top

I finished another Jalie top yesterday, #2804, the crossover empire top. These tops are perfect for school clothes - the poly/lycra is hard wearing, each top takes very little fabric and I can make them quickly on the serger.

I made this one in a size 12, although I probably could go up one more size, just to make sure that there's some extra growing room. I also added 1 1/2" to the neckline edge of the modesty panel - a little more modest that way.

This one also has the plush lingerie elastic in the modesty panel:

I did all the hems with the coverstitch machine:


It looks like I'll finish another knit top tomorrow, so I'll have time this week to trace and cut out a few more things!

Parting Shot: Sunflower, Update. The sunflower is now much taller than I am (not a hard feat!) and is producing a flower. Now it will be fun to try to keep to the birds and squirrels away from it.

Garden Path - Jacket - Part XXVII

Progress Report

I'd like to thank you for the sweet comments on my daughter! I am thankful that God has blessed us with such an pretty and interesting child.

Just a progress report today on how things are progressing!

I got the sleeves into the jacket and the jacket lining assembled, plus experimented with shoulder pads and sleeve headings. I think both will be necessary with this one to give it a nice shoulder line. Quilted fabrics seam to need the extra support that traditional tailoring methods offer.

I did have a quick question regarding the adjustment of the sleeve cap from designdreamer: "The piece that that was cut off that you show here, was that the only piece cut off? I was under the impression you cut it off in stages?" I only cut off one piece, the one shown in the photograph. From my post: "So, I began the process: unpin, draw a new seam line, baste, repin, check." Notice there was no trimming in there. I knew it would take several tries to get it right, and I did want to have to figure out two or three narrowly trimmed pieces would have to go back together, to say nothing of how inaccurate the piece would then be to use as a template or pattern piece. It was much easier to mark each try, and then trim once when the desired effect was achieved.

I received the 21 yards of soutache and 4 gross (576) of Swarovski heat set rhinestones from the Rhinestone Guy (see sources on the right for the link) in the color Jonquil in the mail this week. I will put the soutache to use either today or tomorrow making more braided trim. The rhinestones will have to wait until all assembly is complete - I'll show what I'm going to do with those later.

I am *still* working on the flower border. Sigh. I'm getting close to the just about finished point. What I mean by that is that I will still be filling in spots with leaves and a few more flowers and adding anything else I feel would be a finishing touch. The majority of the border should be done at the end of the week - I still need to do one more large rose, the two lilies and some pansies. Here's how it looks now - this is the front that was just being started (scroll down, its the 5th picture in the post) a couple of weeks ago:

The plan for the rest of the week is to finish the narrow trim and to get that flower border to the just about finished point. Next week I'll work more on jacket assembly!

Parting Shot: Cheesecake. For her birthday, my daughter requested a hazelnut-vanilla cheesecake from Baking With Julia. It was very good - even though the recipe called for cottage cheese and light cream cheese, which based on my experience are good for keeping things light calorie-wise, but not always good for texture.

School Clothes 2009

First Piece - Jalie 2794, Sweetheart Top

Wow, this is only the first piece and it is the middle of August! Not good! We went on vacation later this year, plus I knew I didn't have to start from scratch like last year, so I haven't really got started sewing the school clothes. In the next few weeks, expect to see more tops (5 total), a jumper, maybe a skirt and a new music bag. Then I'll start working on my son's requests!

As usual, Jalie did not disappoint in the knit top pattern department! This top was really quick to put together, and was done in probably less than 3 hours of sewing. After taking her measurements in metric, I ended up cutting a size 11. This fits her perfectly, which means I'll probably need to make another larger one in the spring. Not a problem, this one only took 1 yard of fabric, and I have 2 yards left! I did raise the neckline by 1" and probably could have raised it at least another 1/2". I'm pretty sure she'll pass school dress code, but I told her not to worry, I'd fix this one or just make another one if it wasn't right. I was very pleased with the length - this one is nice and long, which is great because my daughter has a long torso.

Other than that minor alteration, I did not deviate from the pattern. I did find a small piece of plush back lingerie elastic for those center front gathers. I thought this might be a bit softer than regular elastic or clear elastic.

Yesterday I was able to get two more tops cut out, Jalie 2804 and a Simplicity. These tops are so easy that tomorrow all I've got to do is sleeves, side seams and hems and the Jalie will be done. Between the serger and the coverstitch machine, these tops are a breeze to make!

Parting Shot: Tags. My son wrapped all of my daughter's birthday presents for her celebration tonight. This afternoon he realized he didn't have tags and decided to make some himself. Armed with markers, paper, scissors, tape and some ribbon from Mom, he made his own tags and was happy that the presents were "complete".