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Monday 5 April 2010

Slow progress

This morning I was all fired up. I took my freshly laundered black fabric with fine tan stripes and decided I wanted to have trousers, skirt and if any leftovers a little fitted waistcoat (vest).
I started by tracing off the trousers from Burda magazine Feb 2010 #102. I laid this onto the fabric and had to have the legs one below the other.

I then cut the skirt out alongside the trousers, and finally waistcoat fronts from the remainders. The waistcoat was too short last time, but I had kept the finished garment. I tried it on and determined where my waist came, and added 2 inches at the lengthen lines. I then cut the back and lining from black poly lining fabric.
Then I did all the interfacing for all three garments.
At this point I then started sewing up the waistcoat becuase it appealed to me, and I have to say I am pleased with the outcome. The waistcoat is completed and works really well with the animal print knit top and brown skirt. Instead of the back fabric belt, which I thought would be too heavy on the light weight lining, I used a short length of ribbon which is a femine touch on a slightly masculine garment.

Next I moved onto the skirt adding darts, pleats etc, only to discover when I came to sew it together that I have cut one of the fronts back to front - so I turned it upside down and now there is a notch missing at the hem.
I then wrapped the pieces of the skirt around me, and I now have serious doubts that it will fit me.
So I've stopped and shall go off to bed and see what inspiration strikes in the morning.
I may be able to gain enough from narrow side seams and folding the front bands in half rather than all the way back to the fabric. I plan to use more but smaller buttons than the original as theirs is a bit of a joke with five HUGE buttons as the closure.
Anyway if it doesn't work out I can always recut it in my favourite skirt pattern and have a zip instead of buttons.

SIGH. Oh well tomorrow is another day and the waistcoat is cute.

1 comment:

Jenni said...

Oh no. As I read down I went from happy for you to frustrated on your behalf. Do you think if you replace the buttons on the skirt with a full length zipper (closes at the bottom, plus the smaller side seams you might gain the amount you need to finish the skirt? I've seen such full length zippers in Burda before and it would be an unusual closure! Or, could you make a little doubled over strip, insert it into the seam where the button closure should be, allowing you to take the facing width as extra fabric. You could then put buttonholes (not cut open) on the strip, and sew buttons over the buttonholes, to make the skirt look like it buttoned but it doesn't (put in a back zipper?). The flap is acting as a mock placket for the buttons.
Hope today brings some inspiration.