Sewing For Men

I have made ZERO progress on the suit jacket other than fitting and getting the pieces cut out, because things have been completely insane around here. Work has been more nuts than usual, and I have to go to our Kansas City campus next week to host a training seminar. But, that doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about sewing.

Since I have started sewing in earnest again, one of the things that has been relatively disappointing is the dearth of patterns for men. I would really like to sew something for my husband, but when this is the caliber of what is out there:


What the hell are you gonna do? So, I picked up this Japanese pattern book on Ebay:


Now, we all know that I don't read Japanese. But fortunately, I know the basics of shirt construction...enough so that if I can figure out the drafting of the patterns and the seam allowances that I can assemble the shirts. The shirts themselves are VERY stylish:


I have decided that I will start with shirt number 3, a basic collared shirt with a collar stand, back yoke with pleat, and sleeve placket (some people call this a "gauntlet"):

Here is an image of one of the pattern sheets...It is not too different from tracing from Burda, except it appears that the seam allowances are included on these, just that they vary from piece to piece. And they are in centimeters. Which is very confusing. Which makes me want to trace the pattern pieces without them and just add my own. Which essentially neutralizes the incredible levels of work that it takes to decide how to vary those seam allowances to save you from having to trim them, yadda, yadda, but I'm lazy and don't want to think about metrics....I know...I know.....


Anyway, speaking of tracing, here is a fun little hint....I have been using soil separator fabric to trace my patterns ever since I heard about it on pattern review. BUT, I have been struggling with trying to find something to trace with. Pens, markers, sharpies...they all bleed through. But pencils don't leave any mark. So the other day, I took some scraps of soil separator to the art supply store and played around with all the markers and crayons seeing which would bleed through, which would rub off on my hands, and found these Neocolor crayons:


They are soft enough that it is super-easy to draw on the soil separator fabric, it doesn't bleed through, and as long as you don't use the black or dark grey....it won't rub off on your hands! So, I have been tracing patterns today. I'm really happy with these little crayons. We'll see how these work for a while.

So, do you sew for your menfolk? What are your favorite patterns?

Getting Started on the Suit

This past week I was able to stop wavering on what I wanted to make and get started on my "test run" of my wool suit. I also lost 10 pounds which on one hand made me very happy, but on the other hand, made it really, really hard for me to make decisions about alterations...do I alter for what my body looks like today? Knowing that in a few weeks everything might be baggy? Do I alter with a little less ease than normal? What to do, what to do? I don't want to put all this work into something just to have it exiled to the "fat clothes" end of the closet.

What I finally settled on was a little less ease than I usually like AND rather than finishing the seams by serging the allowances together, serging the edges of the pieces before assembly, and then pressing the allowances open...which will allow for ease of alterations later should my weight loss continue (fingers crossed).

I decided that I would go with a pair of pants and a short jacket for the suit, since that would get more wear than a skirt. For the pants, I am using Vogue 2907, but have made some small changes such as adding a lining and redrafting the fly front.

I had made this pant three times before in my "Quest for Pants," and the fly front has a very skimpy overlap. In fact, if you use their pattern pieces and instructions, the zipper pull is visible when you wear them. So, I used Sandra Betzina's method, and just drew on a cut-on fly on the pattern piece. There were probably about 9 times that I said "No, that CAN'T be right" but in the end it came out perfectly, with plenty of overlap, and it was super-simple. I didn't even use pins. Seriously.

I also added a lining. I just used the pattern pieces from the pants. Since the pants had front pockets, and of course you don't need those for the lining, I just overlaid the side front pieces over the pants fronts to cut out the lining. The lining is cut to the same length as the FINISHED pant, and then hemmed, so that it doesn't sag out of the pant leg. Also, to keep the lining from tearing, sew it with 1/2 inch seam allowances so it is slightly larger than than the pants.



I also used buttons rather than large hooks and eyes for closures. I used hooks on my other pairs and didn't like they way they came out:


I used black piping along the pocket edges to coordinate with the buttons, and will also use the same piping on the jacket lapels and pockets:




Here is a shot of the inside. I used a gray lining to coordinate. It's not the greatest job in the world, but this is also my first lined pant, so I'm hoping that it will get better as I make more pairs of lined pants:


And here is the pant on:


Overall a good fit from the front, and not horrible from the back. I could stand to add some to that back leg, but that it what my wavering over alterations got me...fitting for today, or fitting for my hopes for tomorrow. I have enough in the seam allowance that I can go in and let out the inseam and it will drop those diagonal wrinkles right out. I will probably do that next week. The thing is...it only shows up in the flash from the camera, it doesn't show up in the mirror. So...do I really want to bother? I will mull this over....


As for the jacket...I have thought about the longer jacket and I have decided that I just really really like McCall 5935:


At the last sale at Hancock's I also picked up Vogue 8481, and plan to use the instruction and tailoring information from it:

Hopefully, I will have some time tomorrow to get the jacket cut out and get started on the interfacing. Overall, I am very pleased not only with the way this project is coming out, but with what I have been learning.

Breaking into the Portland Fabrics

Today was so cold and rainy, it made me want to start sewing with those nice wools I brought back from Portland!

I have been having some trouble trying to decide what to do with my grey and blue plaid wool blend. I would like to make a suit, but want to keep the lines simple so that matching the plaid doesn't get too complex.


There are three jacket patterns that I am considering that I really like the shape of. The first is McCall 5935, which is a fairly traditional single-breasted blazer from the front, but the back has the added interest of a little peplum. The pattern photo even gives a sample of one in plaid.



The second option is Vogue 8481, a Claire Schaeffer Custom Couture pattern. This one would be a good option because of the additional tailoring and construction information that is included in Claire Shaeffer's patterns. Fortunately, both McCalls and Vogue patterns are on sale this weekend at Hancock's, so I can pick these up to make muslins.

Another option is Burda Magazine 09/2009/111, a longer jacket with an interesting lapel. I'm not sure about the length, though. I have always worn shorter jackets because I have always been of the mind that trying to hide a wide hip under a longer jacket merely draws attention to them. But then again, does chopping the body horizontally at it's widest point not do the same thing? I am torn and therefore considering a longer jacket.
For pants, I have found that of all the muslins that I have made, one of the ones that get the most wear are the ones that I made from Vogue 2907:

The shape of the legs are flattering, the waistband hits in a comfortable spot, and I like the wide, contoured waistband. Now that I have worked out all of my fitting issues in pants, I am sure that I can alter these to get rid of the bunching under the buttocks, really the only issues that I had with this pattern originally (but of course the one issue that took me the most work to figure out how to fix).

Otherwise I might make a skirt. Maybe a pencil skirt with a high waist, like McCalls 5590:


I recently read a review for this skirt in Ann's Gorgeous Thing's blog recommending sewing short pieces of boning into the seam allowances at the waist to keep it from folding over. Another option would be Butterick 5249:


I could see using view A, and then turning the center panel so that the plaid was on the bias in the center. Of course I don't know how that would look in comparison to the jacket, unless you were to use some bias in the jacket as well, such as on the pocket flaps.

I think I certainly have a lot of decisions to make, but since the patterns are on sale this weekend I will probably go ahead and pick them up...that way I can compare instruction pages, pattern pieces, even make muslins for comparisons before settling for one or the other.

I would appreciate any input from anyone who has made a suit before though, especially anyone who has worked with plaids. I am excited to get started on this project! But planning is pretty fun, too! It is of to the fabric store tomorrow for patterns, and hopefully I will be able to decide!

I think I will also give a test run using a gray herringbone that has been aging in my stash for about a year now:


I remember it came from Fashion Fabrics Club via one of their crazy sales for the princely sum of about $3.00 a yard, and it MUST have been sold to me as something other than wool, because at the time I would not have purchased wool because I had an absolute FEAR of linings and never would have purchased wool. However, today I gave it a burn test and according to this handy-dandy little webpage I think that it must have been mis-marked because I think it is actually wool.

All the same, I will feel a lot more comfortable giving a longer jacket or a high-waist skirt a try in $3.00 a yard fabric than I would in the "let's-just-not-talk-about-how-much-I-spent" Portland fabric. Seriously, when you live in a crappy fabric town, you go a little nuts when presented with the real stuff!! It's easy to resist online, but once you touch the lusciousness, you are lost!

My Portland Fabrics Arrived!!

Today my box of fabrics that I bought in Oregon arrived! I was so excited! Somehow I expected it to be larger considering the amount I spent, but oh, well....It is good quality fabric, something we have in short supply in this neck of the woods.

First up, the fabrics from Fabric Depot. I'll start with two very nice cotton shirtings. The one with blue stripes is for a shirt for my husband:


It is so silky, you would hardly believe it. But for the price, it had better be! The second shirting is a textured cotton, I darkened the image so you can see the texture, but it is white, not grey:


I got this one for a work shirt for me. Actually, pretty much everything I got were for work clothes. I can get fabric for casual clothes here, but dressier fabrics are harder to find. Next, i got enough of this wool/poly blend suiting for a pants suit. I also picked up the blue lining to go with it:


My favorite piece is this wool/cashmere suiting. I only got enough to make a pair of dress pants...because it was waaay expensive:


It feels so soft and nice. I also picked up a piece of poly suiting that felt so soft...normally I avoid 100% poly, but this felt just awesome. I bought the last of the black that they had, and my friend Laurie bought the brown to use in a dress. I don't know what I'll use it for...whatever it is, it won't have a lining!


I know that I should "get over" my aversion to polyester...that it's "not your mother's polyester," that there are lots of nice polys out there that are not thick and scratchy the way that they were in the 70's. In fact, I have some wonderful pants from Ann Taylor that are poly and have a beautiful drape, and I have also purchased some poly knits from Gorgeous Fabrics that were fantastic.

Finally, I made a single purchase from Josephine's Dry Goods, a huge splurge for me:


Two yards of Liberty Lawn at $40.00 (gak, cough, choke) a yard to make a work blouse. They also had some wonderful little buttons that were a great match, even with all the variation in the fabric.

And that is all! Like I said, it seems like there should have been more (given all the time we spent in fabric stores!). Although my cat certainly appreciates any box that enters the house:


In other sewing news, I have decided to put my "TNT" pants pattern to the test, and use it to apply alterations to another pattern. I have been wanting to try a Hot Patterns pants pattern, because folks on the Pattern Review boards talk about how the L-shaped crotch curve is flattering to the bottom, so I pulled out a pattern that I had in my stash:


It is the "Denim Diva Trouser Jean" which I no longer see on the website, so I am assuming it is out of print. I traced an 18, which is where my measurements fall. I then laid my "TNT" pattern over my tracing and prepared to start alterations. I made sure that the point of the crotch of the tracing and the TNT pattern was at the same level to start the alterations.

The Hot Patterns pattern used the same convention as RTW pants, and used a larger back piece than the front. The pattern indicated a dropped waist, although I did raise the center back slightly to accommodate my round bottom. You can see the redrawn top line in the tracing below:


Other than that, the pattern was surprisingly close to the pattern that I had altered to fit me...except for the lack of a contoured waistband. I am debating using their narrow, flat waistband because of the lower waist. I definitely have enough fabric that I can make a contour band, so I might just baste the waistband on, try it, and then decide whether or not to change it out.

Pants Fitting Journey: A Summary

As many of you may know I have been attempting to achieve a well-fitted pair of pants, and recently achieved a pair in which all my fit issues were addressed. Because this has been such an exceptionally long journey, and I know that many people also struggle with pants fitting, I wanted to make a summary of what I did, and what I learned.

First of all, if you are attempting to do the same, please don't get discouraged. This is my journey:

• 18 muslins.
• 14 wearable (I use that term loosely) pairs of pants.
• 6 months of work.
• 5 commercial patterns.
• 1 self-drafted (in 5 different versions).

The first thing to do in determining what changes to make to patterns is determining your fit issues. In order to do this, you have to face realities and you must become aware (and honest about) every single lump and bump on your body. This has been especially difficult for me. And if you are asking for assistance with fit, you must post some extremely unflattering photos of yourself. If you were to scroll through my photos over the last year, you would be able to watch me put on 40 pounds over the course of mere weeks. In March, I was diagnosed with Hidradenitis Suppurativa, a skin disease that causes large, painful nodules to form under your arms and for some (fortunately not for me) in your groin. My doctor's first attempt at treatment was very high doses of steroids, which caused me to pack on an incredible amount of weight, at a ridiculous pace. So, not only did I have to face new fitting issues...I had to address it quickly because I had nothing in my closet that fit! My doctor and I have now agreed to pursue alternate treatments (mainly since the steroids didn't actually do anything!) and I am moving forward in getting that weight back off.

But, back to the original point...many of us have body issues, and we would rather not look too long and hard at a full-length mirror. However, if you are to address achieving well-fitting clothing, you do have to take honest measurements, and address every single thing you both like and dislike about your body. Mainly because you want to hide the dislikes and accentuate the likes! This part of fitting can be really difficult for some people, but the important thing to remember is that someone who weighs 200 pounds in well-fitting, tailored clothing will look a million times better than someone who weighs 100 pounds in clothing that doesn't fit properly. So it is important to overcome any discomfort and begin to look closely at our bodies and become comfortable with identifying what our fit issues are....so that we can address them.

So, what are my fit issues?

• Wide and round backside.
• Small waist in relation to hips.
• Carry most of my weight to the back (junk in the trunk).
• Thick from front to back.
• Wide thighs.

Once you know what your fit issues are, you need to know how is this manifested in the garment you are trying to make (both RTW and pants sewn from commercial patterns)? For me, what I have to deal with in pants are:

• Lots of gaping at the back waist.
• Drooping of the back waist, exposing panties.
• Wrinkles radiating from the front crotch.
• Fabric bunching underneath the buttocks.
• Side seam of pants not vertical, drags to the rear.
  

Once you identify these, how do you solve these issues? What I have found is:

• For me, wide contour waistbands are better than narrow. But, I always have to contour them more than they are in the pattern, or on the RTW pant that is being copied. Otherwise, they gape in the back.
  
• Back darts are helpful in curving the back in to the waist. If the pattern does not have back darts, I take the pattern in at the center back and side seams.
• Cut the front pattern piece in a smaller size than the back. This is a trick I learned in copying RTW pants. They do it to make the pants look more flattering, but for someone built like me, this is a much better option for fit.
• Add a wedge to the back seam to add some height and cover an ample derriere. I add my wedge just where the back curve straightens and becomes vertical. I usually add 1 1/2 inches.
• Extend the center crotch curve to accommodate thickness from front to back. When I first started this, I just kept adding and adding to the back...until I made a pair of pants that looked like I had a penis. After that, I cut down on what I was adding and also distributed the additional tissue to both the front and the back pattern pieces. This also helps prevent "crotch smileys" because your pants aren't borrowing fabric from the front to accommodate your width from front to back.
  
• Widen the back leg to prevent back leg wrinkles.
  

Best resources for pants fitting:

• Pants for Real People. Yes, it looks old-fashioned and yes, the clothes look frumpy BUT the advice is sound. Get a copy, it's not expensive.
  
• Discussion boards on Pattern Review. The expert sewists there are incredibly helpful. Always post photos, though! It is impossible for other sewists to help you with fitting without photos! And your photos need to be dead-on. Not angled to the side to look thinner. No one is going to be critical, they are there to help, otherwise they would not be participating on the boards!
  
• Fellow bloggers. Corresponding with Chelle at Smoking Needles was what helped me figure out one of my last issues with the back legs, and sent me in the direction of widening the back leg. Also, you can find great resources at Debbie Cook's website. Find a blogger with a similar body-type to you, and become a follower. You may find out everything you need to know.
• Trial and error. Many muslins. And lots of trying on during construction.
  

Finally, I just wanted to say a bit about ease and shape. When dealing with fit, it is important to determine what your preferred ease is, because this will impact what size you cut initially, as well as what alterations you make. Many people like a lot of ease in their clothes, and some people don't like much ease at all. This is what I know about my ease and shape preferences:

• At the waist, essentially zero ease.
• Remaining at zero to 1 inch of ease through the upper hip, and loosening up approaching "pocket level."
• Minimal ease until you reach the lower hip, and then expanding through the leg. I like this minimal ease because it is less bulky under a shirt, a jacket or a sweater.
• NO PLEATS EVER. For someone with a shape like mine, pants with pleats is a formula for frump. I only sew flat-front pants.
  
• I prefer a wider leg, bootcut or even flare. I think that pegged pants make girls shaped like me look like ice cream cones. It's not a good look.
• Length is important to consider, too. Even though flat shoes are more comfortable, I always hem my pants for heels, letting the pants fall over the shoes, almost to the floor. This makes the leg look longer, and helps with proportions for someone who is a little heavier. The longer leg balances out a wider hip.
• While this doesn't fall into the category of ease issues, it is related to the overall silhouette of the pant...and that is front pockets. Slash pockets often gape open, so I look for pockets with a more horizontal opening. Also, look for pockets with extensions that attach to the front fly. This will keep your pockets from gaping and also help flatten the front of the pant. Burda typically has pockets like this, although I rarely see them in "The Big 4." They are easy to draft, though.

I hope that this is helpful information, and encourages someone to try pants if they haven't before. While my journey has been an extended one, the reward is knowledge and confidence, and I think the experience was incredibly valuable in increasing my knowledge of fitting, as well as sewing technique.

So, grab some cheap fabric for muslin, a pair of pants you like the fit of, a pattern you want to try, and get started on your fitting!