World, meet Crumb Catcher Cape

As promised, here comes the sun and the show-n-tell…

Styled with suitably retro box handbag & pearls…

Or my beat up John Lewis handbag, held together now with safety pins. But fear not, for I’ve already planned to make a copy with scraps from the cape…some day!

With home-made close-fitting T-shirt (mentioned in previous WIP posts) and pencil skirt (part of a 2-piece dress. More another day.)

Simply posed, befitting a late 50s early 60s style cape.

Or decadently OTT with faux fur / suede WIP stole.

The obligatory mug shots

front side & back

The new double-welt arm slits sit properly at the sides.

One way is not enough!

Optional tie belt comes out of small slits just above the pockets.

The old arm slits are now handy cozy pockets.

Almost edge-to-edge lining keep scratch wool at bay.

Erm, I guess the lining could do with a good ironing.

And the ongoing sewing commentary

Most of the alteration & sewing details have been mentioned in previous posts. Here’s the rest.

  • Attaching the lining was a bit of a pain. I tried to bag it, but had to hand-sew the various slits.
  • And I still haven’t  figured out a good way to sew edge-to-edge lining so it doesn’t peep  at the edges. Inter-corners too were a nightmare.
  • The button holes I attempted with on the Husqvarna Viking Sapphire 830 with one-step buttonhole stitch. I had 5 or 6 to choose from. Lucky me. But in the end I went over again with hand-worked blanket stitches. Because the white interlining was poking through the cut edges. And because I want some practice for future bespoke tailoring projects. Lucky for me I have a men’s tailoring booking (Classic Tailoring Techniques: A Construction Guide for Men’s Wear). Because Claire Shaeffer’s Fabric Sewing Guide doesn’t have very good instruction on hand-sewing button hole. Well, not enough clear pictures anyway.

Finally, the verdict…drum roll please

All in all I’m quite pleased with the results, despite the less than stellar sewing. Hence all the smug shots. Hey, it’s not everyday that I finish a sewing project.

Now if only Old Blighty’s weather would give me a few more days of mild weather to wear my spanking new cape…

0 comments on “World, meet Crumb Catcher Cape

  1. Very elegant cape and looks professionally made! I will be waiting how the bag turns out – I haven’t made it from this kind of fabric yet, so I’m very interested how it turns out 🙂

    • Thanks for the compliment!

      The bag might take a while. I’ve never made a bag before. Shocking isn’t it! I’ll have to check out your blogs for tips.

      So far none of the bag patterns I’ve come across suit my taste. A bit too country for a city girl.

      Is a classic, structured bag really that difficult to make? Why aren’t there more classic handbag patterns? Or are those designs all copyrighted???

      • I cannot agree more with you when it comes to patterns online – none of them suited me, NONE of them! I had no other choice as to start making them myself. And you know what? It wasn’t so hard 🙂 Of course, I’ve made some mistakes, but I make less of them now.

        After seeing your high sewing skills, I have no doubt you will make a great bag 🙂

        P.S. I’ve seen Hermes Kelly blue print wandering somewhere online if its any help 😉

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