M6078…A classic Cowl Neck Sleeveless T

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Not one to waste scraps, I used the 21” x 58” leftover from my Endless Dress to make a cowl neck top.

During the last Vogue / McCall / Butterick sales I got a few basic but classic patterns. So there were two cowl neck patterns to choose from. I’m sure there are more in the few issues of Burda Style magazine I own. But I don’t like how Burda tends to drape the cowl to one side or use stiff fabrics that resulting in a single ungraceful large fold. For me cowl neck is all about Grecian style: Lots of fluid mini folds.

The Pattern

So the candidates were:

In the end I went with M6078 view B. M6563 is designed for woven fabrics, so had more ease than M6078. And more ease means more unnecessary alterations. Sometimes it’s best to go with the instruction and not make grief for yourself!

Style Shots & Mug Shots

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Fabric & Notions Used

Mustard color Viscose Cotton Lycra 4-way Stretch Fabric from Tia Knight / Tissu Fabrics. It’s soft and drapy – perfect for a cowl neck.

Gutermann polyester thread, and some woolly nylon I got in America long time ago. 3/8” clear elastic. Vilene Bias Tape

Size Used

XS (4 – 6).

Having read on Pattern Review that the sizing runs big, I was careful to go by the finished bust, waist, and hip measurements indicated on the patterns rather than by standard sizing chart. Sizing chart would have me using a M (12 – 14). But recently I’ve been experimenting with using my old sizing (8 / S) with a FBA or otherwise widening at the side seams rather than all around. However, as this pattern is for knit and I like a more fitted look, I went down one more size to XS.

Changes Made

I compared the pattern to my tentative moderate stretch sloper first before deciding what fitting changes to make.

  • Narrowed lower back 1/4” – 1/2”.
  • Sway-back adjustment – shortened CB by 3/4”. There’s still a bit of fold at back waist line, but I don’t mind it in this style of slightly drapy top.
  • Raised back neckline 3/8”.
  • Widen shoulder by 1/4”.
  • Prominent shoulder blade adjustments – added 1/4” ease to back shoulder.
  • Forward shoulder adjustment on front only – raised front shoulder at neck 1/4”.
  • Deepen front-facing to 6” at CF (insurance to prevent the facing from flipping out).
  • Cut on the lengthwise grain because I didn’t have enough fabric. This was fine on a 4-way (or 2-way) stretch fabric. If mine was a fabric with only 1-way (crosswise) stretch, then I wouldn’t deviate unless I go with a larger size with enough ease built into the pattern itself.

Verdict on the Instruction

Easy to follow and quick to make. I did deviate in places though.

I did a Burda style stabilized back back neckline and armholes using Vilene Bias Tape, then clear elastics to stabilize shoulder seams. All seams are done on sewing machine with lowered foot pressure, walking foot, and narrow zig-zag stretch stitch. Side and shoulder seams and the bottom hem are finished with 3-thread overlock on the serger. Neckline, armholes, and bottom hem are stitched with stretch stitch.

For a softer drape and because my fabric doesn’t fray, I left the facing edge unfinished.

Would I sew it again

Most definitely! It’s a great wardrobe builder. I could see this with long sleeves as well. It’s slightly loose in the waist, so if I were to use a less drapy fabric I might narrow through the waist a bit more.

Bandeau Tube Top: Carrie or Tarty?

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So, as I only needed half of the fabric width for my Endless Dress waist band, I turned the other half into a matching Bandeau Top.

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bandeau-satcI was thinking SATC Carrie (S2 E17). My other half’s verdict? “Tarty”. Men. Go figure.

In any case, it can still act as a Modesty Preserver for my Endless Dress, now that I’ve learnt that yards of skirt attached to a flimsy bodice = wardrobe malfunction.

Making of this bandeau top should have been dead easy. But it was actually like solving an Escher puzzle. Or a game of Twister.

FYI, this is how NOT to do it:

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While it looked neat and tidy, when I turned the thing right side out, it was all twisted the wrong way. (Sorry, forgot to take pictures for your and my education.) I had to unpick the bottom edge. Then from the right sides fold in the seam allowances, grab hold of the SA inside and pull it out for sewing. Sewing the full circle the correct way was a twisted and Escheresque experience. But turned right side out everything fell right into place.

I’m sure there must be a clear how-to in some sewing book or somewhere online. But I didn’t have the luxury of time to look for it. I got a whole travel wardrobe to sew!

As you can see, I’ve already thought to make the top less flimsy by adding the Power Mesh underlining. So that’s one point against tartiness. Plus the top and bottom edges are reinforced with clear elastics. That’s another point against tartiness. Having said that, wear it in weather inappropriate Britain, and I can definitely see tartiness creeping in. Guess it’s another garment that’s not going to get much wear }:-)

Made myself an Endless Dress

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The rabbit hole has been a pit of sweat shop lately. I’ve never sewn so much. Not that I’ve gotten any quicker. There was just about time to tidy up before I had to move on to the next one. You see, I’m sewing for a dream holiday in the Maldives. So there was no time to rest.

endless_s1_4First off the assembly line…An Endless / Limitless Dress / Skirt / Asian Pants.

Because it’s suppose to be easy. And because as a convertible I’d have options even if I don’t manage to finish anything else.

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The Design & Inspiration

So this is the one I saw in Threads then stumble upon the instruction online by chance. The very clever Marybeth Bradbury had came up with the instruction for her Endless Convertible Dress after being inspired by the Limitless Convertible Dress by Danish designer Emami.

original_1Actually, I had came across Emami’s Limitless Dress before. Friends who were into fashion had discovered it years ago. I thought it was really clever. But as it was expensive, I didn’t buy one.

This time, I did feel pangs of guilt and wonder if I should buy one. You know, to support independent designers who come up with clever design ideas. For the art of this garment is in the wearing instructions, which Emami provides video demonstration for on their website. As Marybeth’s instruction shows, there’s very little sewing involved. Plus the price seems to have come down.

In the end I made one instead of buy one. Because the colors Emami offer were a bit too drab for my current taste. Sorry…

The Making

OK, so this is suppose to be dead easy. Depending on fabric you should be able to get away with 3 seams and probably finish in an hour or two. But as I’m fairly new to 4-way stretch fabric and to using a overlocker, it took me a bit longer. Also, being a visual person, it took me a little longer to follow Marybeth’s verbal instruction and quick sketch.

So here are my learnings. Maybe it will be helpful if you decide to make your own Endless dress.

Fabric & Notions Used

Mustard color Viscose Cotton Lycra 4-way Stretch Fabric from Tia Knight / Tissu Fabrics. I ordered 3 meters, but probably got like 3 m 16 cm because I had enough left over for a separate bandeau top and a sleeveless cowl neck top. It was the lightest 4-way stretch fabric I had and it has a lovely soft touch and fabulous drape – perfect for a dress like this.

Skin color lightweight Power Mesh from Tia Knight / Tissu Fabrics for the underlining.

Gutermann polyester thread, and some woolly nylon I got in America long time ago. 3/8” clear elastic.

Size Used

It’s kind of a one-size design utilizing full width of the fabric. Depending on your fabric and your waist measurement, it’ll come out differently length-wise.

Changes Made

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  • My fabric curled at the selvedges, so I cut off about 1-1/4” at both selvedges. I forgot to adjust the 30” measure to the center of the waist hole. So this leaves me with a slightly shorter skirt at the sides. Thankfully, the dress style make the mistake less noticeable.
  • I used one of the selvedges to make a matching spaghetti cord instead of buying separate cord.
  • My waist hole is slightly bigger because my fabric doesn’t seem as stretchy. You need to make sure the circumference of the hole for the waist will stretch to fit your hip so you can pull the dress / skirt on. But don’t make it so large that the skirt slips down while you wear it. It’s knit, so you probably want 0 ease or even negative ease at the waist (ie your waist measurement or smaller). I also reinforced the waist hole with clear elastic in the hope that this will prevent the waist from being stretched out of shape with wear and becoming too loose. We shall see if it works over time!
  • I made my waistband taller / longer thinking that I can then wear the band as a strapless tube bodice. Now having worn the dress I can tell you that it’s a bad idea. The weight of the skirt will pull the band down leading to wardrobe malfunction a la Janet Jackson. (Luckily I was wearing the draped part of the skirt as a haltered front at the time.) Separate bandeau top is the way to go.
  • I also added a layer of lightweight power mesh as underlining to make the waist band less flimsy as a tube top. This turns out to be a bad idea again. I didn’t tack the underlining to the fashion fabric at the fold. So when I wore it, the underlining wouldn’t stay up and instead bunched up near the waist.

When I get home, I’ll probably reduce the waist band to Marybeth’s original suggestion of approx. 6” finished height and tack the underlining or remove it completely.

Verdict on the Instruction

Marybeth’s instruction is a bit sketchy, so I think you do have to have some sewing experience to know how to finish the garment. It’s not difficult, but if you’re someone who like each step to be spelt out in details, you’d struggle a bit. I’m happy to muck about with pattern drafting and improvise the sewing, so it’s not a problem for me.

You can see how I interpreted her pattern instruction in the diagram above.

Sewing-wise, I used mostly my sewing machine to give me better control over the stretchy fabric. I’d sew on my sewing machine first with reduced pressure foot pressure, a walking foot, and my machine’s basic stretch stitch – a kind of narrow zig zag stitch. For the waist seam I then sew on the clear elastic, again on the sewing machine. For waist band center back seam and waist seam I then reinforce & clean finish on the serger with a 3-thread overlock.

The hem / casing for the cord is simply folded over twice and edge-stitched with the sewing machine basic stretch stitch.

For the rest of the skirt, I did consider doing a rolled hem. But the experiments on scraps weren’t promising. The fabric was stretching into lettuce edge hem which I didn’t want. It also made the hem stiffer which doesn’t work well with this drapy dress style. So in the end I left the hem as raw edges – as implied by Marybeth’s instruction. The fabric doesn’t fray, so the unfinished edges aren’t a problem.

Would I sew it again

Probably not.

While I do love the idea of convertible garments, the ones I tried so far have all been a bit uncomfortable to wear. The threat of wardrobe malfunction is always on my mind as nothing is firmly anchored.

It can also be difficult to make the garment look good from all angles. I love how this dress look in the front. But with the styles I’ve tried so far the back always seem to look the same and not reflect the lovely style promised by the front.

Here are the styles I tried on holiday. It was really too hot to experiment more.

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And here’s one taken before I went on holiday. It’s my Buddhist Monk look! 🙂

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I need to experiment more with the wearing options. In any case, making and wearing this one has given me ideas on styles that would look great with this fabric (hint: lots of drapes). And it goes to show beautiful garments aren’t always about complicated design and sewing. Simple can be just as beautiful.

LA Shopping Spree…Part 2

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Next up on my shopping list are books. London used to have a bookshop aimed at fashion students with hard to find text books etc. But it seem to have closed down. Last time I was in LA, I come across one such book store in the Fashion District. So this time I decided to stock up on unusual finds to keep me busy on that sleepless flight back home.

An Eye-Opening Education

First up is the Fashion Book Store in California Market Center building on E 9th St between S Main St & S Los Angeles St. Here I took the plunge and got a couple of specialist books. They cost an arm and a couple of legs. But I figured that I can’t get the same info easily elsewhere. Plus they’ll last me a lifetime (or what’s left of it anyway). Besides, someone took the trouble to collect, collate, and share all these insights (rather than regurgitate what others have already written loads about). And they deserved to earn some money for their effort.

The Bra-Maker Manual, vol 1 & 2

By Beverly Johnson. It’s not just a book about sewing bras. It actually has lots of discussion and pattern diagrams for different types of bras. Some shows the different grainlines required for different pieces. There are also info on pattern alterations for different bra fitting problems. Very interesting.

Designing and Patternmaking For Stretch Fabrics

By Keith Richardson. This one is very timely for me. I’ve been compulsively shopping a bunch of stretch knits at Tia Knight’s Tissu online fabric store, and trying to devise a basic knit pattern block.

This book has just what I need: Instructions for creating slopers for different types of stretch fabrics. It also has a stretch terms and jargon buster, and simple flat pattern design instructions for stretch garments.

It even has the answer to a question that has been bugging me for ages: What does bias on knit do? The answer: Not a whole lot. It says “bias garments are never created with knit fabrics. Knit bias does not have any of the stretch and drape characteristics that woven bias would impart to garments.”

v1282-layoutWhich begs the question: Why does the cutting instruction for V1282 top recommends a bias layout. For 2-way stretch fabrics no less!!!???

Speaking of 2-way vs 4-way stretch – another question that has been bugging me for a while – this book again has the answer: 4-way stretch is essentially 2-way stretch with spandex added to help with recovery. Stretch outward sideways and up & down without spandex = ‘2-way stretch’. Without the spandex this eventually sags or stretch out of shape. With  spandex added to aid recovery, it becomes ‘4-way stretch’. Presumably the additional ‘2-way’ refer to the fabric ‘stretching’ back into shape – ie inward sideways and up & down.

(I just checked the Amazon reviews for this book. I was surprised to see the low score. This seems to be because of numerous typos in the book. But considering the scarcity of pattern drafting books for knits, I still think the book is worth it. As Kathleen Fasanella aka the Fashion Incubator says in her review of the book: “no book is perfect”. I will just keep an eye out for those typos.)

I almost got “Professional Sewing Techniques for Designers” as well. But I decided it was too similar to other sewing technique books. And I already have too many of those and not enough room to store them. Besides, the tips for working with difficult fabrics don’t cover the type of temperamental fabrics I’m currently wrestling with – stretch fabrics.

I also visited Kinokuniya the Japanese book store in Weller Court, Little Tokyo. Surprisingly it also has a good selection of fashion and sewing books. I was a bit tempted by the Pattern Magic & Drape Drape series and others like them. But my days of weird boxy Japanese garment aesthetics is really behind me. There was a time decades ago when I was a big fan of COMME des GARÇONS. But now I’m making the most of what figure I still have. Maybe one day I’ll get back into hiding the body again! For now I got this:

Fundamentals of Garment Design

By Bunka Fashion College in Japan. This is the first in a series of textbooks. Thankfully they have all been translated into English. I only got this one because the other focus on specific types of garments like dresses and jackets, and again, they’re a bit too boxy for my liking.

Unlike western fashion textbooks, this intro book covers a wider range of topics. The bits I find particularly interesting are the overview of how anatomy, different body proportions, and movements affect garment design; measurements insights; Bunka-style sloper instruction; and examples of sloper fitting adjustments shown on Asian women, some with combinations of fitting issues.

Then there’s the answer to my other pestering question: What happens to that back shoulder dart in designs without a dart in that area? It seems like the dart is pivoted to the armhole and/or neckline as eased volume (presumably held in check by sleeves and collars). But it’s never pivoted to the waist dart. So that’s this sloper axed then!

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There’s also a curious mention of a “Half Bias Tape”. The photo illustration shows a tape with grainline that doesn’t look like true bias grainline. But there’s no mention of “Bias Tape” at all!!!??? It’s described as having “moderated stretch and to some degree controls stretching. Front edges, shoulders, necklines, etc.” So I’m assuming it’s used instead of true bias tape. But why?

Last but not least are a series of Fabric Dictionary & Swatch Books I ordered directly from Rain City Publishing:

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Thanks La Karibane for suggesting this series. It’s great to have nice fabric samples illustrating the different types of fabrics. Descriptions alone are no good as most are so generic as to be pointless for identifying fabrics.

And that was it…Or was it?

Well, not quite. There are always those bits and pieces that are  invisible in the results, but absolutely essential in the making. Like…

patternsA bunch of Vogue, McCall, Butterick patterns bought during the recent online sale.

interfacingA bunch of highly recommended interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply of Pam’s Off-The-Cuff sewing blog.

threadsFrom Wawak, formerly Atlantic Thread Supply, more MaxiLock overlocker threads than I have storage space for.

Plus a small velvet pressing board at the cheapest price I can find. Everywhere else I looked it’s over $100. It’s pictured here with my sleeve board for size comparison.

zippersI also got a bunch of zippers to catch up with the wilder color fabrics I started collecting. These are from Mood Fabrics and B. Black & Sons. Zip Up Zippers has a wider selection of zippers and notions.
But it was too chaotic to find what I want and I can’t just help myself. I don’t like getting a sales person involved unless I’m desperate. I always feel too much pressure to buy.

rulersFinally, there are these C-thru rulers which I got from Golden Cutting & Sewing Supplies. You can also get them at art stores like Pearl Paint. I’ve tried lots of different rulers, but always come back to these. They’re thin, so don’t cast shadows that make it hard to align the ruler edge with lines. I’m a imperial measure girl, and I like the handy 1/8” grid which make pattern work easy.

Unfortunately the # 1 item on my wishlist was nowhere to be found in LA. It’s loose sheets of large 26” x 19.5” dressmaker’s carbon paper that I used to get from Steinlauf & Stoller in NYC. (It’s not listed on their site, but I swear they carry it. Or used to anyway.) All I can find in Downtown LA were pre-packaged small sheets. I guess I will just have to stick to Burda Carbon Paper for now. Or plan a trip to NYC soon!

As you can imagine, it was a bit of a struggle fitting all these into my luggage. In the end it was like 13 lb overweight. And at $200 surcharge you bet I was frantically transferring stuff into my carry-on’s at the airport check-in desk.

Now I better get back down my rabbit hole and churn out some more garments, so I don’t feel so guilty for spending a small fortune and taking over so much space in our tinsy winsy London apartment!

LA Shopping Spree…Part 1

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I’m in Downtown LA now. And I’m excited to report back what goodies I got. First up…

Fabrics of course!

I did read Pattern Review’s post about shopping in LA Fabric District. And I did check out some of the stores mentioned. But it’s terribly hot in LA (compared to London). And I’m not a decisive person at the best of time. So faced with a sea of cheap but loud fabrics, I came back with nothing.

What I did get are a bunch of fabrics from FIDM’s Scholarship Store on W 9th St & S Grand Ave. All safe neutral browns of one sort or another. But at $1 per yard for more basic fabrics or $5 per yard for more interesting fabrics, you can’t complain. I got a bunch of nice stretchy knits at $1/yd (left picture below), and a couple at $5/yd (right picture below). The fabric section is in a little room somewhat hidden in the back. Rest of the store are RTW. I almost walked out thinking PR’s advice was out of date. Glad I poked around until I found the fabrics.

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Another exciting and surprising fabric find was some lovely jacquard lining fabrics from B Black & Sons on S Los Angeles St between W 5th & 6th St. The stores looks like mostly men’s tailoring fabrics and supplies – they even have pre-assembled hair canvas jacket front interfacings in the back, and waxed finishing thread skeins in a range of lovely suit colors.

Again, I almost missed the prize. I was just about to pay for some zippers when I noticed the linings behind the counter. I’ve been looking for more interesting lining fabrics like forever. True, I could have just bought nice silky fashion fabrics to use as lining like everyone else. But I don’t know. I just don’t have the heart to hide them inside when they’d happily parade outside. So I’m pretty chaffed with this find. We shall see if I don’t then decide they too are too nice to hide inside.

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And last but not least – this time not in Downtown – a couple more pieces from Mood Fabrics in the middle of nowhere (W Pico Blvd actually, but “nowhere” to my NYC shaped mind).

I originally wasn’t going to visit Mood this time, just because it’s such a pain to get to without a car. But then I happen to pass by it while sightseeing with my brother and his family in their rental car. Since my brother is also a fan of Project Runway and therefore well aware of Mood, we decided to stop by.

LA-mood-01This silk panel print is my most expensive purchase during this trip. I think it’s a designer fabric – Just Cavelli – which I don’t usually go for. But the Chinese looking print is just so lovely…and I’ve been looking for something like this, even considering taking up the brush myself if I can’t find any. So this was just perfect!

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This eyelet / Broderie Anglaise I’m hoping to turn into something vaguely inspired by the Louis Vuitton Spring / Summer 2012 collection. It’s not quite the right pattern or color, but it’s the closest I can find.

And that’s about it for fabrics. I was uncharacteristically restrained for a fabricholic because there are other stuff I got and my baggage is only so big. Plus I’m seriously running out of shelf space what with piles of new stretch fabrics I’ve been getting from Tia Knight aka Tissu online fabric store recently.

Coming up tomorrow: Books Books Books!