What Do You Think You Are, Some Kind of Jedi or Something?
- 5 yards 60" brown fabric
- SithariRog's pattern
- math
Read tutorial. Found large amount of brown fabric of reasonable weight and color at thrift store. Bought for $5.00. Washed and measured fabric.
March 2014
Read tutorial. Drew 60x180 graph. Adjusted pattern to my measurements. Pieced graph instead of fabric. Dithered over an inch here and an inch there.
June 2014
Read tutorial. Printed custom pattern pieces (hood curve and neck; scale version of entire pattern for reference). Took deep breath and pieced fabric as planned.
Drew pattern in chalk. Sewed shoulder tucks (by hand). Read tutorial. Figured out sleeve angles using a pin and a measuring tape. Used first cutout as a negative and cut the other three pieces to form sleeves and body. Piece the sleeve hems from body scraps. Iron a lot. Cut neck and front opening, pin seams, try on and admire GLEEFULLY in mirror.
Sew one sleeve crooked. (Side seams, sleeve hem, inner neck seam are done on the machine. Neck facing is sewn on by hand.) Be more careful with the second sleeve. Dither over redoing first sleeve. Pleat neck, sew hood.
Admire.
July 2014
Decide to redo first sleeve. It takes less time and effort than anticipated. Worth doing!
August 2014
Hem. (Opening and hood hem is done on machine, the bottom is done 'invisibly' by hand because there wasn't quite enough fabric to do a 2" hem.)
Admire.
(Dither over resetting collar; one side doesn't match up with the hood seam...)
Notes: The cloak is an even better blanket than my panne velvet full circle cloak. I love the fit of the robe body even with the piecing seams but anyone taller than me _needs_ the 8 yards recommended on the pattern. The hood is ginormous and vastly entertaining for family members. I could probably have scaled the hood down by at least three more inches somewhere...