Whew!
I am taking a small break from the hand basting of the lining. I used this opportunity to use it as a mockup, and I am glad I did.
When I first put it on, it felt... wrong. Everything was shifted forward, the shoulder seams sat too far forward, the back seam only matched at the edge of the fabric, which meant it was 2" too small in back? WTF? I started to freak just a little, but then I remembered there was comments about some fitting issues others had with this pattern. So I reread the old posts, and double checked my measurements and cutting lines, and yeah, everything matched up fine. I reread the instructions on fitting... yeah, I picked the right lines, even for the two sizes I am using (14/16 for the shoulders, 18/20 for the bust), I followed the instructions, I did everything right, what is the problem? I don't want to have to redo the whole pattern and lining, and resew a whole other mockup, what's up?
Remember I said I needed to make the neckline larger to fit me (since I have a large neck). Well, silly me forgot to adjust for my larger neck, so no wonder it wasn't fitting me right. I measured, marked, and cut into the mockup, and wallah! problem solved!! The shoulders sit back properly, the back opening is fitting at the fold line, not the fabric edge, the armhole sits properly. So, now I can breathe and relax, and yes, I marked my traced pattern, too, so that the fashion fabric will be cut open properly. Yeah, even an experienced seamstress has ditzy moments of forgetfullness.
On a slightly different note, I have to say I've enjoyed the hand basting part of things. I didn't like having to redo some of the edges as the silk thread I am basting with slides off because I didn't knot that end. But now I know better. I also like that now that this is already basted, I can just sew it together without using any pins, which means I can sew around my daughter who would love to pull the pins out and hurt herself. So, I think I will also hand baste the main body as well, so I can work on the final seams without worry. And this is giving me plenty of experience in hand basting, should I ever work on the slippery silks or velvets, like that one blouse I want to make from the soft habutai I bought.
Well, next step is cutting out the main fabrics, which means putting the white linens together. I guess I can start in on that for awhile. I will try to pretend they are giant puzzle pieces, and hopefully that will keep me going, since I like puzzles.
When I first put it on, it felt... wrong. Everything was shifted forward, the shoulder seams sat too far forward, the back seam only matched at the edge of the fabric, which meant it was 2" too small in back? WTF? I started to freak just a little, but then I remembered there was comments about some fitting issues others had with this pattern. So I reread the old posts, and double checked my measurements and cutting lines, and yeah, everything matched up fine. I reread the instructions on fitting... yeah, I picked the right lines, even for the two sizes I am using (14/16 for the shoulders, 18/20 for the bust), I followed the instructions, I did everything right, what is the problem? I don't want to have to redo the whole pattern and lining, and resew a whole other mockup, what's up?
Remember I said I needed to make the neckline larger to fit me (since I have a large neck). Well, silly me forgot to adjust for my larger neck, so no wonder it wasn't fitting me right. I measured, marked, and cut into the mockup, and wallah! problem solved!! The shoulders sit back properly, the back opening is fitting at the fold line, not the fabric edge, the armhole sits properly. So, now I can breathe and relax, and yes, I marked my traced pattern, too, so that the fashion fabric will be cut open properly. Yeah, even an experienced seamstress has ditzy moments of forgetfullness.
On a slightly different note, I have to say I've enjoyed the hand basting part of things. I didn't like having to redo some of the edges as the silk thread I am basting with slides off because I didn't knot that end. But now I know better. I also like that now that this is already basted, I can just sew it together without using any pins, which means I can sew around my daughter who would love to pull the pins out and hurt herself. So, I think I will also hand baste the main body as well, so I can work on the final seams without worry. And this is giving me plenty of experience in hand basting, should I ever work on the slippery silks or velvets, like that one blouse I want to make from the soft habutai I bought.
Well, next step is cutting out the main fabrics, which means putting the white linens together. I guess I can start in on that for awhile. I will try to pretend they are giant puzzle pieces, and hopefully that will keep me going, since I like puzzles.