Bit of a bodge job

In between bashing out pillowcase dresses for my challenge, I wanted to make something quick to prove to myself that I still have the ability to do other things!

Through reading other sewing blogs I came across Grainline Studio, who seemed to have the perfect answer to my needs. I liked the Scout Woven Tee as it looked nice and quick, was a downloadable pattern so I would have it there and then, was cheap, and I had the ‘perfect’ fabric already. I especially liked the full-back alteration as I would be able to put my pattern cutting skills in to practice.

So I downloaded the pattern and printed out all the pieces to then jigsaw them together.

This had worked OK when doing the Sorbetto, but I was obviously not being as careful this time and things didn’t always line up. I guess this will always be a problem with printing out patterns yourself.

I think I did the Sorbetto on a wooden floor rather than carpet which probably helped. Anyway, this wasn’t even really a problem compared with what was to come!

This is how the sleeves printed out.

In Grainline’s defence, they did send me the amended sleeve pattern, but it was a few days later so I couldn’t really use it. Maybe next time.

The fabric I wanted to use was from an old dress / tent that I was never going to wear again, and not entirely sure why I bought it in the first place!

I also thought I could cut a few corners by making sure I used the existing hemline. I did my pattern alterations, and cut the main part of the top out. So far so good. Then I realised that not only was it going to be impossible to make the bias binding for the neckline, but I also didn’t have enough fabric for the sleeves!

This is where the bodging started. I think I may have committed every sewing sin there is in the process of making this top, so look away now if you are a ‘proper’ sewer and don’t want to see what I did…

I made non-bias binding, which obviously didn’t go round the neck line very well, and in the end wasn’t even long enough. So I added a few tucks here and there round the back where I wouldn’t see them to make it fit.

I cut some sleeve like shapes from the scraps that I had left. Having never drawn / cut / made sleeves before this was mainly just down to guess work. Won’t be doing that again. Then I did a bit of gathering here and there, couldn’t work out how to attach these wonders of modern pattern cutting, stuck a few pins in as best I could, closed my eyes and put my foot down on the sewing machine pedal (kids, don’t try this at home).

The end result isn’t so bad, just a bit tent like. Someone even asked me if I’d lost weight yesterday when I was wearing it (thanks Emma ). As I made the larger size to fit in my bust, I probably didn’t need the full-back alteration after all! (This is definitely something I need to work on – grading a pattern so that my bust fits in, but everything else isn’t super big because of it)

This is me

This is a tent

Image source
http://www.belltent.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=71

Grainlines

I hope you are all sitting comfortably today, and are ready to concentrate as I think I may be about to confuse us all!!

I am going to attempt to explain grainlines after being taught about them in my Pattern Cutting class a few weeks ago. I honestly do think I understand them in practice, but trying to explain them to you in an easy to understand way might be a bit beyond me (those that are far more knowledgeable on such matters feel free to point out any errors). Here goes though!

I drew a little diagram in a past post, which shows the main things to understand about the construction of fabric. Here is a more professional one as a reminder:

On a pattern the grainline is shown by a straight line with an arrow at each end. Here they are the lengthwise grain, the crosswise grain and the bias grain.

These straight lines should always be parallel to the selvedge edge when laying out pattern pieces. This is done by using a ruler to ensure each end of the grainline is the same distance from the selvedge / selvage.

I am going to tackle each of the grainlines individually to try and explain them a bit more in regards to skirts. Essentially, the grainline that is used affects the way that the skirt will hang.

Lengthwise / Straight grain

This image shows the front of a skirt. It is cut using the straight grain through the centre front / middle. The lines indicate this grainline, and the red line with arrows shows what would appear on your pattern.

By cutting the fabric this way, along the warp, the skirt will hang straight and the sides will go out.

Bias Grain

The bias grain is 45 degrees to the original grainline. It means the fabric will hang in a softer way, and pull to the body. This grainline has the most stretch and give.

You can also achieve interesting results using the bias grain on patterned fabrics. Imagine this was a checked or striped fabric on the front of a skirt.

Gore Grain

The final grainline we were taught about was the gore grain. This grainline can be used if the skirt is made of four pieces, and the grainline is put through the middle of the leg.

It was a popular grainline in the 1940s as it didn’t waste as much fabric as using the bias grain, but was much more flattering than using the straight grain which can look a bit like a triangle!

It is created by marking the centre point between the centre front and side of the pattern piece, and the centre point on the hem. You then join these two points with a straight line and this is the gore grain.

You can also create a bias gore grainline which is 45 degrees to the gore grainline.

I found this diagram helpful in summing everything up.

Now, once you have got your head round all of that and done your hair, you are ready to place your patterns and get cutting

Image sources
Singer Sewing Book, 1969
Basic Pattern Skills for Fashion Design, Bernard Zamkoff and Jeanne Price
http://www.dressaday.com/2007/09/could-this-be-the-one.html
http://3hourspast.blogspot.com/2011_05_01_archive.html