Adjusting trouser patterns

Today I’m going to explain how I altered the pattern pieces of the pair of trousers I’m making in my Clothes Making class.

First, I took (or remembered from pre-pregnancy days!) the following measurements:

- Waist: Smallest part around body (Diagram A)
- Hip: Widest part of lower body (Diagram A)
- Inside Leg. Top of inside of leg to floor (Diagram A)
- Outside Leg. Waist to floor
- Crotch Depth. Waist to flat surface while sitting (Diagram B)

Diagram A

Diagram B

With these measurements I was then able to determine which size of trouser pattern was the nearest match (remembering to allow for any ease included in the pattern), and make any fitting adjustments that were needed.

This is the front trouser pattern piece, after I have adjusted the crotch depth and length of trouser.

Rather than doing it how I did it, length of trouser then crotch depth, you should adjust the crotch depth first. This should be done of the back pattern piece.

On the pattern the crotch line is marked with a horizontal line (pink line). From this line, up to the top of the waistband is the crotch depth.

On this pattern, the waistband is a seperate pattern piece (not shown), and the top of the finished waistband sits 2.5cm below the waist.

This meant that I had to add 2.5cm, and the width of the waistband (minus seam allowance), to the crotch depth on the main pattern piece. After doing all of this, the crotch depth came to 1cm less than my actual measurement, which would mean a very snug fit and the possibility of not being able to sit down!

You should also add 1 – 2cm ease to the crotch depth. In order to make this adjustment, I cut a straight line through the pattern piece, between the top of the pattern piece and the crotch line.

I then spread the pattern open by 2cm (the additional 1cm needed for crotch depth to equal my own, and 1cm ease), and filled it with extra paper. This is the white line you can see in the photo above.

You should ensure that all lines on the pattern (e.g. grain line) still line up now the pattern pieces have been separated.

This alteration should then be done to the front pattern piece as well.

The next step was to alter the length. To do this I used my inside leg measurement, and compared it to the inside leg measurement on the front pattern piece. This is taken from the crotch line downwards, but stopping before the 2.5cm hem allowance.

It seems I am a little bit short, so I had to remove 2cm from the pattern. Most patterns have a horizontal black line indicating where adjustments should be made without altering the overall cut of the garment. Here I folded away 2cm of the pattern to make the trousers the correct length.

This was then repeated for the back pattern piece.

And those were the alterations I made! There are obviously many more that need to be made for a perfect fit, but that’s plenty for a beginners class I think!

Image sources
http://www.houseoffraser.co.uk/General+Sizing+Guides/M162_GENERAL_SIZING_GUIDES,default,pg.html
http://84.243.208.241/~kozomara/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=282

Pyjama Party!

After yesterday’s post of being frustrated about not really making much at the moment, I decided a simple project might be better than nothing at all.

A week or so ago Karen over at Did You Make That launched her Pyjama Party sewalong, which gives me the perfect opportunity to make some PJ bottoms that actually fit my belly, join the other 100+ party goers, and make a project that hopefully won’t require me to spend hours kneeling on the floor cutting out pattern pieces. All in all a good idea I reckon!

I’ve just ordered the pattern below (couldn’t find the one Karen recommends), mainly because of the dashing young couple on the front

Next I need to find some suitable fabric…

Image source
http://onlinecraftmall.com.au/Simplicity-9871-Sewing-Pattern-Its-So-Easy-MissMen-Sleepwear-P1592598.aspx

Trousers – aaahhhhhh!!!

I feel like I should start this post by apologising for not blogging very much these days.

Back at the start I was finding things to write about everyday, and was definitely making a lot more things. But as I said in my Mum’s Maternity Top post I am finding it increasingly difficult to do too much at home as much of the cutting out would have to be done on the floor, and I have a rather large bump getting in my way!

I’m sure you’re lives are all continuing much the same despite my lack of productivity and blogging, but I am finding it quite frustrating! After a two week break for Easter though, I am now back at college so will hopefully be able to share a bit more with you again.

Having made a simple skirt and two tops in my Clothes Making class, this term we are making trousers. Now, trousers seem to be notorious for being a bit tricky. I think this is more from a fitting perspective rather than a construction point of view. At least that’s what I found when making my one and only pair last year.

My tutor has kindly let me try a slightly more difficult pair so that I can learn as much as possible before the baby comes, so I went for the ones below (New Look 6873).

While I’m not sure they fit with my usual taste, I chose them because they have a zip, buttons, pleats, belt loops and pockets. That should all keep me busy!! Apart from pockets and pleats I haven’t been shown how to do any of those things properly and am keen to learn.

Fitting the trousers is obviously a bit problematic right now – I measured yesterday and my waist is currently over 30cms bigger than normal! The best solution is to use my old measurements to alter the pattern, and then hope that I will return to that size asap. I won’t actually be able to check they fit properly until that happens, so am focusing more on the construction. A bit annoying, but not a lot I can do about it really!

I have chosen a navy wool / polyester mix fabric as it will have a nicer drape than cotton, and went for the poly mix rather than the wool crepe I could have chosen because the former doesn’t need hand washing. I don’t imagine I will be wanting to do much hand washing in the near future!

If you go on the amount of pattern pieces required, these will probably be the most complicated thing I have attempted so far!

Ten pieces – the most I have worked with so far has been five I reckon!

Image sources
http://sewing.patternreview.com/patterns/27233

Finished Project: Mum’s maternity top

I think I may be nearing the end of being able to make clothes at home for a while . I have to cut the fabric out on the floor and it’s getting a little tricky to bend down without squashing the baby!

I will hopefully be able to enlist some (Dave) help to make at least one more thing I’d been planning, but for now I have just finished the 1980s maternity top using my mum’s pattern from when she was pregnant with me.

I made the middle top, with elements of each of the other dresses.

I was really pleased with everything I’d learnt and how well I’d been able to do it – from rouleau loops (see the tutorial I did here), to my first collar, to making the front buttony bit (not sure what that’s called!) neat on the outside and inside – you can’t see any seams or anything from inside!

Then I went to shorten the sleeves and realised I’d been a bit over zealous with the overlocker and got a bit of the left (right in the top photo) sleeve itself trapped in the seam, hence the horrible crease you can see in the photo! Thankfully it’s not as noticeable when on I don’t think, especially if I turn that arm away from the camera…!

The style is obviously not meant to be figure hugging, but even so I took quite a bit of fabric out at the back seam to make it slightly more flattering – it is part baby and part fabric making it stick out that far!

While it’s not a top I would necessarily choose if I wasn’t pregnant, I learnt lots in its construction, and it’s nice to have used one of my mum’s patterns!

My 1930s dress toile

You may or may not remember long long ago in January when I told you about the 20s and 30s inspired pattern making course I have been doing this term.

I started by gathering inspiration, and then came up with the one on the left as my final dress design.

With the sleeves to be beaded something like this.

Rather than design and make a dress that would rarely get worn, my intention was to make a slightly more practical dress. However, a practical dress meant that I wouldn’t learn as much, so practicality went out the window! I lengthened the skirt to floor length, cut it on the bias (at a 45 degree angle to the normal grainline), and added a more shaped dropped waistline. A whole new dress really!

I made the pattern to my pre-bump size so am not actually able to fit it at the moment. This means I have only made it to the toile (rough) stage. And this was it before my lesson this morning…

It is very rough, and the cheap and nasty polyester that I got to do the toile either doesn’t press or melts under the iron, so it was a tough job getting all the seams looking anywhere near good!

By making this toile I was able to see what needed altering on my pattern to make it work better. For example, I had sewn the bust darts too long, so altered my paper pattern by shortening them by 2cm.

You can also see from the photo that the sleeve is a bit flat and isn’t scalloped yet like my initial design.

To remedy this I first marked three points on the sleeve and slashed up towards the shoulder.

I then added more fabric under the existing sleeve to add extra width.

The next step was to measure how much fabric I had added, and transfer this to the paper pattern. In the case of the middle slash, I needed to add 4cm.

By doing this for all three slashes, and then taping pattern paper into the gaps, I had created a fuller sleeve.

I then added the scalloped shaping and toiled the new sleeve. Much better!

I found this bracelet that I made, and am wondering if something like this would be nice on the sleeve edging (you need to use your imagination a bit for this – I only pinned it on!).

In a similar way to altering the sleeve, I also dropped the neck a bit but will have to make my final decision when I can get in to the toile to see exactly where I would like it to sit.

I also learnt about cutting and sewing on the bias, ways of finishing vintage dresses rather than lining them, and some other stuff, but I think I might save all that for other blog posts so that I don’t bombard / bore you with them all today!

Have a good weekend everyone!

Image source
http://vintagetextile.com/new_page_155.htm#bot

Lustgården footstool

Whenever I go to a different country I always like to try and buy some fabric to remind me of the trip. This is what I did when I went to Stockholm a while ago, and found this fabric.

It was about a squillion pounds to buy a metre, so I spent half a squillion on half a metre as I liked it so much! This did however means I had a silly small amount of fabric and couldn’t think what to do with it.

The fabric was designed by Stig Lindberg’s in the 1950s, and is called Lustgården (Garden of Eden). Lindberg was a leading Swedish postwar designer, also producing ceramics, tableware, industrial design and working as a painter and illustrator. I saw an original version of this fabric in the National Museum, and then was able to buy some as Design House Stockholm now reproduces it to the same original standards.

The fabric itself is really thick and heavy, more suitable for upholstery than clothing which is why I had my predicament of not knowing what to make with it. However, as we start to get the nursery ready a need became clear!

We already have two nursing chairs, handed down from my parents, which we had been using as normal seats but they can soon be put to their proper use! However, I imagine it would be nice to be able to put your feet up once in a while so I found instructions for a footstool in the Liberty Book of Home Sewing.

And this is what I made!

Not a very tricky make, apart from getting the blimming polystyrene balls into the lining, and then getting that into the cover. It looked like it had snowed indoors and I have a feeling we will be finding little white balls for years to come!

The only other niggly thing that happened was that I marked the fabric with tailors chalk to cut it out, then changed the cutting line and now can’t get the tailors chalk out. You can just see a white line all round the top in some of the photos. Does anyone have any tips on how I could get rid of this – rubbing it vigorously with a stiff brush hasn’t worked!

Because of the fabric design, and the shape of the footstool it is like a little story is being played out as you turn the stool around.

‘Oh what a lovely spot for a picnic!’

‘Just chillin’, listening to my own private flute player…’

Some shenanigans going on around that tree on the right if you ask me…

‘Look at me! I’m juggling white doves!’
(I had to chop most of the doves off, but that is actually what it looks like he is doing!)

And after all that excitement, me and the baby took the footstool for a little test run. It works perfectly!

Image source
http://www.scandinaviandesigncenter.com/Products/gbp1/Scandinavian_Fabrics/Fabrics/13522/Art+Collection+fabric+red

How to make rouleau loops (and what they are)

By the end of my Clothes Making class on Monday, I was feeling pree-tty pleased with myself. Why? Because I not only learnt what a rouleau loop is, but I also learnt how to make one.

So what is a rouleau loop?

It does not, as I spent much of my lesson hoping, have anything to do with a roulade except for the fact both words are to do with rolling in French.

Num, num, num...

Sadly, a rouleau loop is in no way edible.

Rouleau on it’s own is a decorative technique that involves creating patterns with piping, cording or bias tape.

A rouleau loop uses the same cord or piping, but as a way of fastening buttons. I guess we’re most familiar with them being used down the back of bridal gowns. No prizes for guessing whose dress came up most when I did a quick search!

As you may have seen from a previous post, I am currently making a top using a maternity pattern my mum had when she was pregnant with me.

I am making the middle top, but with short sleeves and two buttons down the front. It is these two buttons that require the rouleau loops, so here goes on how I did it!

(Apologies for poor photos, I forgot my camera so had to use my phone)

By drawing round a set square, cut a piece of paper with a right angle and 45 degree angle.

Next, draw a line 2.5cm (or as required) in from the 45 degree angle.

Pin this triangle on to your fabric, using the straight sides to line up with the selvedge. The 45 degree line gives you your bias.

Cut along the inside line drawn at 2.5cm parallel to the 45 degree line, this will create a strip of fabric cut on the bias.

Fold the strip in half lengthways and pin together.

Sew a straight line a few millimeters from the folded edge.

Taking a strong needle and thread, attach the thread to one end of the fabric, next to the opening of the channel you have created. Now for the tricky bit!

Start threading the needle through the channel, but with the blunt end first to make it easier. Keep going until the needle and thread come out the other end.

The fabric now needs to be turned inside out, with all the excess fabric being captured within the roll. This took me a lot of wriggling and trial and error, but essentially you should be able to pull the thread, which will in turn pull the fabric through from the other end where you have already attached it firmly.

Keep going!

Eventually it will all come through, and it then needs a quick steam from the iron by pinning each end to the ironing board.

I then used this cord to create the rouleau loops for my buttons, checking the size of the loops against the buttons themselves.

The final rouleau loops on the front of my top!

If none of this makes sense, I found this guide here which may be useful!

Image sources
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/5142/mango-and-passion-fruit-roulade
http://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/category/history/fashion-history/
http://designgloss.tumblr.com/ 

Sarah’s Very Sunny Sorbetto

Say hello to Sorbetto No. 3!

I made this Sorbetto earlier in the year for my friend Sarah’s 30th. As she has pointed out it has become my most travelled make yet – she lives in New Zealand so I posted it to her there, and she has taken some photos of her wearing it in Fiji (look away now if you don’t want to see beautiful sandy beaches, palm trees, general sunny lovliness…)

Doesn’t Fiji look awful? I’m sure she must have had a terrible time. Despite the dull scenery though, I think Sarah and the Sorbetto look great

You may recognise the fabric from my Butterick B5217. I bought it to make the Sorbetto and had lots left over for me! I used some pink silky binding to finish off the edges, and while I didn’t quite catch it all as neatly as I would have liked, I think I did a good job considering it’s the thinnest stuff I’ve worked with so far!

I’m also really pleased that it fits. It’s quite hard to check when your customer lives on the other side of the world, but thankfully it seems to be just right!

The 50p Quilt

Although all the clothes I have been making recently have been maternity things, so far on Peggy’s Pickles I have resisted talking too much about baby stuff. This is partly because I don’t want to bore you all, and partly because I don’t actually know anything about babies. I am hoping that somehow between now and July my ‘mothering instinct’ is going to kick in, and I will just know what to do. Or at least make it look like I know what to do

Anyway, in an attempt to get ready for the wriggly person inside of me (yes, this does feel as weird as it sounds if you haven’t yet experienced it) I decided to make a little cot quilt.

I have made two quilts already in my life, and after each one I have sworn never to make another one. The first was a wedding present for my sister, a massive king size affair that I kept getting lost under, calling for Dave to rescue me from the depths of the cotton and wadding that engulfed me as I sewed. Never again I said – I am a one-quilt-pony.

That was until my mum hinted that she had a big birthday coming up, and oh, wouldn’t a quilt be a lovely present? Knowing that I had a lot of wadding left from the first quilt, how could I refuse? Although I did get it done in time, this quilt took me about 6 months to finish. And still I couldn’t get the corners right.

That’s it – no more quilts for me I thought. They make me a bit stressed, I can’t work out how to mitre the corners, and to be honest, I don’t really know what I’m doing.

Then I got pregnant, which does funny things to you. Like making you cry when Sian Williams has her last day presenting BBC Breakfast News (she’d been there 11 years can you believe?! Emotional stuff).

So, under this pregnancy induced illusion that I really wanted to make something for our baby, out came the wadding again (I may have over bought on the wadding in the first place, and this has definitely been the error of my ways).

Peggy sprang in to action, in anticipation of another sewing project she could assist with.

Rather than buy lots more fabric I wanted to try and use bits from the rather large stash of scraps that I have. The only problem is that I am a girl, and the baby could be a boy or a girl. I have a lot of girly fabric scraps, so did my best finding bits that were as neutral as possible. Inevitably it’s still a bit girly biased, but all in all I only had to pop out to buy some cotton for the border which was 50p!

Peggy was always on hand for the quilt-comfiness-test.

And definitely didn’t get in the way when I was stitching the border on.

This time round I was determined to get the corners right so I got some instructions out and carefully read through them. “Ah Ha!” I exclaimed “With all my new sewing skills I finally understand what I’m meant to do!”

With a very smug face I sat and handstitched away. “Check me out, doing mitered corners like a pro.”

I did them wrong. AGAIN.

They are however my best yet, so am happy with that. Am pretty sure it’s me being a bit of a perfectionist as well, and am also pretty sure the baby isn’t going to be too worried about how successfully its quilt corners have been mitered.

The nice thing about the quilt is that each bit of fabric has a little story to go with it.

The green floral and dark purple were used in my mum’s quilt, and the blue stripey in my sisters. The pink stripey I ‘acquired’ from a place I worked, and the blue border fabric was my old duvet cover in my first year at Uni.

A very family affair!

Finished Project: BurdaStyle maternity skirt

Things have been getting a bit dire in my wardrobe – the rapid growth of my tummy has meant that in the last couple of weeks I have I managed to pop a button off a cardigan, rip a hole in one dress, cause a bow to come unstitched on another, and also rip a pair of pants (underwear / underpants – what do you call them in the US?!).

A nasty trip to Oxford Street to try and remedy the problem actually just made things worse. Either none of the maternity clothes were to my taste, or were far too expensive (Topshop, I’m talking to you) to be able to justify only wearing them for a few more months.

So, I need to get a wriggle on in making a few more things before I bust out of anything else! I found the BurdaStyle maternity range a week or so ago and was mulling over whether to make the skirt or trousers. The skirt won for it’s ease of construction, and here is the finished article.

I used the left over black jersey from my New Look 6000 dress, so including the pattern and fabric I reckon this skirt cost about £5!

The actual construction of the skirt was super easy, put in some gathers and stitch together basically.

A weird angle view of the gathers that will help the skirt grow with me

It was the sizing that caused me the biggest issue. After I had finally located the size chart on the BurdaStyle website, I used my hip measurements and the nearest size was a 42 so this is what I cut and sewed. I mean, how can it go wrong?

Well. After removing a total of at least 10cm from the sides of the skirt, redoing the gathers, and getting a little bit cross at how bad the size chart is (this isn’t just me it turns out, there are quite a few complaints about it!), I had a nearly finished skirt. Admittedly I didn’t actually measure the pattern and check it like I’ve been taught, but I couldn’t really see how this was going to go wrong! Now for the waistband.

As far as I know Burda started in Germany. And it is a possibility that pregnant German women grow upwards as well as outwards. That is the only explanation I can possibly think of when it comes to the waistband you are supposed to put on this skirt, as it came up OVER MY BUST. Not just a little bit, it completely enclosed my 32 triple N (it’s not really this big, but I’m sure it’s getting pretty close ) bust! Even folding the waistband over kept some of it well covered!

Using my powers of deduction that this was not where the WAISTband was meant to be I halved it, and then took off a bit more. The waistband you see before you now is still folded in half. Have I got across yet how big this thing was?

I have to say though, considering the black skirt below from the NCT shop is a whopping £45, I’m pretty happy with mine, big waistband and all