Thursday, February 13, 2014

Done, Well With the Coat Muslins At Least

Making a third muslin was worth it.  I've fine tuned the fit and gotten rid of most of the issues.  Oddly, it looks shorter in the front but I had Seth measure  center front and back and the back is shorter by a 1/2". I've allowed a 2" hem allowance so that I can check it again when it's in the coating.  This fabric is heavier than the muslin, and it worked well.   There are wide seam allowances on the side seams and the sleeve seams so that I can adjust them a bit. I also have to  play with the shoulder pads to get the shoulders even.  

What I changed:
Added  height to the sleeve cap.  There were even drag lines front and back and the HBL was higher in the center.  It's still a bit higher so I added a little bit more height to the pattern. It can be fine tuned.

The hips were enlarged and most of the drag lines are gone. There are some on the left. My hips are not the same shape, but not so much that I need two pattern pieces I don't think.\

I shortened the sleeves above the elbow which made them more comfortable.  They look a little long to me, but I always cut sleeves too short and then my wrists are cold when I drive.  

I moved the shoulder seam to lie on top of my shoulder. The shoulder  end was fine, but neck there was too much of the back showing at the neck edge.  When I added the rounded back alteration I added a shoulder dart.  You can cut it off at the shoulder, but I like the dart.  I moved it so that it matched up with the shoulder princess in front. It fits the shoulder better I think. In wool you can also ease the dart into the front if it's not too large.

The coat is fitted with a long sleeve top and a heavy sweater underneath. I also heeded Bunny's warning of how much room the heavier coating, the lining, interfacing and interlining take up in fitting ease.  I left it a bit on the large size.  I'll  baste it together and see how it hangs.  

All of the fitting changes have been transferred to the pattern and the lining pattern is finished.  I am actually ready to cut fabric!  Wow.





9 comments:

  1. I'm excited to see the coat come to life! I'm always surprised as how much more ease a thicker fabric needs and also how much room a thin lining can seem to use up. Sounds like you've got an excellent plan!

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  2. That looks much better than the last one. I'm sure you're ready to be done with fitting and just sew already, right!

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  3. Looking great, you're nearly there! It's going to be a terrific coat!

    I hope you don't mind this input, but from the side on view it looks to me as though you still might need the front to be a little bit longer - the back is more of a straight drop from the shoulders then the front and I think there might be more than 1/2" in it. Fitting is very hard, isn't it!

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  4. Wow, you've really made it sing. I like that you've fitted it over those garments, real important. Time to cut!

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  5. You'll be thankful for the time spent on fit when you start sewing the real thing.

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  6. After I took these photos I worked out the rest of my fitting issues. The left shoulder needed a little more padding and the back armscye needed to be cut back a little bit. I figured out how much to trim it back my making deeper clips than the seam allowance allowance until the drag lines to my armscye disappeared.

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  7. Yay for fixing fitting issues!!!

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  8. Nothing like a good old muslin. Such a fashion fabric saver!

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  9. Looks nice. Thanks for sharing the process.

    Sue C

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