tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54781775431684459792024-03-13T00:27:00.856-04:00Jersey Pfaff Follies & Singer ZingersTom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-293789241065348132019-01-19T20:16:00.000-05:002019-01-19T20:16:53.205-05:00Summer is just around the corner.. I finished the short sleeve today. I was determined to match the plaid and came pretty close. I did flat felled seams on the arm scythe and sides, which are less than the 5/8” allowance built into the pattern. The result was a bit of extra fabric where the arm, sleeve, and side sales meet. With some creative ironing and glue basting I was able to make it work on one sleeve, but the other was a mess. So I bar tacked and moved on.<br />
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<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-28809291532217181472019-01-15T19:06:00.001-05:002019-01-15T19:08:31.137-05:00Work-in-Progress Summer Short SleeveLast Summer a neighbor encouraged me to go with him to a house ‘clean out,’ which is a nice Maine way of saying an estate sale of a deceased person who didn’t have a lot of money but seemed to be a hoarder. The folks mistook the poor lady’s fabric stash as hoarding, but the ancient sewing machine and notions told a different story. Along with a lot of lace trim, I bought 10 yards of a musty scented cotton yarn-dyed cotton plaid for $1, gently washed it, and added it to my own stash. Until a few days ago. Using Vogue 2586 Bill Blass commercial pattern and varied DVDs from Taunton Press, I’ve started using the plaid.<br />
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The new Bernina 740 has sewing precision that is amazing. One of the holy grails of shirt collars is a point without bulk, crisp edges, and edge stitching that defies gravity. I was stitching at 2mm from the edge, but chickened out at the point turn.. a couple more stitches would have tempted fate. I’ll always wonder, and nobody will look. The crowd on 7th Avenue would pick it out right away, but in Maine I don’t think so. I’m determined to do flat felled side seams where I’d normally serge because no one sees the inside of a shirt. I see it, and I’m trying to make a comeback in my sewing. <br />
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The poor lady must have had the bolt for decades, just waiting for the right project. Note to self: sew today because I might not be here for the right project. I hope she will be pleased when I’m done.Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-17014751153574353982019-01-03T21:14:00.002-05:002019-01-03T21:14:36.686-05:00It’s been three+ years since my last post, I’ll try to do better than that in 2019. Over the last few years, I did a number of costumes, curtains and props for community theater. From the back room I moved up to stage management, but from time to time I would make a shirt. After moving several times, I’ve decided to settle permanently in Maine and make a new commitment to sewing. My beloved Pfaff 2046 was replaced by a Bernina 740 a few days ago. I’m already doing 4mm flat felled seams, button holes, rolled hems, seams and buttons with precision I’ve never had — or maybe I’m taking it slow and patiently. <br />
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On New Years, I finished a rather vibrant shirt and a set of curtain inserts for a room divider that’s been waiting for over a year. I’ll do a couple of short sleeve shirts next and then I’ll tackle making a pair of pants. Well, maybe many pairs of pants. </div>
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Long range, I’ll like to make a suit jacket. Stay tuned to this channel. And now a word from our sponsor, cotton thread.</div>
<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-6268172814679984302015-03-14T22:43:00.000-04:002015-03-14T22:43:48.845-04:00Another Dog Walking ShirtThough my two little princesses are gone about 18 months, I decided to make some dog walking shirts again in their memory. These shirts are wacky prints that properly befit a semi-retired part-time adjunct professor. Lord.. if my students see this I will totally lose face. Vogue 8889 turned out to be much more aggressive than I imagined. It's loaded with side and back panels and all seams are flat felled. The sleeve caps are fairly high, and being out of practice with flat felled seams on a shoulder cost me hours of sewing and ripping, and sewing and ripping again. My machine felling foot really wasn't any help, so I basted the seam with a hand stitch first and then machine stitched. <br />
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The pattern eliminates a pleat in the back under the yoke by using side seam panels. This also gives the shirt more of a contoured look. I suppose that's OK if one doesn't have a small pot belly due to a lack of bike riding all this miserable winter. There is something I've never seen before on a shirt.<br />
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There's an undercollar with button holes and buttons. I made this piece in a contrasting white satin. After all, who cares? Well, now that my shirt is out of the way, I can focus more on The Three Musketeers. Ta!</div>
<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-34375586859206272132015-03-11T23:35:00.002-04:002015-03-14T22:44:36.367-04:00Coming BackI can't believe I haven't posted for over two years; that's quite break! My dad and mom needed all the attention I could give. My dad passed away and my mom had to rebuild her life without him. It's only in the last few months that I've fired up the sewing machines and created some joy again. Late last November, I received a call for help from the Chatham Fantasy Theater. They were a month away from opening, and their costume designer abandoned them with no work done. It was a great excuse to throw myself into the Goose that Laid the Golden Egg and move on.<br />
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When I met the director, Eric Hofstadter, he told me that the lead roles of the play were five chickens and a goose. I almost fell over as I came to understand that the actors were teenagers all just over 5' high. Eric didn't want the costumes to look like one of those guys you see outside of Mr. Bojangles. After drawing some sketches on blue line, we decided on making paper mache masks and fully articulated wings. The actors themselves would become puppets and bring their characters to life. Here are the results of those musings on paper:<br />
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The set of wings consisted of 26 feathers, which were simple white cotton sewn on a 14-guage electrical ground wire. There were two types of feathers whose shapes were borrowed from studies I'd found of actual bird wings. Real wings are actually much more sophisticated in number, shape and layering.. but hey, my chickens didn't need to fly. The feathers were attached to a harness made of elastic. The harness had a pivot joint at the elbow and straps over the shoulders to pull the wings up. I'd have been dead if not for my trusty commercial Singer 20U33 with #16 needles. You haven't lived until you hit a 14-guage wire at speed and bust a needle. Many needles gave their lives in this production, and each one sounded like a gunshot followed by much cursing. The longer feathers were 34" long. Easy to sew until you reach the end of the feather and need to turn to go back the other way. To cover the harness, I cut a simple 36" radius circle with a 6" hole in the center for the head. The pants were simple shorts with elastic bands and creative cutting. </div>
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Not so easy to see in the picture above, but have you ever run out and tried to buy six pairs of ladies cotton knee high socks? They were no place to be found!! In a panic, I went to the Short Hills NJ Victoria Secret. VS helped once before finding vintage garter belts (don't ask.) They didn't have the socks, but VS sent me to Lord & Taylor who did. The wonders of Rit Dye cannot be over praised! White socks became five pairs of yellow and one of orange. Add five pairs of rubber chicken feet and voila! I had to sew up goose feet myself.</div>
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The masks were another adventure entirely. To approximate the size of a teenage head, I used a mini-basketball and aluminum foil. The eyes of the mask are made from cardboard egg cartons. To make the crop stand up, I bought a roll of plastic leaf gutter guard at the local Home Depot and hot glued it to the head, then hot glued felt to the gutter guard. Gesso paint covered the newsprint no problem, and took the color acrylic paint well.<br />
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There were other costumes, but these were pulled from the theater's stock room and then modified for the play. Except for a 1980s designer dress that was originally made by <a href="http://www.internationalpleating.com/" target="_blank">International Pleating</a>. I added a long underskirt, cooked up a head piece, and hoped the audience would buy the illusion.<br />
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We had five shows and many in the audience were children who'd never seen a live performance. On a small scale, the play was a big success. The costume budget was extremely low and the producer was able to give a glowing financial report to the theater trustees. After the play, the producer of The Three Musketeers asked me if I could come back and help. We open in May. But first, I have a shirt to make and some puppet head bags to finish.Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-83348400730485244382013-01-29T22:50:00.002-05:002013-01-29T22:50:56.379-05:00Back to Vogue V8750I'm feeling the love for Vogue's design and style of V8750. The flaring lower skirt panels were just captivating when my lady friend walked in the muslin I'd made. The front and back panels hold the possibility of a daring statement. Even the yoke is a lovely accent. <br />
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Thinking hard on how I might use a combination of print and solid fabrics to bring out the character I see in the design, I came up with a combination that should work. From the muslin, I suspect I know what pitfalls await me in matching pattern and grain lines. <br />
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After consulting with the lady who will wear my skirt on color, with a wry smile she selected a brilliant red rather than the silver I'd offered as an alternative. We were only talking about color; I didn't have the fabric yet. She's a 'mature' plus size, but she has a youthful fire in her mind's eye. My heart was with the red too. I'm thrilled to have the chance to make a skirt that will express how she sees herself. For the lower skirt panels, I'm going to use a floral pattern that reminds me of the spring cherry blossoms. <br />
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The rich red satin will fill the front panel, arc over the hip, and fill the back. The light silver satin on the yoke should provide an interesting accent, soften her waist line and emphasize the lower hip and flaring lower skirt. With the right white/grey blouse, she'll have a nice hour glass silhouette.<br />
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The pieces are cut. I overlaid the pieces over my muslin just to visualize how it will look. My Juki is threaded up and ready to ride with Superior So-Fine in a red that is a dead on match to the red satin. I teach tomorrow night; we'll see if I have time to do some panels and get this show on the road.<br />
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In my head, I hear my father's displeasure. 'A skirt? You're making a skirt for a woman?' He'd rather I stick to finance and IT. I've played the piano since I was a small boy. In college I learned drawing and painting as electives for core courses in economics and accounting. He wasn't happy with that either. Here I am in my 60s, painting when I can and sewing as much as I can. Fighting back. My mother uses every opportunity to share what she knows from her years of dress making. An amazing family dynamic, and yet so common.<br />
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A few days ago, I happened on a chance meeting with a young lady and her mother while waiting for our take out chinese dinner orders. They were discussing what the daughter should study in college. Something was pulling her to accounting, but her heart was calling her to fashion design. Her mom wanted her to go for design, but I sensed a father's voice in her head too. I intruded and told her to look hard at design, go with her heart and that the next time she might have the choice will be 40 years from now. She turned very pale. She should.<br />
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G'night.Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-68096884607742520322013-01-27T20:23:00.000-05:002013-01-27T20:23:03.561-05:00Done .. Next!I finished the double weave shirt today. For the most part, I think it came out nicely. I am very pleased with my new Juki TL2010Q and with the Superior <i>So Fine!</i> thread I also used for the first time. <br />
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My mom gave me her size 16 dress form. The muslin on the form is the skirt I started a couple of weeks ago. The shirt was something I did while she tested the fit of the skirt, but I'm ready to get back to work on the skirt. My lady friend needs it for this Friday to celebrate "Go Red!" Day this Friday, February 1st. I foresee a couple of late nights.<br />
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This semester I'm teaching Monetary & Financial Institutions as an adjunct prof. in the evening. Banking by day, sewing and teaching in the margins.<br />
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G'night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-73990907495479141302013-01-24T07:47:00.003-05:002013-01-24T07:49:56.307-05:00Juki TL2010Q v. French Double Weave I suppose it wasn't the smartest thing in the world to do, but I decided to use my new Juki 2010Q straight stitcher to make a shirt of the double weave fabric I'd bought from Berman Textiles. New machine + New fabric = Challenge^2.<br />
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After I washed the fabric, I was immediately struck by how light and fluffy it had become. The slightest touch would send the weave in wild directions. I use a rotary cutter, so I was also surprised when the ends of freshly cut fabric exploded into frays. Of course, the cut crossed the weave and the injured warp threads danced around like live electric lines.<br />
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I felt like I was trying to sew airy cotton balls together, but I suspect there is a nylon fiber in the fabric. It simply won't hold a crease and found it wandering away like spandex. The Juki performed well. The feed dog and presser foot seemed to have a firm stable command of the fabric. It is a wonderful basting machine. The 6mm stitch is very much like my 1970s Singer touchmatic. I don't think I would have been able to sew this fabric as well with my Pfaff zig-zag stitcher. I'm positive the larger hole in the feed dog plate would have created evil things to happen with this fabric.<br />
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Last night I added the cuff plackets. No matter how much ironing I did, the fabric would unfurl itself as I stitched. I thought I'd caught all the edges, but this morning I see I didn't. During the night the fabric spread itself out flat. Hand stitching will fix this. [sigh]</div>
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Off to work!</div>
<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-23099517515409887622013-01-20T22:35:00.003-05:002013-01-20T22:35:50.715-05:00Double Weave FabricA few weeks ago, I visited Elliott Berman Textiles at 225 West 35th St 7th Floor. The lovely Eugemia was on hand to help me select a fabric for a shirt. The store is beautifully organized and the proprietor is a master of offering fine fabrics at very reasonable prices. It's best to avoid shopping for a fabric by the name of the designer. Just go with what you see as a beautiful work of art to the touch and visual impact. I picked out a most amazing roll of fabric that Eugenmia told me had come from France. It was plaid on one side and chex on the other.<br />
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I'd never seen anything like it before.. a fabric with two right sides! I bought enough and then some to make a long sleeve shirt. Eugemia tried to explain that this fabric was a double weave, but I was so focused on the fabric itself I didn't hear her. This is a man thing. <br />
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Tonight I started cutting the fabric to make a shirt and noticed the fabric was separating at the edges. Amazingly, it is actually two ultra thin sheets intricately woven together. <br />
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I pulled on the fabric sheets, but found a single warp strand from each was woven into the weft of the other cloth sheet. The strands are in a color which complements both sheets at the same place in the weave. I plan to mix my pieces to take advantage. The front, back and sleeves will be plaid. The cuffs, pocket, collar and collar stand will be chex. <br />
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Status on the skirt.. I made a muslin and it fit my lady friend well enough to make it again out of fashion fabric. Matching a print between the yoke and the large skirt panels would have driven me crazy, so I found some solid colors drawn from the print's flowers. <br />
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And a little news.. I bought a Juki TL2010Q sewing machine It's designed primarily for quilting, but I wanted a beautiful straight stitch like the vintage Singers can deliver so after a long search this one seems the best pick. Tomorrow I'm setting it up and will sew most of the plaid/chex shirt on it. <br />
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G'night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-62410108938069443942013-01-09T22:40:00.000-05:002013-01-09T22:40:38.093-05:00Stitching V8750My Singer 20U gave me big problems tonight, but it's working enough to do a muslin. V8750 is fascinating to me. I found sewing the yoke is something like sewing a bow tie and a shirt armscye.<br />
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I've got a lot of the front done. The pattern shapes the fabric in a manner that I found very familiar, but certainly different in that the stitch lines are much longer than most anything I've worked on before. <br />
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If you're wondering, I used a bright green for the top thread and an orange thread in the bobbin. This helps me keep my RS and WS from getting reversed. G'night.Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-61997098739219065132013-01-08T22:34:00.000-05:002013-01-08T22:34:58.217-05:00Forward Motion V8750Last night I traced the Vogue pattern to my own paper. This evening (night?) after a fruitless search of Moen's parts website for a kitchen faucet handle connector clip, I made time for ironing my muslin and cutting out 'my' skirt. I did get the faucet running again by cutting my own part from scrap tin, but this is a most suspect repair.<br />
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Don't look at the wallpaper in the background. I had nothing to do with it being on my walls. It came with the house already on the walls ten years ago. For ten years, I've had a love hate relationship with it. It's the last room in the house I haven't remodeled. I need to make time for that too.</div>
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G'night!</div>
<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-37631614763983066902013-01-07T22:45:00.000-05:002013-01-07T22:45:09.634-05:00Starting Vogue V8750I've been looking forward to trying a semi-fitted skirt for some time. I've completed a few simple skirts with elastic band waists, but not a skirt fitted to the waist and semi-fitted to the hips. I've done blind serged hems and inserted an invisible zipper. Time to pull it together and do a skirt.<br />
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Vogue's V8750 has a front and back yoke, front and back panels, and side / back fronts to give the skirt flare.<br />
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A lady I work with was kind enough to venture with me on this skirt. Armed with her measurements, I studied the pattern and traced the pattern lines, circles, notches, and grain lines to paper tonight. When I trace the pattern, it gives me a chance to get familiar with the pieces and mentally break down the project into steps. I plan to cut muslin tomorrow. G'night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-30992113157465067262013-01-02T23:44:00.002-05:002013-01-02T23:45:25.951-05:00The Dreaded Invisible Zipper!About six months ago, I bought an invisible zipper foot for my Pfaff. I had visions of sewing invisible zippers in everything, so I also bought a handful of invisible zippers at Sil Thread at 257 W38th in Manhattan. The foot and the zippers were placed in the 'things I want to do' box and never left. It's a new year, and I'm tired of that $20 foot nagging at me so I decided to make a sample tonight.<br />
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On the first attempt, I sewed the zipper in beautifully backwards. I couldn't imagine why my WS was on the good side of the zipper. A curved Olfa razor blade is a wonderful thing. Without much angst, I cut the zipper off my sample cloth and tried again. The second attempt was much better, but I realized I hadn't tried to match my fabric print and hadn't taken pictures to refer to when I forget how to insert a zipper. I was a real Olfa Zorro tonight.<br />
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My first step was to match up the fabric print as best I could along the seam line which would have the zipper.<br />
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Then I unfolded and cut the fabric 5/8" from my seam.. I couldn't think of another way to do it tonight. This was followed by pinning the left side of the open zipper to the RS left panel of my sample. The zipper teeth are measured 5/8" from the fabric edge. Once pinned in place, the zipper teeth chain is fed into the left groove of the invisible zipper foot. Pfaff's foot has a plow that unrolls the zipper chain and stitches so that the chain rolls back over hiding the stitches. I used bright pink thread for the sample; it really doesn't show up much (except for shreds of the two prior generations of stitches I'd left from earlier attempts).<br />
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I found the next step intellectually challenging. The right side of the zipper is crossed over and place down on the RS of the right side fabric.<br />
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It is then stitched down using the right groove of the invisible zipper foot. Stitching on both side goes up to the pull foot.<br />
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At this point, the zipper is in. The invisible zipper foot is taken off and a regular zipper foot put on. The work is folded so right sides are together. The zipper foot is tucked up close to the stitch line of the zipper.<br />
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The needle is moved as far to the right as possible. Stitching begins just above the end of the zipper stitches already in place. Stitching proceeds along the length of the zipper, folded now inside the fabric, and then continuing on along the 5/8" seam allowance to the end of the fabric.<br />
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I'd say I was pretty close on matching the print. I could have done better, but I didn't have all night either. My excuses are .. The sample fabric pieces were just leftovers and I didn't cut them precisely on the grain and that poor zipper had been put in and taken out about six times.. it was starting to twist and I was too lazy to iron it out. Other than that, the zipper foot won't be nagging at me from its box now.<br />
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G'night!<br />
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<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-26064302029523222772013-01-01T17:28:00.000-05:002013-01-01T17:28:37.485-05:00Happy New Year! While waiting for the Times Square Ball to drop on TV, I finished making a clutch bag for my wife.<br />
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The bag is made of sturdy upholstery fabric and an iPad fits nicely. The pattern is New Look 6080. After I finished the bag, I realized I hadn't taken pictures of how to make it. There is one step in the pattern that defied my imagination, and I spent some time on the step until I got it. Duh.<br />
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Today, I made another bag out of vinyl in two colors. The twisting and turning almost destroyed the bag, so I'll pass along some tips. I used magnetic bag snaps for a closure as recommended by the pattern,<br />
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They are simple to line up over the dots indicated on the pattern. I used a Exacto knife to cut two small slits to insert the snaps and then open the feet up to secure the snaps to the fabric.<br />
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The pattern calls for placing RS together, and sewing 5/8" from the bottom edge towards the center, leaving enough for your hand. The mystery begins at this point.<br />
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The pattern then calls for folding over so the rights sides meet at the fold line. Sure. First, fold up the RS at the stitch line just completed. Fabric would be pressed here along the stitch line. I used a wood block for the vinyl to crease it.<br />
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THEN you fold the flaps down so the RS meets. The fold line is 8" from the stitch line.<br />
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I've offset the two flaps a little so you can see, but you would line these up and stitch entirely around the edge EXCEPT the bottom, where you can insert your hand.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK3I2c-5r0XV9D5OvnCLK078osvDS0PP344uW2n96G5IWs7MOZQGMe64gxCqFpLc8-EFe_yMixcxwjp1bDT7MrXjV4qSgMoJSbWSqBal1W4LmH6TuiH6jJ3ZnJRFhtAK0Z9NC0RgU9k2ii/s1600/Purse_09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK3I2c-5r0XV9D5OvnCLK078osvDS0PP344uW2n96G5IWs7MOZQGMe64gxCqFpLc8-EFe_yMixcxwjp1bDT7MrXjV4qSgMoJSbWSqBal1W4LmH6TuiH6jJ3ZnJRFhtAK0Z9NC0RgU9k2ii/s320/Purse_09.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Remember that first stitch line with enough space to insert your hand? It's now deep inside. Slip your hand through the space between the stitch lines and pinch the point of the flap as best you can. Pull the point through to the outside. As a kid, I would make paper hats like this. At first, when the point appears, one wonders what is going on.. but keep pulling patiently.<br />
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When it pulls completely inside out (RS out), you will see an almost completed clutch bag. <br />
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I had a lot of trouble sewing the vinyl.<br />
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The final bag pictured is really the second vinyl bag. The pattern calls for slip stitching the opening closed where you hand pulls through the flap point. I didn't think I had the strength to hand sew the layers of vinyl, so I tried to use my Pfaff because it has a free arm. While the needle punched through, I just couldn't put enough thread tension for the bobbin side loop to pull tight and it made a mess. I used my commercial Singer, but it was also dicey, I tried to edge stitch the flap so it wouldn't bubble, but the feed dog chewed up the vinyl and it made another mess. I cut out my magnetic snaps and made a whole new bag.<br />
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There are some tricks for me to learn with vinyl. On the first bag, my first stitch lines pulled right through the material when I pulled the flap point through. On the second bag, I sewed a reinforcing square of cotton. It helped, but wasn't fool proof. I also graded the seam edges around the points to help make a crisp point. It helped, but wasn't fool proof either.<br />
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The pattern is very simple to cut. The sewing isn't difficult with woven fabric. The result is pleasing for its simple look. You might add a decorative button to the outside flap just over the magnetic clasp inside.<br />
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Happy New Year!<br />
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<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-3904847985733391452012-12-27T23:01:00.000-05:002012-12-27T23:02:37.723-05:00Little Diversion to a Bag and a PurseEver get started on what seems to be a small project that explodes into a life of its own? I spent the night learning how to match my thread and needle size to my fabric. You may wonder 'what is he talking about and how did this happen?' It started yesterday when I made a set of curtains for my son's kitchen window. I used a rather funky upholstery fabric with a WS coating that required a lining to hide. The curtains came out well, but I had a little fabric left over. I made a iPad size bag for me wife, and she was pleased with it.<br />
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The bag was totally from materials I had on hand. Inspired by the bag, I decided I'll make a matching purse. The NewLook 6080 pattern is really for a ladies top and pants, but they added a simply purse pattern as an accessory (nice touch).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpaCmSEkoUkcIqub4OzmzRLUkG8mZUVdifwpfHVPm2i56M_aY-WUC50_0zTPD_Gu1WgNSilHsT0NvIr5sUWYcWJ2-puaimm0pGOZDgnAOz_2v7bCnNZQD_5Qj8fuqrWpL_qVAaGBj61kOp/s1600/2012-12-27_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpaCmSEkoUkcIqub4OzmzRLUkG8mZUVdifwpfHVPm2i56M_aY-WUC50_0zTPD_Gu1WgNSilHsT0NvIr5sUWYcWJ2-puaimm0pGOZDgnAOz_2v7bCnNZQD_5Qj8fuqrWpL_qVAaGBj61kOp/s400/2012-12-27_1.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
I didn't have enough of the curtain/bag fabric left, so I decided to make the purse from a really tough nasty, but very attractive, upholstery fabric. The fabric cut well enough, took the heavy fusible interface well enough, and the magnetic snaps went in fine. When I decided to sew a sample on my Singer 20U33 before trying to sew the purse, the result was a total disaster.<br />
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I had a good quality Gütermann poly thread, but the machine dropped stitches like mad. Figuring it was tension, I tried everything including cleaning and oiling the bobbin hook. If I sewed at 600spm, the thread disintegrated. Sewing on a light cotton, the stitching was perfect. Then it occurred to me.. it's the fabric eating my thread! I pulled out a roll of V69 UVR Bonded Sunguard Polyester thread and loaded it on the 20U with a 110/18 needle. This thread is used for outdoor umbrellas on my walking foot Sailrite sewing machine, but I've never had the nerve to try it on the 20U.<br />
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Wow! No dropped stitches even at 1,000spm through 5 layers. QED: nasty heavy upholstery fabric needs a nasty heavy thread with a wicked heavy industrial needle. I feel dumb. Tomorrow I'll finish the purse. I am certain that 100 years from now, the stitches won't come out of this purse. G'nightTom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-67852569754488074502012-12-21T23:43:00.000-05:002012-12-21T23:43:06.750-05:00Breaking Collar Rules? Yes? No?With the Fall season plays in the rear view window, I've started another shirt. I had in mind to make something that is a hybrid between a dress and a casual shirt. Always a recipe for disaster. <br />
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This is a work in progress that I hope to finish up over the weekend.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieTNGKzuZrCnx4ubhVKDKjnbCq7L1iEZxSUL-rAe7GPUdsWanuLJjHpUbyHMA5zSMKEnFp79TAncEpVEHvV_R96FR6-IqmhEr3iz4E4MncNYHQX3icCatm6g4i0pMmcMTAePIsMNwLmCpG/s1600/2012-12-21+shirt_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieTNGKzuZrCnx4ubhVKDKjnbCq7L1iEZxSUL-rAe7GPUdsWanuLJjHpUbyHMA5zSMKEnFp79TAncEpVEHvV_R96FR6-IqmhEr3iz4E4MncNYHQX3icCatm6g4i0pMmcMTAePIsMNwLmCpG/s320/2012-12-21+shirt_3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEganBmFF-hhXzWhHUBAltFvScGc2t96C1ACHPFNYMB5KN9O3E8gLTom067TkFC8zdF-KwK518Udemh-kJccYw5TcKsUtMYioO22Gr-7fv-h0h62epdCLHbsemGFYUr-YbDJDK_re3eoIXyN/s1600/2012-12-21+shirt_4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEganBmFF-hhXzWhHUBAltFvScGc2t96C1ACHPFNYMB5KN9O3E8gLTom067TkFC8zdF-KwK518Udemh-kJccYw5TcKsUtMYioO22Gr-7fv-h0h62epdCLHbsemGFYUr-YbDJDK_re3eoIXyN/s320/2012-12-21+shirt_4.jpg" width="320" /></a>Men's shirts with a stand and a point collar have unwritten rules about the gap between the folds of the collar and the center button. Normally, there's just enough space, 3/4", for the knot of a tie. The collar point spread can be narrow or wide, and the length of the collar can be anything from a short stub to a long 3 1/2". Men's shirt styles have varied on this simple combination for decades. I wondered what it might look like to assume that a long tie would never be worn with the shirt, so I decided to experiment with a very wide 2 1/2" gap and a collar point that would appropriately touch the the shirt front. The collar would be open and loose. I guess it's a look that is like wearing a baseball cap backwards, or the feel of boxer shorts instead of briefs. Gals might not get this, but the guys would. I'd love to hear your thoughts. This shirt is all white, but if I do this again, I will use either a print or a contrasting color color stand.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUaewQcAxUdcigIiUTAMtryvuVsgieFKDN07gi-xP5eoXOy_OIWaGvG6qjtqmQL0xh4YCuGBZ-Edl9ydDlQUKieIJWAMtJJEyms-rCA7PJi45dHGnec2YEuvoW92MyhfJXZOd7gSkSsWM/s1600/BACKWARDS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUaewQcAxUdcigIiUTAMtryvuVsgieFKDN07gi-xP5eoXOy_OIWaGvG6qjtqmQL0xh4YCuGBZ-Edl9ydDlQUKieIJWAMtJJEyms-rCA7PJi45dHGnec2YEuvoW92MyhfJXZOd7gSkSsWM/s320/BACKWARDS.jpg" width="247" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX2LBx5568HrdcvoEiGOqHCi-kQYE_gF5twjEX48UgyT_yfxwyDk9DbfKRbobv9JbjDumPcoZ9nztdiaicuLamGcD8uZLD9gN9UX39ER1YYdq4zyjz6s_J_SfayOHsGs9iDW8ewBa_2LkQ/s1600/boxer-shorts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX2LBx5568HrdcvoEiGOqHCi-kQYE_gF5twjEX48UgyT_yfxwyDk9DbfKRbobv9JbjDumPcoZ9nztdiaicuLamGcD8uZLD9gN9UX39ER1YYdq4zyjz6s_J_SfayOHsGs9iDW8ewBa_2LkQ/s320/boxer-shorts.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I will use contrasting color buttons, teal or blue as I used a very light teal <span style="color: #0c343d;"><i>So Fine! #50</i></span> thread and a <i>80/12 Topstitch</i> <i>Organ</i> needle that I bought from <a href="https://www.superiorthreads.com/" target="_blank">Superior Threads</a>. I am pleased with both the thread and the needle, which is on my Pfaff 2046. Superior does have a "Try Me Special" where they pick the color you get; I bought the maximum of five at $3.00. Beware of the recommended topstitch needle size of 100/16 if you order both the needles and the thread together. The needle is really is supposed to be a 80/12. Off topic I suppose, but since I've wandered away from my collar.... my mom gave me a catalog from <a href="http://www.wawak.com/" target="_blank">WAWAK</a> Sewing Supplies. If you want to find those impossible notions, tools, zippers, tapes, do check them out. I've been reading the catalog and feel like on every page I want to shout "Eureka! It does exist!!"<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Ue5xNzAjILowtPstcNBktY3d7gw6FmJ8CoMt2LnHksonhKm0sljR3X_KBrA6YuhO8KwtZA823hIMEUydjSDCOuTDIHlhp_cg7rgK8S-qs377yZVixTwqRybKbqS-kIR7oKNe7-CZfS0E/s1600/orson-welles_62609.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Ue5xNzAjILowtPstcNBktY3d7gw6FmJ8CoMt2LnHksonhKm0sljR3X_KBrA6YuhO8KwtZA823hIMEUydjSDCOuTDIHlhp_cg7rgK8S-qs377yZVixTwqRybKbqS-kIR7oKNe7-CZfS0E/s320/orson-welles_62609.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
Back to this shirt. It's 100% cotton, washed but not ironed until I'm finished making the shirt. I cheated and serged the seams then folded them over to make a faux flat felled seam. I intend to do a serged rolled hem on the bottom instead of a sewn rolled hem. Maybe I'll cook up a different tie to match this shirt. Orsen Wells preferred broad bow ties in his later years. It's a thought.<br />
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Slowly but surely, I'm drifting over to the dark side with my Elna serger. My next posting will be about my visit to the Merrow Company in Fall River, MA where they make commercial sewing machines. I'll also introduce you to "Maria," my latest flea market sewing machine acquisition.<br />
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G'night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com4Hackettstown, NJ 07840, USA40.8550327 -74.85071310000000740.662918700000006 -75.1734366 41.0471467 -74.527989600000012tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-70967196509151005432012-12-20T23:01:00.002-05:002012-12-21T21:35:51.020-05:00A Visit to International PleatingTo appreciate the garment district, one must go up into the buildings to find the greatest treasures of the fashion industry. Tucked away on the 4th Floor of 327 West 36th Street, the world's grand masters of both table/hand and machine pleating celebrate their art as a family passionate about creating a breath taking display in your fabric or theirs. Ironically, I learned of International Pleating from a post on the San Francisco Bay Area Costume Guild's group site. The post mentioned the address and fabric for sale on the firm's <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/intlpleating" target="_blank">store </a>website. With the thought of going to the address directly to see if I could find a bargain yesterday, I stumbled into the small 'sky' factory and was pleasantly greeted by Mr. George Kalajian. International Pleating is not set up for retail sales; the only way one can buy their goods is to go to their website. Trust me on this one.<br />
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I guess I had a 'deer-in-the-headlights' look when I asked George if they do pleating for ordinary people. The man was so patient and generous with his time that it's important for me to share what I learned from my visit.<br />
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George's family has been pleating since 1931. His father and mother are still very active in the <a href="http://www.internationalpleating.com/what-we-do/" target="_blank">business</a> with an intimate understanding of how a fabric will take to the pleating process. Their craft has been honed by decades of experience and a genuine love for what they do. A love you can see in their work that will astonish those you sew for. For example, George showed me a small piece of fine leather they had pleated. I just couldn't believe my eyes.<br />
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The best way to bring work to the family is to come by foot, by phone, or by email with your fabric sample and design ideas. One walks in to Room 400 demanding a specific process at one's own peril and that of your fabric! As the chinese curse goes 'watch out what you wish for, you might just get it.' The family will execute exactly what you tell them to do, so don't. What George and his family really want is to collaborate with you, giving you the benefit of their knowledge before you cut your fabric. Then you cut and let them create the magic.<br />
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There are well over two dozen types of machine pleats. Creating a pleat might be a single process, or up to 15 steps. George explained that pleating is done in fundamentally two ways: as a square panel with even repeating folds, or as a round 'sunburst' with folds expanding from a narrow width to a wide width. During my visit, George's father sandwiched a skirt's fabric by hand between folded layers of paper. He bound the layers tightly and placed the bundle in what looked like a steam oven. The man was quietly creating art as I watched from across the room.<br />
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I highly recommend downloading George's eBook "How to Use Machine Pleating" at no cost from the <a href="http://www.internationalpleating.com/blog/" target="_blank">blog</a> page. George has also written a second eBook called "Pleated Bias Skirts: Cutting & Calculating." Apparently, so few designers and sewists are familiar with the pleating calculations, George provided the tool to enable you to better express your vision. <br />
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There is a special advantage to buying from George's store. For as little as $7/yard you can immediately possess properly finished fabric with the purpose of learning how to sew a pleated garment. You can bring your own fabric for pleating, but the cost of pleating process itself might be more than what George is selling his fabric for. My guess is that I'd screw it up and feel twice as bad. Once you have had some experience, then it will make more sense to bring that $150/yard silk you've been saving to the family. With the family's help, a couple of hundred dollars and your own sewing, you will have a skirt that might cost several thousand if it had a designer label on it. For myself, I'm going to buy fabric from the store and learn first. I am really the proverbial deer-in-the-headlights.<br />
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G'night! <br />
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Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-24987677825290966532012-12-19T23:51:00.004-05:002012-12-21T21:38:09.633-05:00Post Mortem - Ebenezer's HousecoatEarly in May I took on the assignment of making a replacement coat for the character Ebenezer Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol" to be produced by the Chatham Theater in December. I did my best to copy the coat to tracing paper and then transferring the pattern to muslin pieces.<br />
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The original coat is over 30 years old. It had been let out numerous times and there were generations of repairs. There was a total breakdown in communications between me and the costume designer for the play. I wasn't until just weeks before the opening of the play that I learned what the actor's size would be roughly a size 53. I was further directed to provide a 1" seam allowance without grading so that the coat could be let out more if needed. The coat was to be fully lined, which is unusual for stage. The fabric was a velvet upholstery, and I hadn't made a coat like this before. From reading books on tailoring, I learned that an important element of creating the body of a coat is the undercollar. The undercollar provides the shaping for the outer collar and pulls together the front and back pieces.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNs8_qRVKN24EjZrtAy2dzKFIzI9ZfAXp18P7QsIRj5WJxmu1BZiUTYplVz06G93ZtJYDejd3EttqG_oAN6EWW3AtMBtRLmn8WjeO0TfoDt2oO9q5doFBb9NADaYwC6J5fYxtfPhZuJixd/s1600/Carol_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNs8_qRVKN24EjZrtAy2dzKFIzI9ZfAXp18P7QsIRj5WJxmu1BZiUTYplVz06G93ZtJYDejd3EttqG_oAN6EWW3AtMBtRLmn8WjeO0TfoDt2oO9q5doFBb9NADaYwC6J5fYxtfPhZuJixd/s400/Carol_2.jpg" width="288" /></a></div>
I wish I had taken more pictures of the under collar construction. I had a fairly stiff interfacing and did padstitching (about five close parallel stitch lines in a slight arc from the center back to the seamline) to shape the collar and then diagonal quilting lines from the outer padstitch line to the seam. The collar had a full rounded look that I thought was pleasing.<br />
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I made a muslin for fitting the actor. Unfortunately, we was wearing a heavy sweater and had little arm movement at the fitting so the designer directed me to roll the sleeves back in the armhole. When I returned with a first cut of the coat in the final fabric, the actor was wearing only a T-shirt. The designer directed me to cut the yoke of the coat back 1/2" on each side. I knew then that reducing a yoke by 1" was going to be trouble. On the second fitting, the actor didn't have arm movement again so the designer directed me to reduce the seam allowances to 1/2". By this point, I'd had it, especially with the show opening 1 week away.<br />
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The coat's original design was a rumply affair to begin with, but with the many changes the coat took on a life of its own and got away from me. The dress form I have is a size 40, so it was really a struggle for me to see how the coat would look at all. In the end, I gave up and turned the coat over to the designer along with the leftover yardage. After the play closed I learned that the designer never used the new coat, as it was too much of a departure from the old coat. She really wanted a perfect knock off of the old coat.<br />
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A couple of weeks ago, I joined the Yahoo Group GBACGCostumers (Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild). One of the members mentioned finding a pattern for a "Prince Albert" Skirted Frock Coat on the <a href="http://www.birchstreetclothing.com/" target="_blank">Birch Street Clothing </a>site. As the member said, I found a Laughing Moon pattern # 109 and the great treasure Mr. Lars Malmberg, proprietor. I purchased the coat pattern to sanity check my own copied pattern, a Birch Street pattern for a reversible bolero jacket, Birch Street pattern for a reversible Vest, and #106 Folkwear Turkish Coat. The Turkish coat also provides Trapunto designs for all the borders, so I might be consulting with my mom on trapunto again.<br />
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There is an interesting twist to the story. The actor was Alan Semok a/k/a <a href="http://www.alansemok.com/dummies/TheDummyDoctor.html" target="_blank">The Dummy Doctor</a>. During the fittings, he liked the coat. He wanted the sleeves kept long, the designer cut them back. He wanted an inside pocket; I made sure he got his pocket. Alan asked me if I would be interested in making clothes for ventriloquial dummies and puppets. In a heartbeat, I said I would love to! Very soon I hope to meet Alan in his workshop. <br />
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In the next entries, I will tell you about my trip to the <a href="http://www.merrow.com/" target="_blank">Merrow Machine Company , Fall River, MA </a>where I met the present owners Mr. Owen Merrow and Mr. Charles Merrow, descendents of the original Mr. Merrow. And just today in the NYC Garment District, I visited Elliott Berman Textiles, where Eugenia presented me with a double gauze cotton print from France that I bought for a future shirt, and visited the <a href="http://www.internationalpleating.com/" target="_blank">International Pleating Company</a> where I met George Kalajian. You've got to check out Geroge's blog and his store on Etsy, both linked from the company website.<br />
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Good night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-79157323724223115202012-12-02T00:03:00.000-05:002012-12-21T21:38:09.639-05:00Sewing for Community Theater<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My last post on October 7th was about the reviews of the 39 Steps, a fantastic comedy that I was fortunate to be the costume designer for. <br />
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Costume Design is really not for people who love to sew. It is about understanding the play, the characters, the set and the illusion the actors and the director want to bring to life. Costume Design is just as much about collaboration, project and budget management as it is using space, line, shape, form light, and texture to manipulate scraps of fabric into costume. I'd have been dead from the beginning had it not been for the kindness of Andrea Sickler, the stage manager, who handed me a costume plan she'd saved from a production of the show she had done two years ago.<br />
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From this simple listing of items of clothing each character would need, I crafted a detailed spreadsheet plan which cross referenced the characters, actors sizes, and desired characteristics of the costumes. I could change the sort of the spreadsheet by character, or size, of type of garment. Here's an excerpt:</div>
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The Chatham Theater has a wonderful collection of costumes that is decades old. Most costume designers prefer to rent the entire collection of costumes pre-packaged for the play they are working on. 'Cabaret? Oh, call up the costume company and rent that package.' It did briefly cross my mind to do that, but with a small warehouse filled with beautiful things I could not bear to incur the expense of renting. So with the producer, the stage production manager, and another costume designer, we ventured into the vault and came out with some 150 items. The 39 Steps is a play with four actors who portray over 40 characters in just two hours. Let that sink in. In many parts of the play, there are really only seconds between costume changes. In fact, actors often traded costumes right on stage. It's something of a trick for a milkman's jacket to not look too large on a small frame actor, and then not too small on a large frame actor, but that is what we were able to pull off.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6kCgbxYtIvnJkIeI5KRT3Bi4sVMZNzKNIMGQ6Zo3zmTBX80TvOFs05Y7r6qhYKhZPO-Q9WuGmEAyVCZx9fGA5m3Y4g5PMhn5IwdTHrCrpTKOKmVZlCASbN00HAG20Amdr1VnnFrgJi5Jg/s1600/milkman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6kCgbxYtIvnJkIeI5KRT3Bi4sVMZNzKNIMGQ6Zo3zmTBX80TvOFs05Y7r6qhYKhZPO-Q9WuGmEAyVCZx9fGA5m3Y4g5PMhn5IwdTHrCrpTKOKmVZlCASbN00HAG20Amdr1VnnFrgJi5Jg/s400/milkman.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
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To help organize the costumes, I created a category and numbering system. Items were linked to characters, and to positions on rolling pipe racks. As the play progressed, the dressers could pick off the rack the costume combination for the next character. <br />
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The elements of design came to the forefront in finding costume pieces that would signal the character to the audience. The actors were a huge help to me. "I want to be mysterious, sexy, and funny." OK... black suit, jacket with a peplum, tilted hat with a long feather, a mink wrap (hey $5 from the Goodwill!).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1CM4KbFyWDqFUXwz0Cks8XXinSv6oaDJKFQkymQzGZENNozbGJYN_42uNBn_DqxiaicNbUoWnuOZ2MEZZ6qWdlKxOds4Zo8LNgz0tV1zmZcfCK0gxOuWkVUTIthWeShgzRHPoLt9PZjwk/s1600/30743_10151029528166580_688471333_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1CM4KbFyWDqFUXwz0Cks8XXinSv6oaDJKFQkymQzGZENNozbGJYN_42uNBn_DqxiaicNbUoWnuOZ2MEZZ6qWdlKxOds4Zo8LNgz0tV1zmZcfCK0gxOuWkVUTIthWeShgzRHPoLt9PZjwk/s400/30743_10151029528166580_688471333_n.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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"I want to be the wife of a country farmer who dreams of life in the city." OK... earthy tone clothing, modest, slightly contrast colored apron, light prints and solids.<br />
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"I want to be a professional women.. a suffragette of sorts." OK.. violet colored suit with black piping. <br />
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There was a scene in which "Pamela" had to taken off her wet stockings to dry by the fire. Sounds easy. Do you know where to get vintage ladies stockings and garter belt? Most ladies stockings today come with elastic sewn in at the top, and most garter belts sold are really not functional. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven when we found an ancient box of vintage nylon stockings in the costume vault, but then I thought I slipped into Hell when I picked up a garter belt and it disintegrated in my hands. It took weeks to find a garter belt. On an early Sunday morning, I appeared at the Rockaway outlet of Victoria's Secret with my actresses measurements. The young ladies weren't sure what to make of a 60-year old guy looking for a garter belt, but they directed me to a very emphathetic garter belt specialist. At the bottom of a drawer, pushed to the back, was a real garter belt.. a damned fine sexy one too! The belt played a key comic moment in the play.<br />
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I might mention that just a few weeks later Victoria's Secret would come to the rescue again in Manhattan when they gave their massive fashion show generators to the National Guard during the weeks after Sandy.<br />
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The play's Director, Bell Wesel, was a live wire. She had a creative vision that I was never able to fathom because I was down in the dirt of the details while she was trying to bring on the laughs. At one point, she told me one of the characters needed a fez. He needed to be smarmy, but funny too. A fez is not something you can go down to Walmart an buy off the shelf. <br />
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Through the magic of eBay, I found the perfect fez. The problem was that it was in Turkey. In fact, I needed two. One for the actor and a second for a dummy dress like the actor which would be thrown down from a box above the stage after the appropriate gun shot. I sweated big bullets waiting for the box to come from Turkey, but they came just days before we needed them.<br />
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If you're wondering, I did do some sewing. Much of it alterations. For the two clowns, I sewed two black shirts. The collars had only a stand with a velcro strip to ring the actor's neck. I made several dickies.. a tux shirt with bow tie sewn on.. a policeman's shirt with gold braid dark blue tie.. a loud salesman's shirt with ties to make you sick. As it turns out, only the tux dickies made it into final production. For most of the play, the clowns simply wore the base black shirt. [sigh]<br />
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Of the many people who helped me, Beverly Wand, gave me the encouragement to make it happen when I thought things were slipping out of control. Beverly won the 2012 NJACT Perry Award for Outstanding Costume Design (The Grapes of Wrath.) She was right there to help pull a set of marching band hats out of the sky when the tartan golf caps I'd found didn't cut it for Belle. After the play ended and it was time to put the costumes away, I came down with a nasty flu and she put everything away herself. I still feel badly about letting her down.<br />
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One day I hope again to be the costume designer for a play. After 39 Steps, I assisted Julia Sharp, who was doing the costume design for The Wizard of Oz, and Fran Harrison, costume design for A Christmas Carol. For Wizard, I helped make 22 hats that are 3' wide poppies. For Carol, I made a coat for Ebenezer Scrooge. <br />
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More on these tomorrow... g'night <br />
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<br />Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-11579409321894332522012-10-07T23:28:00.001-04:002012-12-21T21:38:09.631-05:0039 Steps Opens and the Reviewers were kind!Even as the folks were out front purchasing their tickets and taking their seats, I and Beverly Wand were in the back making last second repairs, moving clasps, sewing on bits of velcro. It becomes surreal in a way to sew on small squares of black velcro on ivory blouses and thinking 'hey, this is pretty good.. they'll never see it from 20' away.' The director brought in three costume pieces she'd sewed herself just hours before to replace finished pieces that we've been rehearsing with for weeks. I looked for cuffs on the sleeves; there were none. The fabric was simply folded up into the sleeve. The actor looked at me white faced and wondering how was he going to keep the cuffs from rolling out to bare fabric on the stage. I don't think I have ever hand basted cuffs up as fast as that ever. It was really hard not to break out laughing right then. We had such a great production team there was no panic, screaming, crying .. it was essential to keep our actors in the highest spirits.<br />
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The show did go on and we all had a lot of fun, despite the craziness of the last few weeks. The<a href="http://www.njfootlights.com/" target="_blank"> reviews</a> <a href="http://www.nj.com/independentpress/index.ssf/2012/09/chatham_players_kick_off_91st.html" target="_blank">have</a> all been very good for us. The company took an enormous chance putting on this play. So far, the audiences have been delighted. It is a good feeling, but there are little repairs already to make and a couple of weeks of performances to go. <br />
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My blog posts have been a little out of sorts. I started with planning the play, and now I've posted the opening reviews. Over the next couple of weeks, I will write more about what happened in between. G'night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-41716662287563530592012-10-01T23:31:00.000-04:002012-12-21T21:38:09.635-05:00Opening this Friday.. leave wits at homeHere it is October 1st and I haven't posted since the end of August. A few days ago, Peter Lappin (Male Pattern Boldness) commented on MIA bloggers who dropped out six months ago.. where did they go?<br />
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Sewing for theater is unlike anything that one might consider normal for sewing. It is sewing for fantasy .. for an instant when a garment makes illusion plausible. It is a black worn-with-holes London Fog raincoat that helps the audience pretend the character is a policeman chasing our hero by climbing out the window of a moving train and hanging on the outside of the car for dear life in blowing wind and rain.<br />
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After opening night, I will write about the steps of making the costumes for the 39 Steps. For now, I'll leave you with a tantalizing picture of the stage curtain I made. The theater itself is a thrust arrangement. This play calls for a proscenium arrangement, so the stage crew (of volunteers) built a faux proscenium complete with upper level side boxes .. the characters play the part of audience too. The stage crew had bought 40 yards of fire retardant 118" wide curtain fabric, but the sewing of the curtain was estimated to be $500+. This is BIG money in community theater. So I volunteered to make the curtain. I thought it would be a simple hemming job and done, but this would have looked like hanging a bed sheet. The fabric guy told the stage crew that a 3" box pleat with 12" centers would look good.. try figuring out the math on how much fabric it takes to make two curtains 12' high and 20' wide (each) with 3" box pleats on 12" centers. Answer 50% more than the width. Do you know what it's like to cut 118" wide heavy fabric into 12'+ lengths, sew seams that long, and then sew box pleats from 30' of fabric down to 20'? It took about 12 hours to lay out, measure, cut, and sew the fabric. It would have taken less, but I had troubles with my sailrite sewing machine.. not the machine, me, the dumb sewer who got used to the way a Pfaff works. And Peter wonders why bloggers vanish into the night? <br />
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The curtain is ready to open. The curtain itself plays a part in the play. It completes the illusion of a real stage. <br />
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If you're wondering, most of what I've done is alterations to old clothes. I've made a few pieces that could not be bought or rented at any price .. like a black & white striped ascot. Actually, a pair .. one for the actor and a another for the dummy. I don't want to spoil it, so I'll say no more. Come to the theater to see the 39 Steps.. study your Hitchcock so you won't miss a thing.Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-59366639745322621052012-08-23T08:01:00.000-04:002012-12-21T21:38:09.636-05:00Curtain Up, Act OneForgive me for writing so little of late. My pursuit of the stitching art has taken me in a new direction. A couple of weeks ago, the producer of Chatham Theater's upcoming production of The 39 Steps asked me to take on the role of Costume Designer. It was an opportunity that I didn't imagine would come to me, so I seized the moment and have been running with it since.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnbLlv27K5LodxI-tH2jMVy_Xx35AGxHrn910tdw3cm_10isnj413Q5JL1n4PrBOkQryYdZkZe26-ySYRLCX44ufxmeX43RhkFQuyTx8b6ntOeQA2xFhw5F7hUENmuCStm3VqQjJG2eLFJ/s1600/CD+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnbLlv27K5LodxI-tH2jMVy_Xx35AGxHrn910tdw3cm_10isnj413Q5JL1n4PrBOkQryYdZkZe26-ySYRLCX44ufxmeX43RhkFQuyTx8b6ntOeQA2xFhw5F7hUENmuCStm3VqQjJG2eLFJ/s400/CD+cover.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The play opens October 5th and will run through October 19th. The 39 Steps was one of the longest running comedies on Broadway during the 1990s. It's a zany take off on Alfred Hitchcock's spy thriller of 1935 with four actors playing 34 characters in 33 scenes. In our play, the part of Richard Hannay will be played by David Cantor, pictured here in costume for another play.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And the lovely, Ericka Knight, who is a regular with the New Jersey Shakespeare Theater, will be playing the parts of Annabelle, Pamela, and Margaret.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And as to be expected, we have two "clowns", Chip Prestera and Glenn Post who play the other 30 parts! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVEK94fcfjTT1bfdTveNIkYKSyrUqvBJouSN8qczQEcFCuZEFL5RAz9uPEVZpX3WL2Xp2lcM-_dYoHjHnaXNnygbxCOpfqD69hNv4qsuRFWXPBmN3y0Qf07MhN2RfR3875QQr9vZ4tbTwe/s1600/Glen+Post.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVEK94fcfjTT1bfdTveNIkYKSyrUqvBJouSN8qczQEcFCuZEFL5RAz9uPEVZpX3WL2Xp2lcM-_dYoHjHnaXNnygbxCOpfqD69hNv4qsuRFWXPBmN3y0Qf07MhN2RfR3875QQr9vZ4tbTwe/s320/Glen+Post.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Over the next few weeks, I'll write about my first experience as a costume designer (I can't believe I am writing that at all!) and hope I can give you an idea of the fun community theater can be and bring.</div><br />
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Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-36880464668398264932012-07-23T22:51:00.000-04:002012-12-21T21:39:21.031-05:00Rolled Hem on my SergerOver the last week I finished enough of the muslin for J's dress that I gave it to her to try it on at home. She was in a tizzy because her sonogram this afternoon was to reveal whether her baby is a boy or a girl. Tomorrow I'll have the answer for you on both the sex of the baby and the fit of the dress.<br />
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This evening I used my 'downtime' to learn how to make a rolled hem on my serger. When I first saw a rolled hem on a sheer fabric blouse, I knew I had to buy a serger.<br />
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I watched the ELNA video, read the manual many times, and many little scraps of cloth sacrificed their lives until I mastered making the rolled hem. OK.. so what and who cares?<br />
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For me, it means I won't have to sew my rolled hem on my shirt tails. I'll be able to make my own handkerchiefs in whatever fabric I have a mind to use and save myself the $1-2 they usually cost. I wonder if I make 150 custom handkerchiefs, have I paid for the serger?<br />
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I read an article in <i>Threads</i> about sewing sheer blouses with a serger. A critical element was the narrow rolled hem. Another article discussed hemming a skirt by serging a rolled hem, folding it over, and then sewing through to finish the skirt hem. <br />
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As you can see, we live exciting lives in Hackettstown, NJ. Good night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-75405280596807126752012-07-16T22:44:00.000-04:002012-12-21T21:53:17.981-05:00Pinned & CutI was a little shy about asking "J" for her chest, bust, and midriff measurements. Ah youth! She surprised me by happily measuring her baby bump and waist as well. She usually wears a size 6 dress, but I knew she was now in a much different shape. <br />
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Following the measurements she gave me, the pattern calls for a size 10 around the hips, but the bust and midriff are slightly larger than a 12. I'm not at all sure what to do with the baby bump waist. J wants a fitted bodice that gives her good cover. Sitting at a desk all day; she's in no mood to have the guys seeing more than fabric. No sweet heart or scoop neck lines. I just want her to give her the comfort and cover she wants, but at the same time look stylish. I am developing a healthy respect for designers of maternity clothes. The muslin will tell the story. </div>
Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5478177543168445979.post-70777346469990174102012-07-15T23:38:00.000-04:002012-12-21T21:54:11.209-05:00Checking InSince I finished the cycling jersey, I have started three projects: recreating Ebenezer Scrooge's house coat for the upcoming Chatham Players 2012-2013 season, making a dress for a very pregnant dear friend, and learning how to use my new used serger.<br />
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Ebenezer's house coat has a story. The costume is over 20 years old and has been used continuously by the same actor.<br />
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At the end of last season, the gentleman retired from his much beloved role, and so it seems has his costume. The robe has many tears and repairs. It's also been let out to accommodate the ever expanding good soul and body of the actor. My guess it's a size 53. The theater won't select a new actor for months yet, but the work needs to start now to make a new costume. I haven't detailed it on the blog yet, but I have already traced the main outer shell pieces to paper. Once I thought I had a paper pattern that made sense, I transferred the pattern to a muslin sloper with a 5/8" seam allowance. Before I make a test garment, I have two patterns I want to compare my slopers with as a sanity check. I will write much more as the project moves forward.<br />
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I have wanted to make a dress for over a year, but I've not had a woman brave enough to be my first model. A month ago, one of my co-workers and trusted dog-sitter, Jessica, announced she was having her first baby. She's tall, thin, well endowed, and has difficulty finding RTW clothing that fits. The few outfits she has that fit now do not and she's struggling to find something comfortable. Out of a selection of vintage maternity outfits, she picked an alternative I gave her.. Simplicity's New Look 6774.<br />
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Fortunately, I found that Sheila-CTK has already made the dress and entered her experience in her sewing blog <a href="http://www.sheilaz-ctk.com/2009_06_01_archive.html" target="_blank">Sheilaz-CTK</a> . The pattern allows the matching various bodices to two different skirts. Sheila's combination is exactly what Jessica requested. Since Jessica's will be a challenge to fit, I'm making a muslin for her to try on before I commit myself to fashion fabric. Sheila also used a serger to finish the inside seams, which leads me to my next project. I bought my own Elna 744 serger.<br />
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My mom had lent her Bernina 1200 to me to see if I liked working with a serger. I think I had the machine six months and used it twice. Two events changed my mind about sergers. My wife is working on a very shear blouse that has a ruffled collar. The collar edges are finished in a fine rolled hem that she did using her serger. Once I'd seen that rolled hem, impossible to do on a sewing machine, I made a mental note to my 'to do' list. The straw that broke the proverbial back was my last jersey. I should never have attempted it on a sewing machine. Spandex is truly in the province of construction by serger. I had to admit to myself that I was afraid of breaking my mother's serger, which she cautioned me about how much it cost her. One does not learn while being fearful of breaking things, so I bought a used Elna 744. It came with a manual, a VHS tape, and most of the original accessories. The ladies at Pocono Sew-n-Vac gave me a couple of quick lessons, and I can say that I have successfully rethreaded the machine after having made a mess of it. To date, I've made a 3-thread overlock stitch with a safety thread and I have 13 more stitches to learn. So far I am thrilled with serging.<br />
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Three projects underway. G'night!Tom Marshallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15026704507943805588noreply@blogger.com2