Work continues on my boiled wool coat. This will be a pretty "geek heavy" post, so you've been warned! With the pockets completed it's time to baste the prepared canvas to the coat fronts. I adapt the sequence that Roberto Cabrera uses for a suit jacket. Basically one bastes from the shoulder down the length [...]
I love working with wool! All the wool I've worked with to date has been woven, so boiled wool is a new experience. It's actually a dense knit, and unlike a woven it doesn't ravel. Not a shred! Still, I pre-treat it as I would for any wool. My TNT method is the London Shrink. [...]
Yes, a new project has taken off... and once again it's because I must be looking at too much French couture fashion! First it was Kim Jones at Dior. Then I fell down the rabbit hole of Hermès. Now it's Givenchy, and the initial offering of their new designer Matthew Williams. You can see the [...]
As promised, I'm finally getting around to posting some of the construction details from my Stylemaker projects. I'll start with the waistcoat first. The instruction booklet for the Belvedere Waistcoat emphasizes the importance of interfacing the fronts. The goal is to have it sit smoothly over the chest without buckling. My longtime readers know that [...]
Did you, faithful blog followers, give up on this? Was this going to be the UFO of the pandemic? Truth be told, I totally ran out of steam on this project. Maybe you've been there? As many of you know, I love sewing for a special occasion. One of my nephews was going to be [...]
Eventually the lining has to be made. I'll be honest with you, it's my very least favorite part of any tailoring project. I have SO MUCH admiration for all the sewists out there who add piping, all kinds of little pockets and wildly curving seams. I just want it over and done with ASAP. So [...]
I continue to bang away on my Vogue 9262 Blazer. It's been quite cold here in Maine (It snowed a few inches just two nights ago), so I've had no problem staying inside; working away in my little sewing space. This post will be quite "tailoring geekery" heavy, so be forewarned. My purpose is just [...]
My last post was mostly about a big mistake that I made. But that's all in the rearview mirror now. It's full steam ahead on the Covid-19 blazer. This post will cover some simple tailoring techniques. Keep in mind that I'm not a professional. These are just some techniques that have worked for me, and [...]
OK. Work continues on my "Covid 19 Blazer". When I left off I was talking about fitting issues. Namely, my curved upper back, and how I address that. This happens with just about every pattern. The center back seam is quite straight, which makes the collar pull away from my neck. It looks bad, and [...]
While I'm self isolating (and I hope you are too!), I've decided to take on a tailoring project. It's interesting to see what the sewing community is turning towards during this troubled time. Doing a deep dive into one's stash seems to be popular. Or maybe breaking out that fabric that's always seemed too [...]
Mainelymenswear 