Drafting a 2 piece sleeve using a one piece pattern.

A member here was kind enough to send me this on drafting a 2 pc sleeve from a pattern for a one piece.
It's what I would have done, had I taken the time. It's an art - not an exact science, the conversion of a balanced symmetrical sleeve pattern, so be prepared to have a couple of goes at it in the muslin stage.

I'm not going to leave this up long, so if you plan to do this, read through it and get the directions down. Consider this a lending of the info. I'm going to take this down when I return from my next trip, August 10.

The article is by Margaret Komives and appeared in the Dec/Jan 1991 issue of Threads.

Gry: My final collar

After a lot of experiments, I think I have finally found the perfect collar.



I think it fits the coat quite nicely. It is large enough to balance the A-line shape and has the right vintage feel to suit the coat.

I had quite a bit of fun constructing it. Details about the construction on my blog fromthestash.blogspot.com. However, I think I need a little help in how to sew this collar in the best way.

Here are the pattern pieces. I know they look kind of weird, with the very curved stand and the straight collar piece, but this is what gives the draped effect. I am going to cut the stand grain-wise and interface as I would do with an ordinary collar stand. The problem is the collar pieces. Both over and under collar are cut on the bias without a centre back seam. Should I make a centre back seam? I am also uncertain if I should interface the collar? The interfacing I have bought is woven and fusible.

Here is a picture of the fabric. I don't know the name of the type of fabric, but it is a medium-heavy quality, tightly woven, almost like felted.


I just need to make a few adjustments on the pattern and draw linning pieces, then I am finally ready to cut the fabric.

Muslins: A Review

I offered to help Marji review the steps she has presented for analyzing a muslin. As a good teacher, Marji has modeled the thought-process for us. It is now up to us to help each other, and comment on each other's muslins. I have so appreciated the comments people have shared with me. Maybe we can each resolve to comment on at least one aspect of another person's work each day. Most of us participate in a project like this because we want to share the experience with like-minded people, and we all find the conversation motivating.

Marji sent me this quick checklist of what to look for in a fitting muslin.

First, start with an overall look: If it's so tight that...

• it doesn't hang straight from the shoulders
• it hangs up on your body instead of gliding over it
• it has horizontal wrinkles
  • showing the strain as it goes around your body;
  • showing where wider parts (as at hips) ride up to provide more room at waist
• it gaps where you pin center fronts together

...then let it out (that's what the 1-inch seams are for!).

Begin at the top, and making ONE change at a time:

Check neckline for proximity to neck (light chain around neck is great for this) .

Claire S. is wearing a light chain in one of her muslin pics, and this is where Marji began to advise her to adjust the size around the neck. See the start of that conversation here. Scroll to the bottom of the post and click on the picture on the left to enlarge it. Look at how the neckline sits away from Claire's neck in relation to the chain. See how nice it looks now.

Tany discussed the fit of the neckline of her coat. Els noticed that it seemed to stand away from her neck, and Tany checked it for stretch and shoulder slope. She adjusted the fit by changing the shoulder pads. See the first neckline here and the adjusted neckline here.

Check shoulder seam placement (should run from bottom of ear to top of shoulder). Marji demonstrates this on Claire's muslin here.

Check shoulder width/upper chest width/upper back width (horizontal ripples indicate it is too tight, vertical ripples mean it is too loose) Liana's first muslin has a large vertical fold down the back, which she has corrected in the second set of pictures in this post.

Check for fit at bust. The ripples on Poppy's muslin point to the bust, indicating she needs a full bust adjustment.

Check width and ease through waist/hip (horizontal ripples indicate it is too tight, vertical ripples mean it is too loose—the ripples may point to the problem)

Check that bust/waist/hip lines are horizontal/perpendicular to floor

Check that vertical seams hang straight —particularly side seams and CF/CB. Cafe Couture realized her vintage pattern is smaller than today's sizing. The center fronts do not line up in her first muslin. I've had persistent problems with my side seams, and finally have realized the pulling at my bust indicated a need for more length there. See here and here

Check sleeve fit (horizontal ripples indicate it is too tight, vertical ripples mean it is too loose).

Then, when the mechanics of fit are satisfactory, look at the design lines and proportions of the collar/pocket placement.

You can also review examples of Marji's problem-solving by reviewing the posts linked below:

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Thoughts on The Fitting Muslin

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Q&A #2

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Constructing and Fitting the Muslin Part 1

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Constructing and Fitting the Muslin, Part 2

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Analyzing and Altering The Fitting Muslin

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Analyzing and Altering The Fitting Muslin, part 2, LisaC

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Marji: Tips for Presenting Your Fitting Muslin

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Index for Fitting the Muslin (Toile) posts

The Great Coat Sew-Along: Heidi's Muslin - V7979

I hope this helps! The Great Coat Sew-Along has become my favorite stop on the web! I love seeing what everyone is doing. Did you know that there have been 194 posts, not including the comments?


—MaryOK

Claire S. - The Neck Fits !

"this post has been draft since Thursday, waiting for pics" - here we go...

I just didn't quite 'get' the instruction to cut a strip of muslin 2 sizes smaller from the neck of the original pattern and sew it on the muslin. BUT, I read (and re-read) all my books, searched the Net, and re-read the books again for making a neckline smaller. I'm not sure I followed 'proper' sewing tecniques but the neckline now fits alot better.

Those 1" seam allowances came in handy. I had already done a round back adj. and the CB was sitting ok on my neck. The long seams where the lapels will go had the 1" seam allowance. What I did was mark 3/4" on each shoulder seam seam allowance closer to the neck and just drew a line from CB to that mark, decreasing the neck width, and tapering back down the lapel to the original marking at the bottom. The S.A. on the back neckline was a tad short but it was just enough to get this basting stitch in.

How did I do ? and am I now ready to try the sleeves again ?

I've also noticed that although the line I drew from my ear to shoulder on each side matches up with its seam and looks ok, I only moved the shoulder seam forward on the RIGHT side. The seam on the left side is the original one which seems to have moved into place after adjusting for the high round neck and adding shoulder pads - is it possible to only have to move 'one' shoulder ?