And even better than that is to use a software patterndrafting system--that fits you right in the first place! I was so heartily sick of altering patterns--never the same way twice, of course--that I had all but quit sewing for myself. With the programs I can actually get clothes that fit, and with precious little fuss, so I am sewing again. It's lovely, 'tis.
Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati
Phaedr>
This thread reminds me of the most-devastating critique my appearance ever got:
One day I put on a brand-new orange-plaid dress to host a party. When my mother arrived, she asked "Did you make that dress?"
"No, I bought it at Block's Department Store."
"I thought so -- if you'd made it, you wouldn't wear it."
(My standards are still *much* higher for custom work than for off-the-rack clothing.)
Templates and stitching guides can help a lot. If you want a crease to follow a curve, for example, cut thin card or stiff paper to the exact curve, then press the crease over it.
Sew by hand more often.
Don't try to trim off a dangling thread found after the work is complete. Thread it into a needle and poke it between layers or to the wrong side. (Tug it first, to make sure it hasn't just wandered in.)
Be totally absurd about following the grain of the fabric. I cut even pillowcases and garden shirts to the exact thread. Sometimes my clothes don't fit, but they always hang straight!
You can often cheat -- if your sewing-machine needle threads from the front, for example, you can fake two neatly-spaced rows of topstitching by sewing once with a double needle.
Don't challenge factories on their own turf.
If you find a technique really hard to get neat, try to figure out how to avoid it. I dislike making buttonholes, so all my shirts close with hooks or snaps. I can't keep my top-stitching straight enough to suit me, so I always use a fine matching thread to top-stitch flat-fell and mock-fell seams.
Installing a zipper neatly on a stretchy fabric requires hand picking
-- one day I realized that I always keep my neck-zipper zipped to avoid burning my lily-white chest -- so all my newer riding jerseys are built like T-shirts with five pockets. I have to take my glasses off to get them on, but they are more comfortable. (The experiment of sewing one on the outside and making it decorative failed miserably.) But now I need one that has a separating zipper . . .
(I can cross that bridge after I find safety-yellow, machine washable,
100%-wool jersey.)Joy Beeson
Joy, have you tried emmaonesock.com for wool jersey? I haven't seen yellow, but they have some really nice merinos at times. The stock always changes, so when they have something good you have to act fast.
I was going to suggest a merino too. Alan has a machine washable merino base-layer shirt/jumper that washes up a treat. No, I didn't make this one: he got it (in swamp green!) for about £15 from Aldi, and I can't buy the yardage for that!
You might try some of the books and videos available (no I'm not receiving compensation in any form for these recomendations). I attended a sewing seminar years ago where there were many experts recommending their works.
Judy Barlup's website, for the Japanese Tailoring video is:
AK&DStrohl wrote:
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