PHOTO OF THE WEEK, Hand Tailored Jacket

This hand tailored jacket is my most ambitious project to date. I have been pretty much obsessed with it for the past 3 months.

ja

Reply to
jack
Loading thread data ...

Kate said it all!

Jean M.

Reply to
Jean D Mahavier

Ja, I am impressed beyond measure! I've thoroughly enjoyed reading through your weaving adventure. Apparently I love reading everyone else's endeavors as much as creating my own. How did you sew/finish the seams of the shirt, vest, coat?? I wasn't able to see Marilyn's hat, if you have sec will you post it as well?? Thank you so much for sharing this! Good luck with the shoes, keep us posted! Sonya

Reply to
MSMenagerie

Yep, Kate did say it all!

Michelle Giordano

Reply to
Doug&Michelle

Reply to
Joy Hardie

What a wonderful job, "Hats off to you"!!! I really enjoy seeing all your projects and beautiful photos. Emily

Reply to
CypSew

Jack, I really admire your hands-on-do-it-yourself approach to sewing. I think it's fabulous that you have the means to produce your own wool, weave the fabric, and then the patience to learn the tailoring skills to make a jacket. I made my DH a three piece suit several years ago, and I was fortunate to lay my hands on some excellent tailoring books, so I was able to do all the unseen hand work which really is so important to a superior end-result.

Congratulations!

Beverly

formatting link

Reply to
BEI Design

First of all, thanks ALL for the kind words of support. Unfortunately, I can't wear the jacket for a few months and then probably only in an igloo so I can't very well show it off.

I guess just about every method known. The shirt and coat were mostly if not completely done by machine. The jacket was mostly hand stitched except for the major load bearing seams and those were done on my 1919 Singer just for fun.

It is on the fiber page

formatting link
There is a link to it on the POW page also. It is the penultimate picture on that page just before the jacket.

Oops! You are right. I guess I forgot to upload it. It is there now.

js

Reply to
jack

years ago, and I was fortunate to lay my hands on some excellent tailoring books, so I was able to do all the unseen hand work which really is so important to a superior end-result.

I can't imagine wearing trousers made from this fabric so I guess I will have to stick with jackets and coats.

I would be interested in the titles of the books that you found the most helpful. Perhaps we could compare notes.

I have Poulin, CTT, Hostek and a Singer book. They all have their use and their worts.

I used the formula for drafting the pattern in Poulin, did the canvas per Hostek but could not have finished following either... too many unanswered questions and too much shop talk. The CTT book was clear enough to work my way to the end. Singer is mostly pretty pictures.

js

Reply to
jack

Trousers can be fully lined...??? ;-)

Along with most everything else, all my sewing books are in the disaster area I call my sewing room. Until I finally get everything re-organized, I can't lay my hands on the box full of books. I

*think* the one I liked best for tailoring techniques was put out by Vogue, but I know I had several I consulted pretty regularly.

I haven't ever found the need to draft patterns, although I don't think I've followed a commercial pattern exactly as written since abut

5th grade...fifty-five years ago. :-\

Beverly

Reply to
BEI Design

Did you look at this one:

formatting link
I found the Vogue suit pattern very good when I made it a few years back, and it needed only a minor adjustment for my husband's very square shoulders.
formatting link

Reply to
Kate Dicey

Great job, Marilyn! I taught myself some basic knitting last winter and well, let's say I have passed the knitting a dish rag stage! Those purls beat me!

Reply to
MSMenagerie

For a classic wool ladies tailored coat, yes. BUT!! You don't need to do all the front interfacing layers that you do with a man's coat or jacket. Just use one layer down the fronts, pad stitched like you would for men's coats & jackets, and really it only needs to cover the button/buttonhole area, and round the base of the collar, so make it about 4" wide, and shaped round the lapels. Do interface the upper collar in exactly the same way as a man's collar, but remember that rather than a fitted felt under collar, you will be sewing a top fabric one in by machine. You can join the under collar with a centre back seam if you need to cut it in two pars. Cut it a smigeon smaller than the top collar, and ease the two together as you sew. This will ensure that the top collar wraps round slightly to the under side, giving a better looking edge. Grade all the seams carefully round the collar, and when you turn it, be very careful NOT to poke it through at the corners! Do use/make good shoulder pads: they don't need to be thick, but they do need to be there. The sleeve head will be supported in exactly the same way as a man's sleeve head if they are traditional set-in sleeves.

Ladies coats traditionally have bound buttonholes. They look fantastic done properly. I find a wee bit of fusible interfacing for each one helps enormously!

I'd send you some pix, only I can't use the scanner at the moment!

Reply to
Kate Dicey

Yes, but with the bound buttonhole construction it is easier on the fabric.

Good! :) Take pix of the whole process for us!

No, you'll be re-treading an old one! Here clothing was VERY strictly rationed during the war, and old blankets were often recycled this way, especially for kids.

Take a look inside: you might be surprised! If not, and it works, go with the flow! :)

Bound buttonholes look so dressy and take no more work. Worth the effort. And it will be a new skill for you. The way you are going, you won't have any problems, but it will be nice to have another process at your finger tips!

Reply to
Kate Dicey

Silk buttonhole twist will never go to waste. There are so many uses. Or you could just send it to me. ;-)

Reply to
Pogonip

Jack--

I am new to this site, so maybe you have been sharing your 'journey' with wool and sewing for awhile, but I have to say that I loved viewing ALL your photos on the blog. I have taken a hand to weaving too, and it is really a major undertaking. Your own story is inspiring, but few would be able to realize success. In fact, I have forwarded the site address to some college profs who should be sharing this with their classes: textiles and such. Aboout tailoring: You mention tailoring books. The Singer sewing library book on tailoring in the best. Also, the Fairchild Pub. books on tailoring are considered the main resource for training in the industry. Out here in S. Calif. we actually have tailors, trained in Asia (Vietnam carries the French tailoring methods, then there's Hong Kong with British tailoring etc.) as well as Central America, and Russia (French techniques here again). L.A. Trade Tech college teaches men's tailoring, and our community colleges cover women's tailoring in the least. Here in L.A. we have a store called: Levine Bros. located in Burbank, (they may have a web site-?), and you might be able to get them to send supplies if you can't find what you need else where. As for working on your own, nothing is better than taking apart a hand tailored jacket or second best--a manufactured jacket (provided by a thrift shop) and the same goes for pattern drafting--start with a coat that fits you and bust it apart to copy the pattern (knock it off). When we teach tailoring, we have several jackets that are in various stages of dis-manteling to use as guides to construction and pattern design. Good luck with your next project.

--Jennifer

snipped-for-privacy@schmidling.com wrote:

Reply to
sewing4ever

InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.