Number (and wallet) crunchin'

After a fabulous weekend spent shooting, drawing, reading, and going to see an orchestra concert, I woke up this morning and realized that I needed to hurry up and calculate my coat fabric yardage so I could order it while it was still on sale.

The pattern I'm using is Simplicity 2311, which is a Project Runway design:

The cool thing about the Project Runway designs is that they are set up to make you feel like a fashion designer (even though in reality, you're still cutting out pre-drawn pieces). This means that each element of the pattern is calculated with separate yardage, so you can mix-and-match for your own final result. The things you can choose in this pattern are:

Short length (mid-thigh) vs. long length (knee)

Double-breasted (with one-point lapel) vs. single-breasted (with two-point lapel)

Gathered-top sleeve vs. smooth sleeve

Tie belt vs. sewn-in faux belt (or, I suppose, no belt at all)

I decided to do the short length, single-breasted, smooth-sleeved coat with tie belt. On the pattern picture, it's the bottom right drawing, but shorter.

I may also change the tie belt to a buckle belt, if I can find a buckle that I like.

Instead of just taking the pattern yardages from the back of the envelope, I decided to open up the pattern instructions and see if the yardages looked reasonable. They're usually good, but last spring I made a purse with some seriously terrible yardage estimates--I had to scrape to get all the pattern pieces in the fabric I'd purchased. Since I'm working with much more expensive fabric now, I wanted to make doubly sure that I had the right amount of fabric.

The main coat part looked good, but I noticed that they had you buy two separate amounts of fabric for the sleeves, 7/8 yard, and the tie belt, 1 1/4 yard. Because the tie belt is long and skinny, it needs that length of fabric--but then you have a lot left over. The boucle I'm getting comes in a 60" width, so on a hunch, I measured the widest part of the sleeve pattern. It came out to 18". That, plus the 6" for the tie belt, and 3" for the tie belt carriers (though I can probably fit that onto another part of the layout if need be) only comes out to  27" wide. The fabric, when folded in half, will be around 30" wide. 

This means that I can actually cut out the extra 7/8 yard called for in the sleeve layout, and just combine the sleeve and belt layouts! That saves me almost $14. 

Adding up my total yardages, I get 2 3/4 for the coat and 1 1/4 for the belt/sleeves--4 yards total. I decided to throw in an extra 1/4 yard just for breathing room. 

The other thing I need to order is lining fabric. I've never been really happy with the lining I have bought from JoAnn's, so I'm going to risk ordering some from the same website where I'm getting my boucle. The lining calls for 1 7/8 yard for the short coat plus 7/8 yard for the sleeve. I don't need lining for the belt. My total yardage there is 2 3/4 yards of lining. 

I also need 3 1/8 yard of interfacing, but I'm going to wait and buy that at JoAnn's so I can feel the weight of it.

My total fabric cost (before interfacing) was $80.94. Not super cheap, but still less expensive than buying a brand-new coat at the store; and I saved about half off, getting my boucle at $14/yd instead of $30, and my lining at $3.95/yd instead of $8.  Interfacing will probably be $15-20, and my pattern was $12; so my cost so far is around $108. I need to get buttons and thread, too, but so far I think this is shaping up to be a little cheaper than the melton coat I made last year. 

I doubt I'll get this finished before I take off for my Hawaii trip in November, but if I can at least get the fabric in and start cutting pieces out, I'll be happy!

I got 99 problems but a stitch ain't one

I had to order a pattern for THE COAT (capitalized to show inherent awesomeness). I was going to pick it up at Joann's, aka my Primary Weakness, but they were out of the size that I needed. Rats. But it came in the mail today, which means progress will begin soon, and maybe I can roll this thing out (at least some of it) before we start getting the really cold weather.

While I was waiting for all that to get here--and I haven't even ordered my fabric yet--I've been casting about for interim projects to keep me busy. I love little things that I can get out of the way in a day or so: pajama pants, bags, purses, etc. It's almost instant gratification.

First on the list is a cushion for my brother's milkstand. Here's my brother:

The goat's name is Tara.

He's raised miniature dairy goats for 4-H for the last couple of years. When he milks them, he likes to sit directly behind them rather than the somewhat-more-orthodox off to one side method. He doesn't seem to mind it, but the metal is cold and it tends to get his pants dirty. He doesn't care much about that, either, but I don't want him to look like a dirty ragamuffin when we're out and about.

THEREFORE.

I made up a simple pattern for a cushion to go on the back of the stand. It's a 12" by 20" by 2" foam-filled pad. The foam, which we had on hand, is covered in cotton fabric (also on hand) and then has an outdoor canvas slipcover that has a few snaps to hold it shut. My brother picked out the slipcover fabric, a nice autumnal striped print.

The interior pad. I was fortunate enough to find some coordinating cotton fabric from a dress my mom made me when I was really little.

The slipcover uses the exact same pattern as the interior cotton pad, with the addition of four 1" wide ties on the corners, so it can be tied on to the milkstand. Figuring out how to put on the ties gave me the most trouble of the whole project.

The ties.

I'm not very good at visualizing technical stuff like this, so when I'm working with patterns of my own design, it usually takes some trial and error before I figure out the best way to put things together. The end result that I was shooting for was to have the ties coming out between the side panel and the bottom panel on each corner. Each one is folded in half at a right angle so that it would stick out flush with each side seam, at least in theory.

After wrestling with it for a while, I decided it would be best to baste them on the wrong side (the "inside" of the fabric, for non-sewers) of each corner, like this:

Makes sense, right? That's more or less what it will look like when it's all sewn together.

I did two like that and then decided to double-check my concept by pinning on the side panel to see how everything would turn out. Oops.

Turns out that once I sewed on the side panel, because it goes on right sides together, the ties would turn to the inside of the slipcover, rendering them useless. D'oh! Good thing I only used large, easy-to-rip-out stitches.

New theory: Pinning on the side panel, which I should have just done in the first place, helped me solve the problem better. Now I could see that I needed to sew the ties to the right side of the bottom panel after all, facing towards the center rather than the outside. The trick was just getting them to line up the way I wanted them to.

I used chalk lines to mark the seam line on each corner. Once I did that, I also realized that I had folded the ties the wrong way. Fortunately, those were just basted too. Ties unfolded, I worked with it for about 10 more minutes before realizing that, hey, this folding thing? Not really working. The better solution was to cut them in half and baste them where I wanted them... which would have saved me a whole lot of time if I'd just done that to start with. Oh, well.

Finally, the right way, I hope.

With that sorted out, I attached the rest of the ties and got to work on the "easy" part of the pattern.

It did work!

The complete cushion and slipcover, tied on the milkstand.

Total cost: $10. The only thing I had to purchase for this project was 1 yard of outdoor canvas fabric since we didn't have any on hand, and we got it on sale. Score!

The other thing I decided to make was a pair of flannel pajama pants for my brother (I really spoil him too much). He's been really into flannel lately, but didn't have any warm pajama pants for the chillier fall and winter weather. So when we went to Joann's for the cushion canvas, we also picked up a PJ pattern and the fabric for it--$10 total. He opted for a blue and purple striped flannel that's so soft and comfy, I'm tempted to make myself a pair, too.

Pajama pants are one of the easiest things you can make, aside from maybe a pillowcase or a simple skirt (even fewer curved lines). I have about six pairs because there is no such thing as too many pajamas.

I wanted to make PJs for my brother because when my sister and I were little, my mom made us a lot of cozy flannel pajamas and nightgowns. We had ones with lace, teddy bears, cakes, kittens, M&Ms... you couldn't beat flannel pajamas for cold winter nights. Before she got sick, she made my brother some cotton pajamas when he was really little. Obviously he's outgrown them by now, so since he's been resorting to hand-me-down long johns, I wanted to pass down some of that flannel comfort.

I haven't finished them yet, but I'll most likely get them sewn up tomorrow and then commence with preliminary fitting and measuring of my long-awaited coat pattern. Then, FABRIC BUYING AHOY!

Moving Forward

It's been two years since my last post here. A lot's happened. I haven't updated because I'm not much of a journaler, but I have a new purpose for the blog (which will be laid out shortly), and I'll bring any interested readers up to date:

On October 19th, 2009, my mother passed away from her breast cancer. We're coming up on that anniversary soon, and missing her never gets easier, but as the months and years have passed we've all learned how to cope with it in our own ways.

In August 2011, I graduated from college with high honors and two degrees: a bachelor of arts in English, Creative Writing emphasis; and a bachelor of music in Piano Performance.

I'm currently living back at home with my dad and my 13-year-old brother. My sister (20) is now attending the college I just graduated from. She's studying biology.

My plans for the future? Well. I'm still single, so although "settling down and getting married" are in my hypothetical future plans, I can't exactly say with any certainty they're going to happen. I'm trying to keep an open mind about that.

My dad works full-time and my brother is homeschooled, so for the time being I'm helping him with his schooling and finding ways to occupy myself. I'm doing some accompanying for a friend back at school, which keeps me practicing piano, and I'm trying to get back into writing again. I went through a dry spell until I took some writing classes this last summer, which re-inspired me, so I'm hoping I can continue to tap into that particular talent.

But mostly, I've been trying to leave my mark on the family home that I've spent little time in for the last 4 years. I repainted the bathroom I share with my siblings. I've been slowly reorganizing and cleaning places out that have long lain disheveled. I've taken up knitting. I'm almost done with the latchhook rug that my mom started when she was younger than me (and never finished because it's a huge rug, and latchhooking is admittedly pretty tedious).

Sewing, though, is one of my favorite hobbies, and I haven't touched a sewing machine since last spring, when I made a purse. I love sewing in much the same way I enjoy cooking: you follow directions, maybe spice things up with some of your own additions, and in the end you're left with a product you or others can enjoy and utilize. It's expensive (the sewing, I mean), but well worth it, and I try to only make things that I know I will get a lot of use out of. It's a big change from when I was a teenager and obsessed with making period costumes.

At the end of last summer I made a long wool peacoat and recorded my progress in notes on Facebook. I found that it was surprisingly helpful and fun to go over each step of the process, illustrated with photos of my work; I found myself narrating things in my head ("And now we're ripping everything out. Again.") and trying to think of how I would explain each step. It kept me really involved. But the problem with Facebook is that you can't always see the notes you want in a linear fashion, and it's restricted to a small audience (the few members of my circle of friends who share an interest in sewing). I'm not massively popular on Blogger either, but I figure I might as well move my next sewing saga to here, where both my Facebook friends and the general public might peruse it at will.

So! in summary (and congratulations if you've made it this far), this blog will henceforth (for the time being, anyway) be a place to record my next sewing project. Hint: it's a coat. A fabulous coat.

Stay tuned!