Yet more fabric!

I may have a fabric problem. This won't come as a surprise to anyone who knows me, but I think I do have to finally admit that I may be addicted (in fact, it may just be a general fibre addiction, as although I have managed 5 months 'Cold Sheep' I don't think it's cured it, just reduced the stash a little bit).

Under the premise of looking for fabric to match to a dress I've been asked to alter, and in need of some white cotton (for a corset) and an invisible zip, I came back from delivering some clothes to a customer via Fletcher's Fabrics. I had said to myself that I was allowed to have a look at their new summer fabrics and buy a couple of fabric lengths to make up some sample tops & skirts, problem is...how do you choose when they're all lovely?! In the end I decided to come home with the following poly-cottons, some of which I have definite plans for in my head whilst others I have a small idea but not much more than that: 

The first was bought to be used in combination with some black cotton on a skirt, although it would make a great top too...

The second is one I couldn't resist (I do have a bit of a reputation for shoes as well after all!) and I think will probably be a skirt...

This next one will probably be a summer top of some sort, and is actually along the lines of what I was planning to get...

And finally, a length that I could hardly leave behind (yes I do also have a tendancy to collect handbags!) I think this might also end up in a skirt too...

Having said that they're planned for samples, if anyone wants something making up for them out of any of the above I'd be happy to oblige...then head back armed with another excuse to do a bit of shopping!

Finishing with a sleeve...

Ok, so I did actually add this sleeve to the toile last weekend (not even the one just gone!) but I've finally managed to upload the photos so I thought I'd best put it up to complete 'the tale of the toile'!

I think adding the sleeves is one of the most exciting bits of making a toile. Not the easiest, as sleeves need to be inserting with a bit of care to avoid accidentally adding creases or even pleats, but very satisfying nonetheless.

The sleeves this coat is going to have are a relatively plain two part sleeve, and in the final garment will have a button detail at the wrist:

It still needs to be tried on, but we're waiting for the final fabric samples to come in so we can do the fitting and choosing of fabrics at the same time.

Moving on from paper...

After drafting and cutting the pattern pieces yesterday, today was the day to move on to cutting and sewing a calico mock-up of the coat to test both the pattern and the fit.

First task: lay out all the pattern pieces on the calico, and work out the most economical way to fit them on to the fabric. This is one of the things that a commercial pattern does for you as they usually provide a plan of where to lay the pieces, but it's a task I quite enjoy as a bit of a challenge. Once laid out all pieces are laid out it's time to pin and cut. 

Second task: the 'simple' matter of working out what order to sew the pieces together in, and doing said sewing. I'm pretty pleased with the result so far, although exactly how well it fits remains to be seen - I still need to draft and sew the sleeves before it can be tried on by the customer!

Developments...

Following on from finishing the ring (see prev. blog) one of my next main projects is a Frock Coat. Measurements have been taken on the customer it's for, and the outline design has been agreed (although a couple of small details are still being decided) so my job at the start of the week was to draft a pattern block based on those measurements.

Once the 'block' was done, it was on to first the interesting bit - creating the pattern pieces in order to cut and sew the toile (calico mock-up for fitting purposes). And there are quite a lot of pieces to this pattern jigsaw - 10 in total...

 

And now to cut out and sew the calico...