Muslin Monday….
Mondays are the day I try to catch up on the debris of the weekend. Laundry, dishes and general mess get straightened out, and assorted chores take priority. Which means it’s also a great day to catch up on sewing muslins, since it feels like giving myself a bit of a reward for handling all the drudgery. I used to never make a muslin for my projects because I didn’t want to waste good sewing time, but after a number of failures (which often resulted in trashing favorite fabric), I started to consider them a profitable investment. After all, most of us wouldn’t host a dinner party with an untested recipe, would we? And no less an expert than Sandra Betzina, in her book Power Sewing Step-by-Step, states: “Never feel guilty about tossing a pattern. Only 50 percent are worth making. A pattern that doesn’t progress past a pretest doesn’t count as a failure.” So there! I’m now making pretests instead of wadders.
This morning, I pretested Simplicity 2258, View C — also available as Simplicity 0462. Given the narrow hips, straight skirt, and wide waist (pretty much the opposite of my natural shape), I tested it in a 14 but had to take in enough on the sides that my usual size 12 should do. However, being an active person who doesn’t really like being constrained by straight skirts, I think I will make it only in stretch fabrics — I have a stretch denim that is a bit too lightweight for the jeans I had originally planned, but should be a nice option for this skirt. I also have a black stretch poplin that might actually round out a few outfits in my wardrobe. I do plan to make the waistband a bit wider — 1.25″ elastic is hard to find, but I have some 2″ elastic in my notions drawer and most skirts I’ve seen in RTW with this general style have a wider waistband anyway. I think I can make the belt work with the wider waistband if I assume a very scant seam allowance. I hope to have pictures up later this week!
Currently Watching:
Star Trek Voyager, Season Two
Posted on April 25, 2011, in sewing. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.
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