Saturday 13 October 2012

E 0162 Ladies 1912 Skirt

 
 
This is my choice for the skirt. Well, I didn't have much of a choice since I wanted to use some left overs from a real old sewing project.
 
The skirt has a 25 inch waist and that is way off for me. I had to add 9 inch in total, to a 34 inch waist. That way I don't have to tighten the corset too much.
 
Since the wool fabric has no direction or any stretch I could twist and turn the skirt's pattern pieces in any direction to fit on my fabric. A nice way to save on fabric.
 
First I stitched the side incisions.
It's near to impossible to transfer the braid pattern on to the wool.
 
I draw the pattern onto two strips of fine paper, stitched it to the skirt side panel and stitched down the single sided braid I got my hand on. Very few people knows about soutache braid these days :(
 
Removing the paper wasn't too difficult, but there were those tiny twist and turns where the paper were hard to remove. Sooo....I tried something....
 
The water became a little bit easier to remove after I had made it wet and soft. If you have any of those foundations that disapear in water I would recommend them at this stage.
 
Zig Zag around every piece and cut into the seam allowanse before....
 
.....I pressed the seam allowance to the wrong side. At this point you might want to secure them with some big stitches. I didn't do that.
 
I stitched each side panel to the front piece. The pattern wants you to leave the left side open for closure but I did it on the right side. When have I ever done what a pattern tells me to do? :)
 
For a waistband I reused the band you can find on curtains. Just remove the strings.

First I stitch the skirt and the band right sides together. Then I turned the waist band flat out and stitched down the seam allowanse. When the waist band is inside the skirt it will fold easier and stay in place.
 
 When it was time to set in the back piece, I didn't follow the curve in the pieces. Since I don't have a S-curve corset I wanted a straighter look.
 
And here it is. I didn't manage to remove the paper totaly and have to give it a spin in the washing machine.

This is the back view.
 
Pattern Review Checklist:
  1. Description:The Vintage Pattern Lending Library, Ladies Skirt #0162, May 5, 1912
  2. Sizing: Pattern was listed as 25 inch waist and those measurements seem to be correct. I adjusted the pattern for a 34 inch waist, adding 2 inches each to the back and front center panels worked out perfectly, and 2 1/2 inch to each side panels.
  3. Did it look like the photo/drawing on pattern envelope? Yes, but the illustration appeared a bit narrower than the garment pattern pieces. To get what I wanted I stiched the back panel staight down the side of the side panels.
  4. Were the instructions easy to follow? The pattern/fabric layout diagrams showed the front and back panel placed one direction and the side gores placed the other. I made my skirt using 100% felted wool, so while it may not have made a difference, I still opted to place all pieces in the same direction. My fabric was 60 inches wide so there was no additional fabric needed to adjust for the layout. If using directional fabric, you will need to plan for this.
    I chose to stitch a regular 3/8 inch seam, pressed the seam allowance to one side, top stitched close to the seam, and finally top stitched another 1/2 inch in. For the closed side of the front panel I pressed the pieces to make the nice ‘L’ shape, pinned in place, and top stitched it together as above. This may have been what the directions were calling for all along…
  5. What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? On a scale of 1 to 5 – this is a FIVE.  I especially loved the soutache trim detail. Although it took a long time to complete, it was very rewarding to follow the 1912 illustration.
  6. Fabric Used – Medium grey 100% felted wool with black poly soutache trim.
  7. Pattern alterations/design changes I made
    I needed an additional 9 inches for the waist which I adjusted by adding 2 inches along the entire front and back center pattern pieces. The hip dart worked out perfectly after the adjustment, but I probably should have added 1 inch to all the pieces as I would have liked the button detail to have been a little closer to center. I also increased the side.
  8. In conclusion, this was a fun pattern and I loved the soutache detail. I’m not sure I would recommend this to a beginner, but for the intermediate to more advanced sewer, it’s a beautiful skirt. It was so interesting to see everyone’s take on the soutache trim detail.
  9.  
VPLL Checklist:
  1. Ladies 1912 Skirt  #0162, sized for 25 inch waist.
  2. My sewing level is advanced. This is clearly intended for a slender young woman in a corset!   This pattern needed to be enlarged. Total added to waist was 9”,
  3. The skirt is not as narrow as illustrated. However, I love the skirt, and give it a 5! Its construction is straightforward and clever.
  4. With instructions, this could be put together by someone with intermediate sewing skills. Possibly even elementary skills
  5. There were some instructions to follow and they were quite straight forward.
  6. I used a light felted wool fabric purchased at an estate sale. I used a single poly braid for the pattern on the front and I needed in tatal 10 yards of it.
  7. Because I am 5’9” and the skirt was looking to be long enough for me. No alterations needed.  I made alterations to the pattern for fit, and one small alterations to the design.
  8. I would definitely recommend this pattern.

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