Fitting all the Pieces Together

Did I mention that these patterns do not come with directions?

These days, I do not pay a whole lot of attention to the given directions, but it is nice to know they are there, just the same.  Goodbye, security blanket!  

This time around, my muslin was as much a test for the order of construction as it was for fit.  There are hints on the pattern pieces, of course, but I was very grateful for a practice run.  

As I mentioned, the patterns do not come with seam allowances, and I was going to use Susan Khalje’s couture tracing technique.  But I just could not bear yet another project struggling with the tiny sheets of wax-free tracing paper that are easily found at a big box store.  The stuff just does not work, especially with huge pattern pieces. 

So I called up Richard the Thread (excellent customer service, by the way) and ordered some of the waxed variety.  What a difference!  To be honest, I was a bit concerned that it was going to make a mess, but thankfully, it did not.  And now I never have to deal with those pesky little sheets of the crummy stuff.  Whoo-hoo!

I really like working with the thread-traced stitching lines - it makes it so easy to visualize the finished style lines.

The first muslin had a bit of an issue at the side seam (I am sure that is my own problem because of the two bodices being joined together).

The biggest question I had was about the sleeves.  What on earth would they look like in real life?  And how would they fit?

Love them!  They will need a bit of support, but they look fabulous in muslin, which is a good sign.

The upper edge of the back bodice did not look right to me with the added portion of the lower bodice from the second pattern.

Instead, I trimmed it down into a v-back.

And then I needed to take a wedge out of the back bodice for my flat back.

For many projects, I can't bother to make a second muslin.  But for this dress, there were enough changes to warrant the time to re-cut the back bodice pieces.  (And I just love using my new tracing paper!)

Might as well get it right.

And there was also some fun with pleats, and lots of muslin.  I actually ran out, and had to make a trip to JoAnns to get more.  This dress is a fabric hog!

The front skirt piece was also swinging forward, so that piece had to be widened.

Oh, and I also altered the bottom of the front bodice after sketching a few different options.  This is what I came up with.

Time to cut into my underlining!