Style Arc Stella Coat

I've been on kind of a Style Arc bender lately . . .  And I've been obsessed with this pattern ever since Sam made hers last spring.  So I finally broke down and bought it a few weeks ago, along with a few yards of this Italian wool blend coating.   I'd really intended to make this coat in a classic camel, but decided to find an outer to go with this silk CDC lining I'd bought last month.

This wrap coat has a slim silhouette.  As with my Dotty blouse, I bought the pattern in size 8 to accommodate my shoulders, but of course had to grade out to about a 12 from the waist down.  I did many of my typical adjustments after a tissue fitting:  shortened the sleeves, did a broad back adjustment, low round back adjustment and sway back adjustment.  Although the line drawing shows three panels across the back there is actually a center back seam, which is great for me - when a back is cut on the fold I usually have to convert it to a seam to make the adjustments for my back.  All those vertical seams means that there are plenty of opportunities for grading in or out as needed.

This design is also clever in that the front piece doesn't go all the way to the side. There is a narrow panel at the underarm, so that the on-seam pocket in the "side" seam is actually positioned a bit to the front, placing it just right for easy access.

I've said this before, but I really love that the seam allowances are marked on Style Arc patterns.  The typical seam allowance is 3/8", but I've noticed that the neckline seam allowances tend to be 1/4".  Because my fabric was so thick, I took that up to 3/8".  It took me a while to get used to this after 40 years of predominantly 5/8" allowances!  But I realized that the smaller seam allowance basically means that the seams are pre-trimmed, and I like that a lot.

On both the Style Arc patterns I've used so far, the sleeve heads have been perfection.  The amount of ease is so spot on that the sleeves insert beautifully. The sleeve heads are also shaped with more volume at the back, which is what I need for my forward shoulders.  It is so nice - and so novel - to use a sleeve "as written."

For this pattern, there was a new-to-me concept of using fusible interfacing as the sleeve header.  I really liked how this worked for this jacket, which is softer in shape and has little interfacing and no shoulder pads.  Something to keep in mind for future projects.

I liked pretty much everything about the pattern.  I didn't love working with this thick wool very much, although I like the outcome.  It really didn't want to hold a press, so I ended up topstitching all the seams except the sleeve set-in - which means that I sewed every seam three times.  I wasn't so sure about the look of the topstitching, but I was unanimously outvoted when I asked my Instagram friends! In the end I'm happy with it though, and although it added a lot of work to the process, it was still probably less than catch-stitching all those seam allowances down by hand.

The pattern gives instructions for a bagged lining and even has a couple of diagrams.  But I felt more comfortable making the lining and facing into a unit and sewing the whole thing to the outer at the front and collar edges, then closing it up by hand at the sleeve and coat hems.

I put in the last hem stitches just 15 minutes before I had to get ready to go downtown for a concert Friday evening.  It ended up being a warm-ish evening, so I pushed myself to finish.  And I have to say, I felt like a million bucks in my new coat and silk Dotty blouse!  I did have a little bit of a scare though when the kid next to me on the subway opened up a bottle of some bright red sports drink!  You better believe I got up and walked to the other end of the car!  I have a feeling I'll be worried about stains every time I wear this coat, but I love it all the same.

A last note on the length:  I did not shorten the body, which surprised me.  I'd wanted the coat to come to must below my knees, and that's exactly where it ended up as drafted.  It surprised me because at 5'4" I generally do have to shorten things.

I'm a huge sucker for outerwear, but I think this will have to be my last coat for a while.  My closet is crammed full!  But I can see making this again in the spring in a cotton twill, maybe in a mid-thigh length.

Spotty Dotty

It's hard for me to believe that it's been a month since I made my first Dotty top.  I pondered the fit for a few days, and then made Dotty #2 the following weekend. And it's been hanging on my dresser ever since.

Part of the reason I haven't been posting as much here is that I rarely feel like doing the whole "photo shoot" thing any more.  So much effort!  This top has been hanging there waiting for me to get in the mood, but it just hasn't happened.  But there are some things I want to say about it, so I've decided just to forge ahead with pictures of it on a hanger instead of on me.

In my first post about this pattern, I made a list of adjustments I'd planned to do. But in the end, the only one of those I ended up doing was to shorten the sleeves! As I took a good look at how the top fit me, I realized that the armhole was way too deep and that the torso was also too long.  Shortening in these two places meant that I could avoid grading out at the hip and doing a sway back adjustment. Here is how it looked after I pinned out these adjustments - it no longer looked like it was swallowing me!

Taking a tuck out horizontally across the front and back to shorten the armhole meant that I also had to tuck out the same amount on the sleeve cap.  Normally, I would just tuck out this amount and smooth out the edge.  But this time I decided to try the method recommended in Fitting and Pattern Alteration, and I really liked how this works.  I mentioned this book in my last post; it recommends making changes at the seam line rather than the cutting edge, so that the seam lines remain unchanged and everything matches up like it's supposed to when sewing.

So for this adjustment, I sliced across the sleeve cap at the place where it would match with the tuck I took from the front and back.  Then I cut 2 slits vertically, each a bit away from the the apex of the cap, with small clips into the seam allowance to create hinges.  I placed one side of the seam line the specified amount (I removed 1/2") down on the seam, then swung out the other to the opposite side.  The cap seam line remains smooth and consistent in length when done this way.  It's much easier to see what I mean in pictures:

I love it that Style Arc patterns have the seam allowances marked.  It really makes this type of adjustment so much easier.

Here are the adjustments I ended up doing:

1.  shorten armhole by 1/2"
2.  shorten torso by 1"
3.  shorten sleeve by 1"
4.  shorten cuff by 1/2"
5.  outwardly rotating elbow adjustment of 1/2"

Very different from my original assessment!

I also made some pattern changes.  I increased most of the seam allowances to 5/8".  I did this to make the gathering easier, and also because I'd decided to use French seams on my silk crepe de chine.  But I did keep some of the smaller seam allowances, so I made myself a key - the different allowances are color coded:

If you look at that front piece, you'll see that the neck edge has a cut-on facing that is curved.  For the life of me, I couldn't figure out how to make that turn back on a fabric with no stretch.  So I cut off that section, added some seam allowances, and sewed the facing on separately.  Next time though, I think I'll skip the facing completely - I don't really think the top needs it.  I'll just use a narrow hem at that edge.

I wore this top to a concert the other night and felt quite stylish.  I snapped this picture for Instagram, but later added a few long necklaces which looked even better:

I'm happy with my fit changes, and can see myself making this top at least once more.  I might even make it in a solid color!

Sloppy Dotty

No sewing the last couple weeks, as I had another round of guests followed immediately by a trip out out town.  So this weekend, all I really wanted to do was sew.  And sew I did, although I got slightly derailed by life and ended up hurrying through this project.

The project in question is the Style Arc Dotty Blouse.  I've been fascinated by Style Arc for quite a while and have been wanting to try their patterns, so last month I pulled the trigger and purchased a few.  Here's how the paper pattern looks:  I really liked that it was accordion-folded - so much easier to put back into the envelope!

Because Style Arc patterns are purchased one size only (I got a size 8 for this top), I decided to make a (hopefully) wearable muslin with some super drapey rayon jersey.  The description says this pattern can be made in either woven or knit, and since I wasn't sure about the sizing, I thought knit would be a bit more forgiving as a test.  Sadly, the jersey wasn't a great quality, so although I intend to wear this top, I know it won't have a very long life; I had to unpick a couple areas and that left a few tiny holes.

Compare my top with the line drawings on the pattern - there's not nearly as much volume in this blouse as the pattern would lead you to believe.  But I like it. However, I won't be able to love it until I make a few fitting adjustments.  Here's what I intend to do next time:

1.  Add 2" width at hip - no surprise, as my hip measurement puts me in a size 12
2.  Shorten the sleeves, and possibly even tighten the cuff and add a continuous placket and button
3.  Swayback adjustment - this will also take out some of the excess length in the back

4.  Possibly shorten the whole torso by 1/2" - 1" - undecided about this as yet.

What surprised me is the adjustments I don't need:  I think that even in a woven, I'll be able to get away without doing a broad back or forward shoulder adjustment.  Pretty much unheard of for me.  That could be due to the fact that I bought a size 8, specifically to accomodate my back and shoulders.  My bust falls between the size 6 and the 8.

Style Arc pattern instructions are notoriously brief, and while I didn't really need them to construct this top, I tried to follow them anyway.  I didn't do the greatest job though, and I felt there were a couple things missing that gave me problems later.  So I'm glad I used this cheap fabric for my first go - I know what to do differently next time!

Most of my construction problems had to do with the front facing.  This facing is cut on with the front piece and folded back, then sewn into the shoulder and side seams.  What the directions neglect to say (and maybe I should have known by default to do) is to finish the facing edge at 3/8" before doing anything else.  I didn't realize my error until it was too late, so I ended up fusing my unfinished edge to the top - not a huge deal since it's jersey, but I'll definitely want to do it right the next time.  Also, having that excess 3/8" of facing at the bottom side seam  meant that it showed at the hem on one side.  That's the seam I had to unpick and do again, resulting in some small holes in my jersey.  I trimmed as much of the excess facing as I could, then sewed the seam with a slightly wider allowance to cover it up.

The yoke is attached burrito-style, but after that things get a bit vague.  If I'd followed the instructions (such as they are) I would have ended up with an unfinished shoulder seam, like this:

Yuck.  Instead, I kept my facing folded onto the front, then wrapped the yoke shoulder seams around it, inside out (so that the right sides of the yoke are facing each other, with the front sandwiched in between).  This gave me a MUCH neater finish:

Another problem I had was trying to make gathers in the 3/8" seam allowance.  I could only fit 1 row of gathering stitches in such a narrow space.  It worked OK for the back:

But absolutely failed at the sleeve cuff:

So next time I'm likely to convert any seam allowances that need gathering to 5/8".  I may even convert all the allowances, since the future versions I have planned are all silk and would benefit from French seams.

As I mentioned above, the sleeves are way too long on me - no surprise there, as I usually have to shorten sleeves 1" - 2".  Because of that failed cuff above, and because this is a test garment, my fix was to cut off the cuff, turn the sleeve back a few times and tack it in place.  Good enough for this version.

I think the line drawing is inaccurate regarding the placement of the shoulder seam.  Even on my very forward shoulders, the yoke wraps to the front instead of sitting on top of the shoulder, and this is backed up by how the top lays flat:

(I guess this is a good time to apologize for the poor quality of the pictures.  I had to make a choice between taking the photos with my phone, or waiting who knows how long to write up this post, so I chose the phone.)

You can also see in the photo above that I coverstitched my facing down.  I'm not in love with how it looks - it's too close to the tuck and just looks superfluous.  I think I won't need to sew it down in my future versions because the facing edge will be finished, but I didn't trust the fusible web to hold up in the wash.

Finally, just for the sake of novely, here's how that front piece looks:

It's so large that I had to tape all 3 of my cutting boards together to cut it out!  So I was surprised that the top doesn't have a whole lot of volume when it's on the body.

I realize this post is rambling, but I did want to get my impressions of my first Style Arc pattern down in writing before I forgot!  And although there were a couple things I didn't like, my overall impression is that this is a solid pattern, and I'm looking forward to making it again with my adjustments.