She wears the pants no. 12: revisiting the draped dress

 I wanted to branch out and try some new Japanese patterns, but I was a bit scared. Last time I tried to make the grecian dress I literally couldn't figure out how to trace it and I gave up.  So, suddenly fired up with the idea of Japanese patterns, revisiting some previous ones seemed like a good way to stretch those muscles before I committed to the tracing.  The original version of this pattern is here. I made this version in the same size M. 

I had a large piece of very slinky viscose and recalled that it would be perfect for this dress which was a big part of my interest.  I made it longer this time, but no other changes.  It was a quick sew.  I added some seam tape for the shoulders since the weight of the dress is all on those seams.  It really is a lovely pattern as long as you want excellent chest access.  And in fact, I made this with the plan to give it to a breastfeeding friend.  

Truthfully I think my first version was more interesting.  I would use this pattern again for a heavyweight drapey knit.  I think a lightweight knit shows too much!  Also, a patterned fabric made it more visually interesting.  

She wears the pants: draped cardi take 2

 The first version of this cardi was oddly bewitching. See it here. 

I wasn't sure whether short sleeves made any sense. The pockets were low, the cardi was ridiculous.  But something about the flow was very interesting.  A classic Japanese pattern result.  I thought at some point it would be interesting to come back to it with the recommended fabric.  I traced the pattern in size M and didn't, at the time, think that a smaller size would be better if I made it again. 

That moment arrived not too long ago when a friend made a comment and suddenly all I wanted to do was revisit the Japanese pattern books.  I dug through my knits and realised I had a beautiful coral linen knit that would be just the thing for this cardigan.  I thought I could improve on it by shortening the length horizontally above the pockets - this is easy enough to do by cutting and overlapping the pattern.  I also thought it could have something more in the way of sleeves with larger cuffs.  

Sewing it together was no problem.  It's an easy sew once you've done all the tracing work. 

 

But to my dismay the adjustments I made to the pattern were really unnecessary.  I don't think the extra sleeves are useful, they are loose and just hang in the way.  The linen is quite heavy, even if it's not heavier than the rayon blend I used the first time, and I think the change in length is superfluous - I do see it's shorter in my photos, but it didn't really feel shorter while wearing it.  My lesson here is that the Japanese pattern designers know best!  It's really hard to actually improve on their designs.  And I should probably try the smaller size if I make this again.  I wonder how it would be in a more lightweight knit that doesn't pull it down as much.  

She Wears the Pants no. 15: Draped Cardigan

After I made no. 12, the draped minidress, I was less secure about my choice to size up to a M for this cardigan as well, but I forged ahead. My waist and hip measurements are M but my bust is S, so in this cardi I thought it was meaningful that it fit well about the hips.

The fabric is a drapey merino and tencel blend. It's a beautiful fabric, but it's relatively heavy and has quite a lot of drape for a loopback knit.

The pattern - I found it hilarious and so much fun to make!  It comes together really quickly and there's just nothing quite like Japanese patterns, I mean, the entire body is one single piece.

What I did determine: you should pull tension on the neckline binding between the shoulder seams, and then pull NO tension on it for the rest of the length of the cardigan. I pulled a little bit on it the whole way along, and I find the neckline is too loose, and the cardigan pulls inward because of my binding.

AND it's very big.  I like the sleeves a lot.  But the whole cardigan goes halfway to my knees!  Those models might possibly be really tall, but also my knit is heavy and has a tendency to pull downwards.

I'm happy about this result, but also disappointed, and I had to pause and remind myself that just lately I was confirming the need to make something multiple times before you get it right.  I'm not going to bother with buttons this time around - I had thought about interfacing the button part of the band, which would be wise if you can figure out which part it is!  It doesn't need to be stretched so the interfacing won't interfere that way - I would definitely interface in future, especially on a lighter knit.

There's nothing in my stash that works for this, but I definitely want to try again. I've been doing a lot of Alabama Chanin experimentation, and actually I think this might work perfectly with 2 layers of overlock cotton - they aren't very stretchy, but the two layers creates a substantial result.  There's room for improvement.  (I don't think I'll size down until I've tried a different fabric first.)

She Wears the Pants no. 12: draped minidress

I was allowing myself to thumb through my Japanese pattern books for inspiration...and sure enough, inspiration was waiting for me in She Wears the Pants, by Yuko Takada.

I picked out no. 12: the draped minidress, realising I have exactly the fabric for it, and I was enticed by how simple it was, but also how clever - the grainline isn't at the centre of the front piece, presumably to alter the drape of the front.

Problem: my chest is 32.5, which is a small, but my waist and hip are solidly a size M.  I decided to size up, and I sincerely regretted that later - I didn't think through silk jersey, and how it would be better for it to be too small, and very clingy, rather than too big.

I sort of went my own way with the bindings doing a kind of hybrid bias binding on them, but otherwise the pattern was very simple.  Tracing the pattern, I thought about my previous experience trying to copy a Japanese dress (here) and how a very simple appearing decision like an offset grainline can make all the difference to the pattern.

You only trace 2 pieces. You measure your own bindings, and you mirror imagine the front piece to create 2, whereas the back is cut on the fold.  It was one of the simplest Japanese patterns I've ever traced out.  Of course adding seam allowances, a minor irritation.

Though my jersey was slippery, overall this is a very easy sew.
It's just like the model! Even the weird, hunched over look!  In my pictures I promise I'm not hunching. I do have a blue dress under it which shows at the hem (obviously and at the chest).

Not hunched over, for real!

You see I really should have sized down.  A size down would have indeed been clingy, not a bad thing in this fabric, and it also wouldn't have draped down to my belly button.  It may not quite show my belly button but I look down and see a lot so it feels like it exposes more than it does!   The weight of the drape comes directly from the shoulders so the bindings are a good support.  I really like how nicely finished this is, and how easily it came together.

As it is I'm happy with this experiment. I wore it to dinner at friends (they are part of my shared isolation bubble, no judging!) and layered a bra top under it and it was great. Also, looking over the book again the model is wearing a top under it so possibly it drapes down to her belly button too.

Thoughts:
size down if you are in between, especially in a heavier weight fabric
the front drape flips inside out at times, so a fabric that doesn't have an obvious reverse side is better.
easy dress! 

Shape shape 2 double layer skirt in silk

My library had a copy of Shape Shape which I took home to peruse. I've been on a mission to make a poufy double or triple layer silk skirt and I recently acquired three colours of silk.  I was initially going to do a gathered skirt in three layers, but this caught my fancy instead.

I prepped a size small despite being worried that it will be too narrow in the hips.  The measurement is only off by 1" from my measurements, but I thought Japanese patterns tend to be really tiny.  I expect to make an M in Japanese patterns, not a small.

Ugh adding seam allowances.  But the pattern is only two pieces so I guess I shouldn't fuss too much.  It uses 2 separate rows of narrow elastic instead of a single wider elastic, which I thought was interesting.  Basically in the end you have 4 separate pieces of elastic around your waist. (Good? Bad? I'm actually thinking not very good.)

I used two of my three silks: silk organza in a very light gold colour, and brown crinkled silk, heavier than chiffon weight.  Because both are relatively transparent I did french seams on the sides and on the bottom where the two fabrics connect.

This turned into an exercise in imprecision. The crinkle silk was crinkled when I cut it, but obviously stretched when sewn.  I ended up with this:

I cut off that edge!

I overlocked the waistband before folding it over, and because of my french seams I then did the two waistbands separately, folding the waist over enough to hold both, but sewing down the top one, inserting the elastic, and then sewing down the second one.  The organza could have done with a tighter fit - the elastic slips around in the casing and it does rotate.  Since there are 4 elastics which are all slipping and twisting separately, the waistband isn't that comfortable.

End result: The waistbands bother me a little, but the concept of the skirt is still pretty fun. I can wear it in four ways - I think twisted looks more interesting than straight, and time will tell if the waistbands shift around a lot with movement/life/walking.

It's hard to tell if my fabrics make the skirt large, but it's definitely big enough.  The small was fine. The crinkle silk obviously stretches a LOT, and I will admit I cut out the organza without many pins (which is still more than usual!) ...so it might have shifted.

This would be fun to make in voile, and I think fabric that doesn't need french seams is better - you can use the technique in the instructions for the waist elastic, which will lead to it being tighter and not twisting as much.