Cape Finished!

 

Finally finished the cape! The buttonholes were a challenge on this one, more than expected. My old Pfaff machine was not up to making the keyhole buttonholes. I made up samples to stitch out as I do for any buttonhole before sewing on the project. I tried everything but the thickness, especially at the front edge, despite steaming and using the clapper to compress even more, proved too much of a challenge. Then I tried the regular buttonhole, but no avail. Okay, drop back and punt.....Manual buttonholes were the solution so after 8 more samples stitched I was ready to go. Manual means no buttonhole foot and manually setting the zigzags, using the needle down feature as necessary and carefully marking the parameters of the buttonhole. It worked....finally!

Then each buttonhole (except the one at the top) was surrounded with grosgrain ribbon folded into a point. First the ribbon is carefully folded and pressed. Then pinned around the buttonhole.

Basting is the only way to prepare the ribbon for machine stitching.

Then the ribbon is sewn by machine around the buttonhole but the point is left unsewn.

Three more ribbon "surrounds" are placed on the left side of the cape to line up perfectly with the ones on the right. Buttons were attached with waxed thread to the left side.The last piece of the puzzle was the belt. After sewing the two pieces together the edges are sewn then pinked just like the cape hem.

I'm so glad this project is done!  I won't say I loved sewing it, but I did learn a lot and also practiced up on some skills I don't use often. Will I use this pattern again?  Probably not without some changes! Now on to another sewing project. I am SO grateful to be able to sew and create!

Cape Challenge

 I dived into my stash a week ago for another project. It's a Donna Karan Vogue American Designer Pattern (#V2924 out of print, copyright 2006). I thought it would be fairly easy to sew up....wrong! I already had "warm taupe" melton wool, grosgrain ribbon and pocket lining for it. I had to buy buttons, lots of 1/4" double fold bias tape (for encasing raw seams) and more thread. I wondered about the grosgrain ribbon....it's used somewhat like piping in this pattern. But piping, cut on bias, is moldable, bendable around curves. Grosgrain has no "give" to it at all. Why the heck it's used in this pattern, rather than piping, is beyond my comprehension. I had to adapt and try some different techniques 

to get it to reasonably work.

The pattern starts off right away in tough techniques. The arm openings are supported with a layer of grosgrain between cape and appliqué. Exact seams and trimming are called for. Note the photo below to see both the pocket and arm opening to the right. The pocket flaps and pockets are next on the agenda. The flaps are trimmed in grosgrain so I added a step and gathered the grosgrain in the corners. When the pattern called for placing the grosgrain 1/8" from the fabric edge, they meant it. Instructions called for placing the under pocket flap right sides together and stitching the two together which was way too bulky. Melton wool doesn't fray so I just trimmed off the seam allowance and slip stitched the under pocket to the upper flap (see below again). It worked beautifully. 

Topstitching also compresses the seam.

Sewing the pocket flap and pocket "bag" into the cape is exactly like making bound buttonholes. After attaching the flap, both pockets have to be sewn and a slit cut between the two ending in a v-shaped corner piece on each end. You have to work very carefully and thoughtfully cutting that! Then both pockets are pinned together but the trick is to also catch each little triangle at the end of the pocket opening in the pocket seam. See the little pinned triangle below?

To sew it I used my zipper foot and the edge guide bar set at the 5/8" seam width.

Pressing called for steam and my wood clapper to compress the bulk of the seams.

The last step in the pocket was encasing the pockets seams in 1/4" wide double fold bias tape. 

I set up another machine with black thread so I didn't have to keep switching thread colors on one machine. Love the new sewing arrangement in my sewing room to help with that! So almost every day I'm sewing away on the capes' MANY steps hopefully to complete it this coming week!