Lack of Posts

I apologise for my lack of posts, my computer died last week (thank you microsoft!) and yesterday my dad came to try and fix it but he had to take it away and I am on the oldest working laptop in the world...so slow!

Anyway, fingers crossed I can get my work back off my pc, I am very glad I've been keeping this blog! Also this means I can't upload any pictures as I don't think this laptop could even begin to handle my camera.

That said, I've finally got all my pieces (except the sleeves) cut out and mark tacked and I am slowly piecing them together. I worked on a show last week and then I got sick so I am even more behind but hopefully it should all get done this week in time for the fittings on thursday and friday!

So normal service will hopefully return soon!

Check Matching = nightmare!

So I struggled last week with trying to get my checks to work, so I asked not one but two tutors today about it. Of course they gave me two opposing views!
My tutor Kat said I should just essentially bully the fabric into lining up with the pattern, but my tutor Graham said if I do this as soon as I take the paper off the fabric will be the wrong shape.
As much as I wanted to follow Kat's advice because it would make everything line up, Graham had a point so I resigned myself to just be as close as possible. Now all of my pieces are cut we'll see tomorrow whether it worked! I have left my self A LOT of allowance to nudge things around into the right place, and I just pray that it works out!
On the plus side, I learnt how to put in a zipper!

pattern alteration

So although I had my fitting on Friday, I don't feel we did a whole lot of actual fitting!


I spent this week drawing up new patterns from my toile pieces, not a way I have worked before but it might work out better!

One of the things I noted in the fitting was that the shoulder seam was in the wrong place, and I believed this would improve the other fitting issues we had (the waist being too high on the front, the collar sitting wrong and the sleeves being twisted), so I spent a large part of today trying to fix that.

After I moved the shoulder seam, the armhole gaped at the front and initially I tried to fix this with a technique normally used on the back of the bodice.

However, looking at the pattern at the end, I realised this was going to make the checks lie at an angle so I asked Nelson if he was okay with there being a side bust dart....and he said yes!

I rejigged my pattern and now I have a dart along the bust line and everything is a bit better.

Finally I tried to start cutting top fabric, but I just couldn't get the checks to lie right so I am waiting til monday when I can see my tutor *fingers crossed*