It's about exploring and sharing my creative adventures (mostly sewing these days) ~
~those activities that sometimes obsess, usually inspire, occasionally frustrate
~and always provide a delightful maze to wander through.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

I Said "Yes" :) (to the Peony Vest)

We had to take a little break for awhile...sometimes relationships are like that, you know?  "It's me, not you" I told the Peony, and this was true.  After some required R&R, I feel centered & ready to enter the relationship arena (aka sewing room) again, and we're getting along better than ever!

I suppose this step was the equivalent of a ring - a nice little bound buttonhole* (my first! at least in memory....I may have done some in my previous sewing life, but I don't remember ever being successful....).    Once the leather had been cut, there was no going back, and even though I've known I wanted to commit for some time, this pretty well sealed the deal :)
*CORRECTION!  sdBev asked if this buttonhole was going to have lips, and I realized this is NOT a bound buttonhole; since it doesn't have the inside lips...I'm still searching for what the formal name (if there is one) of this sort of buttonhole is - anyone?  
UPDATE:  gloria suggested Spanish Snap buttonhole (which looks like a pretty cool technique), and Lynne concurs, so I'll go along with that.  Although, since it seems to be a variation of the Spanish Snap, I think I'll just call it the  "Koos Buttonhole" :)

I bought Koos Van den Akker's Vogue 1213 (aka the Stegosaurus Coat) after seeing sham's version, along with her recommendation to get the pattern for the buttonholes, if nothing else.   She was right!  I LOVE his buttonholes!   Well, I love a lot of what he does, but that's another post.   So I borrowed his buttonhole idea, with a few alterations, and I'll be using it again!  And again, I'm sure!

Here's the simplified process (not really a tutorial, just a brief explanation):
Cut a square (or circle, or whatever) of fabric & lining, & sew RS together along the edges, leaving an opening to turn.   Turn, slipstitch the opening, & baste along your buttonhole edges to mark the placement.  Baste two "v's", which will be folded & stitched later.   And there's lots of room for other creative folding & stitching options once you have this figured out!  Too much fun!
Place the buttonhole piece, RS against the inside of your garment.
Stitch along the basted buttonhole edges.
Slice the center of the buttonhole; cut v's at each end, (as you would do in any welt opening)
and pull the buttonhole fabric through to the RS of the garment.
Fabric pulled through.  
After this, you fold along the basted lines that form the v's,
& topstitch along the foldline, the outside edges, and the buttonhole.
Done!
I also (finally!) made a decision about the spaghetti tube.   Here's the front:
The end of the tubing, towards the top, isn't sewn down yet,
but I think it will extend into the gold fabric, kind of as shown.
I added some pigskin strips to the back side panels, echoing the lines of the strips on the front side panels.  The only embellishment left now is to add some more of the spaghetti tubing onto the back piece.  I'm planning on just adding some simple, curvy lines, as on the front piece.

All that's left after that is sewing up the sides,  finalizing the hem placement, and  sewing up the lining seams (some, if not most, of that will be done by hand).

Oh, and the button.  I have a cool button :)

I hope you all are taking the time to keep yourselves healthy and happy, in order to keep your relationships happy and healthy :)

Here's to Joy, Abundance, and Well Being.......

16 comments:

Andrea said...

Yay, almost done! It's beautiful, love that oh-so-cool buttonhole, and I can't wait to see you model the vest. I'm sure your button is cool - look at the vest it is going to be buttoning up. ;)

Sharon Sews said...

Wow! I'm lovin' it! It's very cool and that button hold is fab!

Witch Hazel said...

That is an extremely neat bound buttonhole for your first (known) attempt!
I really love the embellishments you are adding, they are making this very special. Lovely!

shams said...

That is looking GORGEOUS, JillyBe! I don't have experience sewing skins, so I had no idea on how to fix the issues you were having, but wow, it is looking great!

I did recognize the buttonhole even before reading the text. Isn't it great? It looks so neat in that print.

sdBev said...

Kewl! Will the buttonhole have lips? or is it just an open rectangle?

glorm said...

Yet another creative garment from you. Love that buttonhole and the single tube so as not to take the focus from that buttonhole.

Jillybejoyful said...

Thank you everyone! I am happy to be back in the sewing room and be THIS close to finished :)

shams I have to have to give you a special thanks for giving me the oomph I needed to get that Koos pattern - LOVE this buttonhole!

Bev, no it won't have lips....but it occurs to me that this means it isn't really a bound buttonhole? I need to check my terminology. If it isn't bound, what is it?

:::scratching my head & going off to do some research:::

Mary said...

I am entranced with this vest...and I am going to take myself off to bed and dream about it now.

luckylibbet said...

Can you bring it to the next BABES? Looks great and I would LOVE to see it up close and personal. And as a PS my friend Vicki bought for me the Koos coat pattern and the instructions for the buttonhole are great! Not that I've tried them yet, but intentions are there.

Cheers! - Heather

glorm said...

That buttonhole might be the Spanish Snap Buttonhole described by Roberta Carr. Maybe someone else will know more about it.

Jillybejoyful said...

Mary - hope you're having sweet dreams :)
Heather - I will bring it to the next BABES - looking forward!
Thanks Valerie :)
Glorm...interesting; I love what I'm finding on the Spanish Snap Buttonhole; this looks sort of close but not really it. It looks like the Spanish Snap is oval, and a bit of the lining fabric shows through - great for use on fine or ravelly fabrics. Thanks - that's some great info!

vtmartha said...

This is going to be fabulous!

gwensews said...

I love an arty type garment. Yours is adorable. Very wearable. It will definitely get a lot of attention!

Unknown said...

I was so excited to see you post in my blogroll this morning, I couldn't click over here fast enough.

It's looking great and I love the addition of the leather to the side panels.

I would also call your buttonhole a spanish snap. The process is the same regardless of the finished shape. I use this technique on the Robin Masks I make to finish the eye opening, as well as for large decorative buttons.

Glad you have decided to commit, it suits you both:)

Jillybejoyful said...

Thank you Martha :)
Gwen - I'm not the sort who really likes attracting as much attention as this vest might get - it's stepping outside my comfort zone a bit ... we'll see *grin*
lol Lynne....your comment made my day!

OK, I'll concede to the Spanish Snap buttonhole label..or at least a version of it; thanks Gloria & Lynne!

Dixie said...

Jilly Be, this is absolutely gorgeous! I love the buttonhole and the curvy trimming you've added. It really pulls the design together. Can't wait to see the button! And you wearing this beauty!