The Koos Coat - She is DONE! :)

Yes, it's done!

I left off last month (last year!) with the sleeves dangling on pins and basting stitches, not quite sure how I was going to attach them....and the poor thing's been hanging on Queenie ever since.  Once I'd had a delicious little snack (the LaFred pants) I was ready to go again, and decided to attach the sleeves per the pattern instructions - flat felled.   Ugh.  What I should have done (which required foresight) was to not stitch the construction seams all the way to the edge, especially the installation of the bias binding.  This way I could have neatly trimmed off the excess fabric while trying to get a nice, even stitch on the flat felling.    And, of course, I should have left 1" seam allowances for all of the ff'd seams.  I did trim the fabric as best I could, but given the different thicknesses of fabric, the risk of losing fabric I wanted through fraying (or [gasp] snipping through it....yes, I did that in one spot ::cry::)...well, can we just say that the next time I flat fell a seam it WILL be on even, not-too-thick fabric, and hopefully I will be much more successful, after all this practice!

Top of sleeve on outside - not too bad looking

Top of sleeve on inside - and the ugly truth....

Truth is, I will probably NEVER wear this jacket inside out.  I probably won't even bother posting a picture.   I mean, hey - I LOVE the outside, the inside is meh at best, so why even go there, right?

 A bunch of random pictures:

Collar rolled down

Construction Notes from this last phase:

1.  Attaching Sleeves:  See above regarding clipping out as much excess fabric as possible.  And I would HIGHLY recommend 1" SA's for all flat felled seams.   This I will remember in the future.  (Pounding this into brain as I type)

2.  The Welt & Pockets.   Vogue's welt instructions were a little odd to me, but then, this is a reversible jacket, and the pocket isn't attached to the welt at all, it's just sewn directly on to the inside of the jacket, so I followed their instructions. (mostly)   The first one left me mystified in several areas, but once I figured it out, the second one went very quickly.   The only part I didn't like at all is that there are a lot of raw edges left on the welt.   They're inside the pocket, but still - poor construction quality, imho.   Especially given the fray-proneness of one of my fabrics!   So I turned the raw edges under & topstitched them:

The edge I'm holding is left raw if you follow the Vogue instructions

I trimmed the inside fabric...

Folded the welt fabric over & topstitched
(this was welt #1 - #2 looked a bit better, but not much.
It was, once again, 8 layers of fabric in some areas....)

Sew the pockets on, hem the sleeves, clip the threads, press.....And that was it!   It took me over a month to get over the sleeve attachment hump, but really, it went relatively quickly once I did.    And, in spite of all the foibles & glitches, I'm thrilled with the results!

Some consolidated general tips (most of this is posted in more detail in my other 3 posts):

1.   Fabric Choice:  The ideal fabrics would all be similar weight and hand, with your bias trim being as lightweight as possible.  I think this coat would be fabulous in some drapey fabrics - a light-weight version that hangs in softer folds than a wool version.
2.  Pattern Instructions:  In general, the instructions are pretty thorough.   However, they do NOT follow the construction methods that Mr. Van den Akker used.  Janis at Grainlines and Biases attended a workshop teaching Koos' methods.  If I were to make this jacket again, I would utilize the methods she used!   In a nutshell, the fabric pieces of the outside are glued onto the inside fabric (the seams are NOT sewn together), and the bias strip is laid in place and then sewn through all the layers.   She also mentions a nifty way of attaching the sleeves, by using something like Hong Kong finishes on the SAs, so that the seams would stick up (on the inside of the coat).   I seriously considered doing this, but ended up flat felling.
   The labeling & numbering on the pattern pieces is just plain weird.  It makes no sense at all - I recommend cutting out your pattern pieces and laying them out, then RE-labeling them in a way that makes sense to you before you buy your fabric - that is, if you're the sort of person who wants to buy what you need, as opposed to one who always buys lots of extra.
   This is definitely an Advanced pattern, but if I could make my way through it, most of you out there in the sewing world can too!
3.  Pattern Sizing and Fit:  This is a seriously oversized jacket.  I muslined a Medium, & ended up making a Small, and it's still a fairly long jacket length on me.   The collar is TALL; unless you have a very long neck, it will end up making odd little folds on its own, or you'll need to fold it over for comfortable wearing.  (I trimmed mine down by about 1")
    And don't forget to add extra SA width to the seams that will be flat felled!
4.  The Collar:  Even though I trimmed it down so that my ears & chin aren't pushing on it, I'm discovering that the collar still has a tendency to want to fold down a bit.   If you want it to stand up,  you may want to add some stiff interfacing to your fabric (depending on your fabric choice, of course)

I may add a button to my jacket, but it will, of course, require the perfect button, which I didn't find in my stash (clearly I need more buttons!   hah.)

In the end, I have to highly recommend this pattern!   If you like a swing coat (I do!) this is a wonderful, modern take on it.  You can make a super easy version in a double sided fabric, without all of the piecing (see my first post for my fleece version - still unfinished because I do have some fun embellishments planned).   This is one of those patterns that really has a lot of room for creative fun!

ETA:  I've just discovered that there is another finished version of the coat in blogland - Noile has made a wonderful jacket using what she cleverly calls "Koos Lite".   She has a very detailed & informative post about her construction methods, including some helpful notes about the oddly labeled pattern pieces.

I think I'm starting to find a rhythm in what works for me regarding sewing projects.  I really thrive on the challenges - both in learning new techniques and in creativity, and I also love the instant gratification that a quick snack offers.   Alternating the two, and even sticking a snack in the middle of a long haul project, is what keeps me happily motivated.

How about you?  Do you like challenge after challenge?   Or would you rather have instant gratification most of the time?  Or do you need both?

LaFred Lives On! (Thalia Pants)

Finally, I made it back to the sewing room for an actual sewing project!  :D

I've been drawn to this pattern since the first time I saw it - fits right in with my usual attraction to patterns that look oh-so-smashing on tall, willowy models, and, um, not-so-smashing on someone of my stature. Sometimes I decide I'll make it work anyway.

The end result ~  Slimming?  Not so much.  Comfy?  Absotively!
Dress up or down?  Yes and Yes.   Easy to make?  Another Yes!
All in all....a winner :)

Just for fun, I tried to duplicate the pose this model made.
Can't be done.  Well, not by me anyway.
Go ahead.  I dare you.  Try it.

One of the reasons it took me so long to make this pattern is that I thought it was going to be complex.  You know.  Trousers.  Fitting.  Details.  Then I pulled out the pattern & looked through the instructions, I was surprised at how utterly simple the construction was.   And with the loose fit, it looked like a (relatively) quick & easy project.   And I had reached the point with The Koos Coat that I needed to make a soup & salad meal so that I could take a break from the 7 course preparation...sometimes you just need easy to get the mojo working again!

Other reviews all mentioned the MASSIVE ease around the hips, so I made up a quick muslin in a Medium - my waist & hips actually placed me in between a Med & Lg.   The muslin was still too baggy, so I re-cut it in a Small, which felt fine.

A note about the length - the pattern is SHORT.   REALLY short.  I have short legs, & the length is just about right on me.  Be forewarned before you cut!  

There's not much to say about the pattern instructions or construction - it's really all pretty straightforward; instructions are thorough & easy to understand.    I made some minor changes in the fit around the waist by leaving a smaller SA at the side seams, and also making the pleats a bit smaller - essentially making the waist about 1.5" wider.  The waist is gathered in the back with two pieces of elastic.   Fred made a note to add both elastic pieces at once through the two channels, which I did, using two large-eyed, blunt-nosed needles, like so:

The closure consists of 2 buttons, with buttonholes sewn into pleats on either side of CF.  

You can either sew your buttonholes through both layers of the fabric forming the pleat, as I did, or you can sew separate buttonholes in each fabric layer (for a total of 4).  If you sew the pleats together with the buttonholes, you need to make sureyou can pull the pants on over your hips!  Now, I have wide hips.   (which seem to be getting wider as the years pass.....but I digress.....)   I really really did NOT want to make 4 buttonholes - not because I'm lazy (even though I can be), but because I wanted the neater look that sewing the pleats together would give.  By making the pleats a bit narrower, which resulted in the waistband being bigger, I was able to do the buttonholes the way I wanted & still get the pants on & off easily.

A note about the pattern markings:  don't worry about making all of them  when you cut your fabric.   It's nice to have the option to change your closure placements anyway, for a custom fit.

Vintage buttons from stash.
The waistband seam has an odd, wavy look here -
I think it was the way I was standing.  It's not a badly sewn seam - really, honest!

I wanted the pants a bit on the long side, to be worn with heels (my version of a heel...which is not 4"...or even 3", for that matter).   This leaves them a bit long for flats, but I'll wear them for awhile before making any changes.

With heels

With Flats

Side View

Back View
(My shoulders are NOT that lopsided -
it's a downside of using the camera remote instead of a friend)

Other notes:  I think a drapey fabric is a must for this pattern - I love the feel of the flow as I walk in these pants.  I used a midweight tencel with a very soft hand - perfect for this pattern!  I used Pro-Woven Fusible interfacing from fashionsewingsupply on the waistband - not too crisp, not too wimpy.

A fun, easy project - I would make them again if the right fabric for them jumped out at me :)

BTW, the blouse is Decades of Style Collar Perfection - (pre-blog - it's reviewed here on Pattern Review) - the second thing I made after re-entering the sewing world.  Gosh, it's been almost two years now.....  I struggled a lot with it, because of all of the alterations I attempted.  It came out fine in the end, but I've come a long ways since then.

And now it's time to get back to Koos!   The good news is that I've finally decided how I'm going to do the next step.   I think......

2011 - What I sewed, what I learned...

I haven't made it into the sewing room to do anything of substance for...oh... 3 weeks or so now... so I decided it was time for a bit of reflection on the past year.   This was my first full year of sewing since I was a (very) young adult, and it was definitely a year filled with firsts for me - lots of lessons learned!

The tally:
6 pants
3 jackets
2 vests
4 shawls, wraps & such
3 knit tops (only THREE??   What happened there?)
3 skirts (for Mom)
4 dresses (all for others...I guess I'm still not a dress person)
2 pairs of pajamas (for Mom)
A bunch in the misc. category - belts, bibs, bags, baubles, berets....

Not really quite as productive as I had thought (but still...that's more than 2 per month, not counting all of the miscellaneous items & alterations, so not too bad, all things [aka~life] considered).  Plus, several projects were...well...PROJects!   Complicated, time-consuming, but lots of fun & definitely rewarding!

The biggest lesson learned really sank home while looking through the pictures of 2011's projects.  I realized that the items worn most have been all of the pieces in the above composite pic, made for Pattern Review's mini-wardrobe contest, and my Jalie Jeans.   Both of these filled a practical need, and the wardrobe contest made me think in terms of items that actually, well, made up a wearable, mix & match WARDROBE!   I mean, no orphans!   Who woulda thunk it?

I've been trying to pay attention to this ever since the wardrobe contest, but I do get distracted by bright shiny objects, like this one:

Definitely fun to make (although it had its challenges, to be sure) but I still need to make some items that expand its wearability factor.

There were a couple of bright shiny objects that also fit into the practical, goes-with-lots category, like this faux fur jacket - Lois Ericson's Cosmopolitan (made in January, but pre-blog, reviewed at PR):

A number of items made for others were gratifying and appreciated (*whew*)

 

A new TNT summer top, the Collette Sorbetto, was added to my repertoire:

And I tried my hand at silk screening (thanks to Marcy Tilton)

Other notables were a FINISHED UFO (from 2010, no less...), an introduction to the fabulous new Ausie company, Style Arc, and lots & lots of fleece, including this cute little bedjacket (which has also been getting a lot of wear)

 

My first Fail: (sorry Chloe)

Balanced by another Style Arc Winner 

(I still can't believe I only made THREE knit tops this year - 

I guess 2010 was the year of the knit top for me....)

A bright new table setting:

My latest obsession with ties, which promises a fair amount of creative productivity in the coming year:

And, of course, the current project (not counted above, after all, it's still a UFO).....

I hereby promise to me & the rest of the blogging world, the Koos Coat will be worked on this weekend!!!!

And by the way...this coat not only matches a whole lot of pieces that I already have, but is part of the Stitcher's Guild winter 6PAC, which means that several other matching pieces are ready to go (the 6PAC may or may not actually get finished in time, but that's beside the point...)  I really am trying to pay attention to making pieces that can be happily worn with other pieces I have, or am making.....  Really, truly, I'm learning this lesson!

Here's to lessons learned, and more importantly, remembered.   One lesson that is always with me is the value of community - I remain incredibly thankful for my online sewing community (many of whom are now a part of my 3D life) - I am so grateful for all you have given me :)  

May we all have a 2012 that is filled with abundance in many forms, and may we be blessed with lessons that help us learn, and grow, and become more of who we can be.

Happy New Year, dear sewing buddies!

All Tied Up with a New Obsession! (or two....)

The Stuff of Life has, once again, locked the door to my sewing room, but I will be getting back to the Koos Coat soon....very soon....promise!

Meanwhile, here's a taste of my latest little obsession....ties!   Ties!  And more Ties!

Ages ago I thought a vintage men's tie would have been the perfect item for some project or other (long since finished using something else), but alas, I had none.   So I've been slowly allowing them to follow me home whenever I ran into a stray, with vague ideas floating around the brain as to what I might actually do with them....

Then I ran into this delightful post over at Rhonda's Creative Life, and quickly whipped up one of her super easy obi belts:

This was perfectly timely, since I've also been obsessing over how to make some belts I would like (and NEED!)   A few minutes of hand stitching is all it takes, and it's truly a one-size-fits-all item, depending on how you tie it together.   I wore it the day after making it, and can't wait to make more!

This really kicked the slow collecting into obsession mode, and I now brake for thrift stores - and I know which ones charge as little as $.50 and which charge as much as $19.99 (for a used tie?  Don't THINK so.....).

I have numerous sketches and ideas for other belts, necklines, handles, facings....and I might even do a variation on the old necktie skirt....we'll see.....

On another note....I need to make some clothes to wear with.....here she is.....allow me to introduce....

Matilda Joplin!

I'll have much more to say about her as I come up with appropriate girly-biker clothes.  I'm picturing skirts -or skorts- a scarf flowing in the breeze, a cloche or some creative ways to disguise a helmet...   Of course, there are always the usual, 'appropriate', biker type clothes, but this is a girly bike, and I'll definitely be getting a wicker basket for the front, and I plan on dressing to the nines for certain biking occasions!  Like, you know, going to the Farmer's Market.....

I leave you with blessings and best wishes for the release of those dark bits of the soul that might be holding you back, and as the days get longer again, here's to bringing more light and joy into all of our lives....Happy Solstice Everyone!

The Koos Coat - What I've Learned So Far

Oh, how I wish there were days when I had nothing to do but sew!!!  I am making progress, but it seems rather slow...especially when I think I'll be done with a certain stage in a couple of hours, and a day later, I'm only halfway there!  But crises have been averted, and I am, once again, really happy with how it's looking :) 

I do have a few notes to make, however.

Pattern Rating    

ADVANCED  Vogue's Definition: The finest patterns featuring the best of European and American Couture. Perfect for those who like the sewing challenge of professional tailoring and fine couture techniques. Expect intricate fashion shaping, hidden construction details, couture inner construction, fine touches of hand sewing and bias draping.

I don't know about the "couture" bit, and Koos isn't known for a love of tailoring, but in my somewhat limited experience, I have to at least partially agree with the rating.  I would just rate it "Not for the faint of (sewing) heart".  I do not, by any stretch, consider myself an "Advanced" sewist, so if I can do it (and I CAN!)....well, chances are, you can too :)

Fabric Choice

This is a lesson called "Do what I say, not what I did".   

I love all of my fabrics, really, I do.   But...... (biggify for the words)

I HIGHLY recommend choosing stable fabrics, all with similar weight and hand.   For construction ease, this can really save you some angst.   Of course, if you're like me, you're going to go for the colors, textures, and variety that speak to you, and just deal with the angst anyway.   Just don't say I didn't warn you!  

Also, I recommend a relatively thin fabric for the bias strip (mine was a bit thick....of course). :::rolleyes:::  Bear in mind that, once you start flat felling the sleeves onto the coat, you'll be going over multiple layers of fabric, especially when you start crossing the bias strips!

(Note that I didn't even mention the inside fabric in the above pic, which caused most of my angst......if you saw my previous post, you already know about that....)

Sizing and Alterations

It runs large.  I started with a Medium muslin, & ended up making a Small.

I only made 2 alterations.  One was on the Sleeve length, which I shortened at the wrist end, like so:

It's an odd-shaped sleeve;
I marked the shortening line to run perpendicular to the grain line,
& then trimmed the edges to smooth them out.  

After I had the body of the coat put together, one of those niggly little back-of-the-mind voices that had been whispering to me finally made itself be heard.   Loudly.  Notice the height of the collar on this model (who almost certainly has a neck that is twice as long as mine to start with).

I was drowning beneath this collar!   It either had to be folded over, or it would create its own fold all around the center of the collar.  Not a good look!  Luckily, I was still at a stage where I could unpick the stitching & cut down the height (by over 1")...I made an 'after the fact' notation on the pattern piece:

The overall length is closer to coat than jacket (at least on my 5'4" [almost] frame), much longer at the back than at the front, but I'm fine with the length as is.   You could just trim the bottom of it off if you wanted it shorter.   Which I would probably wait to do until after you had all of the piecing done....it could be a little tricky figuring out just how it falls until you have it to a point where you can at least pin the body of it together.

Flat-Felled Seams

I remember doing these early on in my former sewing life.

Not much though, because mostly I remember hating doing them.  

Clearly, though, it was time to change my attitude, since all of the remaining seams in this jacket need to be flat-felled.   The problem (for me) was how to deal with 4 thicknesses of wool fabric being sewn & folded (making 6 thicknesses for the topstitching...even more when you start sewing over the bias strips!)

After trimming the inside SA to a scant 1/4", I decided to trim the inside fabric of the outer SA as close as possible to the seam line.   This means I would only be folding over one thickness, instead of two (Did that make sense?)

SA on the upper side of the pic is a full 5/8"
The next layer of fabric is trimmed right next to the seam
The two fabrics on the other side of the SA are trimmed to a scant 1/4"

 For the pressing portion of the seams, I decided to use a technique I learned when working with slippery silk charmeuse.  I folded the wide seam over & pinned it in place directly on to the ironing board, using glass head pins, & poking them in at a sharp angle.

Steam & Press it into submission, then let it rest until it's cool:

The finished, top-stitched result - I'm happy with it!  

I'll leave you with a shot of the ugly truth of the scene on the inside, soon to be hidden (hopefully!) beneath the pocket.  (But don't show this picture to anyone else, OK?)

Next up:  sewing the sleeves on to the jacket, making the pocket welts, installing the pockets, and ... dare I say it ... completion!!!!