Made by a Fabricista: Suiting on the Bias

I kept seeing all these amazing suiting fabrics pop up over at the Fabric Mart site and I definitely knew that one of my makes for the Fabric Mart blog HAD to include these fabric, so I let them know that I would love to create Vogue 8910 (a gorgeous blazer made entirely with bias cut fabric) from a very pretty oyster colored striped stretch wool suiting. I had visions of making the shorter version, view A, to look a lot like the version that Vogue made up in the longer length. I loved the minimalist styling of the jacket and the cool chevron effect the stripes made with the bias cut pieces. I just knew that I had to make it up shorter so it could as easily work with skirts and dresses as it could work with jeans and trousers. (I don't care for the look of longer jackets with skirts and dresses.)

Before I started, I did my usual hunting on the internet for information on the pattern so I could learn more about how to create it for myself, and I hit a goldmine because Ann Rowley, the winner of the Great British Sewing Bee (season one) had sewn up this jacket in a Linton tweed a while ago. She had so much information and photos in her flickr set that I knew I would be in good shape since I loved how hers had turned out. Her advice on this pattern and how to treat the fabric and lining made so much sense. The directions in the Vogue pattern are definitely lacking, especially graphically, and having her set was so helpful so I could visualize exactly what I needed to do to get the results she received.

Overall I did follow her plan, but I did deviate a bit since my fabric choices were different from hers and required a bit different handling. But I definitely and highly recommend using her advice if you take on this pattern.

(I also want to point out that I read in many places, including from Ann herself, that this pattern, though rated *easy*, is anything but, especially since the pattern is entirely cut on the bias and requires a single layer layout and careful planning when sewing as to avoid stretching out the bias fabric once cut. I was gratified to know that I did make the blazer properly and carefully and now can actually wear it out and not have a huge mess on my hands!)

I had high hopes of starting this project in Mississippi over my Thanksgiving break, but in the end I decided to wait until I got home to my sewing machine. Though my mother-in-law's machine is fine, I really wanted to have the option of two things to make this jacket's construction easier--a straight stitch plate and a walking foot. These two items make working with thin fabrics and fabrics that must be precisely handled so much better.

The straight stitch plate is especially nice for thin fabrics like the lining fabric I used, which was a lightweight poly in a nearly perfect matching shade to the fashion fabric. If I had tried to use my 9 mm stitch plate, I know for sure that the fabric would have definitely ended up in the 9 mm hole, so having that helped keep my seams perfectly flat and even. It also really does form a beautiful straight stitch. I only have one place I topstitched (the inside where the facing and the lining meet), but that stitching is perfect, which I know for a fact I can't do as well on a wider stitch plate hole. (I will say that I have forgotten to switch the plate out before zigzag stitching, and oops, broken needle. I try not to make a habit of that.)

The walking foot is just amazing and really does help keep the fabric perfectly aligned when stitching up seams. In this case, I was able to precisely pin how I wanted the seams to look and most of the seams (where I could), I ended up with a cool chevron effect, just like the cover art of the pattern.

The one thing I did notice, though, and this is not a bad thing, but it was something I had to work with, the suiting fabric definitely shows every ripple and wrinkle and though it presses easily, it also rumples easily. Because of this, I *knew* I had to very carefully set in the sleeves so as to avoid the possibility of even more wrinkling that has nothing to do with the fabric and more my sewing. I know that the more pins you use (and pin in the stitching line--not above it--see this post for more on that), the better your sleeve will set in without any accidental folds or wrinkles.

I tried it first with the lining fabric and it worked exactly as I wanted it. I will say I definitely ignored Vogue's directions here. They wanted me to finish the bodice and lining BEFORE doing up the sleeves, but I knew I wanted to construct two separate jackets and then join them, so I set in four sleeves total (Vogue only sets in the fashion fabric, the lining sleeve is stitched by hand after).

Practicing with setting in the lining sleeves helped me prepare to set in the suiting fabric sleeves and I have to say, though not amazingly perfect, they look really good compared to many of my prior efforts and I can happily say I set in sleeves without any folds or wrinkles. (And on a bias jacket!)

Also in regards to the shoulders and sleeves, I am still undecided about the use of shoulder pads. I have narrow shoulders, but they are squared, so while I am tempted to use them (it would probably help lift the upper bodice bit and prevent some residual fabric "frowns" that are there from my very flat chest), I am not sure I can make them work. I may just have to buy a pair and try it out. If it does help, I definitely can get those in after the fact.