Suit Pants Day 3 - Pockets and Flies

Still plodding along on the pants, friends.  A lot should come together today, including, hopefully, the backs and fronts.  Yesterday I managed to complete my back welt pocket and insert my front fly zipper.

I'll say this about welt pockets: It's not so much that they're difficult, though they certainly require accurate measuring, stitching, and cutting.  It's that most sewers don't make them often enough to master them.  The last true welt pocket I made, on my cranberry corduroy pants, was more than a year ago.  So every time I make one, it's like I'm starting from scratch.  With something like a front fly zipper, I've already done them enough to know the routine pretty well. 

I decided to follow the instructions on my pants pattern for the welt pocket; not the best, not the worst.  I wasn't sure if I needed to raise the pocket placement a bit, since I'd shortened the rise in the pants, but I measured against some RTW pants I own, and the center of the welt is generally three inches below the bottom of the waistline, so I left it as-is.





I marked, I stitched, I matched, I cut...









I took a deep breath and I pulled (my welts) through.  I poked, I prodded, I pressed, I panicked (a little).  Then I pressed some more.



I stitched down those little triangles on either end, and edgestitched around the perimeter of the pocket.  After considerable toil, it looked like this.  Not perfect, but acceptable.  I'll likely press it more down the line.  How someone can do this accurately with a zigzag machine, I will never know.



Whew -- glad that's over!

Not much to say about the fly.  It went in without too much drama, though I still have to topstitch in front and trim a bit inside to keep things tidy.







Today's concern is the side pockets.  When I took 1 1/2 inches out of the rise, I also changed the angle of the slanted edges of the pockets and facings slightly, relative to the angle of the edges of the pants fronts, if that makes sense.  I may have to trim a bit or even cut new pocket facings.  But there are worse things, right?



And that, friends, is that.

I'm not sure how far I'll get today. I've been trying to limit my sewing hours so as not to exhaust myself.  As far as crotch reinforcements, a much livelier topic than I'd expected, I did include one, and I'll share it with you down the line.

Send good pants karma my way, please.

Have a great day, everybody!

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Suit Pants Day 2 or "The Botched Crotch"

Cabrera/Meyers, Classic Tailoring Techniques, p. 178

So I've hit already my first snag, readers, and I've hardly even started.
 
Things got off to a rather good start.  Yesterday I experimented with stitching and pressing my pinstripe wool.  Using standard Coats & Clark thread and my Singer 201 set at approximately 12 stitches per inch, I stitched together a few sample pieces of my fabric and pressed open my seams, using a piece of thinnish muslin as my press cloth and lots of steam.  The results were pleasing.



Next, I attached my pocket facings and yoke to my side pockets pieces.  For pocketing I'm using high quality black cotton shirting -- the last of a roll I found on the street two years ago.  I really loved that fabric.  Tailoring books would have you use special pocketing fabric called "Silesia," but I don't think they have it even at Steinlauf & Stoller.  Anyway, this is more than adequate and very, very strong.  All good.



Now here is why I wanted to skip the Cabrera Classic Tailoring Techniques: A Construction Guide for Menswear.  They suggest you make something called a crotch reinforcement.  Friends, I have never made a crotch reinforcement before, but the idea makes sense.  You're making a pair of pants that's not going to get thrown into the laundry on a regular basis, and as anyone who has working knowledge of the male anatomy knows, leaks do occur.  A reinforcement also makes the crotch area stronger and less apt to stretch.

I followed directions, cutting a 7" square of cotton, folding it in half along the bias, and ironing it into a....wait -- you can read the directions in the top pic.  Unfortunately, my reinforcement would curve only so much, and edges certainly didn't match those of my pants.  Perhaps with a more shallow crotch, this could work, but not my pattern.



I stitched it on as per the instructions, but it looked awful.  Was the fabric supposed to lie flat or not? The instructions don't say and the photo is vague.





I shot a frantic email to my friend Mainley Dad, who copied me very similar-sounding instructions for a crotch reinforcement in David Coffin's book Making Trousers.  It sounded to Duane like the reinforcement was supposed to lie flat, however.

I also referred to Jane Rhinehart's OOP book, How to Make Men's Clothes.  Her crotch reinforcement looks flat, and is cut as a single layer.  (Remember that the area will be rounded in the final garment, hence my uncertainty.)



Readers, this is why having too many tailoring books can be confusing.  Finally, I decided I would simply deal with this issue tomorrow, meaning today.

I even looked through the few pair of dress pants I own, but sadly none of them have crotch reinforcements like this, though I did discover a wide variety of funky looking messes down there. 



Friends, how would you tackle this problem?  Do you or a man in your life own pants with a crotch reinforcement you wish to share with us? -- without the man in them, of course.  Is this a solution in search of a problem, like the Pintastic?  How necessary is this and can the need be alleviated with better hygiene?  I should mention that the instructions for my pants, McCall's 4359, never mention a crotch reinforcement.  Maybe I'll look for a sample pair of good pants at the Salvation Army -- you'd be surprised what can be found there or maybe you wouldn't.

I remind myself that these will not be the last pair of dress pants I make, and that I will no doubt learn a lot from making these, crotch reinforcement or no crotch reinforcement.



In closing, I hope you haven't found today's post in any way distasteful.  We're all adults here, or very mature teens.

Would you skip the reinforcement altogether?  Cut the reinforcement flat to meet the edges of my fabric?

What would you do?

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Making the Suit Pants - Day 1

And we're off! (our rockers, mainly)

It appears I am indeed making a suit; ETA December 30.  Thanks for all your encouragement yesterday.

I decided to use the pinstripe wool.  For one thing, it's lighter weight, so I think I'll get more use out of it.  For another, the stripe makes cutting much easier and, I'm hoping, everything else, from welt pocket to waistband.  Yesterday I used Pam Erny's machine pre-shrink method (you can read about it here) to prep my wool.  I've used it before and it seems to work fine.  Although, since you're not going to wash your wool garment in the machine, but rather take it to the dry cleaners, why do you have to pre-shrink wool in the first place?  I thought the whole point of dry cleaning is that it's for garments made of shrinkable fabric you can't wash yourself.  Anyway...

I pre-shrank both fabrics, just in case, but like I said, I've opted for the pinstripe.  I also have much more of the pinstripe, so if I need to cut anything out twice...

I'm making the pants out of McCall's 4359, version E -- no pleats but with the little watch pocket flap (but no actual watch pocket) on the front right side.   It's the guy in the brown pants and mustard sweater.



I could have used a suit pattern, but with pants, there's very little difference and I just couldn't deal with the 6,000 pieces of an entire suit pattern all at once.  Notice how the line of the pleated pants looks identical to that of McCall's 3995, the pattern I used to make Michael's shirt last week.  I didn't measure one against the other but my hunch is that they're the same, despite one being thirty years older.  I'll have to check that out some day.  Men's fashion changes very slowly, if at all.

Anyway, the pattern was uncut, so first I had to cut it out.



Even with just the pants, it's a lot of pieces.



Then I had to adjust the pant length and the rise.  I've done this before and I'm safe with 1 1/2" off the rise and 2" off the length; I really don't want hip huggers.  Of course, since I'm shortening the rise, I also have to shorten the fly and fly facing as well as the pockets and pocket facings.



This morning I started cutting.  I used rulers to make sure my grainlines were straight.   It took a lot of time to cut and I cut solely single layers at a time, never double.





I labeled front and backs with a chalky yellow pencil (see top pic) -- there is a subtle difference between right and wrongs sides on this fabric.



And that's it so far.  I may do a little sewing today or not.  Frankly, I'm already pretty wiped out just with all the cutting and I don't really feel like rushing through these.  BTW, I am referring to the Cabrera book, Classic Tailoring Techniques after all.  It has a ton of useful information.  I may even include the recommended "crotch reinforcement!" 

OK, time for lunch.  Happy Sunday, everybody!

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Am I ready? or Revisiting the Men's Suit Project

Readers, as 2011 draws to a close, I find myself wanting to choose one last big project to finish off the year with a bang.  I have four weeks.

Longtime readers will know that I've tackled suit jackets before.  I made this green/gray thing my first year of sewing.  This polyester blazer wasn't nearly as nice as it looks in this photo and I never wore it out of the house.  I'm pretty sure I've since dumped it.



I also made this eye-catching blazer.  Alas, I never lined it and never wore it out of the house either.  I do wear the matching pants, however.



Last year, I tried my hand at a corduroy jacket.  I went overboard purchasing tailoring books, however, ended up intimidated, and never finished it.  I'm not excited about it anymore.



In all the above cases, I used vintage Seventies jacket and suit patterns.  For some reason, at that time there was an explosion of men's tailored garment patterns, heavens knows why.  I've never seen a suit pattern from, say, the Forties, with the occasional blazer pattern turning up in the late Fifties.  Then all of a sudden, suits and blazers everywhere!  I own many such patterns.







Anyway, I'm considering taking the plunge once again.  This time, however, I'm going to limit myself to just one book, Simplicity's Sewing for Men and Boys.



Is it the definitive tailoring book?  Probably not, but it's straight forward and it's good enough for my current level of sewing.  If I complete the project and I'm ready for something more complex, I can move on to something like this.



I was looking at suiting fabric yesterday, and then I remembered I already have two different blue wool suitings in my stash, one a gift from my friend Melody, who owns Fashionista Fabrics, and another something I found in the trash (!), albeit in a clean plastic storage box full of sewing and knitting supplies.  (This happened before I started blogging.)

The trash suiting is Italian cashmere, and I have more than three yards.  The dog hair was my contribution.



Melody's gift is lighter weight pinstripe, and I have more than four yards.



So the question now is, am I up for this?  The pink blanket topper coat built my confidence somewhat, and I think I'd be more inclined to sew Michael a suit down the line (for which I already have the fabric) if I'd already made one for myself.  Plus, let's face it, knowing it's for me will give me a little more motivation.

So that's the story.  I'd likely start with pants, just to get acquainted with working with the wool.  If those turn out well, I'll be more excited about doing the jacket.

How do you feel about tackling tailoring projects, friends?  Do you generally avoid these kind of things or are you willing to deal with notched collars, pad stitching, and sleeve heads?

Wish me luck -- or talk me out of it!

Have a great day, everybody!

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Pajamas to the Office -- Yea or Nay?

Readers, while I was sitting on my ceramic Pintastic yesterday, I stumbled upon a colorful fashion spread in this week's New York magazine, entitled "Street Pajamas."  Apparently, female versions of classic men's pajamas are the new look du jour for gals.  They're not just for sleeping anymore!



The feature (which you can view online here) profiles four women about this new fashion trend.  Notice anything they have in common?









Writer-blogger (ahem), Public-Relations Assistant, Fashion Consultant, Writer -- welcome to the 21st Century workforce!  It's no wonder these women can wear pajamas all day. 

The jobs these women have don't exactly match the prices of these jammies, however.  How many writer-bloggers are spending $2,500 for an outfit, let alone one that has a drawstring waist and comes in S, M, L, & XL?





The loose, flowing pant look is cute, just as it was in the 1930's worn by such actresses as Ginger Rogers and Betty Grable.  In the old days, however, lounging pajamas were more like playsuits crossed with lingerie than the menswear-inspired pj's being promoted in the magazine, and they weren't intended to be worn downtown.



I recently acquired this lovely pajama pattern, but again, they're not men's-style pajamas.



Readers, what do you think?  Do you ever wear pajamas like the ones featured in New York magazine out of the house?  Would you ever consider wearing them to work?

In other news, I had the privilege of spending a few hours over dinner yesterday evening with Elizabeth of the blog Sewn.  Elizabeth is a highly skilled cook and charming host (can you say hostess anymore?) who, unfortunately, is a little challenged in the area of vintage Singer Featherweights.  Hers is a lovely machine in excellent mechanical order but it was badly in need of a better-fitting bobbin to operate effectively.  Fortunately, we found one among her sewing notions.

Friends, it's so true what they say, how Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.  Even an eccentric Martian like me enjoys coming to the aid of a Venusian in distress, and I felt proud that upon my exit, her machine was stitching beautifully and Elizabeth was no longer tugging at her tousled tresses in frustration.

Please don't think that just because I am a high-profile sewing personality, I am unapproachable.  Pas du tout!  If Elizabeth had only served dessert (and perhaps some decaf), I would gladly have helped her with any other small household tasks that needed attention.  Maybe next time, Elizabeth!

In closing, readers, I must get your opinion about pajamas as daywear.  Do you think I could wear these seersucker shorties out of the house -- perhaps to my next dinner/sewing machine maintenance engagement?



Street pajamas -- Yea or Nay?

Perhaps not the most memorable number from Astaire & Rogers' The Gay Divorcee, but full of cute lounging outfits (and a very young Betty Grable).

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