Jumpsuit time!

Here is a new item of clothing I couldn't even try and photograph on the dummy: I have made another jumpsuit!

This is another thing which will be familiar to you if you have been reading my blog before. I like jumpsuits and I have made lots of them, in various styles (there are even some which never made it to the blog. When the weather cools down a bit, I will take pictures of my favorite jumpsuit from the great blogging hiatus). All the jumpsuits I have made, have been my own designs and my own patterns. I think that really contributes to why I like them. After all, few garments are harder to fit... Body length issues can be terrible with jumpsuits (just try out some RTW ones). If you would like to draft your own, I made a tutorial for it years ago. You can find it here. For the tutorial, you will need your own bodice and trouser slopers (or tried-and-tested patterns) but I explained how to connect those together. Oh, and I don't think I included this at the time but the straight grain should always run along the center of the trouser legs (so keeping the original grain line on the trousers)

This particular jumpsuit was made in the dark blue cotton/linen blend I have used before. It's a nice, comfortable and hard-wearing fabric and years ago, I bought the rest of the bolt which was still about 30 meters. I'm still happy to have lots of it. I have used it for jumpsuits, jackets and trousers for myself and a jacket and trousers for E. It's just a nice go-to material for spring and summer.

It has the same sleeves and back as my dress (and I finished it before I promised to show you how to make those) and even the same collar but it has a wrap front. Obviously, the wrap-over bit extends below the waist seam, in the wide legged trousers. I made one mistake though: I made the hole to pull the tie through in the left side seam which means the wrap is tied at the right hip and closes left over right... Which is actually the wrong way round. It doesn't bother me though, so I won't change it. 

a jumpSUIT

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you will probably know about my strange obsession with jumpsuits... 
I like designing, drafting and making jumpsuits. And rarely in varieties you could find in stores. In fact, I even wrote a tutorial about it for those among you who might want to do the same.

I've made another one. In these odd weeks between late summer and autumn, I ended up making a jumpsuit I've been thinking about for a while. At least since last spring, probably longer. I've also had this fabric earmarked for it for almost as long: It's a black cotton/linen blend with a slight windowpane texture. It's also a little heavier than most of the linen I come across. 

This is the jumpsuit I imagined (please ignore the dress sketch in the upper left corner. I often put lots of sketches on one sheet of paper): functional wrap-over front bodice, connecting to a pleat in the trousers. Dropped waistline, notched collar and, of course, pockets.

And that is just what I made. I drafted this design starting with my usual slopers (although I altered the bodice into a version with less ease at the chest. I thought that would suit a style like this, with an opening over the chest, much better than my usual, almost 1950's style fit. And I think I was right). 
If you are reading this with my jumpsuit tutorial in mind: I used a 'relaxed fit' trouser block (so, one with a crotchline lowered by 3 cm) but, because I didn't want the jumpsuit to be really baggy, I only added 2.5 cm at the hip when turning it into a pattern piece for a jumpsuit.
And as odd as these trousers may look with their wrap-over pleat, they are actually complete symmetrical. 

The bodice is styled like a jacket, with a side panel and two-piece sleeves. Because I am a pattern nerd, I had to make the front side seams line up with the slash pockets on the trousers. 

And the buttonhole for that single button is in the seam between bodice and trousers (although I added three hidden snaps after the photoshoot to keep that long front edge in check). For the inside part, I made a thread loop which closes on a small button.

All in all, I think this thing had everything I look for in a jumpsuit: modern-day fashion cred, combined with a fit which kind of nods towards an undisclosed vintage past. Which just means I feel both cool and feminine wearing this...

Let's call it research...

Do you remember my post about this Zara jumpsuit, a little over a month ago? 
Well, a week later I looked at it in the store but it was Saturday afternoon and there was a big queue for the changing rooms, so I didn't try it on. I did find out that the fold was only in the trouser part and that there were hidden buttons to hold the overlap/fold in place.

Yesterday, I was in town and had a bit of time, so I wandered into the store again. With the summer sale already in full swing, I had no idea whether or not the jumpsuit would even still be there.
The white one wasn't. There was, however, a black viscose/rayon  crepe jumpsuit (with FSC logo. I've never seen that on clothing or fabric before but it makes sense because viscose is made from wood pulp). And it was fairly quiet on Wednesday morning...

So, I tried it on. I used to do this kind of 'research' more often. Trying out different styles before committing lots of sewing time some new shape. Seeing what I could learn from how they made things in RTW.
I'm not too keen on the look. I'm over my disappointment about the length. It's fine. And I still really like that fold/overlap trick. The fold is only in that one leg, by the way. There is a waist seam, which is a bit below my natural waist. That makes sense if you're supposed to let it hang like this, or to tie it more closely and let the top blouse over. 
It's just too baggy overall for my taste. I like my clothes to be at least semi-fitted somewhere. If I wasn't so used to making all my own clothes I might have been less critical though.

And this is the bit of 'inside information' I was wondering about: One trouser leg has a bit of overlap cut on and the top attaches to it, like it would in a normal wrap garment. The other leg has the extra space of the fold. The top on that side is the exact mirror image of the other one, so there is a bit in the center of the trousers which has no top attached to it. There are two small buttons with which you can close the overlap/fold. I've seen trousers with this kind of fold closure before (last year, when I was thinking about how to make something like  it, I saw a pair in another RTW store, Cora Kemperman) but not it a jumpsuit. It's a clever design.

P.S. I felt a bit weird taking photos like this, wondering if I was doing something illegal. However, I know a lot of people shop like that anyway, sharing the choices available with friends or looking for cheaper versions of the items they like. And I even know that some 'designers' buy garments in stores, take them apart and then trace them for patterns. 

Deja vu

Can you spot the difference?

 This picture was taken today,

This one a little over two years ago. And you can neglect any (small) changes to my hair and glasses.

That was such a great jumpsuit. I've worn it a lot. I always had a slight issue with the fit at the hip/crotch. I had that with all my wide trousers from that era. Although they were a bit wider at the hip, they would still crease badly in that area while worn. Which is a natural thing in more closely fitted trousers but for wide ones, I wanted that effortless, flow-y look. It's not a flaw you've ever seen here because I usually took pictures of new garments when I just put them on for the first time or after ironing. This 'problem' (if you can call it that) only showed up after sitting in the trousers in question. 

It was never so much of an issue that it made me not want to wear this jumpsuit though.

However, when taking it out of my wardrobe for the first time this year, I discovered that I was now at risk of making the buttons pop off when straightening my shoulders. Interesting. There are about 7 cm of bust circumference between now and 2012 but only about 2 of those in the last year. I've worn the jumpsuit last summer so apparently, up to that point, I was just filling up ease.

Now, it really didn't feel right anymore though. And the increased amount of space taken up by my breasts wasn't just horizontal of course. They now made the jumpsuit noticeably  tighter at the crotch. 

Of course, I can't complain about getting the change of my physique which I secretly wanted. However, I wanted my jumpsuit.

So, I re-made it. With some minor changes. Most importantly, I used the trouser shape I made last month for my sailor front jeans. Which, obviously solved all creasing issues. I also cut the front facings separate this time, rather than on the front bodice and trouser pieces. This was mostly a matter fabric economy. And I made a small change to the look of the neckline by applying the collar to a   slightly deeper neckline. This brings the a bit further down on the body. It's a tiny difference and I don't think anyone will notice but I like experimenting with things like that.

Oh, and of course I used the same fabric: a dark/blue black cotton/linen with thin grey/blue stripes. Because it is also the fabric I used for E's favorite summer trousers (three pairs now) and it's so nice to wear and durable, I knew I would want to use this fabric again. So, I bought more (about 4 meters at a time) on three occasions and, early this spring, the last 18 meters left on the bolt. This should keep us in summery wardrobe essentials for years to come.

So, there you have it. My latest new garment: My old favorite jumpsuit, now with more curves!

Inspired by...

It's no coincidence that I showed you the lovely fashions of the 1910's in the previous post. 

The garment I've just finished is kind of inspired by some of them. By those hobble skirts which have plenty of room in loose folds higher up in the skirt and then taper down to a very narrow hem. 
The 1910's inspiration is just 'kind of' because I've been thinking about it before and at that time, inspiration came from a tv series, Parade's End. I've discussed that particular set of considerations when I posted about my plans last summer. And I already made a summer jumpsuit based on those plans. 
I love that one, but I still felt like re-visiting the idea and maybe sticking a bit closer to the source this time.

A couple of months ago, I stumbled across an ideal fabric. Loosely woven tweed-ish stuff (unfortunately a 'mystery fibre' kind of deal, but it was quite cheap…).
And just over a week ago, with spring weather on the way, I decided to just go for it.

It is a peculiar blend of styles. If you can clearly see the two legs, it can, from some angles, look kind of 1980's but if you can't, it resembles a 1910's hobble skirt. And of course, I used a bodice which I might also use for a 1950's style dress, so there's no attempt at authenticity there.
That said, I always wear my 50's dresses belted but somehow prefer this thing without a belt. 

And how often do you see trousers which are good for twirling?

I think I could also play around with putting a camisole underneath and keeping some buttons open (in these pictures, the top button is open). I like how it changes the shape of the collar. As an alternative look.

The jumpsuit has pockets in the trouser side seams.

To break up the monotony of that charcoal grey fabric, I used silver coloured metal buttons (very lightweight ones which have been in my stash for quite a while). (this picture is showing the colours accurately)
And because I didn't want those eye-catching details below the waist, I sewed little transparent snaps on that part of the front opening. It's not like there's any pressure on it at that point.

It's an odd thing, but I think I kind of like it. But it's getting warmer now, so I may not get to wear it until autumn…. I've got a coat/cardigan thing in mind for it…. 

The great jumpsuit (and playsuit) tutorial

Well, you have spoken! When I asked what subject you wanted for a tutorial, there was a very clear majority for jumpsuits (although I plan on making a shelf bust tutorial in summer. I was quite impressed with Ms. Pollyanna still remembering that dress after such a long time).

It seems I have misunderstood the time table for Sew Grateful Week though. 'Sharing Resources Day' was yesterday. I don't think it makes much of a difference though. It's more about the spirit of sharing knowledge and skill.

Anyway, on to jumpsuits and their little sisters, the playsuits. I have noticed there is a bit of confusion about the term 'playsuit'. It is often applied to short legged jumpsuits but also sometimes to 1950's sets of shorts and tops. That's not the kind of playsuit I'm talking about here though.

There are many different kinds of jumpsuits and I will discuss the varieties one by one. There are two things they all have in common though: 1 Torso length is a major issue. That's what I'll discuss below. And 2 You should make the closure at center front. A side zip won't work because you can't get out of the garment by pulling it up over your head. You really need to make a closure which will allow you to get your whole body through the opening at the top. In theory, a back zipper is possible as well but because you will need to open it for bathroom breaks that may not be so practical.
You have to think about the closure when drafting. You don't need extra width for a central (blind or visible) zipper but for a button front, you need to make an extension of two centimeters past center front for the length of the closure (excluding seam allowance).

Like this. In both cases, you should make a facing as well.

I think this may be the kind of jumpsuit most of you will be interested in:

With a waist seam and a fitted bodice. Depending on your choice of bodice and trousers it can look 40's, 50's or just elegant. 
You can use slopers to draft this jumpsuit but you don't have to. If you don't have a sloper and/or don't feel like having to consider and draft all design details like collar, sleeves and pockets, you can pick any bodice from a dress with a waist seam and add high waisted trousers or shorts. 
As with all pattern making, make sure the patterns you use are tried and tested.

You can't just connect the bodice and trousers like you would for a dress. That would cause those notorious length issues. You need to add extra length in the body of the jumpsuit to be able to do things like sit down or reach your arms up.

In this style, the extra length is added to the trousers. My pattern making book tells to add "between 3 and 10 cm" at the waistline of a jumpsuit. Which is too wide a margin to be helpful. I've tried and tested this in my own jumpsuit and I found out that 3 cm often isn't enough. 
For a jumpsuit like this, based on trousers with a normal, fitted crotch, I add 5 cm. Do this by moving tracing the pattern and tracing the tops of front and back again, 5 cm higher but with the center front and back lined up with the original center front and back. Merge the side seams gradually into the original side seams but make sure you don't narrow the pattern pieces at the (new or old) hipline.
Then, you have to make sure the waistlines of top and bodice match. Usually, you will find that the trouser waistline is smaller than the bodice waistline. Stick with the wider one. That tends to mean you lose the front dart in the trousers.
You can make scoop or slant pockets in the trousers.

This is a closely related style. horizontal seam below the waist, (semi) fitted bodice. 
For this one, you can use a pattern for a (semi) fitted top or dress without a waist seam. The same rules apply as for the previous jumpsuit. No length is added to the bodice, which extends to about 8 to 10 cm below the waist. Add 5 cm at the tops of front and back trousers (the top of which should be at the same level below the waist). Make sure the width of bodice and trousers is the same at the seam line.

Then, we get to the style which you see most in RTW.

The loose jumpsuit with elastic or a drawstring at the waistline. The reason you see this one so much is that it's a lot easier to fit. The style is supposed to be baggy, so extra length is the body doesn't attract attention and you can kind of regulate it with the gathering at the waist. 

I don't know why this image keeps uploading all blurry. It isn't like that in Illustrator or Photoshop. I've tried again and again to get it right but nothing works. I'll try again tomorrow.

To make this, you either widen sloper bodice and trousers or you use a loose fitting top and bottom. In both cases, you add the usual amount of length at the top of the trousers but also 3 to 5 cm at the bottom of the bodice.

When sewing, you can either sew elastic to the waist seam allowance after sewing the waist seam or you can create a casing for elastic or a drawstring. Because of the loose fit, you don't have to make such a long closure in a jumpsuit like this. A zip or row of buttons can stay above with waistline so it doesn't interfere with the gathers. 

You can also design this type of jumpsuit to have the gathers at another level than with waist but in that case, I don't recommend using tight-ish elastic. That would creep to the waist. 

When sewing any of these jumpsuits, construct top and bottom separately apart from the from opening on the fitted styles, then sew the waist seam and then finish front and make the closure (on the fitted styles) or insert elastic or drawstring (in the loose fitting jumpsuit).

Now, only one style remains. And this is one I haven't successfully made myself. Not yet. 

A jumpsuit without a waist seam. You may think this is how overalls (and other jumpsuits made for dirty work) are usually shaped. Some are but certainly not all because this is not a style which suits itself to economical cutting. 

To make this style, you have to extend the center front line on the trousers and trace the bodice with its center front on that line. You have to leave at least 5 cm between both waistlines. Do the same at the back. This puts the back bodice at an angle. Measure the side seams on both pieces. They have to be the same length. If they're not, adjust the position of the bodice pieces to make the side seams match. Just make sure that the total amount of length added to the crotch seam (front and back combined) is still 10 cm. 

All measurements described here are for use with normal trousers which are fitted at the crotch. If you use a style with a lowered crotch line, like some belt pleated trousers or culottes you could get away with adding less. Although, to preserve the look of the trouser style, I would still add 5 cm unless I was dealing with trousers with a seriously low crotch, like the hareem pants which were in fashion a couple of years ago. 
The added length at the waist will make the trousers longer. However, if that is possible with the style of trousers you're using I would recommend only taking away the excess length when hemming the legs as the very last step in construction. It's only then that you can see how the legs behave when you wear the jumpsuit.

I hope my explanation will help you make some jumpsuits of your own. As ever, if you do, I'd love to hear about it (or better yet, see it) and if you have any questions, just let me know.

Another crazy jumpsuit

Long-time readers of this blog will be familiar with my fondness of "just-because" projects. And my liking for jumpsuits.

Here, I've combined those preferences.

I've finished the jumpsuit I was musing about last month (you can see the sketch/tech drawing there, as well as some earlier versions of the idea).

The jumpsuit legs have a "cowl" shape along the same lines as my dress from earlier this summer. And I put in slanted pockets.

In the bodice, I've used Pattern Magic's "Tying a bow 1" at the waist. The back is fitted with darts and the short sleeves and collar are cut on. The front edges meet at center front and close with buttons and loops (there's an underlap behind the closure, of course).  

The fabric is a blue/grey crepe. I "made" this stuff myself: A while ago, M gave me a roll of fabric she didn't need anymore. This stuff was meant for the "garment dye" process. On the roll, it's off-white, thin and rather stiff. When put through a high temperature laundry cycle, all the fibres seem to get a bit twisted. The fabric shrinks a bit and becomes soft and drapey. Obviously, during the washing, you can also dye the fabric. In case, I used Dylon dye in "antique grey". 

When M used this stuff, she would test the fabric to calculate the shrinkage, enlarge the pattern pieces to compensate for it, sew the garments from the un-washed fabric and then wash and dye them. Obviously, that's only worth the trouble if you're going to make a larger number of the same thing. I just dyed the yardage.

The end-result is a really soft and float-y jumpsuit. It's a very different look but really comfortable. I think, style-wise, this is as close to early 1930's lounge-pyjamas as I ever got. But I'm no expert on that.  

Serious summer sewing

Last Friday was the hottest day of the year so far. Un-Dutch weather, to be honest.
I don't have a lot of clothes for seriously hot weather. In fact, the only thing which I really like to wear in a heat wave is the loose fitting viscose playsuit I made last year. I have lots of charming dresses which work great for normal Dutch summer weather but for 30 degrees Celsius, they're just too fitted and the skirt are too long.

So, I made this. It was also a great opportunity to use up some pretty small scraps of fabric. The fitted tube top bodice is in nice quality (obviously, recovery is very important for a garment like this) cotton jersey, its top edge is finished with picot elastic. The bottom, a very short version of these culottes (flared, without center pleats) is made from linen left over from E's plain black shorts. There are pockets but closures, I pull it on over my hips. I wasn't sure that would work but it did.

We are in for a some more warm days and I have my summer holiday yet to come, so I think I will still get some use out of this playsuit this year.

Going slowly

This week isn't bringing quite what I thought it would. I had hoped that, with emergency sewing for E out of the way and work getting a bit more quiet, I would have a chance to work on my long-anticipated crazy projects.
First of all, work didn't get quiet. I had reason to expect that, but this year, I will be busy well into September. Secondly, I did something silly/had some bad luck.
I bought a new laptop. I needed a new computer, my old desktop was getting rather slow and couldn't communicate with certain much used websites anymore (like my bank's). With the things I want from a computer and from the available space in my house now, a laptop was the best choice. The first time I used it for a longish time (other than set-up), I managed to try and type for some time while sitting on the couch with crossed legs, and the computer on my lap. This triggered a spot of old RSI (repetitive strain injury) in my right arm... 
That was last week. I've been trying to rest my arm and find a better working posture ever since. On the computer, the arm is fine now. It's when I'm behind the sewing machine that it starts to act up. I have some reason to hope it may be better if I adjust my seat but this is getting me worried. No sewing is just no option but I don't want to damage my arm either...

So, it's dreaming about sewing much more than actual sewing.
I have started drafting something new though. Something from the crazy project list.

The idea of a cowl-legged jumpsuit must have been at the back of my mind for a while now. I certainly have quite a number of sketches. I will share my rough sketches now, so please don't complain about the quality of the pictures.

 One of the triggers to really try and make it must have been watching Parade's End. I thought the (rather inappropriate) hobble dress Sylvia wore to the funeral of Christopher's mother was wonderful. In fact, like so many not-to-likable female characters, Sylvia has a great wardrobe anyway. 

Unfortunately, this was the only picture I could find of that particular dress.

In trouser- rather than skirt shape, that would kind of look like this.
Which would be rather close to a dress I was already making...

So, I went on brainstorming on paper. 

My next sketches took inspiration from what I read about Mesdames Gres and Vionnet. These three ideas were supposed to have draped bits mounted on sturdy underpinnings. And then I remembered certain of the practical considerations with jumpsuits... Such as: You can not have only a very fussy closure which you can barely work yourself.

Because I liked the draping and thought the last of the sketches above was too fussy, I moved on to this: 

Kind of a wrap design without the need for serious hidden layers. I hadn't really worked it out though.

What I'm drafting now is based on that final idea, but I altered it for several practical reasons. Like fabric width, the wishes to limit the depth of the cleavage and have pockets. 
So far, I've only tested the fit of the bodice and sleeves. Next, I'll be adding the tied drape based on a Pattern Magic design and draft those trousers...