Procrastinating

Why do today what you can put off till tomorrow? Especially if you are not quite sure what you should be doing anyway?
That's sort of where I am right now. I had some time off this week and hoped for a chance to catch up on housework (not nice but needed) and do some serious sewing. And then I wasn't feeling well for about three days. Not really ill, just a very low on energy and a bit feverish. If I had had a sewing project underway, I would probably still have enjoyed working on it but I wasn't really motivated to start on drafting something new in that state. 

And then, of course, I started to overthink things. What do I really want or need for my wardrobe? New work, slight figure changes (from the climbing, which I have mentioned before). Everything in life which changes may have an impact on the wardrobe you want or need. And even apart from that, preferences can still change...
As I said, overthinking.

Of course, the fact is that not everything I sew has to be perfectly useful. I have things to wear, both at work and at home so, even though I could come up with useful wardrobe additions, I can afford to just sew something I like. However, once you start overthinking your sewing plans, it's hard to shake that off again. It is to me, at least. At this point, I started second-guessing what I wanted too. 
(I don't usually get like this at all when I'm doing a lot of sewing. When I'm on a roll, I just keep going. It is especially when I know my sewing time is limited and I want to make it count that this sometimes happens) 

Now, one of the things I am considering right now is to make another nice, cozy, flannel dress. I bought these two pieces of cotton flannel earlier this year. I love the one on the left and I bought 4 or 5 meters of it. I'm not as fond of the other one. I think that fabric would only look good on me if I cut it on the bias. Which I may do at some point in the future. 

For now, I am focussing on the fabric on the left. Good colours for me and plenty of fabric. An early idea (once I was past the obligatory "full skirted 1950's dress") was to make a shirtdress with a long skirt, sort of 1970's style. Probably with a center front and back seam to use those checks in an interesting way.

Then, I started looking at my vintage patterns and came across this design. A Dutch unprinted pattern by the company Harmien's. Undated but I would guess it came from the late 1940's. It has a gored skirt which would not work for this fabric but the top part looks really nice. 
I made a muslin of the whole dress which was less than encouraging (I'll show it in a later post).
Then, I had another look at the fabric and tried on the dress for which I drafted my favorite shirtdress bodice.
This dress, which I still love:

The flounce dress has been a firm favorite since the moment I finished it. It is quite comfortable but also special and stylish enough for all kinds of occasions. I've worn it to all those events where I felt I had to "look the part" without really knowing what to expect. And it always made me feel good. The dress is still in great condition so I am definitely not looking to replace it. Having more like it is a different matter though...
Trying it on again taught me a two things: 1. This bodice still fits well, especially in a fairly soft fabric like flannel. I also still love it. 2. I love a flounce skirt. Full skirts and pencil skirts are all well and good but nothing beats a skirt which combines the two and puts an unexpected twist on both.

So, now I am doubting again. How about a shirtdress with a flounce skirt. I could make a different kind of flounce this time. 
It's a difficult thing to draw in Illustrator so I kind of gave up that but I think you get the idea. Maybe I'll pull the fabric together at the waistline this time, rather than lower down. Or I'll do something else...And I still have another piece of fabric in my stash which has been earmarked for a second flounce dress all along.

On the other hand, that Harmien's top also still looks like a good idea...

In fact, I might have enough fabric to make two dresses. I'm just not sure yet. And it is not like I don't have other ideas either... So. Procrastinating...

Planning for autumn...

My jeans are finished but I won't have a chance to take pictures until the weekend. In the mean time, I am starting to think about autumn sewing.
Now, if you are a very organized person you will have planned your autumn/winter wardrobe already. And if you sew, you will have started making what you will want to wear in the seasons to come. I'm not really like that. I find it very hard to sew for a season I can't feel yet.
We have been experiencing a very mild, slow gentle end to summer here in the Netherlands. It wasn't until last week that we had a dark, cloudy, rainy day and the temperature is still comfortable rather than chilly.
And added to that, my daily life has changed quite a bit since before the summer holiday. I now spend part of my week teaching about textiles and another part helping out a the climbing hall. To environments which are new to me work-wise and require very different things in terms of clothes. To be honest, I'm not quite sure yet what is called for.

However, that change in the weather has certainly pushed me towards thinking about autumn sewing. I will, at least, have my new jeans, and should come up with some nice tops to go with it but what I really like to think about, are dresses. One part of brain still always wants 1950's styles but another part is thinking about the workplace and about current styles. I'm not sure yet but I do know the dresses I have made and loved in past years. Right now, as I am typing this, I am wearing this dress:

I made it way back when 2010 turned into 2011. It's been a lovely dress, suitable for many different occasions and always comfortable. By now, it is showing its age and it has been retired to the realm of 'dresses for lounging at home'. All which makes me think. I need a new version. I have enough of that very same fabric to make about two more and I think I should. Maybe several years apart.
It's a very peculiar material. A knit which only stretches lengthwise (which is why the original dress was cut on the cross-grain. any new version will be too) it has fluffy black stripes on a beige-ish backing. The stripes run from selvedge to selvedge so with the design cut on the cross-grain they look just like duo-tone corduroy.
I am quite seriously considering re-making this dress. I would like a slightly longer skirt and a closer fit at the waist but in general, I still really love it. 
There might be other options too. The hand of this fabric is rather firm so I think it is only suitable for fairly fitted designs. I am thinking about something with raglan sleeves though. And maybe some pleats at the armscye... I'm just not sure yet. I only know I will need a dress like this in my wardrobe for years to come.

Stripes, stripes, stripes

Slowly, my casual liking of striped fabric is growing towards full-on obsession... Two of my favorite garments from last summer were were made from striped jersey (that dress with the multicolour stripes and, earlier in the season, the not-so-normal t-shirt). Woven fabrics will always be my first love though... If I pass a fabric store/stall I'll always look at the striped fabric. Super synthetic stuff is out of the question, obviously. And I prefer stripes which are woven, or knit, in rather than printed but I can't turn down a printed stripe when it's going cheap...

All of this doesn't mean all stripe-y fabrics get sewn up as quickly as I can buy them. I've made a few but there is more fabric waiting for me.
This one is from two years ago: 

There was an earlier, much more obviously stripe-y dress. This one: 

I still love the design but those armholes are a bit uncomfortable nowadays. 

When I was planning that dress two years ago, I also had another dress in mind, paired with another fabric I already had.
This dress:

Which I though I could make from this fabric:

Almost immediately, I started second-guessing myself which is one reason why I didn't make the dress in the past two years. Some shades of orange look quite good on me. I found that out around the time that I bought that fabric and it has given me a bit of a love for the colour ever since. However... This particular shade of orange leans towards ochre yellow. A colour I like but really can't wear anywhere near my face. I can't tell how many times I have posed in front of the mirror with this stuff draped around me. 
the colour doesn't flatter me. It makes my skin looks kind of patchy and washed-out. And added to that is an issue with the stripes: They are fairly narrow and spaced in such a way that they are not that obvious. Like the fabric for that first dress, this one seems plain from a fairly small distance. Not great if I want to do some interesting things with the direction of the stripes.
It is nice cotton though, so I could always dye it. 
At the moment, I'm thinking about this dress again. I don't think I'll make the bodice quite like that, I'm thinking about a more standard and casual shirt-dress shape but that skirt still has its appeal.

Simple stripe-y summer dress

Although I love all kinds of complicated well-constructed dresses, vintage style and otherwise, there is another style I can't really do without: The simple jersey dress. I've made several different versions over the years but I think it is time for some more. 
The first fabric I want to use for one of those is this dark brown jersey with stripes in different colours. I think it may be a blend of viscose and cotton and the fabric is nice and solid and has good recovery. So, no weird issues I have to compensate for. 

I have about 3 meters of this stuff and I wouldn't mind having enough left for a top. Because the scale of the stripes is fairly large, I think it would look best if I used it in large, fairly uninterrupted pieces. And I think I should pay close attention to which part of the stripe pattern I place where.
I have been thinking about it for a while and there are some features I know I want, and some I am still considering.
The one unusual detail I want in this dress has to do with the skirt: Obviously, I like to match obvious stripes like this but I am considering a long dress and long, straight skirts (the only ones which can be matched nicely at the side seams) don't really work for me. So, I think I will cut the front of the dress as one piece and attach the back skirt to it, following the waist-to-hip angle. I hope the fabric is wide enough.

For the top, I am considering different options. Cut-on cap sleeves, normal set-in ones or raglan. Plain back, back yoke and/or some kind of cut-out. Straight waist seam at the back or one which follows the stripes. 
The options are in the sketches but could also be mixed and matched. 

I actually love the idea of a back cut-out but every option which has one also leads to more piecing at the back. If my fabric had simple even stripes in just two colours, I think I could make that work really well. But this is a colourful, busy kind of striped fabric and that makes me think I should keep things simple. With that in mind, I am drawn towards the first sketch. I'm still not sure about the sleeve choice though. The cap sleeve is nice but I also like the t-shirt effect you get with the set-in sleeve...
What do you think?  

Sportswear plans

Remember this top I made? 

Seen here fairly recently, when I went bouldering with my cousin and my brother. 
By the way, my cousin, the smallest gentleman in this picture, is still the only person who ever made a remark about the arrow on my back without me pointing it out...
I still like and wear it and the other tops I have made. After I started making my own, I just got too fed up with the way RTW tops creep up over hips to go back. I also still wear the just-over-the-knee trousers I made for climbing and, if it is not too warm for that, the cardigans.

But time has passed and life is not so kind to sportswear.

This is what that top, the most recent one I made, looks like now. 

I don't think the fabric is of poor quality or anything like that. What you see is just the natural result of certain types of climbing. Specifically, of climbing balance-y routes on vertical or less-than-vertical walls. If you are in the kind of route where you have to inch your way forward between very bad handholds (or even without handholds) you have to lean towards the wall to maintain your balance. Often, when doing that, even a flat-chested girl like me can hear the fabric of her top snag on the rough surface of the wall (and I have it on good authority that the guys aren't free of this either). 
This happens to all my climbing tops. 
And both pairs of me-made trousers have developed a hole at a knee. At different places on different knees, to be precise. If both had holes in exactly the same place, I should re-evaluate my climbing style...

In short, I could do with adding some more sports clothes. I'd like one or two crop tops (which I would only use for bouldering in warm weather), two or more normal tops (in which case it would be nice to try a new pattern) and two more pairs of trousers. 
For now, I am planning on using the fabrics in my stash although I have to say I am starting to think about real performance fabrics...
I think I will start with tops. So many types of lycra to choose from! For trousers, I am not so sure. I have no complaints about the fabric of the old pairs (other than that it developed holes before the stretch woven of my my RTW trousers did) but it is dark brown...  I'm still not drawn towards leggings though!

Oh, and I am thinking about making a bag for my climbing stuff. At the moment, we are still using an old sportsbag but that thing has clearly seen better days. These things are usually made from plastic-backed nylon and I can see the reason for that. And I just happen to have held on to an off-cut from the black-out curtain in our bedroom... The material seems very similar...

As usual, it is a case of "so many plans, so little time".  

That African wax print

In my post about last week's Great British Sewing Bee episode, I mentioned the African wax fabric I still have in my stash. I also showed you the skirt I had made from it years ago. 
Watching the show and writing that blog post made me think about doing something with the remaining fabric (a fact which I also mentioned in that post). 

First of all, this is my fabric:

As you can see, there is a clear repeat across the length but not something you can really pattern-match. And in fact, the print looks even more 3D in the picture than it does in real life.

Now, before I dug this fabric out of the stash, I thought about using it for a fit-and-flare skirt. Something along the line of these "Morticia skirts" from Studio Faro (their tutorial gives the drafting instructions for all of these! I don't need a tutorial for a skirt like this, but this is a great resource if you do). I thought the different drafting options for a shape like this would allow me to pick the one that was most suited to the print. 
It is a rather elegant kind of skirt that can work well in a great variety of fabrics. I haven't made or worn anything like it in years...

But then, I brought out the fabric. I held it up to my body in front of a mirror and then I laid it out to photograph it. Only then, it hit me. This print is so eye-catching. Cutting it into smallish pieces for the skirt I thought I wanted would be such a waste. Even in my old skirt, which uses a fairly large uncut panel and careful print placement on the yoke, you kind of miss the real impact of the print. 
So, how about cutting and sewing it along those diagonal lines to make a wide skirt? Kind of like this:

I think I should alternate the left and right side points to get the best shape. However, that would mean placing all yellow pieces next to each other. 
Not all the lines in the print are exactly straight but those dark areas are large enough to allow for a bit of cheating. I could just cut the panels, see which arrangement worked best, sew them up and then cut the waistline and hemline I need/want. 
It's a very different approach to making a skirt but one which would really show off that print.

P.S. I'm trying to be strict with myself about adding to the stash but I have seen a wax print at the market which might suit me: Orange stalks and leaves, outlined in black on a cobalt blue background. 

Bits of progress and some plans

Just some bits of hand sewing to go and then the 1943 dress will be done! There are so many different fasteners in this one dress... I'll show them to you later.

This dress is a very different look for me. I like it but I'm not completely convinced yet. The proof will, as usually be in the wearing. 
Progress is fairly slow because I've been busy with other things. And yet, I am thinking ahead to next sewing projects. 

I will have to re-make some of E's summer trousers because the old ones don't fit well anymore. Actually, that should be my next project. Although it's not that warm at the moment, it is almost June so he is definitely going to need more summer clothes soon. 

For myself, I should probably re-evaulate some of my wardrobe too. A year of climbing has left me smaller in some places (hips, for example) and bigger in others (biceps etc...) than ever before. The changes aren't very big so in some clothes, they are barely noticeable. In others, they really are, sometimes in a good way, sometimes not. Actually, it may be because of these changes that the 1940's dress is working for me now...
It has been clear that I will have to re-make my slopers for a while but I didn't want to do it straight away. No use drafting new slopers only to have to replace them again a couple of months later. However, if I don't start taking any serious "strength for bouldering" training sessions (there are several on offer right now. I am serious about becoming a better climber but most of these seem to focus on strong arms while I think I have most to gain by improving my technique,   understanding and core strength) I think my shape should be stable. After all, my body is used to climbing three times a week now.
In fact, I guess I should even take another look at my bra block... I haven't gone down a whole size but I think it might be wise to adjust the fit a little bit before making new bras. 

If I don't feel like drafting new slopers, there are several vintage patterns I could consider sewing up. Like the two 1940's dresses I pointed out in the previous post. Or more 1960's shift dresses. They also make great summer clothes. 
And my old slopers are not so far off in size I can't use them anymore. They are still fine for designs which are either tried-and-tested so I can easily judge how to alter them while drafting or easy to adjust while sewing.  
In particular, I am thinking about making a simple summer dress using both jersey and a woven fabric.

This is what I had in mind all along. Blue jersey for the bodice and either a matching blue cotton or a print with that blue in it for the skirt. The skirt itself can be a half circle or pleated (also depending on the fabric choice. One of the two printed fabrics I am considering is really narrow). 

And then, last week, I just thought of this option. I think I have some black pointe knit left over which might be enough for this skirt and for the bodice I could use that black cotton with the white dots/stars which I didn't end up using for the yoke of my 1952 blouse. There should be just enough of it. 
I am not entirely sure about this style for me though... It might be just a bit ehhh... "mutton dressed as lamb". What do you think? 
Of course, especially because it could be made using leftover bits of stash fabric I could just try. If it works, it work and if it doesn't I don't really loose anything. 

So many plans, so little time.

a summer dress...

Yesterday I remembered: I already traced a pattern for a summer dress during my pattern tracing marathon back in March...
In fact, there are two items from that effort which haven't been sewn up yet. There is the lovely dress from Bella magazine, for which I made a toile and there is a dress from Beyer's Mode from 1943 which has not seen any progress after tracing.

I still love that dress from Bella and I have made the necessary adjustments to the pattern but I'm still not sure about what kind of fabric would be best for it (other than the dress-weight wool it is described for). And it actually is a winter dress. A different choice of fabric could, of course, shift it to spring or autumn but making it suitable for summer would mean cutting those sleeves short. And I think I rather like them the way they are.

The dress from Beyer's Mode is a very different story. It originally came at the bottom of the to-make list because it is a summer dress. In early March, summer seemed far away. 

So, NOW seems like a perfect time to get started on this little number. It will be my first "real" 1940's dress. By which I mean that I may have made designs from after the introduction and acceptance of the New Look (Dior's bold break with the fashion of the previous years initially met with a lot of resistance but after about a year, most ladies did agree that the longer, fuller skirts and sloping shoulder were actually pretty) at the end of the decade but of course, those already have the silhouette the 1950's are known for. I have never before made a dress which was designed just before, during or a short time after the Second World War. And this one has all the hallmarks of the era: shortish A-line skirt, slightly bloused top with square shoulders and it uses two different fabrics which makes it a very suitable design to update an old dress or to use up left-over bits of fabric. It is not a look I am sure about. I have seen other ladies who look great in their 1940's dresses but I'm not sure the look will suit me. So, all the more reason to try it out!  
- Oh no, that's not true: I made a dress for last year's Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge using a reproduction of a pattern from 1946! 

Oh, and you may have noticed from the title (or you may be familiar with it) but Beyer's Mode is a German magazine. I have written about this before: Despite being published throughout the time the nazi's were in power, Beyer's Mode is strictly a-political. In fact, the references made to the "challenges of the time" are very similar in tone to those in Dutch magazines which were published during the occupation. 
And, interestingly, fashion in the 1940's doesn't seem to pick sides... The looks in this magazine are very similar to those in fashion images from the UK and the US in the same year. It's not really surprising I suppose, common fashion history states that, with the exclusion of austerity measures, fashion kind of "froze" during the war.

Anyway, this dress is going to be my next project. Beyer's tracing sheets are unusually densely printed but despite that wasn't very difficult to trace the pattern. The relatively small pieces helped, and the fact that I bought my new roll of tracing paper at a different place than usual and their product seems to be a bit more sheer. 
I will have time to make a toile tomorrow, then I will try and find some suitable fabric in my stash and hopefully sew it up this weekend.    

Thinking about summer

After about a week at the end of April in which winter seemed to be back, this week feels like summer is already here. Of course, the only thing you can really rely on about the weather here in the Netherlands, is that it's unreliable. So, there is no real reason to complain about either of these extremes. It's still a big change though. I went from wearing my winter coat a week and a half ago, to my 1960's summer dress today.

These few early hot days have made me think about my summer sewing. As you know, I'm quite fond of 1950's style dresses and separates most of the year but not so much in hot weather. No matter how summer-y the look or how thin and airy the fabric (lots of nice cotton) fitted bodices and big skirts are just not the coolest option out there. They are great moderate summer days but not for the really hot ones. 

I may not need a lot of true hot weather clothes but it is nice to consider what those should be, just in case I would decide to make more.

My ultimate heat wave outfits are two little cropped jumpsuits/playsuits. Loose, baggy shapes made from thin viscose/rayon which expose a lot of leg. The other one has a spaghetti strap top.

This little number comes in at a close second. It is also a jumpsuit/playsuit but the shape is very different. The top part is a tube top made from cotton jersey, the bottom is made from linen, using a culotte pattern. I tend to exclude jersey from my personal list of best fabrics in hot weather because it will always have more bulk than a woven fabric from the same fiber. However, it has never bothered me in this case. Maybe it's because of the bare shoulders.

And then, last year, I discovered 1960's dresses (this is the dress I am wearing right now). That is something I owe to the Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge. I made two dresses from magazines in my collection which were both great in the middle of summer. Most magazines in my collection are from the mid-60's when skirts weren't quite as short as we would expect them to be. In cotton or linen, these are great for summer and I think I will make more this year.

Two years ago, I had yet another summer experiment: A bias cut dress. Made from thin and airy viscose, this one is wonderful to wear in warm weather despite the long skirt. I never thought I was quite finished with this topic so maybe it is time to try again. 

This is my existing summer line-up and I think I will add to the dresses this year. I may continue on the roads already taken, or try something new. Some floaty 1970's looks seem appealing or maybe I can try 1930's again? Or maybe something very modern?
As for fabrics, I am never fond of synthetics but really avoid them in summer. I like cotton but I think linen and viscose/rayon are even cooler to wear. I don't have a lot of experience with silk but I have some pieces hidden away in my stash. It's supposed to be great for summer wear. 

The first project of 2016

Last week, I spent some time putting together my end-of-year post and pinning my Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge pictures to the special competition Pinterest board. Both activities made me think more about the pledge than I had done in a few months. And looking forward to this year's (there will be a Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge this year, Marie has promised as much, but it has not been officially announced yet).

So, I have decided to hit the ground running and start this year with a vintage pattern project. You can see here that I've been tracing...
Yes, it is another make from one of my vintage sewing magazines. As I have mentioned before, the vast majority of vintage patterns I own are on tracing sheets in magazines or in miniature form, like Lutterloh. I think I only own five "regular" vintage patterns in envelopes. And four reproduction ones.

I am making a dress from Gracieuse magazine nr. 16 from 1929 (the magazine was published twice a month so this was second one for August). This dress to be precise:

I'm using the wedding gown pattern. Of course, I will shorten the back of the skirt to un-wedding gown it and I won't be adding lace or making it in white. Other than that, the design of 1920's (or 30's, 40's or 50's) wedding gowns was often not hugely different from that of formal afternoon dresses (it was usually different from evening dresses which tended to show more skin. A proper bridal dress, maybe up to as recent as 1980, was more covered-up). 
You could argue that, with a whole stack of 1920's and 30's Gracieuse magazines at my disposal, I am silly to go for a wedding dress pattern. I suppose I am but it just combines so many features that appeal to me. 

Just look at it. A lot of 1920's dresses have very plain bodices and necklines or rely heavily on separate scarves or surface decoration. This one has a lovely cowl-like neckline. A style which would become much more common in the following years. It has sleek, simple sleeves, asymmetry and an interesting skirt. The overall silhouette is a bit like a robe de style, but without the puffy-ness. 
I would very much like the dress to fit like it is suggested in the drawing: Free and easy but just clinging to the upper hip. Still a real 1920's look, but showing a feminine shape... We shall see.

The pattern pieces look like this. Like all of Gracieuse's cowl necklines, this one is not cut the way you would expect. Instead, it looks like a scoop neck with some extra room. This is also another example of a pattern on which the side seams seem to be set further to the back than we would expect (I noticed the same on the 1929 party dress I made back in 2014. It wasn't there in the 1922 top but that was a kimono sleeve design so it would have been technically tricky to move the side seams. Last year's 1933 gown also had the side seams in the normal place, which you can see here). Here, you can really see the effect in the sleeve pattern piece.  

I'm all set to cut the fabric now. I have some very cheap fabric which should have the right hand for this design so I am considering to just dive straight in. 

Brainstorming for winter wear

As usual, I had a long list of things I wanted to make this winter. Most of them pretty dresses. And some suits.
But of course, there are always practical considerations. And then, there is the issue of the expanding shoulder muscles...
And I still try to come up with sewing projects which can be made from stash fabrics, and not all the plans fit with that. 

Somehow, it seems like I need more tops again. Some nice ones, with a bit of vintage flair. And preferably some room growing room at the upper back. 

I have turned to Pinterest for inspiration. A couple of months ago, the site added the option to follow subjects. That made it really ease to find new images I like without spending a lot of time there. So, even though I haven't uploaded any pictures from my own vintage magazines for months, my amount pins has grown a lot (collected mainly on this board). 
And it's easy to find nice ideas there:

Maybe a simple fitted cardigan? Of course, the right colour is really important here...

These hip-length options are pretty great too (although this last one, by Jacques Fath in 1952, actually has a fur dickey I don't really care for) 

And then there are all those beautiful hyper-tailored 1950's jackets which might be made in knit to make them more comfortable. 

And the styles with blouse-y back panels might be very useful for me right now.

And of course, there are so many gorgeous, sleek unusual styles to aspire to...

Top issues

At the moment, I'm sort of trying to re-invent my sports-top. 
For indoor climbing, you don't really need special clothes. And you see climbers wear lots of different things, usually at some point between normal casual clothes, sportswear and outdoor stuff. I'm usually at the sportswear end of the spectrum (preferably no leggings though). 
So far, I have made two pairs of trousers for climbing and two cardigan/jacket-things. With those, I normally wear a normal vest top over a sports bra. However, those tops are fairly old and they are getting worn out and with those (RTW) sports bras, I have begun to notice something. Something which makes me re-think what I will make as sporty tops in the future

You see, as a climber, you develop the muscles in your upper body (and legs and core, but those are less relevant for this) and more so at the back than at the front. And stronger muscles get bulkier.
I can already notice that my sports bras have started pulling just a bit at center back. On a much more experienced and much stronger climbing friend, that pulling is so bad it is actually painful.
And it is really hard to find tops which won't have that effect.

The reason is simple:

This is the generic shape of a sport top (and most sport bras), both in ready-to-wear and in sewing patterns. You sometimes so some design changes but most of those are not actually functional. As far as fit and function are concerned, they stay true to the racerback shape. That shape allows for great freedom of movement, it makes it impossible for the shoulder-straps to slide off and it also does a great job at holding the garment close to the body so it can support the wearer's bust. All good things but to do that, it has one shape and one size. If the wearer does a sport which develops the muscles at the back and shoulders, that trusty top doesn't fit so well anymore. 
By the way, I would be interested to know if this is an issue which is specific to those of us who are climbing and bouldering, or whether it happens to everyone who does any sport which causes muscle development in the upper body. 

The first possible fix I am working on now is this:

I will basically replace the cut-and-sew racerback with bra-style straps which can be adjusted with sliders. The set-up is very similar to what I use for my racerback bras (which are still very comfortable). A shape like this might offer less bust support but, with my cup size, I'm not really worried about that. 

Another option might be to go with the same shape you often see for normal vest tops (like the ones I have been climbing in so far).

Those straps sit a bit further away from the neck and most of the material across the back is just stretchy fabric, not the more solid elasticated edges. I'll have to try it out but based on my (rather limited) experience so far, it might work. 

I am already working on the first top and I plan to try it out this week. I'll make sure to report back about it here ;)

New considerations...

I haven't been sewing or blogging quite as much as usual lately. Partly, that happened just because I've been busy with other things but there is another reason too. 
I'm second-guessing some of the plans I announced earlier. Obviously, there turned out to be other wardrobe needs than just pretty vintage style dresses, but that is always to be expected.

The real issue which slows me down at the moment is this: I have been rock climbing occasionally for a few years but since about April of this year, I'm more serious about it. As in: I'm at the climbing hall two or three times each week. For climbing or bouldering. 
I'm really enjoying it and I am getting better. I hope to learn lead climbing in spring. 

However, all this sporting activity is not without effect. It was not a problem that the few pairs of trousers which had become too tight last year now fit again... But there are also some t-shirts on which the shoulder seam looks a bit short now and some other clothes feel a bit tight across the back. 
Fortunately, all my favorite dresses still fit. For how long is the question. It is to be expected that more climbing will give me stronger muscles in general and in my arms and shoulders in particular. 
Of course I can make new slopers to fit the new, more sporty, me but it seems too early to do that. 
And then there is the matter of style. Over the past years, I have pretty much perfected a look which suits my proportions (at least, I think so) but new muscles could make a real change there. Will my signature blend of 1950's and contemporary fashion still work then? 
Only time will tell...

Corset details

I've decided to get started on the corset belt. I found some spiral steel boning I had left over from a corset for a friend years ago. It's easily enough for this little thing.

I want to make the corset belt from leather. The outside that is. By its very nature, leather is strong but a bit stretchy so for a corset, a sturdy support layer is needed. I will use the same strong but fairly thin twin which I used for my lingerie corset. It's the details I'm considering now. Most specifically the placement of the boning. 

The corset belt pattern comes with three different suggestions for bone placement, each building on the other. It doesn't come with specific instructions on how to apply the boning (that information is probably on Scarlett's site, I have to confess I didn't check) but I know about three different options.

Most patterns, especially the easy ones, tell you to sew boning channels to the wrong side of the corset. You can buy these ready-made or just sew on tape of an appropriate width. It isn't difficult and it will give you a corset with a smooth outside. The downside is that, especially if you wear the corset tight, the bones may dig into your skin.

Another option is to apply boning channels to the outside of the corset. All the pretty RTW corsets with contrasting boning channels are made that way. Of course, that means you will have to stitch them very carefully and pick a material which will look good. The bones won't dig into your skin but they will stick out from the surface of the corset. That is fine if you are wearing it as outerwear but not so great when the corset is supposed to function as an undergarment.

The third possibility is a bit different. For this one, you need the inside and outside of the corset to be separate layers. You sew them together at the center front and center back first and then create boning channels by stitching the two layers together. It requires very careful matching of the seams of both layers but it will provide you with a beautifully smooth corset. 

In a lot of corset patterns, all or many of the bones are placed at the seams. In method one and two, the boning channels are placed on top of flat-felled seams. With method three, they are place next to the seams. Of course, it is possible to sew the boning channels in different positions but all the stitching lines go through the corset so you have to consider but look and strength. 

I thought about using boning channels on the outside first but now I tend towards the third option. 

And there is something else to consider: Waist tape is a good way to keep the corset panels from stretching with wear. However, you can only really apply that when using the first method...

The corsets in the pictures are both RTW. For the black-and-silver one, method three was used, for the black one method one. The corsets are very different in style and shape so they don't allow for a direct comparison between techniques. 

I'm going to cut out the pieces now. It's time to make a corset.