How I Tamed the Evil Sleevil (or It Is Amazing What Reading Will Get You)

Well, for those of you that made it throug the monster of yesterday’s post, I said I was going to be doing sleeves next.

( But you see, I hate making sleeves. )

Thankfully for my husband, German men’s Wams’ patterns are often a matter of pleating 10 pounds of sleeve-head into a 5 pound armseye. Even I can do that.

But I have always wanted to be able to make my own well fitted sleeve pattern that could actually be mounted on an armseye and still let me move my friggin arm.

You know how it is with sleeves sometimes…

“Hey, could someone get that lantern for me? I can’t reach it even though it is hanging just above my head.”

I set out to put together something that I could live with last night, all the while imagining that I would be spending at least a couple of hours wrestling with muslins and pins and cursing like a sailor. Since I have pimped chargirlgenius‘s document on sleeve head construction¹ to others in the past, I decided to actually sit down and read the whole doc again and perhaps even use some of its information for my first attempt.² In the worst case, it would give me a starting point and some basic fitting tips.

Starting out.

I set up my station, took some measurements, did some plotting-of-points on muslin, added seam allowance as directed, cut out the resultant sleeve (which, let me say here, was not the sort of sleeve shape I am used to from prior constructions – really long trapezoid with a perfectly bisected sine wave at the top), pinned it together, pinned it to the bodice as directed (getting mildly excited because the sleeve-head actually fit to the armseye, and tried the whole thing on.

Holy.

Crap.

It worked, first time. The elbow was a bit baggier than needed, so I took it in a bit. Other than that. Perfect Pattern is Perfect.

My look of glee (and mild sleep deprivation)…

So happy with the results! I will be using this same pattern for my English sleeves, and with some modifications it will end up making me flashier German sleeves in future (plans within plans I tell you). I deviated a bit from my inspiration image in the trimming of the sleeves, and I am using ‘cheater’ buttons until I have time to make some ball buttons up post-event). In the meantime, here is the finished product.

I went kinda nutty and overstitched all my seams. I just like the way it looks.

Cuffs and temporary buttons.

The sleeve isn’t this baggy when attached to the dress, which will happen on Friday.


 

In closing:

1) This reading other peoples work thing, I should do it more often.
2) I think I owe chargirlgenius a drink at CoCo.
3) HOORAY! SLEEVES!

Up Next: Finishing the skirt, hemming, closures and attaching the sleeves.

If I Have Time: Totally making one of these for this weekend. In red. Because that is how I roll.  ;)

 

¹ “Farm Boy… Fetch Me That Pitcher: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Reach My Own Damned Pottery” by Maistresse Mathilde Bourette, written for St. Anne’s Guild Costuming Symposium; April 28th, 2007 (and no, it’s not in MLA, APA or Turabian…bite me academia…*grin*)

BTW – If you ask I can send you a PDF of this item since I snagged one awhile back. Clearly, my recommendation of it carries more weight now that I have ACTUALLY USED IT. *head desk*

² Because I am an Old Dog, and even though I had read the article in passing my brain filed it away as ‘medieval information’ and therefore something I couldn’t really use. Have I ever mentioned that I am sometimes a little dumb? Maybe you figured that out for yourself by now.

 

 

(no subject)

There seems to be a lot of CoCo costume/clothing planning going on out there. I thought to myself, “I’m going to CoCo. And I seem to be posting a lot recently. And hey, what is this camera phone doing just laying around here…”

claughter713 and I are plotting together regarding clothes to wear. Given that a few eBay and Etsy purchases have come in for my 1950’s Tea Time outfit, I thought I would share here.

The 'hat' is simply perched on my hair here. I'm going to have to pin the hell out of it for the acutal Tea; but I lurve it!

Now, to find a nice pair of vintage red leather shoes and a clutch.

Also, I am all about the ‘dressing gowns for Sunday Breakfast’. I have just the Chinese silk robe in mind…

Random Thoughts

OK, one last post. I swear. *crosses fingers behind back*

Working on the dress this past week, and reading along as vanagnessayem has been working on hers, made me wonder something.

What order do you guys put your (German) dresses together in?

Just curious, since it is apparent that vanagnessayem and I have a slightly different order and it made me wonder what other combinations are out there.

Once the basic patterning is done (and I have to repattern EVERY TIME I make myself a costume because I rarely make things for myself and then only when weight loss or gain force me to):

1)      Construct bodice, when bag lining incorporate closures and trim in construction process;

2)      Try on bodice, bitch about fit, swear to not change it. Sleep. Fix fit;

3)      Figure and cut skirt and skirt trimmings, assemble trimmings on skirt while skirt is flat;

4)      Gather skirt onto a) bodice, b) waistband and then attach said waistband to bodice;

5)      Sew up front of skirt, working to match bands of guards in a manner that is pleasing (ie. doesn’t make me cry, curse or drink);

6)      Try on dress again, figure out how much hem I have to turn back;

7)      Hem dress (pray I don’t have to take it out and re-do it);

8)      Try on dress and celebrate;

9)      Remember I still have sleeves to do (although, now that I have a good sleeve pattern this isn’t such a painful thing to remember);

10) After sleeves are done and attached go over dress one last time.

I totally understand if this ‘order of construction thing’ isn’t something you are interested in. But thanks for stopping by anyway!

;)