This is (one reason) why I make muslins

I actually started the previous post on muslins more than a year ago, and only got around to finishing it up and publishing it today.

Here's what reminded me of it:


This is my muslin version of Simplicity 3536 - View A. I'll do a more formal review later, but I wanted to address the muslin aspect of this project.

Why? Because I'm stopping with the muslin. I will not be moving on to using the very yummy fashion fabic I had in mind to go with this pattern.

Why? Because after making the muslin, it became very clear that I would not be happy with the outcome.

Who cares? Ummm, I care. Who wants a blouse they don't really like? Actually, I like the blouse. I just don't like how it looks on me!

This particular project reinforces the notion for me that muslins are the way to go. I was pretty disappointed in how this turned out. But no where near as disappointed and unhappy as I would have been if I had "made it for real" and had been as displeased in the results.

Ah, I can hear you now. "But Janimé, isn't this in contradiction to previous posts you've made about not waiting for perfection, or being open to new ideas and experimentation"?

I don't think it's a contradiction. Making muslins is how I keep the door open to new ideas and experimenation, frankly without busting the budget. I can't have too many failed experiments with $8 to $10 per yard fabric, or I won't be able to keep sewing. (YIKES!!!! EEEK!!!! even the thought of not sewing is horrid!).

Muslins, Wearable Muslins, and Test Garments

I wasn't long in the sewing world before I started hearing the words "muslin", "wearable muslin", and "test garment".

So what is a muslin? And why should you care?

The term "muslin" or "making a muslin", generally refers to making a "test" copy of your garment. That is, trying out a pattern with an inexpensive fabric prior to making it with your chosen fashion fabric.

The term originated from the name for a particular kind of woven cotton fabric that was traditionally used to make the test copy. Muslin fabric can still be purchased today and can be used to make muslins, among many other things.

A "wearable muslin" refers to a test garment made with a less expensive fabric than the chosen fashion fabric, but turns out itself to be wearable. I like those!

People make muslins for various reasons, including:
1. Going through the construction process for a particular pattern.
2. Trying out alterations that are made for fit.
3. Trying out new ideas and techniques.
4. Getting a feel for how the finished product will look.

I'm sure there are more.

I always make a muslin prior to using my fashion fabric for all four of the reasons listed above. I'm not nearly comfortable enough with my sewing abilities to pick up a new pattern and try it out on more expensive fashion fabric without trying it first on some good old $1 fabric from WalMart. Witness the fun I had with the wrap view of Simplicity 4076!

I'm also still learning a lot about what will work for me in terms of looks, and what will not work so well. Putting a muslin together helps me understand how a pattern will translate from the picture (usually of someone half my size) to my own wonderful, but definitely not size 3 body.

So should you make muslins? Like so many other things in sewing, it's a personal choice. But it's a choice I highly recommend. The payoff for getting a garment that I truly like is worth it.

Three aspects of life meet...

I am always fascinated by the odd little coincidences of life.

Before I began sewing, I had never heard of "bespoke" clothing. I gathered from my reading that it was custom tailoring, and didn't really think anymore about it.

Then this morning, while reading through one of my geek newsgroup posts (having to do with the Eclipse Process Framework Project for anyone who might be remotely interested), I came across the term "bespoke proccesses". Here's the full quote:

This tailoring of the available process body of knowledge will result in bespoke
processes suitable for a specific project execution environment.

Hmmm... now we've used both "tailoring" and "bespoke" in reference to software development processes - something of a distance from sewing.

So, onto to wikipedia, where we find that "bespoke" clothing is customized made-to-order clothing, and "bespoke" software is customized, made-to-order software. Interesting.

Interesting to find another little tie between my "day job" and sewing.

Interesting that "bespoke" is not more widely used in other areas. Clothing, software, and automobile manufacturing are pretty much it.

Interesting that the reason I've not heard the term "bespoke software" before, for all that I've been in the software industry for 15+ years, is that it's not really used much in the US.

And "bespoke" is just an interesting little word all by itself. It's right up there with "piffle".

So there you have it, three aspects of my life; sewing, computers, and interesting words - all tied up together in one neat little package.

OK OK, I fully admit it. I'm sometimes fascinated and amused by both the minute and odd. :-)

McCall's 4872 - One for the win column!

Yesterday, I spent the day sewing up McCall's 4872.

This was my first attempt at making a garment using knit fabric, and I'm very pleased with the results.

For this first try, I worked up a muslin using a cheap ($1/yard) knit from WalMart. I think it might be classified as a jersey knit, but I'm not 100% positive about that. The most noticable attribute of this fabric is that it is very thin. Too thin to wear actually. My own attributes don't need that much daylight ;)

I made up view B with just a few changes.

First, I shortened it quite a few inches - maybe 5 or 6. Also, instead of making my normal big arms alteration, I used the XL sleeve on the L bodice. The shirt fit perfectly after these little changes.

I tried making a neck band with the same fabric, and I think it would have worked, except for the part about sewing in on the wrong side. Oooops! I save it by rolling it inside and topstitching it down.

I used my serger for most of the construction including serging the sleeve and shirt hems, turning them under, and topstitching them down. I did a fake coverstitch on the sleeves by running two rows of topstitches with my regular sewing machine (I would have used a double needle instead, but don't have one of those for knits).

(Sidebar explanations for my non-sewing, or beginner friends)

For the longeset time, I didn't know what a coverstitch was. In case you're curious, I'll tell ya. First find a t-shirt. Look at the hem of the shirt or the sleeves. Chances are, you'll see two rows of stitching on the outstide, and squiggly threads on the inside. That's coverstitching. It takes a special machine, or a serger with a coverstitch option, to make those.

So what's a serger? It's a special kind of sewing machine that overlocks and trims the seams at the same time. They've got an OK definition of it at Answer.com. Take a look at the side seams on almost any average piece of purchased clothing, a.k.a RTW - Ready-To-Wear, and they will be serged.

(End of Sidebar)

Lastly, I deviated from the instructions by using a technique called "sewing it in flat" to put the sleeves in. Instead of sewing the sleeve seam together first (making a tube out of it), and then sewing the sleeve to the bodice, you sew the sleeve cap (top) to the bodice and leave the sleeve seam unsewn. Then you treat the bodice and sleeve seams as one and sew them at the same time.

I really, really like this method of attaching a sleeve. My seam intersections come out so much better this way.

Like I said, this try is a muslin. I'm waiting on some fabric to be delivered to make up the "real thing".

In the meantime, I'm getting View D of Simplicity 4076 ready for a muslin workup.

Whew! Busy weekend, but I had a blast!