The next stage of fitting…
Sleevage. Fitting.
So, I slapped some sleeves onto my bodice-muslin of the Zoe coat, Vogue 7448, to see what they did to the floopyness around the front armscye. And also where the shoulders actually sit and things like that. Oh, and I added facings and the collar.
I think I should just suck it up and do the square shoulder adjustment.
I also think I’ve decided the front floopyness really boils down to my SBA being insufficiently agressive. If I stuff a fist in the side in front of my breast, it fills out the space quite nicely and the wrinkles disappear. (Incidentally, I took this photo wearing my padded bra, which does bring my bust measurement up to a proper size 12—34″. And it’s still floopy.
The only other thing (which doesn’t show in these photos) is how much the low armscye makes the arms bind when I put my hands on my hips. I’ve been trying to talk myself out of fixing it, but I just don’t think I can. Even the front floopyness doesn’t annoy me as much as that binding at the arms. I promise I’ll only raise it a centimetre or so. I’m sure I’ll still be able to get most of my sweaters underneath.
And the wearable muslin…
Vogue 7448 Sweater
Despite the fact that the fit is so-so and the internal finishing is abysmal, I really wanted to get something usable out of this. So, I grabbed some cream rib-knit that just happens to match the cream sweatshirt knit, cut a 3″ wide band (doubled), and added it to the bottom and made cuffs for the sleeves.
Buttons
Although I often really like cropped jackets, something about the position of the band has me not entirely convinced that it’s terribly flattering (maybe I’m just feeling muffin-top-conscious due to winter slothfulness and the depressing length of time since I’ve done a pretty, glamorous basement photo shoot. Oh, well. At least the jeans look good.)
I do quite like it hanging open, which is unusual for a double-breasted garment. The way the front hangs open reminds me faintly of those floppy-front cardigans.
Facing and under-collar
The buttons are cream, leather-covered buttons from one of my old-button thrift store hauls. The leather is pretty dinged up and dingy, but the colour was nice and I was willing to go with it for this particular garment. I decided to bind the inside of the facing and the undercollar with some nice patterned bias binding, which would be a lovely touch if the rest of the seam-finishing wasn’t so godawful. (er, nonexistent.) (Erm, buttonholes in rib knit. Bad idea, basically. Some kind of stabilizer would’ve been a VERY good idea. I thought of it just after I started the first one.)
I’m glad I made the full collar, though. This is the first time I’ve tackled one of those collars with inner corners, and it was a bit brain-breaky and nerve-wracking. I had to actually read the instructions. Definitely worth practicing.
So I guess this is one of those “time will tell” garments. I’ll probably wear it a bit, because I do need sweaters, badly. I may fall thoroughly in love with it… who knows.
Tanit-Isis Sews 
Funny, as soon as I saw your muslin pictures, I thought, Gee, that would make a really cute cropped jacket if she added a band at the bottom. And then I scroll down and see… Anyway, again, I can’t offer anything by way of fitting advice, but that jacket looks just fine to me. I really like the winter white against the rest of your dark outfit.
Hee hee! Great minds think alike!
You know the other half of that saying is “and fools seldom differ”? LOL
The collar looks fantastic – worth your effort. I’d fix the arms binding, too. So uncomfy!
We always said “and small ones seldom differ.” 😉 shush.
Low armscyes drive me so nuts. I don’t expect to do jumping jacks, but I should at least be able to put my hands on my hips without the whole jacket riding up to my ears.
It seems like the shoulder is falling off your shoulder. I would try a narrow shoulder adjustment…at least in front, can’t tell from the back. On a coat, I always want them bigger, but this seems a bit too big.
It is a little wide. I’ve been trying to convince myself that won’t be such an issue in a final, shoulder-padded version. You’re probably right, though.
I think this will be a pretty finished product if you decide to fix it and make a final one. Even the muslin turned out pretty!
Now aren’t you totally creative? I love that sweater, and I think the coat is going to be perfect once you’re done tweaking it. I just couldn’t help laughing my head off about stuffing the bust! Sometimes I wish I was a perfect pattern size (like I was in my teens) and then I wouldn’t have to tweak everything.
Y’know, aside from length issues (leg and sleeve) I didn’t really think I was that hard to fit before I started sewing…
Loving the way you’ve brought this together with the band and buttons!
I’ve zoomed in on your photos and there’s oodles of room to raise the armscye by half an inch if you make this again. I effectively* do this on everything and I find it makes a massive difference to the comfort factor.
*What I actually do is trace out the armscye as is, then add half an inch to the rest of the above-bust section. But same difference, right?
Probably depends on the size of your arms… I think my short upper body and scrawny arms make the issue worse. Or I’m on glue. 😉
I actually love the cropped sweater look! I think it works, and it makes a nice muslin. I find that sometimes it takes me a few wears to get properly enthusiastic about the finished product.
I would squoosh the bustline down a bit more (I’m also a 34″ padded) and raise the armscye, but if you square off the shoulder then that should make up for losing the underarm ease. Then you would have the sleeve room you need in the cap. Of course, I’ve never made a wool coat before so….not sure how that all translates to a heavy fabric.
The only issue with heavy fitting, I think, is remembering that stuff can’t be as close-fitting (which isn’t the same as ill-fitting, mind you). That’s the tricky part.
The way I do square shoulder adjustments, at least, doesn’t affect the armscye, but I think fixing both things would definitely help. /sigh.
I know you will hate to hear this but if you did off the rack you would have some of the same fitting issues, so most folks won’t notice, as they are doing off the rack. But to a sewer it is irritating. I am reading lazysubculturalgirl and I am wondering if you need a second muslin, (yikes, I know!) in a heavier fabric to see how the changes to the armscye go. Maybe just a bodice and one sleeve without the band.
This entire two-year sewing saga (yes, it was just about two years ago to the day that I picked up my first winter coat pattern) was basically sparked by not being satisfied with what I could find in RTW winter coats. The kind of coats I like (like this one will be) are VERY expensive, and never fit quite right.
I’m using a sweatshirt knit, which seems reasonably heavy for a muslin—heavier would require using real coating, which I’m not prepared to do unless I stumble upon some really cheap, really ugly stuff at the thrift store. A second muslin would probably be a good idea, though. We’ll see how much the fashion fabric ends up costing ;).
Green with envy that you have that coat pattern, but very impressed that you turned your muslin (which looks pretty lush in white) into something usable. Roll on coat!
Now all I need is the fabric… 😉
What a nifty way to make the muslin very wearable!
I don’t have any advice on the floopy-ness, except that possibly the whole thing is too big (?) seeing as there is a little extra room in the back, besides the bodice and sleeves. But then wool coating will hang differently and, uh, won’t stretch.
Oddly, I’ve haven’t been doing SBAs even though I’m more like 32.5. I notice issues on wrap-type tops, but otherwise, I must not be making many structured things.
I think the sweatshirt muslin is very cute. The shape of the collar is really lovely, and the coat is sure to be a winner.
I’m not sure what you plan on wearing underneath the coat. Could you try on the muslin with a sweater on? I agree with Joy, the back looks too big, like you could take an inch out of the center as the darts seem to be too far apart. But, maybe once you line it and all that would all even out.
My mom just gave me a coat and when I first tried it on I thought the princess seams made my tiny chest look pathetic, but I have noticed that as it has gotten colder and I pile on more layers underneath, I don’t look so bad. I guess fitting coats is hard that way.
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