Ready to start the Real Thing!

Went up to see Sharon, and we made the final adjustments to the muslin yesterday.  I am now prepared to cut the Real Fabric(!).

We also tested the interfacings, and decided to fuse the entire length of fabric to a very lightweight weft-inserted interfacing.  This should stabilize it and prevent it from “bagging” as handwoven fabric is sometimes inclined to do.  (We could have accomplished the same thing via underlining, but this is quicker and probably more apt for Handwoven readers as well.)  We’re going to use hair canvas as interfacing on the facings, to give the neck more body.

So I have my work cut out for me this week:

• fuse the entire length of the fabric to the lightweight interfacing
• cut the pattern pieces, carefully matching stripe edges and colors wherever possible
• cut the hair canvas to fit the facings, and catchstitch the hair canvas to the facings (this keeps it out of the seams and produces a better look)
• cut the lining
• sew front and back pattern pieces together and sew down the sleeves at the bottom of the armpit only.  (Sharon will do some magic around the sleeves to make sure they fit well.)
• sew facing and lining pieces together

That’s quite a bit to do, especially catchstitching the hair canvas to the facings (which has to be done by hand), so I will probably skip the dyeing this weekend and work on the jacket instead.

Meanwhile, I have been thoroughly enjoying a new blog, And Then We Set It On Fire, done by a group of bloggers intent on exploring many fiber arts techniques, one per month.  There’s a new post every day or two, always with something interesting they’ve tried.  Currently they’re on batik – I think next month is ink.  This is not a how-to blog written by experts; it’s written by people who are new to the technique, which makes it all the more interesting.  Their enthusiasm and willingness to share results – positive and negative – is refreshing.