Bootstrap Fashion

adult's clothing, Bootstrap Fashion, sewing, Uncategorized

A three-fer: Riley, Henrietta Maria and Vado.

This will be an epic blog post.  Three garments.  I am exhausted just thinking about writing it, let alone thinking about you reading it.  Be warned!

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

Okay, I’ll start with the coat. This is the Style Arc Riley Coat. From their website:  RILEY COAT: This cleverly designed and patterned coat fits all the boxes. Suitable for every season, Riley has a very “on-trend” shape with its deep panelled raglan sleeve and free flowing front. This coat is unlined and so easy to construct. FABRIC SUGGESTION & DESCRIPTION: Wool, Wool Cashmere, any Suiting, Linen or Ponte

riley-coat

I chose to use a wool blend coating fabric from Clear It to sew my jacket.  I didn’t purchase quite enough, but by judiciously piecing the facings I was able to cut out the entire jacket from my fabric.  The fabric restrictions did limit the amount of check matching that I was able to do.  I focused on keeping the checks balanced more than matched.

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

I eliminated the centre back seam in an effort to save fabric, but otherwise this is sewn pretty much as per the pattern. I did add topstitching beside certain seemliness, as the mood took me.  The description is correct – it is easy to construct.

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

There is no closure on my coat. It can be worn with the collar folded across and pinned in place, but I’m not likely to wear it that way. I sewed size 12, which is my usual Style Arc top/dress/jacket size, but could have gone down to a 10 in this jacket.

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

I really enjoyed working with this coating fabric. It has great texture, was easy to sew and press, and the hand-stitches securing the facings are invisible. Hooray!

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

If you have long arms, you might want to consider lengthening the sleeves. It wouldn’t be too difficult to draft a lining either, if you prefer one. There are inseam pockets in the front seams, and I really like the angles at the centre front hemline. I am not certain that lapels at the front like this, with nothing at the back neck, is the best look for me. To me it looks very “front-heavy” which I am anyway. I think I prefer a jacket with no collar at all or one that has a roll collar at the back. Will ponder on that further. But I do recommend this pattern.

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

So, to the top. This is the Henrietta Maria top by Scroop Patterns.

Scroop Patterns Henrietta Maria top in wool crepe from Rathdowne Fabrics

I have been reading the designer Leimomi’s blog for some time, and have always been impressed with her sewing knowledge and the thought that she puts into garments. She is a trained pattern maker and is a fashion and textile historian. This is her first pattern, and I was very impressed with both the quality of the drafting and the quality of the instructions.

Scroop Patterns Henrietta Maria top in wool crepe from Rathdowne Fabrics

I sewed this in a wool crepe remnant from Rathdowne Fabrics. It was a great choice for this top. Wool crepe is such a divine fabric to work with! It presses beautifully, and has wonderful drape. Now check out all those cartridge pleats. Just sewing the pleats took around two hours. Crikey.

Scroop Patterns Henrietta Maria top in wool crepe from Rathdowne Fabrics

I finished the inside edge of the neckline self-facing with lace, and the lower hemline with a narrow double-turned machine stitched hem. This is actually quite simple to sew, you just have to be patient because of ALL THOSE PLEATS. Have I mentioned that there are a lot of pleats?

Scroop Patterns Henrietta Maria top in wool crepe from Rathdowne Fabrics

The website describes this pattern as follows: The Henrietta Maria is a versatile, wear-anywhere trans-seasonal shift dress or top, with full raglan sleeves and cunning pleats that shape the neckline and sleeve hems. The top can be made with a straight or shaped hemline. The dress has set-in side pockets.

Dress it up for evening in chiffon and satin, make it as your go-to summer wear in cottons or viscose (rayon), or effortless winter office wear in wool crepe. Worn loose, the top and dress are great on straight figures. Belted or tucked in, they flatter the most bodacious of curves.

Recommended Fabrics:
The Henrietta Maria works best in fabrics with good draping qualities, such as lightweight wool crepes; viscose crepes; silk & synthetic crepe de chine; lightweight draping cottons such as cotton voile; and wool, viscose & cotton challis. Silk or synthetic charmeuse satins, chiffons and georgettes also work well, but are trickier to work with.

henrietta_maria_hero_image_1024x1024_a4d49077-65bf-43a9-8ab0-68a36e755ea4_1024x1024

I sewed view B, with the curved hemline.  I think that I sewed size 40, as per my measurements (it is about three haircuts ago since I sewed and photographed this, so my recollection of some details is a little hazy).  I’d rather like to sew the dress version for summer in a cool drapey fabric – but ALL THOSE PLEATS.  I might need to sew some other summer garments first.  This is a great pattern – highly recommended if you are looking for something a little out of the ordinary.

Scroop Patterns Henrietta Maria top in wool crepe from Rathdowne Fabrics

So, now to the jeans. These are the next step along my quest for non-stretch denim jeans that fit my decidedly non-standard shape. I used the Bootstrap Fashion Vado Designs boyfriend jeans. The rigid denim is from M. Recht.  From the Bootstrap website: The best-fitting jeans custom-sized sewing patterns are here. These ‘boyfriend’ style jeans have plenty of design ease around thighs and hips and require minimum measurements.They are extra long and designed to be worn rolled up. Ease: 4 3/8″ (11 cm) at hips and thigh.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics These are the jeans on the right in the picture above. I’ve sewn the flared version in the centre photo before, and you can read that review here. So, the jeans on me.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

So, right to it. I don’t love the way that these look on me from the side or the back at all. So much fabric around the upper thigh! Yes, the pattern description does say that there is plenty of ease there, and on a more typical shape it probably works well. But my legs are so thin in comparison to my torso that it’s hard to eliminate that excess while still having the non-stretch denim fit the rest of me and me still being able to move.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

I do need to emphasise however that the fit is actually GREAT from the perspective of the waist and tummy and hips fitting me – that normally NEVER happens – and the length, which is spot on.  These are also incredibly comfortable for a non-stretch pair of jeans! I do need the belt to keep them in the most comfortable position, despite me being very accurate with my measurements, but that is because without that extra bit of cinching (and consequent muffin-top) all my pants fall down. It’s why I usually go for an elastic waist. With a waist-hip differential that is so small – plus most of the measurement being on my front – most skirts or pants fall down on me.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

I was very happy with the construction of these jeans. Bootstrap Patterns have lots of detail and photos in their instructions now, and everything went together nicely. I also got some rivets for the back pockets, and in combination with the red topstitching am very happy with the final look of these jeans. I did place the pockets much closer to the centre than the pattern suggested, based on some of my existing pairs of jeans.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

Pockets were sewn from quilting cotton. I chose not to flat-fell any of the seams, as I feel that I get a similar effect with the seams overlocked then topstitched. I know it’s not as “authentic” a jeans technique, but I’m just as happy with the finished result.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

I often wonder why I put so much effort into waistband and upper pants details that will never been seen other than on this blog. I never, ever tuck anything in.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

So, my final verdict? I think that Bootstrap Fashion (and Lekala) patterns are GREAT. I love the made-to-measure aspect and the price, and the ability to customise things like tummy and buttock protrusion. If you haven’t tried them, I really do think that you should! It does require ACCURATE measurements, and lots of them, and tweaking to find out what the fit adjustments really do. But once you’ve got it sorted, it’s wonderful – especially if you are not a “standard” shape.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado Boyfriend jeans in denim from M. Recht.

As for me and my non-stretch jeans quest? Basically, it’s over. My shape really is best in elastic waists and stretch denim. These jeans aren’t likely to get much wear at all.  In the future I’ll keep sewing my tried and true Style Arc jeans from stretch fabrics. But don’t let that put you off giving Vado jeans a go – I honestly do think that they work beautifully for lots of people, and have seen quite a few of them on blogs that look fabulous.  There is no questioning the fit.

Style Arc Riley coat in wool from Clear It

adult's clothing, Bootstrap Fashion, sewing

Bootstrap Fashion 44139

Something that I really like about customised patterns such as those from Bootstrap Fashion and Lekala is the ability for me to try out silhouettes that I would normally avoid due to the significant number of alterations that I would have to make to conventional patterns.  Hey, I’m lazy like that.  Bootstrap Patterns recently offered dress 44139 as a free pattern, so I decided to give it a go.

Bootstrap Fashion 44139 in Spotlight printed Scuba knit

Bootstrap describe this dress as a “poet sleeves knit dress” and recommended fabrics include heavy weight, ponte and double knit with spandex. I used brightly printed scuba from Spotlight, which is essentially polyester double knit with spandex. The sort of fabric we’d have been cringing about ten years ago as a relic from the 1970s, but in 2016 fibre technology has changed and although it’s still polyester, it is softer and easy to sew and has the ability to hold colours and prints in a way that most natural fibres simply can’t do. I’m a sucker for the colour.

Bootstrap Fashion 44139 in Spotlight printed Scuba knit

One of the great things about taking photos for the blog is seeing just where fit issues are – and in the above photo I can tell that I have a lot of fixes to make in the back of the garment. I have realised that there is a pattern here. Although this pattern was ordered with plenty of pot belly room, and it fits well in the front of the dress, there is still excess in the back. This is where a fitting buddy would really come in handy! Once again, I need to take fabric out of the back bodice length.

Bootstrap Fashion 44139 in Spotlight printed Scuba knit

I lowered the front neckline quite significantly as compared to the pattern. If you check the fashion illustration and line drawing it is a high boat neckline. I felt strangled when I tried it on, so unpicked the neck facing (a strip of self fabric cut on the cross grain) and lowered it a couple of inches before refinishing. I used a twin needle to secure the neckline and the hems. The centre front inverted pleat is quite small on me due to my small hip to waist ratio, so it’s not as much of a feature as it would be if you were more conventionally shaped. The front pockets are rather cute, and I included them because of the diagonal line that they add.

Bootstrap Fashion 44139 in Spotlight printed Scuba knit

The sleeves gather into simple tubular cuffs. Because it’s a stretch knit, they don’t need a closure, but sit quite firmly around my arm. I made a belt to go around the waistline, as per the pattern, but decided not to wear it. It only served to highlight my stomach and relative lack of waist.

Bootstrap Fashion 44139 in Spotlight printed Scuba knit

So, final verdict? Scuba is super easy to sew with – most construction was on the overlocker. It also doesn’t require seam finishes, and the colours are fantastic. I wore this dress to work, where it performed well and did receive a number of compliments. But it’s a style experiment, and not completely “me”. That said, I don’t want to wear exactly the same silhouette all the time, so it certainly fits nicely into my wardrobe for the moment.

Bootstrap Fashion 44139 in Spotlight printed Scuba knit

adult's clothing, Bootstrap Fashion, sewing

Bootstrap Fashion Vado flares #1

I think that pants are one of the hardest things to fit well.  There are so many dimensions to take into account!  Circumferences, angles, variation in rise, distribution of body mass, all of those things.  You’ve probably noticed that the pants I make tend to have particular features.  They almost all have at least partially elasticised waists.  If they are in a non-stretch woven fabric they are usually loose fitting.  If they are slim fitting they are in stretch wovens.  This certainly helps to keep fitting easy.  Either the style or the fabric type does most of the work.  So sewing my own jeans is definitely a big call when it comes to fit.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

I’ve mentioned Lekala patterns a few times on this blog, along with Bootstrap Fashion.  Both these companies use the same Leko software for their patterns, which allows you to order patterns customised to your measurements.  They both re-sell Russian Leko patterns, which is why you will find some of the same patterns on both websites, but Bootstrap Fashion also sell patterns from other designers, and have a design centre feature where you can design your own dress pattern.  This feature is still in early stages, and will eventually be extended to all sorts of garment styles.  Bootstrap Fashion are currently crowdfunding through Indigogo to continue to improve their website and software offerings to act as a central source of customised fashion designs.  I am very happy to give them a plug in regards to this because I think that what they are doing is absolutely innovative.  They have been engaging with a number of sewing bloggers to really find out what it is that people want, and responding accordingly.  And their patterns are very cheap – ranging from free patterns to less than US$2 and up to US$13 – which is impressive when you consider that they are personalised.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

So, on to the jeans.  I chose to sew a pair of flares with a high waist, in a rigid denim (from Rathdowne Fabrics).  Bootstrap Fashion have Vado jeans in high, medium or low waisted options in skinny, flare and boyfriend styles. I now realise that I pretty much chose the most difficult fitting option available for my body shape.  There are a few reasons for this.  You can see a fair number of them in the handy little body avatar that Bootstrap Fashion and Lekala provide when you order one of their patterns.

Your_3D_Avatar - Bootstrap Fashion

When you sew for yourself, you really do have to be honest about your body shape. I am about 8kg over the healthy BMI range for my height at the moment, and as you can see most of that excess 8kg sits right on my front abdomen. It’s pretty much a mid-pregnancy shape. And that avatar is very accurate.  What this means fitting wise is that I don’t have much waist to hold anything up.  When I try on jeans in the shops, my issue is always in finding ones that fit snugly around my hips, thighs and bum, but can still do up around my middle.  When I took my measurements for the jeans, I didn’t pull the tape measure very tight because I wanted to avoid the waistband squishing fat rolls.  However, I didn’t fully realise that without the waistband being tighter it would be hard to keep the jeans up because my hip and waist differential are so low.  You’ll see this better in photos later.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

There are plenty of guides to help you with measuring, such as this one. I’ve also taken a screen shot of all the measurements that are needed for the jeans. Getting those measurements right really is what the final fit success will depend on.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

You have the option to specify your buttocks shape – I chose flat. A similar feature for stomach shape exists when you are ordering a skirt or dress pattern. I think that this is a marvellous feature. For me, a waist circumference measurement alone doesn’t tell you that most of my circumference is at the front. With the stomach shape feature I end up with much more fabric in the front pattern pieces of dresses or skirts, which is wear I need it. The jeans pattern does pretty much the same thing via the alteration for buttocks shape.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

You can also specify the amount of stretch in the denim that you are using. This means that the pattern pieces and sizes will be customised accordingly by the software. I selected non-stretch.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

So, on to the finished product! You do get instructions with the pattern, which include a lot of photos. They have been translated from Russian, and still aren’t quite perfect, but I have sewn jeans before.  With a combination of the supplied instructions, other references, and common sense, I didn’t have any difficulties with sewing these together. I did have to unpick the pockets and sew them on again at the end once the jeans were fully assembled in order to get a pleasing placement. So my advice there is even though it’s easier to sew the pockets on before the jeans are constructed, it’s probably better to wait until the end so that you can position them in a place that looks best on your body. I moved them in quite a lot as compared to the suggested placement on the pattern.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

I used a jeans needle and swapped between normal thread and upholstery thread in the needle depending on what part of the jeans I was constructing. I had a jeans zipper in stash, and used quilting cotton for the pocket bags. With upholstery thread in the needle and normal thread in the bobbin, I had the odd tension issue and small thread snarl, but overall it worked pretty well. In the past I’ve sometimes just used normal thread but with a triple stitch for topstitching. That may have worked better in this case as well. Another thing to remember for next time! I finished edges on the overlocker.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

I decided to add the belt loops even though I hardly ever wear belts. I had tried the jeans on before adding the waistband, and realised at that stage that I was going to have problems keeping them up due to my lack of hips and width of waist. I took them in a little at the waist side seams at that stage. As it turned out I do need the belt loops, as they do need a belt to stay in a comfortable position.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

I rather enjoyed working with the rigid denim. It was very easy to sew, and because it was a mid-weight I decided to not use interfacing in the waistband. Every single piece of the pattern fitted together absolutely perfectly. The length was absolutely perfect, with the flare starting at exactly the right place for my height. Some googling had given me a suggested width for the leg opening to give a bootleg/small flare style, and I’m really pleased with the end result there. I had measured the knee width from a pair of existing jeans, forgetting that the ones I was measuring were stretch denim, so these jeans in rigid denim are actually tighter through the knee than I would prefer. I did let them out a little through the knee but didn’t have much seam allowance to play with. As it turns out they were still comfortable enough in wearing. They feel great through the thigh, and around the stomach. But they are too big to stay up comfortably through the waist. So, on to photos.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

Now these are the views that normally would never be seen – I don’t show off that stomach or tuck anything in as a rule. The things that I do for education in sewing! These were taken at the end of a day of wear, and show the jeans without the belt. You can see that it is sagging down there as the fabric tries to move from a larger place (my waist) to a smaller place (towards my hips). The next photos are with a belt – but the belt is actually too small and pulls them in tighter than is completely comfortable. As I don’t usually wear belts it was the best I could find in the recesses of my wardrobe, but I need to get another one that is my waist size at age 47 rather than what my size was at age 27.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

I think that you can tell from these that the fit is actually pretty good once the waist is up in the right place, especially considering that these are rigid denim and I need to be able to move and sit down in them. After a day of wear I knew that they couldn’t have been any tighter or smaller through the back thigh if I was going to be comfortable. However, I prefer the closer look that stretch denim would allow for. The stomach room in these jeans was fantastic. So comfortable for fitted jeans! So, to how they actually look as I would wear them with my top out.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

So, final verdict?  I love the leg shape and length.  I love that they fit around my belly.  I love the way that the pattern pieces fitted together.  What would I change for me for next time?

  • use stretch denim
  • make the knee measurement a little larger
  • pull the tape measure tighter around my waist – if you had a more typical women’s shape with smaller waist as compared to hips you probably wouldn’t have my issues with the pants wanting to slip down.  I don’t think that I can get away without fat rolls above the waistband if I want my pants to stay up.
  • go for a medium rise instead of a high rise.

Bootstrap Fashion Vado design your own flare jeans in rigid denim from Rathdowne Fabrics

The key with these jeans is getting your measurements right, and knowing what style you most like to wear and feel comfortable in.  I think that these are a success, although I don’t think that they are perfect, but they definitely have me going in the right direction for sewing my own traditional jeans.  If you are ordering from Bootstrap Fashion, I strongly suggest that you really take the time to read the information on the website carefully so that you measure properly.  They have loads of patterns available – I have a couple of tops and some dresses underway as well.  I notice that Barbara and Beth have also been sewing Bootstrap Fashion jeans lately, so you can take a look at theirs as well and see how they went.