Vogue 8801 jeans saga continues

The only store that sells fabric near my house is the big-box store.  The closest fabric store is an hour away.  At least luck was with me and Joe had an appointment near the Joanns fabric store.  In Joanns I received some good advice from a home-economics teacher who was shopping too.  She said many patterns are sized wrong, so to make sure they will fit you.  And, once you get a pattern you like, keep making it.  She also told me to tear the whole pants apart and to not simply take them in from the sides.  (good advice)
Needless to say, I did a lot of cutting and re-sewing yesterday and today.  Now I  have a pair of pants I can put on and they look like pants.  I have not completely finished yet.  I still need to hem the legs, put on the button, and the belt loops.

My first impression is the rear view looks like the yoke is too long.  The front looks in proportion.  The pants are comfortable.  I have been wearing them for about an hour now, even without the button.
One more thing I have learned from this project is not to do patterns there are no reviews about.  I have no idea if the issues I have had are my own issues or the pattern.
I am making chicken soup for dinner, so better go check the soup.

Vogue 8801 size issues

I thought the pants were coming along, just a few issues with the zipper.  But since this is my first pair of pants to make, I figured there would be some bumps in the road.  However, once the fabric started to look like pants, I realized they were way too big.  I looked again at the size chart to make sure I was making the right size.

Vogue 8801 Size chart

If I am doing it correctly, the size 36 I chose would make a 30" waist. But, look at the size difference between a pair of pants I wear and the pants I am making.  I have not seen any reviews on these pants, so I am not sure if the pattern is wrong, or if I am wrong.

I measure a 40" waist.  Almost 10" larger than what I was making and what I wear.  I am going to cut them apart and cut a bunch of material off, and re-sew.  This will teach me two things:   to measure the pattern to see if it is the size I want before I start and also how to cut down clothes to fit.

 The pants are looking nice,  I like the pockets.  Hopefully I can make them fit. Time to get out the scissors.

Vogue 8801 Jeans

I finally decided to take the plunge and jump from shirts to pants.  I purchased a Vogue 8801 jeans pattern from the Vogue website for $3.88.  I think it was a great price.  I haven't seen any reviews on this pattern.  Since it has a copyright of 2012 , maybe there aren't any reviews yet, so I will review it as I go along.

I have a 29" waist and a 34" inseam. It has been almost impossible to find pants in my size in the last several years.  For some reason I used to be able to get them anywhere.  So I guess if this project works out, I will be making my own pants from now on. I am making the size 36 which has a 30" waist. I believe this will work the best, because I don't want to squeeze into the 28" waist pattern.  I also decided to make the straight-leg, instead of the boot-leg.

This project started because I found some great material at the thrift store.  It is a brown lightweight-denim.  Then, I went to Walmart to buy the thread and zipper to match(Dogwood is the color).   I think those two items cost more than the fabric.  I haven't decide on the button yet.

First, I washed and ironed the fabric.  Then I cut it out with the pattern. The pattern and instructions seem straight forward.

The first thing is to make the front pockets.  I had some brown sheet material leftover from my pajamas, so I used that for the pocket liner.

Liner

Pocket

That is enough for today.  And of course, nothing is more fun than going to the thrift store in my 1958 Lincoln Premiere.

Greist 1Z buttonholer

My Brother sewing machine has a built-in one step buttonholer.  It works fine.  But, after reading about vintage buttonholers that are attached to your sewing machine, I decided I would like to try one.  There are two main brands, Greist and Singer.  Kenmore and some others are also out there.  They were popular for many years until sewing machines started having the button hole feature built in.

I purchased a Greist 1Z made for a zig-zag machine on Ebay.  It can make thirteen different size buttonholes with the cams included.  Some buttonholers only come with four cams.  But you can always buy more.

The lever on the side adjusts the width of the buttonhole.  The knob on the top adjusts the position of the mechanism on the cloth.  In my research, I found you have to be careful your sewing machine's presser-foot lever has room to be moved, without hitting the buttonholer.

Here is a picture of some of the cams used to choose the size and style of the buttonhole.

The bottom snaps open to drop in the cam you desire.

This is the buttonholer attached to the machine from the back.

The buttonholer as seen from the front. The presser foot is taken off, and the buttonholer is attached with a screw in its place.  Also notice the white feed-dog cover plate.  The buttonholer moves the fabric back and forth, so the sewing machine's feed-dogs are covered.

The buttonholer does a great job.  Here are several different styles done with it.  The three thin looking ones to the right are the Brother's built-in ones.  The Greist makes heavy-duty looking buttonholes.

No one seemed to have an easy explanation of what model to buy to fit my machine.  The back of the Greist box explains it very simply.

Thanks for stopping. 

Green T-Shirt for Joe

After the pajama tops, I changed gears and made another T-Shirt.  The main reason was I found some great material at the thrift store for $1.  I used some green thread and the #309 T-Shirt pattern I already had, so Voila! a T-Shirt for a $1.

I am not sure if the pattern runs small, or if people were a lot smaller in 1970 when this pattern was made.  I originally was going to make it in a large size, but after measuring the pattern and a T-Shirt Joe wears, I decided to make the extra-large.  This came out the same as a medium, and looks great.

 Now, to decide what project I want to start next.  But before that, I am going to practice with my Greist #1Z buttonholer I purchased from Ebay.  I think my next blog will be about the buttonholer and how it works with my Brother XL2600I sewing machine.

McCall's 5511 Pajama Top

The McCall's 5511 pajama top made with a brown flannel sheet is done. It fits great, and looks like a 70s top for going to the Disco.  I like it.  I wonder if I wore it to town if anyone would realize it is a pajama top?

The instructions were a little sketchy on the collar, but I figured  it out.  When I look at other pictures of this top on PatternReview.com, the collar looks less formal.  It lays down flat like a casual shirt.  I like the way mine turned out with a more formal looking collar.

top close-up

I think I am going to make another t-shirt now.  I found some great fabric at the thrift store.  I will use the same pattern I used before, the Sew-Knit-and-Stretch 309.  However, this time it will be in size large to fit Joe.  The sizing runs small on this pattern, the medium I made is more like a small, so I will assume the large will turn out like a medium.

This green striped material should look great.