Fabric and neckline trauma but I have battled to the finish! The do it 10 times rule.

The top

I have been struggling putting a neckline (and armhole) finish on a simple top. There is nothing to say about the top otherwise.

I did finish the top - here it is in all its imperfection! I'm wearing it to go out today though - so it's not that bad.
I think you can see the diagonal nature of the fabric from this view

The top is a vest style - scoop neck, sleeveless. I've made it before without too much difficulty. This is a pattern highly modified from the original and further modified from its last rendition (see here)

I did the last neckline differently and successfully managed to coverstitch - but this fabric was having none of it!

This time, I think my fabric is a lot to blame. It is quite stretchy, two ways, that is both horizontally and vertically. I should have guessed there would be problems as I had problems cutting it out in the first place. One of my pieces was wonky and fortunately I had enough fabric to do it over again. My fabric did not want to behave!

I made the situation more difficult than it needed to be, of course, being me, by at first assuming that the pattern on the fabric ran both horizontally and vertically. It doesn’t - it’s vertical and diagonal. This means that the straightening I thought I had done made things worse! I wish I had never touched this fabric!!

I love geometrics, rather than florals or animals etc, and this fabric really met my requirements - or so I thought. Now, I could see it far enough! I used a diagonal print once in the past when I was just starting to sew and really didn’t enjoy the experience - I thought it was me I seem to remember. I’ll know in the future.

Neckline trauma

I decided to attach a strip of fabric used as a facing around neckline and armhole. The strip was cut on the crossgrain, the greatest amount of stretch, and one layer attached right side to right side on the neckline. The raw edge of the fabric was then turned under and the whole folded over into the inside and topstitched to keep the layers together (though obviously I could have hand stitched and then nothing would have shown). This didn’t work.as the fabric layer was somewhat too thick and heavy and didn’t lie nicely, falling forward.

This was the wide facing I originally attempted. Coverstitching something that wasn't right in the first place clearly wasn't going to work.

I therefore removed the band (for the first of several times!) even though I had understitched and overlocked.

By this time, I had a coverstitch machine - this top decided me to move in that direction. I therefore decided that I would attach to one side and simply fold over without turning in the raw edge as this would reduce the bulk. I’d then coverstitch from the right side and secure the raw edges. One layer of fabric less to contend with. Good plan. Didn’t work. The neckline just would not lie flat - it kept falling forward. Not the fault of the coverstitch machine.

I thought the band was too long and that was why the neckline was falling forward. I shortened it but this still didn’t solve the problem. In class, it was suggested to me that the fabric was causing the issue. However, I see people attaching necklines all the time so why couldn’t I do this?

I was really worried about how overworked the neckline of the top was becoming.

It was suggested that I'd be better to apply a band as my fabric was so lightweight that it wanted to fall forward even without the extra fabric weight. Next step was applying a small band, that is with the fabric attached double to the right side and the stitched edge folded back, leaving a small folded edge showing on the right side. First attempt was applied unevenly and looked really awful. I redid the band but this time it was too long again (87%). And yes, I thought it looked okay at first so went ahead with understitching and overlocking……. All that had to come out again!

I can now remove staystitching and overlocking fairly quickly - though of course I’d rather not!

I hate this fabric!!

Nevertheless, I decided I was going to persevere as I need to be able to do a nice neckline. This was now a practice piece. I understand that if you do something 10 times, you become proficient at it. We’ll see!

I spent a long time removing the bands from armholes and necklines - although I have focused on the neckline, I didn’t like the way the armhole was lying. Following advice, I trimmed the top of the shoulder by 1cm, tapering down front and back. I steamed the edges of armholes and neckline  in the hope of restoring some shape and stay stitched. Originally the armholes had been finished with a hidden facing strip.

Now, I had never previously staystitched a knit. Do you? When I asked advice of one of my groups, they were divided. One lady said I needed to staystitch while others didn’t. I had nothing to lose, so I staystitched but I would love your view on this.

I left the top sitting without band of any kind, just the sleeveless back and front of the top (oh - the hem is finished, all coverstitched in cream and looks lovely!!).

Blackwood cardigan number 4

In the meantime, I used the fabric to cut out another Blackwood cardigan. No major trauma though I definitely prefer a slightly beefier fabric. My bands which should have been identical weren’t and I had to sort that

I used a slightly modified pattern from the tester piece I made earlier in the year (see here), by adding some waist shaping and slightly shortening the sleeves, plus adding a little extra biceps ease.

I said earlier that if you repeat something 10 times, the methods stick, and you become proficient. However, I was reading a blog post the other day (sorry can’t remember whose it was) which suggests that if you repeat you become sloppy. YES! THIS! The only issues with the cardigan were my fault entirely. I used the wrong pattern pieces. I mislaid the instructions and decided I didn’t really need them. I won't go on. All’s well that end well! I didn’t topstitch around the band to hold down the seam allowances as I decided to wait until I had finished the top to have a matching finish. In the end I decided it really wasn’t necessary at all.

Back to the top

I cut the top armhole bands and neckline band to 80%. This figure came up repeatedly when discussing bands though I know it’s not really possible to rely on a formula - but it does give you somewhere to start from. I don’t have the ability to simply feel the correct stretch. Not yet anyway! I was concerned to see how long they were - my neckline must be very stretched from the starting point. I decided to have an exposed band - very narrow on the armholes and wider on the neckline. The reason I wanted narrower on the armholes was that originally they had a concealed band.

In order to apply evenly, I really need to mark the fabric. This time, I not only marked the pieces in quarters - I used eighths! I successfully attached the bands - YAY! I did have a couple of hiccoughs but got there in the end. So the bands are not a completely even width but I guess that’s not going to be the first thing people look for!

I had now intended to turn the raw edges to the inside and top stitch using my coverstitch machine from the right side. My coverstitch machine was perfectly happy with this - however, I am not sufficiently experienced, and my stitching was rather too wonky. I don’t (yet) have a clear foot for the machine and I couldn’t see exactly where the stitches were falling. I was trying to stitch so close to the neckline that in the cream thread the problem was readily visible.  I couldn’t use the neckline band edge as a guide as my band was uneven. I didn’t like the effect of stitching further away. After some thought, I decided I was going to use navy zigzag as this fitted in with my zigzag headache-inducing fabric. I used my edge stitch foot and experimented to see where I wanted it.

I was then left with the issue of the seam allowances, which of course wanted to expose themselves. I felt I had two choices (by now excluding the possibility of a coverstitch finish) - namely 1) trimming close to the stitching and just leaving raw or 2) overlocking the raw edges. I decided eventually to go with 2) thinking that I could always trim narrower if this didn’t look right. I think it’s okay.

Finished top

I said earlier that this piece had become an experimental top to give me experience in attaching a nice-looking neckband. I haven’t done it 10 times as yet but feel a lot more confident. I have a few more times to practice and get better if not perfect.

The top isn’t perfect. The armbands and neckline bands are uneven. I think this comes from a combination of stretched overworked fabric and the extra I trimmed off the armholes. I can deal with that in the future - here I was much more interested in getting the neckband to lie flat against my chest. It does, so that is success.

David thinks the shoulders are too narrow - and I’m inclined to agree. I don’t think that extra centimetre needed to come off, after all. I think the trimming was a little uneven, too - but of course, I’ll alter the pattern and it will be even next time. I also think the armholes don't match each other and that there is too much fabric at the front from halfway down (where I stopped trimming as it happens)

Otherwise, I’m pretty happy with it as I feel it fits well (enough) and feels comfortable.

Coverstitch questions

I would have to assemble the top differently to use a binder on my coverstitch machine (I think that one shoulder is left open?). I hadn’t realised that. I don’t have a binder as yet, but am considering. One thing that puzzles me is that people don’t stretch the binding fabric when applying by binder so I’m not sure how they get it to lie flat - it always looks so great. Any comments? Top stitching using the coverstitch machine is possible on the straight and in the round. However, it likes an even hemline!

A new twin set

I like the top and cardigan together - my 4th twinset! Because the cardigan is navy and white, I can wear with different tops, including plain navy and plain white of course. I wear a lot of navy and feel this set will be used a lot. I think it looks pretty good and is very ‘me’. I thought I had taken more photos than these but this is all there is.

Guess What Followed Me Home!

Changes to Blackwood Cardigan (tester version)

I previously blogged about my test Blackwood cardigan, which I love - and which fits so much better than the original. I now have the modified pattern - modified after tester feedback but I may stick to the tester version (that way I don’t have to stick together another PDF pattern!)

Finished tank and Blackwood cardigan on Madame

However, I hadn’t finished the inside with overlocking as it was a test garment and I didn’t realise it would fit so well! I think I mentioned that the sleeve was a little tighter than I would like when worn over a sleeved garment. One of my sleeve seams came apart a bit - I’d used too large a stitch in it - I'd forgotten I had just machine basted to see if the width was okay. At the time, I thought it was.  I took the opportunity of the small separation in the sleeve to partly dismantle the cardigan and re-sew and overlock the raw edges - just looks so much nicer. I also took out the large stitching in the sleeves and re-sewed and overlocked with a slightly narrower seam allowance to give that touch of extra space. I didn’t touch the shoulders, however. That was a step too far.

Also, to properly overlock the front band, I thought I would have needed to take out all my top stitching and I decided that wasn’t necessary - so the band wasn’t going to be neatly overlocked to the cardigan. However - see later - my topstitching on the tank wasn’t going to match so I wondered about taking out the top stitching on the cardigan to take the opportunity to overlock the band. I decided against that!

I wore the cardigan and was very conscious of the unfinished inside, which was liable to be exposed if the bands folded back. So last night I ended up overlocking the raw edges as best I could with the top stitching still in place. Not ideal, but a big improvement.

The inside is now overlocked rather than having unfinished edges
Sneak preview of tank!

Tank for Blackwood cardigan

I had a little - not a lot - of fabric left over. I decided I would like to make a tank for underneath it. I looked at two possible patterns I had - Kwik Sew 3232 (bought primarily for the skorts though I love this outfit for golf)  and a Simplicity pattern (sorry, forget the number and can't lay my hand on pattern today) to see what would be better. With Lyn’s input, I chose the S rather than the KS.

The view I chose was sleeveless with a scoop neck. The armholes to be finished with facings and the bottom hem to be turned over.

The amount of fabric I had available really limited the length I could make the top in order to keep the grain in the same direction as the cardigan and the pattern horizontal. I found the back of the top was extremely wide - I folded out a 1” tuck on the pattern, so taking 2” out. I realised that I wouldn't have enough fabric to make the front if I went by the sizes on the envelope. However, I looked at the size of the cardigan, in the same fabric, and decided to go down 2 sizes and cut the seam allowance to ⅜” instead of ⅝”. I had enough fabric for this.

I cut out the top, back and front only and tried on for size. I thought it was fine. I had taken to class and the others thought it was too short, saying that I would feel really uncomfortable. As a result, I accepted the advice and made a band for the top to match the bottom edge of the Blackwood cardigan - extending the length of the top by around 2.5 inches. I didn’t, unfortunately, have the cardigan with me that day - turned out the top was now far too long for the cardigan! I also found it heavy and bulky with the additional double band so I decided to remove it.

After trying to remove the 4 thread overlocker stitch and getting a bit frustrated, I decided just to cut off the overlocking - much faster!! Now everyone felt that the top was the correct length for the cardigan - no band at all needed. It will just be turned and hemmed with a twin needle. I don’t have a coverstitch machine - David was going to buy me one but I didn’t think I’d get enough use out of it. Was I wrong? Perhaps - I’d certainly have liked it here. I started doing a lot of coverstitch machine research. I was tempted by Juki and BabyLock but that’s megabucks.

Anyway, I was really short of fabric as I had mentioned. This top should have had facings on armholes and neckline. I redrew the facings as the ones in the pattern were not the correct size after my alterations. I found the changes needed were going to be ore than the changes I had made, which surprised me. Then I found I didn’t have enough fabric to cut out facings without a lot of piecing. Of course, the obvious solution was bias strip facing. Lyn recommended that I use self fabric facing rather than commercial bias facing. The long band I had made for the bottom and no longer needed came into its own.

I failed rather spectacularly in stitching the bands and the hem. I didn’t have any more of the thread I used to top stitch the cardigan - the number was missing and I couldn’t trace more. I decided on dark grey topstitching for the tank, which will match with the design. I wondered if this was telling me I should take out the top stitching in the cardigan and redo with grey!

I’m getting ready to topstitch the bias facings on my tank but am just wondering how best to do it. Zigzag stitch? Twin needle? I’m not sure so at the moment I’m procrastinating by writing this! (Though I don’t know when I will post it!)

Fabric tunnelling

I previously posted on IG photos of the most dreadful tunnelling with a twin needle on my stretch fabric (I'm not sure how to repeat them here). I was - am - making a tank to go with my Blackwood cardigan and ‘just’ had to finish the hems and neckline.

Because of the difficulties I was having with tunnelling using a double needle, I decided to research how to improve it.

In summary:

• I read lots of articles and watched YouTube 
• I consulted my tutors
• I asked my dealer, who telephoned Bernina head office for advice (2 mm needle; loosen bobbin tension a lot). Only 2.5 and 4 mm needles are available in stretch twin needles.
• I tried all of the following (all of which various people and sites had recommended even though some are in direct opposition to the others). I tried them on their own and in combination.
• I tried a 2.5 mm and a 4 mm twin stretch needle
• I tried shorter and longer stitches
• I tried loosening the top tension - and increasing it
• I tried stabilizer
• I reduced the bobbin tension
• Some said there would always be tunnelling
• I feel there were other things too but I’ve forgotten now!
• Some were worse than others but all had tunnelling
• The best finish was actually with a single needle doing a fancy stitch, but I didn’t feel it looked very professional and wasn’t carried through to the cardigan.

I don’t have samples - or rather I do and can’t remember which was which! None was satisfactory.

I bought a second bobbin case as I didn't want to start adjusting the one I had in case I had problems getting it back to where it was.

Before I changed the settings on my new bobbin case, I marked the starting point with permanent ink. I thought I had loosened it a lot - around one and a half full turns - and didn't see any difference. I decided to look at my original machine bobbin case to see how it looked in comparison - and found a crack in the spring where the screw gets loosened/tightened. I was most concerned about this - and wondered whether this was the cause of all the buttonhole problems I’ve been having. I had found that even on free areas where there should be no problem with the buttonhole, the thread would start stitching all in one place and the foot would not move. Very difficult to unpick!

A trip to my dealer was called for. He’s relatively local but transport and parking costs are such that I had asked for the previous items to be posted to me as that worked out cheaper (another reason was to avoid seeing coverstitch machines!!)

I had, therefore, two reasons for visiting

1. The crack in the spring of my bobbin case and
2. Advice re twin needle sewing in order to avoid tunnelling 
3. Look at coverstitch machines (yes, I know that’s a third!!).

In order:

I took the offending item to my dealer who agreed the crack was a problem and could possibly be part of the reason I've been having so many problems with buttonholes. He replaced it for me from another case he had available as this is classified as a consumable item and not replaceable under warranty as he found when he was trying to get a replacement under warranty  - my machine has a 7 year warranty.

I didn’t take my machine with me - the Bernina 750 QE just isn’t one you carry around unless you really have to!  At this stage, I’m not sure whether the bobbin tension is okay for normal use as I’ve still to try that. 

I assumed that there would be a machine in the shop on which he could demonstrate the twin needle sewing (I had taken my fabric, twin needle etc). However, as mentioned before, he phoned head office for advice and loosened my spare bobbin case a lot more than I had. I have yet to try that.

Coverstitch machine

My dealers (a family business now with two brothers) had previously recommended the Janome CoverPro 2000cpx; they said it was an easy recommendation and an easy choice. I have 3 friends who advised against Janome; 2 of them have BabyLocks, the other has a Juki but none live near me (one in Canada and two on the south coast). They were recommending that I get a Juki as the BabyLock, although great, is rather pricey, to say the least. I trust their views.  My dealer actually sells all of the brands I was looking at - Juki, BabyLock, Brother and Janome but not all are kept in stock or are available for testing.

I couldn’t trace a Juki dealer with the coverstitch machine available for testing - apart from the dealer my southern friends used. I phoned lots of Juki dealers whom I could conceivably visit. Cost wasn't a key issue or certainly not for David though I was thinking of price per use to some extent. The Janome is just over a third of the price of a BabyLock, with the Juki sitting in between. I felt the Juki was where I wanted to aim - if, indeed, I went for one. I was unable to visit the Knitting and Stitching Show (end Feb/beg March) and can’t visit the Sewing for Pleasure Show (mid March - this weekend coming, in fact)

When I was in the shop, I asked about the Juki and BabyLock coverstitch machines. Of course I did!! John could get both machines in for me. Despite being a Juki dealer, he didn't tend to run with the Juki due to few sales of it. It's a small dealership. He was recommending the Juki over the BabyLock because of easier and faster access to accessories and parts. He said they had sold lots of the Janome machines and had not had any problems. He would have recommended that but felt I might not be happy with it having heard some reports about skipped stitches from my friends.

He took the Janome off the shelf and demonstrated it. He used my fabric and it hemmed it beautifully. The hem was very stretchy and I could not find fault with it. The machine sounded nice, threading was straightforward, it had a bigger throat space and a free arm. Most importantly, it was being recommended by a dealer I trust and who is local. I could've seen the others elsewhere but would not have wanted to buy from elsewhere so this isn't really fair. I most definitely wanted to buy locally. In the UK prices are the same everywhere so there is no advantage to going elsewhere based on price and certainly not when you consider transport and access to a local dealer.

David has wanted to buy me a coverstitch machine for a while and I have said no. I don’t sew that much stretch fabric, though it is increasing tbh. I thought of the space it would take up - of the cost per use - of the learning curve.

Update - I am now the proud owner of a coverstitch machine. I have a bit of a learning curve ahead of me. I'm not too sure how to adjust sewing order etc to take account of using a coverstitcher.

I bought the Janome. I am happy with it. I have also been in virtual contact with others who love theirs too. 

I had read only positive comments about the Juki and the BabyLock. It seemed that the Janome was a bit of a Marmite machine! I joined a Coverstitch FB group and watched a number of videos, some specifically for my machine and read articles of a slightly more technical nature on coverstitching.com (written by the main administrator of the Coverstitch group- Hilde). I discovered that many of the people who had said they were getting slipped stitches had not threaded their machine properly! This is of course crucial, as is using the correct needles, adjusting tensions for the fabric used etc. Now, I’m an instruction book reader - you guessed that, I’m sure! However, I do better having things demonstrated as I don’t always follow the little diagrams in the manuals. I had misthreaded my machine! I had missed an important part of the thread path of my looper. I thought I had threaded, but it hadn't caught - and it seems that some others asking questions or commenting on the videos (The Last Stitch) had done the same. It’s not the most obvious thing - and I found it difficult to get the thread to catch behind the hook, though now that I know how to do it, it should be easier (it was!). I made the previous samples and adjustments before I discovered this so they needed to be redone.

That pesky tank

My first try at hemming the tank with the coverstitcher wasn’t successful.  My hem, having had the overlocking cut off, was rather narrow in places such that some areas were a single layer of fabric and others double, with some borderline. That is, the hem was raggy with an uneven allowance. In coverstitching, the hem really needs to be even. There was a bit of tunnelling with the narrow coverstitch at those single fabric points, only (but see above  - I had misthreaded the machine) - I read about the technical reason for this and how to adjust the machine (altering the tension in the one needle off the fabric, though I didn't need to do that). On a properly turned hem, there would be no problem. On the positive side, I got to find out first hand how easy it is to remove the coverstitch, except at those places with the minor tunnelling.

The triple needle looked great but I decided that wasn’t what I wanted for this tank. Oh, I used a matching thread to the cardigan, a pinky cream - I bought 4 cones of this thread in Dewsbury Market on Wednesday past. The inside of the tank and the cardigan are overlocked in dark grey.

Narrow two needle coverstitch on neckline

Narrow two needle coverstitch on hemline

After a lot of thinking about how to do the hem on the tank, I decided that I wasn’t going to add a facing or a bias strip, which I had considered as this would maintain the length yet allow an even hem allowance. I decided to even up the hem even though that meant shortening it further. Overall it’s probably ½” shorter.

Tonight (Saturday) I successfully modified the hem fold and - yes - coverstitched the hem with the narrow two needle setting. No problems. I had tested tensions etc on spare fabric.

I unfolded the bias strips on the armholes and coverstitched them too.

Flushed with success, I coverstitched around the neckline, without unfolding the band. I'm not sure if this was sensible - but it worked!

Inside the neckline

This all went well.

I used the narrow two needle stitching throughout though realise that I could have used the wide needle two needle version. My machine does have three needles.

I tried on the tank and am afraid it’s not the most attractive item I have! David said it’s too baggy - and he’s right. I think this is partly because I’ve lost a stone in weight since I started making it! But only partly. It’s also a bit shapeless and boxy - I definitely need more waist shaping. Considering I started with two sizes smaller than recommended for my sizes AND took 2” out of the back, I find this surprising and certainly wouldn't recommend the pattern and won’t be making it again. However, worn with the cardigan, it’s fine. I won't be wearing it on its own.

Rather cropped and boxy for my liking#Not another loose thread in the photo - how come I don't see them in time?

I might have lost a stone but it sure ain't from my rear!!
The tank looks lopsided here but I think it's too wide at the shoulders and across the back despite my changes

So I have another twin set. I love them, as I’m sure you’ve realised by now! At least I love these ones. I'm putting this forward as my entry to the GBSB Sewalong - not because I think it's great but simply because it's finished, and in the correct timescale. Although I started previously, it has been finished today, in the week of the sewalong which is the important thing. It's finished and it's wearable. Another UFO off my books.

Another twin set

Noting else to say!

Back view of cardigan

I like the coverstitch machine too. I will get around to constructing something in the best way for optimum use of my overlocker and coverstitcher. I've pre-ordered a book on coverstitching Master the Coverstitch Machine: The complete coverstitch sewing guide which comes out on Monday 18 March - less now. It's written by Johanna Lundström,  who also authors the Last Stitch blog and videos. I'm hoping this will help me master the machine.

Update - new version of Blackwood Cardigan from Helen's Closet is being released next week

I tested the new version of the Blackwood cardigan earlier in the month. The pattern was now in number size ranges rather than S - M - L etc and now going to size 30. In addition, there was a choice of cup sizes B or D.

I of course sewed the tester version (and was delighted with it) but there are a couple of tweaks following tester comment. So my version is not the current, new one. I sewed between an 18 D on top and 24 at the hips. I was pleased to see that in the new version there will be a little extra room in the sleeves, which is something I planned to change in a future version.

I won't go into any more details as the pattern will be getting released on Monday coming, 28 January. It will be available free of charge in both B and D versions to all previous purchasers.

As a tester, I received the new pattern today (but as a previous purchaser would have had it updated, in any case). I downloaded and am going to check to see the differences in comparison to my own pattern corrected for fit. As I mentioned previously, I was going to shorten sleeves - I think longer sleeves is a young uns thing as well as provide a touch extra room in the sleeve.

You may have noticed that Helen undertook a size survey and received a lot of responses - she has posted the results of the survey on her website.

Tester version

I will add, for the sake of completeness, that I received the test pattern free of charge and was not required to post about it. I am not affiliated to Helen's Closet and all views are my own.

Tester version of extended size range Blackwood Cardigan

I really liked the versions of the Blackwood cardigan I made in March 2018. I intended to make another but the fabric I bought specifically for it was distinctly off-grain. At sewing bee, however, Rory showed me how to correct this; she thought I'd be able to use it okay. I didn’t get around to making the cardigan after trying the correction and the fabric was left languishing.

Then, late last year, I got the opportunity to test Helen’s new draft Blackwood cardigan, which will come in an expanded size range and in a D cup as well as the original B cup. She asked for testers and I responded. The testing ran from 4th to 14th January, though I had to get mine done earlier as I was going away for a long weekend. I believe the final pattern could be released as early as the end of this month, after all the tester input is analysed

Completed tester version

I bought new fabric and prepped it but the pattern made my eyes cross so at the end of the day, I used that original fabric, that had been off-grain but which had now been corrected with varying degrees of success. I had cut the pieces into appropriate Blackwood cardigan sized pieces prior to treating.

I chose my size. Although I am ‘officially’ only a B cup by the way patterns including this one calculate this, I can’t get along with that and nearly always have to do a full bust adjustment. I just don't think that this particular measurement can take your particular body shape into account. Indeed, on the previous two Blackwoods I made, I had done a ‘cheater’ FBA and a full biceps adjustment as well as lengthening the short cardigan by 3 inches.

Previous version

Previous version

Previous version

I felt that there were two things I would change from the first time.  The first was that the sleeves were a bit tight when a sleeved tee was underneath.  The matching ‘twinset’ top caused a very distinct VSL  - visible sleeve line - but that fabric is fairly bulky.

This time, I decided to make the 18D at the shoulders; 20D at the bottom of the armscye and grading out to a 24D at the hip. I am an ‘8’ shape - which is a bit like a pear but with a high and full upper hip, which is much the same size as the full hip. My hip starting as high as it does often causes problems. In RTW, skirts and trousers are too tight at this point, even when the waist is loose and the hip fits lower down. I also made the size 20 sleeve.

Trimming PDF sheets

All taped together, thank goodness

There was a comprehensive size chart which helped greatly choosing a size and Helen was on hand to help, too.

What a lot of waste!  I'm seriously considering using a copy shop!

I chose to do an unaltered short version - that is without any alteration for length. I realised this was risky as I’m 5’ 11” and the pattern is designed for 5’ 5”. However, I thought it was better to test without changes - and looking at the finished measurements,  I thought the pattern was long enough (and I also felt my original was a little longer than I wanted). I did the grading as mentioned above but did not make any design changes.

I could not use the recommended cutting layout.  Firstly,  my fabric was in sections.  Secondly,  I cut a full back pattern piece and cut everything single layer, which I prefer to do anyway, to make sure everything was in line. This took a little longer.

Creating a full size back piece (onluy piece I needed to do this with)

Laying out single layer

The instructions are very good and I had no problem following them to construct the cardigan.  I used my sewing machine with a narrow zigzag stitch as I didn't want to overlock until I had tested the fit.  I saw this cardigan as a toile. All marks lined up where they should and construction was very straightforward.  The only thing is that the process is pretty advanced by the time it's possible to really test for size. 

Trying for fit - before bottom band or hem bands

Trying for fit - before bottom band or hem bands

Trying for fit - before bottom band or hem bands

I decided that the fit appeared okay even with the larger 24 hip and continued to completion. The last instruction is to topstitch the band using a zigzag stitch. My fabric and foot combination wouldn't cooperate so I used a straight stitch which should be fine as there is no strain there.

 

Completed

I like this cardigan a lot - and more than my previous versions,  I have more cover at the front with no need for full bust adjustment and the sleeves are looser with no need for biceps adjustment.

I've worn this cardigan a lot since I made it. This is a test version of the pattern and I don't know how the pattern will change as a result of tester feedback.

The cardigan inside was unfinished. I didn't use my overlocker as this was a toile. However, it worked out so well that I was wishing I had finished the seam allowances. I thought about it, wondering whether it was worth redoing the seams and finishing the seam edges. I was all set to do it when I had second thoughts. I’ll save this for the next version. There will be a next version.

On wearing,  I found there were things I'd consider changing in a future version, purely for personal preference. I’d alter the length of body (longer) and the sleeves (shorter) and add some waist shaping. I decided to make these variations on the pattern, with a view to making another with the fabric I bought for it in the near future.  

The changes I made to the pattern:

• I lengthened the body by 4.7cms; some feel the current length is good for me so maybe I didn’t need to do this or at least not by quite as much
• I shortened the sleeve by the same; mind you, I did find the longer length kept my hands warmer! I do get very cold hands. On other occasions, I found them a little annoying – not my style, really.
• I widened the biceps area slightly by simply drawing out the seam edge in a curve, matching both sides of the sleeve to allow a tee sleeve to fit under it without VSL. I'm not sure this is really necessary as I've been wearing sleeved tees under the test cardigan without problem but on my previous version, with a matching sleeve underneath this was an issue – but that fabric is bulkier than regular tees.
• I marked the  waist position and added some shaping - about 1.5 cms, matching  back and front.
• In order to have a smooth curve, the hip is slightly narrower than previously.

These are all for personal preference.

All done! Ready to continue on return from my long weekend. Looking forward to it. I had considered entering the Pattern Review Sewing Bee. This time around, for Round 1 (11 – 19 January) the task is to make a knit fabric cardigan (but not knit it) with a ‘living coral’ theme (Living Coral is Pantone’s Colour of the Year). At first, I thought, great, I can do another Blackwood cardigan. The theme needn’t be literal - I’m not keen on the colour coral, but rather can portray memories, feelings and experiences evoked. I considered a blue cardigan (love blue) with some embroidered coral and fish patterns (practice machine embroidery) – then I thought, come on, this isn’t your style! So, I won’t be doing that. In any case, I didn’t have the correct fabric and time is limited since I’m just back home (15 January). I’m looking forward to seeing the ideas that are put forward in the entries; I always realise when I see these that I don’t have a greatly imaginative designer’s mind! That’s fine, though.