Friday, September 12, 2008

Simplicity 3690 - Cropped brown vest

I'm jumping on the fall vest bandwagon with this one. After 3 weeks on that black dress, I chose something in my stash that I knew I could sew up quickly. But I can't leave anything too simple, so I added brown piping to the whole thing. Some of you might have a lovely device known as a piping foot. I am not so fortunate. I have a very basic machine that I'll get around to upgrading one of these days. Anyway, all this piping just about gave me carpel tunnel in my left wrist. Ouch! I like the end result, though.

Now I did not measure the pattern myself nor make a muslin. Gasp! The measurement they give is just plain wrong. A size 10 is suppose to have a finished bust measurement of 36 1/2". This turned out way smaller. I had to move the buttons as far over as possible and it's still pretty snug. Not uncomfortable, though. I couldn't let the side seams out with all that piping I wasn't willing to redo. I'm living with the snugness. I had a little gaping problem between the first and second button that I took care of with two snaps.

Here you can see where I tapered the piping under the arm and at the side. I had to think about sequencing here again because it has a full lining and I like neat insides.



I also like the longer vest on this pattern with a long necklace. The shorts are nice as well, although I'm not sure cuffs at the thigh will be very flattering on me.

6 comments:

  1. Super cute vest! I don't have a piping foot either, so I just used my zipper foot and moved the needle as far over as possible. Worked great, so you should try that out next time, and skip the carpal tunnel! Love the corduroy, and the buttons give a retro/vintage vibe. Well done (as usual)!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey! What' your email, I'll fill you in on the expo thing... hope you're getting through Ike okay.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kristine,
    I was super excited about your suggestion to move the needle over, but I'm telling you this machine is SO BASIC! It moves to the left but not the right. Ike has changed course and here in San Antonio we only have a 50% chance of rain tomorrow. The storm is moving to the north of Houston up to Dallas.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love the vest. I have been thinking of making one this Fall. Hey--thanks for the knitting suggestions. I will check out the book! I am trying to find a new project--my daughter wants a shrug!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Your piping looks great! I love the vest.
    I was looking at vest patterns yesterday thinking I'd make one myself. I like the pattern you chose. I wonder if Simplicity patterns are still on sale today...

    ReplyDelete