I want a flight suit!

 

Isn't this flight suit fabulous? I am truly tempted to make it. It is the first one I have seen since the jump suit revival set upon us that I would like to make. I might scale down those wide legs a bit and for sure those pockets but I just love it! I must admit, I never heard of designer Christian Aujard,  envelope blurb says his feminine clothing can be found from Toulouse to Toronto! Well, Christian, I like the way you think.  But there are other things about this pattern that are quite relevant today that deserve current discussion. Let's open it up and see what's inside. 

It is an old pattern, no date anywhere. It is a size 12 only. It actually looks pretty simple, not too many pieces. Any guesses on the date? No shoulder pads required for this at all. How about these instructions?

Read it again. When is the last time you saw such simplicity, clarity and actual instruction so well given on a  Big Four Pattern?  It cuts right to the chase, makes it clear as can be and even makes sure you get the wrinkles out of the pattern before you cut!!! How many patterns have you seen  cut online that are not ironed? If only they were lottery tickets in my wallet for tonight! Let's look  a bit further. There are few instructions.. You don't need too many when things are this clear. 

Love this one. Think of today's instructions sheets with all that stuff on the first page.  Now if you are a sewist since your teens or before and have decades under your belt of stitching, think of how you independently sat at the machine or cut out on the kitchen table or floor of your bedroom with these instructions and really no help unless you were really really stuck. You could pull it off. You had no you tube. You had brilliant, concise directions that anyone could figure out, even a 12 year old like myself and a generation of others. This is what taught many of us. It was rarely mysterious. Are  you having fun yet? I had a ball going thru this stash. Wait till you see the tissue!

This is one layer of tissue on my filthy ironing board. Do you see how meticulously the pattern owner cut out the pattern, WITH SCISSORS, outside every very thick black line? Do you see the number on the notches.? Every notch has a number to match with it's corresponding notch with the same number. Again, think of that young sewist working hard to get her dress made for her date. No mystery there matching up the seams. And do you see the notice I underlined in purple, letting you know there will be some blousing around the waistline in that area so not to worry? At this point, in my sewing dotage and dealing with our current offerings, I am just getting the vapors. Help me, please!

 Every single pattern piece, even the smallest, has a presser foot drawn on the stitching line and a scissor drawn on the cutting line. No mistakes there. Why are today's pattern designers holding hands of their customers with phone calls and emails and such? Just do it right from the get go and you will have a much easier life and a happier customer! 

It's alwasy in the details. The zipper, the amazing pockets. Check out this tissue.

You might want to click and  blow this one up. It's all there. Just stare at it. Take your time. And oh, don't forget, leather flight suits are a possibility so the directions are on the tissue if you need them! WTF????  

Life is always moving on but some things don't always get better. But we must adjust and adjust we do.

Above you see another pattern I played with. I've been diddling around with all my Vogue designer patterns and was surprised at how many I had and how many were vintage, not vintage mine but picked up by me as someone who appreciated them years later. These patterns are often close to tatters even though they may still be in "factory folds" and never opened or used. Today I took it upon myself to start mending some of the envelopes. If I have ruined their value for all eternity, let me know. I have basically reinforced the envelopes from the inside, not touching anything on the outside at all. They are much stronger for it. Here is how that Sybil Connolly pattern looks now and how I did it. 

The original had part of the envelope flap missing and the right hand side was full of rips and tatters. It's hard to tell because I had to lighten the pic so much. 

You will need scissors and a rotary cutter helps but not necessary, a glue stick, some freezer paper, and an iron. 

First, empty your pattern envelope. Put your iron on wool. NO STEAM OR WATER ANYWHERE.     Press your pattern  envelope nice and flat and pretty. 

For the sides and bottom of the pattern cut 2 inch strips of freezer paper. Fold the strips in half with the shiny side out. For the bottom of the envelope, cut a strip about 7 7/8 of an inch long. Make sure you have a sharp crease. Slip it into the empty envelope, shoving it into the bottom tightly. Make sure it fits smoothly all across the bottom and into the corners. It needs to fit in tightly. Press your bottom area of the envelope where the freezer paper is for a good 60 seconds or more until secure. Keep moving your iron. Don't hold  it in  place. Now cut strips a bit longer than the sides.

Do the same process with the sides, going all the way to the bottom and tight to the sides. Carefully cut with scissors, matching the top edge or where the edge should be.  Now all that is left is the flap. For that I cut a 3 inch by 8 inch piece of freezer paper. Check to see if it fits. You may have to shave it down a bit. No folding for the flap area. I just slid it into the envelope so that it stuck out maybe a 1/4 inch at the top. This reinforced the top of the envelope front and filled in any missing paper on the flap. It also went down into the envelope another inch and strengthened that.  Iron it on. My paper stuck a little to the ironing board but lifted right off while hot and peeled right off from the iron as well so no issues there. You can see the effect on both patterns I have shown you today. The flight suit was a real mess. Both patterns were cut. I made sure every  piece was there and they were. I even ironed each tissue piece and carefully folded them back in the envelope. For the cape pattern there were three items: the cape, the dress, and that wild and crazy hat. I separated out all the pieces for each garment and folded each one so the largest piece was on the outside containing all the other pieces and then they went back into the envelope. It was a rainy day and I really enjoyed doing it, what can I say, but I bet you understand. 

 Our cape maker gave up  on her project. She had a ton of pins in her pieces for the cape front but never cut out any of the other pieces. These things make you wonder. Was she just disgusted with the project? Or, like many of us, did a shinier object come down the pike and she just moved on? You have to wonder. 

I hope you have enjoyed this post. I have finished my tabard project, the one from the Thomas Kincaid throw. I like it a lot but it is wool for a great part and a warm garment. It has been near the 80s for the past week and horribly dank and humid. We are behind on our crispy and cool fall weather and its beautiful autumn leaves. As soon as that happens, I will don my tabard and some much cooler weather clothing and do a post on that project. My sis is coming down from Maine this week for a stay and we have big fabric shopping plans!!! Happy sewing!.....Bunny