Vogue 1644, Kathryn Brenne

 

My husband's first words? " That will be great for going to lunch with the girls." I tend to agree. In the picture it looks rather tweedy and heavy but in all honesty this is one layer of pretty normal cotton, just a step above quilting cotton. I did not underline it or line except in the sleeves. I do think it desperately needs a big flower or pin or scarf as it is so nondescript but that's OK.  It went together quickly and the pattern definitely has finesse. With the princess seams and center back seam, Kathryn Brenne did not fail to take advantage and add in subtle shaping wherever she had the opportunity. She did add Dior darts to the  princess seams which I mindlessly sewed, never thinking to adjust them to my bust level. Luckily,  they pretty much camouflaged out and they did land in an area where I go narrow and do my petite adjustment so their placement didn't seem to make a big difference fitwise and the fabric texture and design hid the fact that I screwed that up. That and another bit of stupidity would have you thinking I was under the influence but in the end it all came out OK. I do love the fabric. Now for some details. 

Pattern:

This is Vogue 1644,  a Kathryn Brenne design. I do favor her designs. 

Vogue still appears to be holding on to it's pattern descriptions, thankfully,  and it says" Fitted jacket...unlined and has button trim with snap closures." You didn't need a masters in Literature to write that description. I would add that this design has armscye princess seams front and back and Dior darts on the center front.  The sleeve is two piece.  It is rather straight cut but I think it is fine. Others who have made it have said it was too full. I found it just right but I altered it to turn up a couple of inches and appreciated the fullness. I found these directions quite clear and logical and the only thing that took some fiddling was the eventual placement of bias strip on the back neckline. I went with it but would have done it a bit differently the second time around for a bit less bulk but it really was not a big deal. 

Fabric:

This is another Sevenberry fabric marketed by Kaufman.  It reads black from a distance but really is navy. You can get it thru quilting shops and online. It is heavier than quilting fabric and has the texture and weight of a light to midweight linen. Sevenberry markets it as a canvas, but maybe in Japan, where it comes from. It would not pass for canvas here. That may be a translation issue.  I really like this fabric and am wearing pants made with it as I sit here and type. They tend not to hold on to wrinkles like most cottons and that goes for a jacket that is not underlined.

                         

I did do Honk Kong seams as well with a colorful leftover poly blouse weight . It's the gift that keeps on giving and I have used it for so many HK seams. When you consider that most lengths in blouses are fairly short, it makes sense to keep your lightweight scraps for just this purpose. Sometimes I will actually cut them up into bias strips an inch or so wide and wind them on empty thread spools. Then they are at the ready for HK seams when needed. 

Construction:

This is a pretty basic top and would be good for a beginner to stretch their legs on. There is a lot of fitting opportunity here with the princess seams, Dior darts and two piece sleeves. Just remember to check where the Dior dart lands when and if you move your bust point. 

Not the greatest back view but the best I came up with all alone today. It does give you an idea of the subtle shaping to all those seams. I do believe on the next version I will pull in the shoulders and hips a bit. I always cut my hips larger but now see I need to do a ten instead of the usual 12. The rest of this garment is a 6.  I did a three inch hem on the sleeves so I could fold them up, the way I like them.  I also cut the hem off about three inches as well. The scale is close to the same look as that of the model on the envelope but  I did a deep hem on the jacket as well. I wanted that weight to help pull down that light weight cotton fabric.

Above is my big faux pas but you really can't tell. I always make sample stitchouts before I start a new project, auditioning thread, stitch lengths, tensions, etc. I grabbed what seemed like a small pile of scraps from my cutting  table and brought them to the machine for try outs. I stitched away and made my final decisions.  Time to start! Well, when I got to the part when I had to sew the side princess panel to the center front panel the first one went in just great. Where is the second princess side piece? I went crazy looking for it. Then I realized I had zipped it thru my serger over and over to test out the stitching. It was in serged shreds. Now what? I did not have a piece on grain and long enough to cut another. You can see how critical the grain is here. But I did find two pieces that would be big enough to put together and make the whole side panel. How about if I make it look like they are connected by a welt pocket? Well, I did just that and it's crazy but you can barely see the welt pocket but it's there. Saved by the welt. 

The pattern calls for 1 1/4 inch buttons, 3, down the front and snaps underneath. I decided on covered buttons and explained how I went about doing that on this blogpost. These were big snaps and they worked out well.  Reflection makes it look otherwise, but they are all square and placed on the diagonal, easy to sew. 

A peak at the inside shows the Hong Kong seams and deep hem and snaps. The princess seams were stitched and serged, no HK seams. That would have been too bulky.

Here you can see that little Dior dart higher than it should be and the larger  concave shape of the princess seam wrinkling up to fit into the convex shape of the opposing seam. This is why you don't do the HK seam on the princess seam.  This serged seam lies much flatter. 

In Conclusion:

* I will bring the shoulders and hips in just a bit the next time. 

* I will remember to lower the Dior dart next time.  

* I might underline the sleeves as opposed to lining them. I think I would underline         the whole jacket while I am at it. 

* I like the deep hem and cuffs. 

* I will style this to have some vibrant color, SOMEWHERE, PLEASE.

! I would not do buttons as big as specified but go with a one inch and probably a bound buttonhole instead. 

! I will handle the back neckline with a slimmer HK seam finish next time. 

There really is not much to be displeased about with this pattern.  I would definitely recommend. I just have to find a mask, a restaurant that has enough help to be open at lunchtime (unlike my last visit with a friend where it took 3 tries to get lunch) and some girlfriends.  I think I can look a bit "ladies who lunch" as Hubs said ;)   ............................Bunny