Thursday, August 6, 2009

Progress.




I have finished my muslin for the Chanel jacket sew along. I detailed the process here - so won't bore you by going into details. I am so impressed by my sew along buddies though, one of them spent 100 hours on her last Chanel jacket. I'm in the midst of pros. Oh well, someone's got to lower the tone to keep it real. I volunteer myself.

My son wakes every morning between 5 and 5:30 but this morning it was a quarter to 5, which was particularly cruel, I thought. Anyway, when he went down for his sleep this afternoon I grabbed a bit of shut eye myself, and when I woke up, I thought, "cream buttons, cream piping, collared version, mid hip length." Three quarter length sleeve? Maybe.




You know why Chanel had so many patch pockets on her jackets? Because she was a stick insect. She probably never finished a meal in her life. Fortunately the amount of fabric available to me, and the position of the original pockets mean I can't add anything, which I feel can only be a good thing.

I can get the whole jacket out of TMB's jacket - my only real challenge was to find the fabric between "man no tits no butt jacket" and mine. That little strip under the arm is the difference between his chest/hip and mine. I can get it out of the inside facings, just.





There is barely a millimetre to spare, anywhere. Actually, in a few places there is going to be less than a millimeter to spare, like the original two button holes which will still be visible but non-operational. We'll call those bits "character" details.

7 comments:

  1. I'd say that is an amazing amount of progress. I'm feeling all kinds of inspired from a Chanel bio I'm reading right now, and so far she does seem stick insect-like. Hard to know for sure with those shapeless clothes (I'm still in the 1920's).

    I think I have decided on my pattern and it's a Simplicity Project Runway pattern. Certainly not what Coco Chanel had in mind, but hey, it's a close match to my inspiration jacket.

    Yours in keeping it real,
    Antoinette

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  2. Keep up the good work. I find refashioning always to be harder than I think it should be...turns out that there is not so much fabric difference between oversized and fitting nicely. I chuckled when I heard about those non-functioning details...little-miss-no-fake-welts! I have made a pair of pants that I am hardly game to post about, because they have fake pocket flaps...I just keep thinking...what would Mary Nanna think?

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  3. Frankly, my dear, I don't like adding patch pockets just so that I can look like I have boobs.

    I can always continue nursing... uhmmm, no.

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  4. Keeping it real! I'm with you on that! I am part-raysigway through making my first Chanel jacket to find - omg! it takes ages and I have done fake welt pockets, etc! I think you are doing a great job working out how to re-fashion that jacket. Loving reading your blog!

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  5. Just stopping by to oooh and aaah over your progress. I can never get enough detail, and since this is a refashion AND a Chanel inspired piece it's doubly fascinating. You're going to look fabulous at Play Centre!

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  6. Golly..I've found a pattern and am still thinking, thinking, thinking. You're way in front.

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  7. "We'll call those bits 'character' details" LOL!

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