| We are grateful to everyone who has shared
these suggestions for success with Folkwear patterns.
#101 Gaza Dress
Liz from British Columbia, Canada, who has made this pattern in everything
from silk to fleece, shares this modified construction sequence that
she devised to make it easier to sew the dress on a serger and so the
dress can be painted or appliquéd as a whole:
1. Do not stitch shoulder seams or tops of sleeves, as directed in Step
One of the pattern.
2. Stitch Front Side Panels to Mid Side Panels, as directed in Step
One of the pattern.
3. Stitch Mid Side Panels to Back Side Panels, as directed in Step One
of the pattern.
4. Stitch underarm Sleeve seams to notch 4, as directed in Step Three
of the pattern.
5. With right sides together, pin and stitch combined Side Panels to
Sleeves, matching notch 4 at center of Mid Side Panel to notch 4 on
Sleeves, as directed in Step Three of the pattern.
6. Stitch Side Panels and Sleeves to Front, as directed in Step Four
of the pattern. Then stitch to only one seam on the Back. At this point,
the whole dress can be laid out flat and painted or decorated as desired.
7. Stitch final Back seam.
8. Stitch shoulders and top seams of sleeves from neck edge to wrist.
9. Apply Yokes, as directed in Step Two of original pattern. Liz has
also modified the pattern to insert a front zipper, for ease of dressing.
#107 Afghani Nomad Dress
Many of you have voted for an up-sizing of this popular pattern, but
because it is composed mostly of rectangles it is easy to up-size
it
on your own. Open
up the attached file for hints and help (pdf).
#116 Shirts of Russia & Ukraine
Jaye shares her speedy method of cutting out the Front A/Back B pattern piece:
Start by folding the selected fabric in half lengthwise (with selvages matching)
to form a long piece of material that is 22-23" wide (if using 45" fabric).
Then fold in half crosswise, so that if you started with a 2-yard length of
material, you now have a 1-yard piece that is four layers thick and 22-23" wide.
Then fold the Shirt Front/Back pattern piece in half lengthwise (matching side
edges), and in half again crosswise along the shoulder. Place the shoulder fold
of the pattern piece along the crosswise fold of the fabric; align the lengthwise
fold of the pattern piece along the double folds running the length of the material.
Pin in place and cut. When you open it up, you can then place the material on
the pattern piece to transfer neck opening and other markings.
Try it in paper first to see how easy it is. Jaye finds this method faster and
less hassle than trying to cut one large piece of fabric one layer thick. In
fact, she has made a tracing of the pattern in its folded form and uses that
instead of the whole pattern piece when cutting.
Note that this technique works great for fabrics that do not have a nap or one-way
directional design, as recommended by the pattern. You will have to make adjustments
to a napped or one-way fabric before cutting, so the design matches from front
to back.
#118 Tibetan Panel Coat
Kelley Dean-Crowley of Martinez, California says that fabric choice
is very important: "I made mine with silks and brocades, and wound
up with a very dramatic garment that I hardly wear even though I love
it. My next version will be made with more casual fabrics." Also,
she suggests arranging the cut-out pattern pieces in assembly order
on the floor (e.g. lay the side front next to the front), to make sure
that you will sew them together in the right order.
#129 Japanese Hapi and Haori
Note that the hem edge curves slightly downward in the front and hangs
nearly 2" longer at center front than center back. Some of the
drawings show the front hem to be straight across, but this is not accurate.
#133 Belgian Military Chef's Jacket
In Step One: Preliminary Construction, the second thing you do is stitch
the Side Back pieces to the assembled Back. Note that the drawing
is correct (Side Back pieces are labeled "C"), but the
text is wrong (Side Back pieces are labeled "D"). The next
thing you do is stitch the Side Front Pieces to the assembled Back/Side
Back. Note that the drawing is correct (Side Front pieces are labeled "D"),
but the text is wrong (Side Front pieces are labeled "C").
#151 Japanese Hakama and Kataginu
Fran S. from Canada recently completed the hakama, which she says got
a nice reception at her dojo, and offers these helpful hints: It
should appear that there are five, not six, pleats in the front of
the hakama (for the five virtues, which are benevolence, justice,
courtesy or propriety, integrity and wisdom), so make sure the overlapping
pleats at center front overlap enough so they don't pull apart; she
suggests a little more than the 3/4" in
the pattern, especially if you use a heavy fabric. Also, make sure
the back himo are long enough; she suggests they should be 3/4 the
length of the front himo rather than the 1/2 as directed in the pattern.
Fran also recommends Supertex for the backboard stiffener. It is
a bookbinding board/leather mix used in handbags and luggage that
offers "just
the right combination of stiffness and flexibility." She says
it comes in different weights, but is not washable.
#202 Victorian Shirt
Traditional shirts of this period featured neckbands with buttonholes
to attach detachable collars. With a simple change from everyday
collar to dress collar, a Victorian gentleman could wear the same
shirt to different functions. Our pattern includes the Neckband piece,
but does not have patterns for different styles of detachable collars.
Ready-made Victorian collars can be purchased from Folkwear dealer
Amazon Dry Goods (www.amazondrygoods.com or 1-800-798-7979).
#215 Empire Dress
Linda of Pine City, Minnesota, says this dress is popular with the Fur
Trade reenactment crowd and she has made it several times. She says,
"Some of us have a devil of a time putting together the little
pieces that go around the armhole. The pattern markings are critical,
and you should use tailor's tacks and position them carefully. I also
suggest that you clearly mark the wrong side of each of the little pieces
if your fabric's right and wrong sides are similar."
#220 Garden Party Dress
Step 4 Skirt, on top of page 3: To reinforce the lower edge of
the placket, stitch diagonally across the bottom of the placket only
(keeping skirt free).
Step 5 Sleeves and Finishing, on page 3: It can be easier to
attach the cuff to the sleeve while working flat, so:
1. Attach Cuff Facing to Cuff along unnotched edge first, before
stitching underarm seam of Sleeve.
2. Attach Cuff to lower edge of Sleeve, gathering sleeve as instructed
to fit Cuff (do not gather Sleeve underarm seam allowances).
3. Then sew underarm seam of Sleeve from armhole, across Cuff and
Cuff Facing. Press seam open.
4. Turn Cuff Facing to inside and slipstitch to Cuff.
#238 Le Smoking Jacket
Philip Kime of Edinburgh, Scotland, says: "It is difficult to achieve
neatly quilted cuffs and lapels if using the traditional satin contrast
material (View B), because the satin moves around a lot and wrinkles
easily. Even if you baste the edges and use a walking foot, it is very
hard to do neatly. A good way to achieve perfect results is to glue-baste
the flannel and contrast material together using spray fabric glue.
When you have finished, the quilting will feel a bit stiff because of
the glue. Simply soak the pieces in cold water and handwashing liquid
for a few hours, rinse well, squeeze and dry flat. If you use fabric
glue, you won't need to cut the pattern pieces 1" larger as directed
in the instructions, because there will be no bunching to take up the
extra 1".
#239 Blonde Bombshell
Note from a Folkwear dealer: Stitch in a strip of clear elastic along
the bodice side seam at the bust to keep the bodice from gapping open
at the sides.
Rebecca, from Winter Springs, Florida, found a different solution
to gapping at the sides. She cut smaller size bust pieces, adjusted
the gathers, and extended the halter straps to criss-cross in the back
and get stitched in at the waist. She says this gives her more confidence
when wearing and the dress fits perfectly.
#240 Rosie the Riveter
The shirt in this pattern has quite a lot of wearing ease built into it, to provide
plenty of moving-around room for the women on the factory assembly lines of
the 1940s. You may not need such a roomy garment, so you might want to cut
one size smaller than you usually would. Before you cut, pin the front, back,
and yoke tissue pieces together along the side and shoulder seams. Fold under
the center front along the self-facing line and carefully try on this half-body
tissue sample to get an idea of the fit. Even better, make a quick muslin test
of the whole pattern to be sure which size will be best for you.
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