Getting Back on that Horse

After boo-hooing for a while over the stoopid frickin' self-induced hole in my pants, I picked myself up, dusted myself off, and started on the muslin for my McCalls dress. I'm going to make it using the same plaid Loro Piana fabric as the stoopid frickin'  doomed pants, so I will wear it and get great enjoyment from it, despite my previous efforts. And thank you to all who gave me suggestions for what to do with it. The best was to burn it, but I hate the smell of burning wool, so I'll pass. Lah dee dah, life is grand and I'm all that and a big bag of stoopid frickin' chips!

No, seriously, thanks to all of you for your support and tea and sympathy. I decided that the best way to get over my mistake was to get right into the muslin for this dress. I made just the bodice muslin since the flat pattern measurements on the skirt seem right on for me. And I found a couple of interesting things about this pattern so far.

The pattern is specifically drafted with different pieces for B, C and D cups. Normally on a princess line bodice that's drafted for a B-cup, when I do a FBA, I need to lower the bust point as well as add to the pattern pieces. On this pattern, I don't need to; it's already factored into the draft, which was  a nice surprise. Second thing to note is that the neckline on this baby is wide, both in the front and in the back. For most wearers, I recommend putting lingerie stays in so you don't end up slipping it off your shoulders. You can buy them from Banasch's or you can easily make your own.

The third change that I'll need to make is to the sleeves. If you look at the line drawing, you'll see that the pattern has both a 3/4 length sleeve and a cap sleeve. It's clearly drafted for the cap sleeve. The 3/4 sleeve (which is what I plan to use) was obviously an afterthought. I say that because McCalls uses the same armhole for both versions. The cap sleeve version has a lined opening below the bottom of the sleeve, so you can freely move your arm. Unfortunately, they drafted the sleeve to fit that hole. So the armhole is low and restricts movement. Also, the sleeve is tapered so it is fine at the bicep (for me anyway), but very narrow at the opening. So I have to raise the armhole so I can move my sleeve, and I will add between 3/8" and 1/2" at the sleeve end so it doesn't cut off circulation in my lower arm when I bend my elbow. I should add here that I don't have very big forearms. This is one of the very few times I have ever run into this problem.

I'll do one more muslin to test the changes, then I'll cut into my fabric. More to come!

Happy sewing!