My Stop on Nancy Zieman's "Blog Tour"...Plus Prize Give-Away!

Having been an avid fan for more years than I care to reveal, I was thrilled to be among the blog-writers asked to comment about Nancy Zieman's newest book...

As with everything Nancy has authored over the years, this new book is chock full of useful information, written in her usual delightfully descriptive way.  Beautifully clear illustrations and instructions describe each technique in precise detail...making this book a must-have "instruction source" for new sewists and a handy, very easy to use reference tool for those of us who are more experienced.

And Don't Miss This! 

Nancy Zieman has put together a Grand Prize Package Give-Away of various materials, from books to templates, pin cushions and piping, for one lucky reader (worth $450)

For a chance to win, leave a comment  HERE on Nancy’s Blog  (not my blog) via the facebook comment form here on Nancy’s Blog, and a winner will be chosen and announced on Nancy's Blog  at the end of the tour in a few days!  ...if you do not have a Facebook account, please email your comment to info@ziemanproductions.com 

Don't miss what these fine blog authors "on the tour" are saying about Nancy and her newest book...and about their own sewing endeavors (Good reading, all of them!)

16-Aug--  Eileen Roche's blog http://dzgns.com/blog/

17-Aug--  Sew Mama Sew http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/

18-Aug--  Diary of a Quilter http://www.diaryofaquilter.com/

20-Aug--  Amy's Creative Side http://amyscreativeside.com/

22-Aug--  Quiltville quiltville.blogspot.com/

23-Aug--  Crap I’ve Made http://www.crapivemade.com/

24-Aug--  Whipstitch http://whipstitchfabrics.com/blog/

25-Aug--  I'm Just a Guy Who Quilts ryanwalshquilts.com/

26-Aug--  The Free Motion Quilting Project freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/

27-Aug--  Sew Serendipity http://blog.sewserendipity.com/

29-Aug--  Lazy Girls Designs http://www.lazygirldesigns.com/blog/

30-Aug--  Pat Sloan Blog http://patsloan.typepad.com/

31-Aug--  Tallgrass Prairie Studio http://tallgrassprairiestudio.blogspot.com/

1-Sep--  True Up http://www.trueup.net/

2-Sep--  Sew News http://www.sewnews.com/blogs/sewing/

7-Sep--  V and Co. www.vanessachristenson.com/

8-Sep--  The Cottage Home www.thecottagehome.blogspot.com/

9-Sep--  Colette Patterns http://www.colettepatterns.com/blog/

Read More

My Stop on Nancy Zieman's "Blog Tour"...Plus Prize Give-Away!

Having been an avid fan for more years than I care to reveal, I was thrilled to be among the blog-writers asked to comment about Nancy Zieman's newest book...

As with everything Nancy has authored over the years, this new book is chock full of useful information, written in her usual delightfully descriptive way.  Beautifully clear illustrations and instructions describe each technique in precise detail...making this book a must-have "instruction source" for new sewists and a handy, very easy to use reference tool for those of us who are more experienced.

And Don't Miss This! 

Nancy Zieman has put together a Grand Prize Package Give-Away of various materials, from books to templates, pin cushions and piping, for one lucky reader (worth $450)

For a chance to win, just  leave a comment  HERE on Nancy’s Blog  via facebook comment, and a winner will be chosen and announced on Nancy's Blog  at the end of the tour in a few days!  ...if you do not have a Facebook account, please email your comment to info@ziemanproductions.com 

Don't miss what these fine blog authors "on the tour" are saying about Nancy and her newest book...and about their own sewing endeavors (Good reading, all of them!)

16-Aug--  Eileen Roche's blog http://dzgns.com/blog/

17-Aug--  Sew Mama Sew http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/

18-Aug--  Diary of a Quilter http://www.diaryofaquilter.com/

20-Aug--  Amy's Creative Side http://amyscreativeside.com/

22-Aug--  Quiltville quiltville.blogspot.com/

23-Aug--  Crap I’ve Made http://www.crapivemade.com/

24-Aug--  Whipstitch http://whipstitchfabrics.com/blog/

25-Aug--  I'm Just a Guy Who Quilts ryanwalshquilts.com/

26-Aug--  The Free Motion Quilting Project freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/

27-Aug--  Sew Serendipity http://blog.sewserendipity.com/

29-Aug--  Lazy Girls Designs http://www.lazygirldesigns.com/blog/

30-Aug--  Pat Sloan Blog http://patsloan.typepad.com/

31-Aug--  Tallgrass Prairie Studio http://tallgrassprairiestudio.blogspot.com/

1-Sep--  True Up http://www.trueup.net/

2-Sep--  Sew News http://www.sewnews.com/blogs/sewing/

7-Sep--  V and Co. www.vanessachristenson.com/

8-Sep--  The Cottage Home www.thecottagehome.blogspot.com/

9-Sep--  Colette Patterns http://www.colettepatterns.com/blog/

Read More

OH NO! A Shirt I will Never Sew, because...

 OOPS!  I totally misread Vogue 8759 pattern's online photos and diagrams!

You may now give me 10 lashes with a wet noodle...be gentle.

 And  I should know better...that's why I started drafting my own shirt patterns in the first place...sigh.

Once I had a chance to really examine this pattern up close and personal...well...there were some design details I was not expecting.  Not they are necessarily BAD details...just different than the way most mens shirts are drafted.

I compared V8759 to my own hand-drafted "slim-cut" shirt pattern with a shoulder-sleeve seam line that stops just a tiny bit below the arm/shoulder joint. This Vogue pattern has a longer shoulder seam..in other words, the sleeve will be more dropped than I prefer.

Then there is the yoke. At first glance in the online pattern catalog, it seemed to be fine..though I did notice that the front "yoke-drop" seemed a bit shallow...and that can be OK.   However, until I looked at the pattern closely and measured it.... I didn't realize that the yoke seam only drops a very scant 1/4" down into the front. In other words, like a ladies blouse, the shoulder-yoke seam on this men's shirt pattern will virtually ride right along the exact shoulder line, instead of dropping/sinking down into the front the way most mens shirts do.  Additionally, the overall width of the shirt body is larger than my hand-drafted "slim-cut" shirt, and also larger than other printed patterns in my stash.  I do realize that these are the decisions that the Vogue pattern designer made, and I respect that. But it is a look that I do not prefer.

The Vogue 8759 sleeves seem fine...narrow enough, and the armscye is as high as my own "slim-cut" draft. They are 2-piece, and the sleeve plackets are reminiscent of the way casual sport coat/blazer vents are drafted.

So...am I going to take the time and fabric to sew up a test garment of a pattern with style lines I do not like?

No.

Sure, I could re-draft the parts I do not like....but I already have slimmer-cut men's shirt patterns that I have drafted by hand...why take the time to change this one?

Should you use this pattern? 

It's up to you. It is not a "classic" men's shirt...and that's not a "bad" thing. But it is not as slim-cut as the envelope photos seem to show, and the yoke is not the "standard" angle or depth...and that may be fine with you. I know that my husband Roger would not like that yoke-shoulder seam as high as it is on this pattern...he is a classic-cut shirt kind of guy. I can design, draft, and sew a shirt with a narrow body for him, and add design details like funky pockets, angled seams, and even bias cut sleeve hem bands...but a yoke that rides that high on the shoulder?  For Roger?  No.   And I cannot use this pattern for my clients, because it is a commercial pattern (and besides, I really do not like that high shoulder).   Your man might be different...in fact he probably is!   Mine is very picky about yoke depths and things like that because he happens to be married to a classically trained Shirtmaker who has strong likes and dislikes..and opines about them often ;)

So while this pattern is not "horrible"...I am not happy with it, so I am not going to use my time to make it. And please remember...this is just my opinion, for what it's worth. Your opinion about these things are probably quite different than mine...as they should be...because we all have different tastes.

Read More

OH NO! A Shirt I will Never Sew, because...

 OOPS!  I totally misread Vogue 8759 pattern's online photos and diagrams!

You may now give me 10 lashes with a wet noodle...be gentle.

 And  I should know better...that's why I started drafting my own shirt patterns in the first place...sigh.

Once I had a chance to really examine this pattern up close and personal...well...there were some design details I was not expecting.  Not they are necessarily BAD details...just different than the way most mens shirts are drafted.

I compared V8759 to my own hand-drafted "slim-cut" shirt pattern with a shoulder-sleeve seam line that stops just a tiny bit below the arm/shoulder joint. This Vogue pattern has a longer shoulder seam..in other words, the sleeve will be more dropped than I prefer.

Then there is the yoke. At first glance in the online pattern catalog, it seemed to be fine..though I did notice that the front "yoke-drop" seemed a bit shallow...and that can be OK.   However, until I looked at the pattern closely and measured it.... I didn't realize that the yoke seam only drops a very scant 1/4" down into the front. In other words, like a ladies blouse, the shoulder-yoke seam on this men's shirt pattern will virtually ride right along the exact shoulder line, instead of dropping/sinking down into the front the way most mens shirts do.  Additionally, the overall width of the shirt body is larger than my hand-drafted "slim-cut" shirt, and also larger than other printed patterns in my stash.  I do realize that these are the decisions that the Vogue pattern designer made, and I respect that. But it is a look that I do not prefer.

The Vogue 8759 sleeves seem fine...narrow enough, and the armscye is as high as my own "slim-cut" draft. They are 2-piece, and the sleeve plackets are reminiscent of the way casual sport coat/blazer vents are drafted.

So...am I going to take the time and fabric to sew up a test garment of a pattern with style lines I do not like?

No.

Sure, I could re-draft the parts I do not like....but I already have slimmer-cut men's shirt patterns that I have drafted by hand...why take the time to change this one?

Should you use this pattern? 

It's up to you. It is not a "classic" men's shirt...and that's not a "bad" thing. But it is not as slim-cut as the envelope photos seem to show, and the yoke is not the "standard" angle or depth...and that may be fine with you. I know that my husband Roger would not like that yoke-shoulder seam as high as it is on this pattern...he is a classic-cut shirt kind of guy. I can design, draft, and sew a shirt with a narrow body for him, and add design details like funky pockets, angled seams, and even bias cut sleeve hem bands...but a yoke that rides that high on the shoulder?  For Roger?  No.   And I cannot use this pattern for my clients, because it is a commercial pattern (and besides, I really do not like that high shoulder).   Your man might be different...in fact he probably is!   Mine is very picky about yoke depths and things like that because he happens to be married to a classically trained Shirtmaker who has strong likes and dislikes..and opines about them often ;)

So while this pattern is not "horrible"...I am not happy with it, so I am not going to use my time to make it. And please remember...this is just my opinion, for what it's worth. Your opinion about these things are probably quite different than mine...as they should be...because we all have different tastes.

Read More

V8759...A New Vogue MEN's SHIRT Pattern !

I am so pleased that Vogue has decided to introduce a new mens shirt pattern!  And at first glance, it looks like a winner. I have ordered it, and will make it up as soon as it gets here...but in the meantime, here are my first impressions of Vogue 8759--

As a shirtmaker, the first things I noticed about this shirt are the slim sleeves, the over-all slim cut delivered by curved side seams, and shoulders that are not dropped.  That's the good news. But the design has alot of details going on in the back, and not much happening in the front (see line drawings below). That unbalance can be easily changed by adding another pocket, or adding a separate front button placket rather than the "French" front placket shown. Remember, that's just my opinion...many men prefer a very "clean" shirt front.

Here is the back view--

Details to notice are back seams instead of pleats, and that the back yoke appears neither too narrow or too wide. A yoke that is too narrow causes a shirt to ride-up in back when the wearer is seated, and a yoke that is too wide (deep) looks boxy gives a shirt a sloppy look.

Here are the pattern line drawings--

  

Something interesting to note is the back sleeve seam that incorporates the placket..here's a closer view--

I am going to reserve comment until I see how (or if) the inside of the placket is clean-finished.

So, as soon as the pattern arrives, I'll stitch it up and give you my thoughts along the way :)

Read More

V8759...A New Vogue MEN's SHIRT Pattern !

I am so pleased that Vogue has decided to introduce a new mens shirt pattern!  And at first glance, it looks like a winner. I have ordered it, and will make it up as soon as it gets here...but in the meantime, here are my first impressions of Vogue 8759--

As a shirtmaker, the first things I noticed about this shirt are the slim sleeves, the over-all slim cut delivered by curved side seams, and shoulders that are not dropped.  That's the good news. But the design has alot of details going on in the back, and not much happening in the front (see line drawings below). That unbalance can be easily changed by adding another pocket, or adding a separate front button placket rather than the "French" front placket shown. Remember, that's just my opinion...many men prefer a very "clean" shirt front.

Here is the back view--

Details to notice are back seams instead of pleats, and that the back yoke appears neither too narrow or too wide. A yoke that is too narrow causes a shirt to ride-up in back when the wearer is seated, and a yoke that is too wide (deep) looks boxy gives a shirt a sloppy look.

Here are the pattern line drawings--

  

Something interesting to note is the back sleeve seam that incorporates the placket..here's a closer view--

I am going to reserve comment until I see how (or if) the inside of the placket is clean-finished.

So, as soon as the pattern arrives, I'll stitch it up and give you my thoughts along the way :)

Read More

BE LINEN...a fascinating short film....

...with wonderfully beautiful photography that follows this amazing fiber

from field to fabric to fashion. I will never take linen for granted again.

BE LINEN MOVIE from Benoit MILLOT on Vimeo.

Read More