Pinning, Scissors, Cutting, Muslin Shell for Man's Shirt

I've been sewing for years, probably pretty sloppily, as I am
essentially self-taught and never read "how to" books because I get
bored too quickly. Given this, perhaps some of our professional
tailors and seamstresses can give me some advice.

First, pinning. What kind of pins do you use? How far apart are your
pins on the fabric? Corners? Notches? Curves?

Next, scissors. Tailoring scissors can be 10 inches long - I have
found if I cut the total length of the blade, my cutting is more
sloppy and has more jags in it than when I do short cuts, despite the
blade length. How do you folks cut? Do you find the closer you pin,
the neater your cuts?

What are your favorite brand / style of scissor, and why? I have
thought of purchasing the Kai professional tailoring scissors, which
have 10 inch blades, but given my short-for-success cuts, it seems
rather silly.

I am making my husband the 16 1/2 neck shirt, short sleeve version, of
Vogue 7954. He is about 6 feet tall. Looking at this pattern you can
see they pulled in the shirt to fit snuggly around the waist of the
models, probably pinning it in the back to take up the slack.
Comparing the shoulders of one of my husband's favorite shirts, the
shoulders are going to be about 2 inches broader than what he likes.
This is easy enough to adjust, but because I want to make a "master
pattern" I am sewing a muslin shell to use for pattern adjustments, so
I am cutting the pattern exactly as specified. The shirt seems quite
baggy as well compared to his favorite shirt.

So, a few questions about muslin shells. The shirt has a yoke - would
you make both pieces of the back yoke and sew it as directed to see
the fit more accurately? Would you interface the collar and the
neckband as well? (I did cut out 2 pieces for each, as directed.)
Would you put in the interfacing? Would you make the buttonholes and
put on the buttons as well? Any other hints or suggestions for a
successful shell and final pattern alterations would be much
appreciated.

Thanks so much!

Sami

Personally, I like the 7"-8" length of scissors the best and I used to use
Gingher's all the time, they were my absolute favorites. However, in 1996,
I was assaulted by a student and lost much of the use of my left wrist
(I do everything left-handed), and I have discovered the soft-grip Fiskars
work very well for me now.
As for pinning, I use as few as possible. If there is a long straight seam,
I use a rotary cutter on the special board. This does take practice.
There is an excellent article in the latest Sew News magazine, I received my
copy today, about pins with illustrations.
I'm sorry I can't help with your other questions.
Emily

See below each paragraph

Sami wrote in message ...
I've been sewing for years, probably pretty sloppily, as I am
essentially self-taught and never read "how to" books because I get
bored too quickly. Given this, perhaps some of our professional
tailors and seamstresses can give me some advice.

I'm self taught also but I'll try to help. Try the "how to" videos. They
go much faster.


First, pinning. What kind of pins do you use? How far apart are your
pins on the fabric? Corners? Notches? Curves?

I use as few pins as possible. Mostly because I do not like to sew over
them and it's time consuming to stop, remove pin, stop, remove pin. I use
the pins to hold corners in place but if it's a slippery fabric, I'm not
opposed to basting before sewing. I cut the notches into the seam
allowances. Be very careful doing this. It easy to cut passed the seam
line. As stated in the other post, this month's issue of Sew News magazine
has a good article on pins.

Next, scissors. Tailoring scissors can be 10 inches long - I have
found if I cut the total length of the blade, my cutting is more
sloppy and has more jags in it than when I do short cuts, despite the
blade length. How do you folks cut? Do you find the closer you pin,
the neater your cuts?

I have some very nice Ginger scissors that make a lovely display on my peg
board wall. I use the softgrip Fiskars for everything and I have for years.
I have every type of scissor they make. It's the number one item on my
"what do you want for Christmas" list. I do better with short cuts too.
When I try the longer cuts the fabric seems to pull to the outside as the
tip of the scissor comes down. Close set pins don't seem to help as much as
keeping my free hand on the fabric.

What are your favorite brand / style of scissor, and why? I have
thought of purchasing the Kai professional tailoring scissors, which
have 10 inch blades, but given my short-for-success cuts, it seems
rather silly.

See the para above.

I am making my husband the 16 1/2 neck shirt, short sleeve version, of
Vogue 7954. He is about 6 feet tall. Looking at this pattern you can
see they pulled in the shirt to fit snuggly around the waist of the
models, probably pinning it in the back to take up the slack.
Comparing the shoulders of one of my husband's favorite shirts, the
shoulders are going to be about 2 inches broader than what he likes.
This is easy enough to adjust, but because I want to make a "master
pattern" I am sewing a muslin shell to use for pattern adjustments, so
I am cutting the pattern exactly as specified. The shirt seems quite
baggy as well compared to his favorite shirt.

So, a few questions about muslin shells. The shirt has a yoke - would
you make both pieces of the back yoke and sew it as directed to see
the fit more accurately? Would you interface the collar and the
neckband as well? (I did cut out 2 pieces for each, as directed.)
Would you put in the interfacing? Would you make the buttonholes and
put on the buttons as well? Any other hints or suggestions for a
successful shell and final pattern alterations would be much appreciated.


I would cut one yoke but interface to keep it stable. The point of the
shell is to be able to
take it apart without a lot of fuss or damage to the fabric. Are you hand
basting it together or sewing on a machine? I don't like the basting stitch
my machine makes so I hand baste. I would put the neckband and collar on
but only by hand basting and I'd keep the stitches closer than normal for
control. If you don't think neck adjustments are going to be needed, you
could skip this but I find that putting the collar on effects how the shirt
lays in the shoulder area. I would not do buttonholes. Just use safety pins
when you fit the shell on your husband. Run the safety pins in the same
direction as the buttonhole will go. You will quickly see if the spacing is
good for the shirt after adjustments are made. I use the safety pins in the
side seam adjustments too. That's mostly because my husband screams like a
little girl if he moves and gets stuck.

The only other advise I'd have is to use a blue water eraser pen to make any
marks. You can wipe them out with a cotton swab and water. After you are
satisfied with the markings, do them again in permanent ink. I use a ruler
to transfer the grain line to the shell and any other markings I need such
as the location of the button holes. Also mark the date and your husband's
weight on the shell. I note the manufacture, original pattern number,
original size, and view on the shell as well. Then I can always refer back
to the paper pattern any time I need.

Good luck,
Liz



Thanks so much!

Sami

Sami, a medium-sized shear should be fine for you. But practice making curved
cuts with them; pivot the shears as you make the cut, smoothly, but without
lifting the shears from the table. When I taught, this was the number one
problem students had, they all wanted to hold the shears above the table. This
distorts the cutting line, which won't happen as much if you slide the shears
along the table. That is why shears have flattened blades, so you can hold them
with the lower blade sliding along.

As for pinning, there are two kinds of pinning: while you're cutting out (which
is what you asked about, right?), and while you're sewing. It depends entirely
on the fabric, as to how many pins you use. If you're cutting a plain-woven
cotton fabric, it won't shift nearly as much as Polarfleece or something shiny
and slippery. I would pin, with the pins at right angles to the cutting line,
about every 6-8".

By the way, you might also be interested in the new rotary cutting methods.
You'll need a large cutting surface mat below (otherwise the rotary cutter can
slice right into whatever you're cutting on), but once you try this method you
might find that you'll hang up your shears for all but the heaviest fabrics. Go
to http://www.fiskars.com/US/crafts/category.do?cat=7 for a good explanation,
with photos, of what kind of stuff you need. There used to be a how-to page on
this site, but I can't find it anymore.

Also, Sewing.com has an excellent how-to page for rotary cutters (which appears
to use the Olfa brand): http://sewingweb.com/Projects/RotaryCutting/

Hope this helps!


Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati

Sami wrote in message ...
I've been sewing for years, probably pretty sloppily, as I am
essentially self-taught and never read "how to" books because I get
bored too quickly. Given this, perhaps some of our professional
tailors and seamstresses can give me some advice.

First, pinning. What kind of pins do you use? How far apart are your
pins on the fabric? Corners? Notches? Curves?


A lot of this will "depend." I like to use glass head pins for a couple
reasons. I have found that they tend to be sharper and retain a sharp point
longer than other pins. That may be in my head, but it works for me. lol
Also I like them because they can be pressed over. I keep my iron pretty
hot when sewing. And plastic head pins will melt. Not good. Also, I like
the long "quilting" length pins rather than short ones. They will get
through more layers of fabric. I don't place pins very close together.
That way I use fewer and have less to remove. But again, that depends on
what I'm doing. Some things need them close together.

For the most part, I don't use pins when I'm cutting out patterns. I reuse
my personal stash of patterns all the time. (when sewing for clients each
pattern is a one time use) Pins will tear up pattern tissue paper. A lot
of the time, I can just smooth out the tissue paper (don't be afraid to use
the iron on tissue paper, it works great and sometimes creates a little bit
of static cling that will hold the pattern piece in place on the fabric) and
then I can hold it with one hand and cut with the other. If that won't
work, I usually use weights of one sort or another to hold the pattern
pieces in place.

When sewing, I usually only pin fabrics that will shift as I stitch. That
means slippery fabrics or bulky layers of fabric, or tight curves. For a
shirt, I would normally only pin the sleevehead and the collar in place.
Maybe the placket after it's pressed in place and needs to be topstitched.
When I do pin, I normally pin perpendicular to the seam line with the pin
head sticking out past the cut edge. That way it's easy to remove before I
get to it. (Never sew over a pin if you can help it. You can break your
needle if you hit the pin. If you manage to miss it, and stitch over it,
that stitch won't have as much tension as the rest of the seam. That
weakens the whole thing and it can pull out from the weak spot. Very
frustrating.) The other time I pin is when I'm using the feed dogs to help
ease one piece to another. I will pin at the beginning and end of the seam
to make sure the ends don't shift away from each other. Then I put the
longer piece against the feed dogs and let them pull it right in for me.

The rest of the time, I use a method called "taut" sewing. I hold, firmly
but without stretching, both layers of fabric in front and behind the
needle. I have heard really good things about Margaret Islander's methods.
Now, I've not read her books or seen her videos. But what I've heard is that
she has a whole system where you don't use any pins. You might want to do
some research on that. (there are videos, I understand, so you wouldn't be
bored. ;} )


Next, scissors. Tailoring scissors can be 10 inches long - I have
found if I cut the total length of the blade, my cutting is more
sloppy and has more jags in it than when I do short cuts, despite the
blade length. How do you folks cut? Do you find the closer you pin,
the neater your cuts?


I don't cut the whole length of the blade. I stop, oh, 1" or so from the
end. That makes sliding the blade further under the fabric to make the next
cut easier. The fabric is still lifted by the lower blade that way.

I have been using the Fiskars "soft grip" or maybe "comfort grip" scissors
for a while now. (8" shears BTW) I'm actually on my second pair. The first
pair is reserved for paper now. (and marked with a red ribbon tied to the
finger loop.) These are really comfortable. They have foam on the handle
and a spring in the middle. All you have to do is release the lock and they
pop open. So when you cut all you have to do is squeeze, then release. You
don't have to pull the blades back open. Believe me, your hands will thank
you! And they are reasonably priced. I think I paid about $12 at Wal-Mart.
The most I've seen them for anywhere is about $20. Beats the pants off some
of the other brands. (which leaves more money for fabric!! lol) I've
really been pleased with them. Fiskars also makes a couple of sharpeners.
That makes keeping a good edge on them easy.

snip
I am sewing a muslin shell to use for pattern adjustments, so
I am cutting the pattern exactly as specified. The shirt seems quite
baggy as well compared to his favorite shirt.

So, a few questions about muslin shells. The shirt has a yoke - would
you make both pieces of the back yoke and sew it as directed to see
the fit more accurately?

Yes. Since there is a seam in there, all around the yoke I'm assuming, that
will alter the fit if you don't make the whole thing. You don't want to
make it too small and then when you make the "real" shirt have it not fit.

Would you interface the collar and the
neckband as well? (I did cut out 2 pieces for each, as directed.)
Would you put in the interfacing? Would you make the buttonholes and
put on the buttons as well? Any other hints or suggestions for a
successful shell and final pattern alterations would be much
appreciated.


Yes I would. I've found that when making a muslin, it's best to go ahead
and do the whole thing. That way you can get the fit perfected. Also take
lots of notes on any changes you make. Put your pages of notes right in the
pattern envelope so you have them when you make the final shirt. The
advantage of going ahead and making the buttonholes and putting on buttons
is you will know if any of them need to be moved. (sometimes, for my taste,
they are way too far apart.) There's nothing worse than making and cutting
open a buttonhole only to find it's in the wrong place. Much better to
discover that on the muslin.


HTH

Sharon
--
---
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It's a waste of time and just annoys the
pig."

Sami wrote:

I've been sewing for years, probably pretty sloppily, as I am
essentially self-taught and never read "how to" books because I get
bored too quickly. Given this, perhaps some of our professional
tailors and seamstresses can give me some advice.

Probably! I'll take this a point at a time...

First, pinning. What kind of pins do you use? How far apart are your
pins on the fabric? Corners? Notches? Curves?

I tend to use Extra Long, Extra fine pins. I pin differently, according
to fabric, pattern, and need: there will be more pins round a sleeve
head than down a skirt seam, for example. For really okkard bits or
fabric, I baste!

Next, scissors. Tailoring scissors can be 10 inches long - I have
found if I cut the total length of the blade, my cutting is more
sloppy and has more jags in it than when I do short cuts, despite the
blade length. How do you folks cut? Do you find the closer you pin,
the neater your cuts?

I have small hands - take a six and a half glove, or a Small in
Marigolds! Big scissors are a pain. Heavy scissors are a pain! I use
Fiskars stainless steel scissors, and have several pairs of their side
bent general purpose ones, which are great for classes, as I teach a lot
of kids. I also have a pair of their dressmakers sheers, which are a
leeeeltle big for me, and tend to wear a hole in my thumb knuckle, so I
have taken to sticking a pad on the knuckle when cutting whole garments.

The best thing to do to get good cuts is to use the correct size of
scissors for your hands, and keep them as close to the table as
possible. DO NOT pick the fabric up to cut it. Use as long and as
smooth a cut as you can. ALWAYS cut the pattern out completely and
accurately with paper scissors before laying it on the fabric: nothing
will blunt your fabric cutters as quickly as cutting paper with them!
And keep both sets of scissors sharp!

What are your favorite brand / style of scissor, and why? I have
thought of purchasing the Kai professional tailoring scissors, which
have 10 inch blades, but given my short-for-success cuts, it seems
rather silly.

Try them - try LOTS of different scissors, and buy those that suite your
hands and you cutting needs. What fits me may not fir you. Scissors I
find easy and light may be too small and light for you. Remember, those
big tailors sheers are designed for men - who have larger hands than
most women - and are designed for looooong cut on long, relatively
straight seams in wool type suiting fabrics: look at the difference
between cutting a man's suit out and cutting a ladies dress out of light
weight fabric!

I am making my husband the 16 1/2 neck shirt, short sleeve version, of
Vogue 7954. He is about 6 feet tall. Looking at this pattern you can
see they pulled in the shirt to fit snuggly around the waist of the
models, probably pinning it in the back to take up the slack.
Comparing the shoulders of one of my husband's favorite shirts, the
shoulders are going to be about 2 inches broader than what he likes.
This is easy enough to adjust, but because I want to make a "master
pattern" I am sewing a muslin shell to use for pattern adjustments, so
I am cutting the pattern exactly as specified. The shirt seems quite
baggy as well compared to his favorite shirt.

So, a few questions about muslin shells. The shirt has a yoke - would
you make both pieces of the back yoke and sew it as directed to see
the fit more accurately?

Yes: the two layers will give you a better idea of final fit.

Would you interface the collar and the
neckband as well? (I did cut out 2 pieces for each, as directed.)
Would you put in the interfacing?

Yes: again it will fit differently without.

Would you make the buttonholes and
put on the buttons as well?

No - but mark their places and pin where they go. You will need to take
the muslin apart a few times to get things exactly as you want, and this
isn't easy if you have done the buttonholes.

Any other hints or suggestions for a
successful shell and final pattern alterations would be much
appreciated.

Use a similar weight fabric so that you get a good idea of the hang of
the garment. MARK all the alterations you make on your muslin.
Transfer them to the final version of the pattern. I hand baste
muslins, as it's much easier to pull out the stitching on the customer
if necessary

While the muslin is often used as the pattern in couture wear, this is
not a good idea for a pattern that will be used often, as the fabric
will distort with handling and use.

Thanks so much!

Sami

--
Kate XXXXXX
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.diceyhome.free-online.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!

Pinning, Scissors, Cutting, Muslin Shell for Man's Shirt

(mamahays)
Sami wrote
I've been sewing for years, probably pretty sloppily, as I am
essentially self-taught and never read "how to" books because I get
bored too quickly. Given this, perhaps some of our professional tailors
and seamstresses can give me some advice.
---
A lot of this will "depend." I like to use glass head pins for a
couple reasons. I have found that they tend to be sharper and retain a
sharp
Big snip
Sharon
---
Well, Sharon covered everything quite well! The only thing I would
add is a question: have you considered making a pattern from one of your
H's favorite shirts? 'Slipping' a pattern from a finished garment can
often be a lot quicker than trying to adjust a ready made pattern. Then,
too, men's garments are easier to copy than women's clothing. No darts,
gathers, etc.
Cea

Hi.

I will try to answer your questions one by one. There are a lot of them
and I am not familiar with the pattern you refer to. My web page offers a
large-size men's dress shirt pattern and you can go have a look if you'd
like. Here we bo.

Pins: stainless steel, 1 1/4 inch long, nothing special there.
How far apart: as required. I hardly pin, except when fitting the sleeves
into the armholes or assembling the collar.
Basically, if it tries to move and it cramps your style, pin it.

Scissors: Henkel, 8 inches long and another pair 7 inches long. Absolutely
needed: Fiskars scissors sharpener, so blades cut all the way to the end and
remain deadly sharp all the time.
Cutting: Using long, even strokes only. Neater cuts are not a function of
how close you pin the pattern, but how sharp your blades are, how steady
your hand is and how long the cutting movement is. That's why you need
scissors that cut all along the blade. One important point for me before
buying scissors: the blade shouldn't lift the fabric too high off the table
when the scissors are open.

The shirt has a yoke, so your muslin shell should also have a yoke.
I would interface the collar and the neckband as well, to stabilize the
muslin and make assembly easier.
I would make buttonholes and sew on buttons as well.

S. FOREST
www.total.net/~lours/INVENTORY.html