Tutorial - how to insert underarm reinforcement squares

Morning! As promised in my Big Vintage Sewalong post, I've put together a tutorial for inserting the underarm reinforcement squares on Vogue 8875. Of course, when I looked through the muslin construction photos, I realised I hadn't sewn the final dress in exactly the same way, but never fear, everything is fully explained in the written instructions. 

There are a couple of things I should point out.
1. I'd highly recommend making a bodice muslin before cutting into your precious fabric. This is time   well spent as it will allow you to check the fit and practice the technique.
2. This tutorial shows one side of the back bodice as it was smaller and easier to photograph, but the principles are the same for both back and front pieces.
3. Don't be despondent if it isn't perfect on your first try - of the four reinforcement squares I sewed, two went in without a fight first time and two had to be unpicked and redone.
4. Take your time…and make sure you have a stiff drink poured for when you've finished!

Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin!

For each underarm seam you'll need a two inch square of bias cut fabric (the same as your dress fabric).

On the RIGHT side of the fabric, mark the stitching line as shown.

Centre the bias square over the tip of the stitching line and pin in place. Now mark the stitching lines on your bias square so they join up with the original ones.

Sew along the stitching line on the square and slash up to the tip.

Press the bias square first to one side of the stitching, then the other and fold it through to the WRONG side of the bodice. 

This step is not at all clear in the instructions, but believe me, that square needs to be hidden on the WRONG side! It's a bit tricky to get it to turn through neatly but it will. I'd recommend using a press cloth at this stage.

This is how it should look when it's all pressed through to the wrong side. 

And from the right side.

Your two back bodice pieces should now be stay stitched at this point as shown in the diagram below. Hmmm, guess who forgot to stay stitch her pieces for this tutorial?! Don't you forget please - as well as preventing the edges of the pattern pieces from stretching, the stay stitching will provide a stitching line for later on.

Yes, those bias squares should not be shown flapping about on the right side of the bodice, grrrr

You're now going to pin the bodice side back to the bodice back at the side and armhole edges, right sides together. Just imagine a nice line of stay stitching underneath those pins!

What I should have done at this stage is baste the pieces in place and I'd recommend you do too, it will save lots of heartache further down the line! I also found a good tip for this step on A Stitching Odyssey. Marie slits the top of the side back piece up to the seam allowance (or up to the stay stitching in your case), enabling the pieces to manoeuvre into position more easily. 

See the slit, at the top of the black piece?

Now, take a deep breath and stitch into position, sewing just outside the line of stay stitching to keep it hidden. Remember:

1. Don't feel you have to sew the whole section in one go. If you sew one seam at a time it will give you more control and hopefully minimise unruly fabric getting caught in your stitching. Talking of which…

2.  You're sewing round a very sharp corner so you need to be aware of folds of fabric potentially getting in your way. Go slowly and keep re-positioning your fabric out of the way of your needle. 

Here are the pieces stitched together. In an ideal world, the top of the side back piece would have been slashed down to where the stitching begins.

Press seams open and clip into your curves where necessary.

This is how it should look from the right side.

And here's the same seam on the finished dress. The reinforcement square is completely hidden and will add strength to the inner corner of the seam line.

If you're at all worried about the neatness of your underarm seams it may help to use a busy, patterned fabric. Nobody will ever notice the odd wonky stitch!

I hope this tutorial provides a bit of extra guidance if you're tackling this pattern. And as always, if there's anything you don't understand or that doesn't make sense, please let me know in the comments.  Have a good weekend! x

Big Vintage Sewalong Dress Reveal!

May I present Vogue 8875 - my chosen pattern for the Big Vintage Sewalong blogger tour!

The pattern is for a fitted dress and matching coat, but it was only ever the dress I was interested in - I love the style lines on the bodice and the apparent simplicity of its design. Key word here: apparent! When the pattern arrived and I scrutinised the instructions I discovered things weren't quite so simple - but more on that in a minute!

The pattern originally dates from 1955 and has some fab mid-50's details, including kimono sleeves, unusual princess/underarm seams and tucks instead of darts on the skirt front. There are also instructions for adding a self fabric belt and waist stay, neither of which I did, but I think they're nice touches.

What I didn't like about this pattern were the instructions for the princess/underarm seams. These seams are reinforced with bias squares of fabric which are sewn to the outside of the bodice, then slashed and pressed to the inside. This crucial step really isn't very clear at all. It's not actually that difficult a technique once you know how to do it, but you do need a bit more guidance than the pattern offers. I took some step-by-step photos and will be putting together a tutorial soon, which hopefully will make the step a bit clearer. As for the rest of the dress, it was very straight forward to sew, so don't let me put you off!

Because of the shape of the bodice, it's difficult to get an accurate idea of fit without making a muslin. I actually made two muslins (gasp) as I was determined to get the fit right before my fabric was even in the same room as my scissors. I cut a size 12, which was a pretty good fit everywhere except the upper arms and the waist, so I added more room to those areas (see below). I also made the following changes:

- Changed the side zip to a centred zip (no surprise there). There's already a centre back bodice seam so no alterations to the pattern were required, yay!

- Shortened the skirt by a gigantic nine inches!! Mid-50's straight skirts are typically worn well below the knee, but the original skirt pattern was almost maxi length on me.

- The bodice is actually supposed to drape over the waistband in a blousey fashion rather than fit in a smooth line - this isn't apparent in the line drawings and envelope artwork. My first muslin confirmed that this did me no favours at all, so I shortened the bodice by ¾".

- Widened the kimono sleeves very slightly as they were a bit restrictive.

- Added a total of 1" to the waist, divided between the various seams. The dress fabric has more give than the muslin fabric (calico) so the waist did end up a little roomy. I'm not changing it though - it's nice to be able to bend over without stopping my circulation!

- I also tried to reduce the height of the bust darts, but this resulted in a baggy upper chest so I left them as they were!

Fabric suggestions are brief: crepe, shantung or tissue taffeta, but I think anything with a nice drape would be suitable. I went for a luxury crepe in a beautiful teal/turquoise colour from Sew Over It - the colour is a bit of a departure for me but I love it! I first saw the fabric at the Knitting and Stitching Show, which was an advantage as it meant I could play with it a bit before deciding if it was suitable. It certainly was! It doesn't have that weird spongey feel you get on a wool crepe, instead it's smooth and silky and quite weighty. If you're looking for a special occasion fabric this is definitely one to consider, I think it's lovely. The dress isn't lined (I couldn't bear the idea of sewing those reinforcement squares all over again) and the skirt does cling to your legs a bit without a lining, so I'll be wearing it with a slip,

I'm so pleased with the finished dress, it has a chic 1950's feel but at the same time, looks quite contemporary. The fabric instantly elevates it to something special and I can see this becoming a popular going-out dress this year. 

I wouldn't recommend the pattern to an absolute beginner, but if you like 1950's styles and fancy a challenge, then go for it. McCall's UK have kindly offered an extra giveaway copy of Vogue 8875 to one of my blog readers. If you'd like to be in with a chance of winning it, simply leave a comment on this blog post, including your email address if it's not linked to your Blogger profile. The giveaway is open worldwide and closes at midnight GMT on Thursday 19th May. The winner will be chosen at random.

You can find out more about the Big Vintage Sewalong on my previous post here, including details of the 20 selected vintage patterns and the other bloggers taking part in the Blogger Tour. Remember, money raised from the sale of each pattern will go directly to the Eve Appeal cancer charity, so you'll be directly supporting a great cause.  Right, that's all folks, have a great weekend! x

I'll be wearing it like this after a few drinks...

The pattern and a fabric allowance were kindly provided by The McCall Pattern Company. All views my own.