Chasing Coco

I am so pleased at how well my muslin has turned out! It also came together really quick, I hate doing muslins because I have this idea that they take so much time but really, it was like 1 evening of sewing with a little cutting the night before. Not too bad! I suppose it makes a difference when you don't have to do any of the facings, hemming or structural elements :-) Sorry the photo is kind of dark and I cropped it since my hair was a disaster! I had been planning to make the shorter length ( look C for my pattern ) but at some point doing the muslin I decided to cut the long length and see how it looked - that's why the back is longer. Now to the fitting and adjustments! 1) Neckline is way too high - I feel like an old lady so that's coming down. 2) Sleeves are a tad too small (thanks Mom for the fat arms!), letting those out 1/4 in on both seams (I have a two part sleeve) 3) the front and back of the jacket are ok in the muslin but once I get a thicker w...

I am curious how many of you out there proof your patterns before you make something? Until I started taking classes with E, I would just look at the measurements on the back and pick the most appropriate, cut it and sew it. That's what we're supposed to do right? Well, sort of. E suggests doing what she calls "proofing the pattern." Having now done it a few times, I can see that it does improve the results, you get a good feel for how much ease you have and if like me (ie practically everyone), you're sort of all over the measurements table, which size you should cut and where you might have to adjust. This is how I found out that, though I'm 5'7", very Germanic and often buy the "long" or "tall" size in commercial clothing, apparently I'm "petite." What?!? To proof your pattern, you want to measure on your body your various circumferences and the vertical distance from one horizontal measurement to the next (...