I have been teaching myself garment production when I have free time from university. I took part in a pattern cutting course at Greenwich Community College and I regularly refine my skills and make garments that I haven't ever made before.
I designed and made both waistcoat garments. Beginning with the plain waitscoat I simply used measurements and my sewing machine. When I began my second waistcost I had never made crochet granny squares. Again I measured and calculated how many I would need to construct the garment, it took me quite a while to do this but I was so pleased with how well it looks finished.
These two garments were a test on my abilities. I had seen these style of clothes and used calculations to adjust test garments in order to make them fit correctly. The top was made out of Liberty fabric and needed a lot of bias binding. The culottes were made from two fabrics, one acted as an underlay. When I had previously done this with a skirt I hadn't thought through the steps before sewing. I learnt my lesson, think about the constructionthoroughly before acting on it!
