Process of Nana Part 2

After I had sewn the main body together I realized I had forgotten to sew the hidden pockets with flaps in.  So with  my handy seam ripper I took it all apart and sewed it together once again with the hidden pockets and flap which really aren't that bad to do.  A lot of sewing construction is knowing the order in which they need to be sewn together.  It's almost like a puzzle.  I love puzzles.

 

I hand sewed most of the china silk lining.  I meant to do a full lining but between the facing and getting everything to match out something just wasn't working.  Luckily there was only about an ince gap between the facing and lower lining so I was able to hand sew in some red grosgrain ribben to give it more a polished look.

As for the Skirt, I know it wasn't the right pattern for the tartan but the colors were right.  It wasn't that big of a deal to me to be absolutely perfect.  I liked this fabric best anyways.  The only thing to really watch out when using a synthetic (which I normally don't) is the tempurature of the iron.  My first waistband I melted as you can see below.

Other then that skirt was pretty simple and easy.  Just a low waisted full skirt with gathering at the wide waistband.  After I cut a new piece and reset my iron I was good to go with the fusible lining.

The thing you need to remember about fusible facing is that you don't actually ""iron" it on you "press" quite literally.  Put it on a high heat, low steam setting and put a pressing cloth on top of the facing and the fabric you are fusing together.  Using a pressing cloth insures that the high heat doesn't melt the facing since they are more often then not a synthetic type fabric/felt.  You do not want to slide the iron across to the next spot and press you want to pick it up and press on the next section.  What is the difference?  If you slide the iron while pressing you are actually stretching out the facing and the fabric which distorts the shape somewhat.

Here is the finished product.