year end thoughts and photos

Year end? Where did the time go?

I had planned on doing some posting while I was guiding Lela through drafting and fitting body coats, but it fell by the wayside due to her mother's illness and subsequent passing. We did get through quite a lot of drafting and fitting but I didn't have the wherewithal to document it as I have done in the past.

These are a few of the last things we've been working on- the tailcoats with the Ballet gusseted sleeves- they don't hang as cleanly as a regular sleeve it is true but you can raise your arms! The fitting I did last week was for these checked trousers with a dark grey jacket. I don't know why I like the checked trousers so much, but I do! I guess they feel rather cheery and they stand out compared to the more sombre grey suits that we had been making.

On Friday, we collectively decided that it was time to put down the shears and needles for a break before Christmas. I have 76 buttonholes to do (by machine of course) so I got all those marked and basted and ready, planning on getting over to my colleague's place to have them done when I was just hit by fatigue and I gave in to it. They can wait until the New Year. I just need a break, so I am taking one, since it has been a very busy year so far.

I wish each and every one of you a Merry Christmas and all the best for 2013!

interpreting measurements

Sorry for the long delay in posting, these past few weeks have been very intense and busy but now I am back home from my teaching gig, just in time to feel the Christmas rush coming at me!

I was spending this training time going over the drafting of body coats (tail-coats, frock and morning coats) and one of the first things we needed to do was measure our fit volunteer.

Thank-you, by the way, to all our fit volunteers- it can be a bit unnerving to stand there while we poke and prod and talk about you objectively.

Most of the time, we are given measurements that are taken by someone else, and could be quite out of date, so our job is often made more difficult by the lack of information.

Even if you yourself take the measurements, it is difficult sometimes interpreting them when making an individualized pattern or even modifying a block pattern. We are always pressed for time and it is difficult to spend time analysing the figure you are measuring in the 10 minutes we are allotted for measuring. That is where photos come in handy.

But we must press on, as we may be preparing costumes weeks in advance of actually having the person on site, so you must be a bit of a number detective to make your patterns.

Once the measurements have been taken, the issue of how to interpret the individual measurements is one that many people struggle with.

In this instance, the nape to waist measurement as taken was 18 1/4". OK, you think, so what? Well, when you are drafting you generally keep in mind some proportionate formulas such as the nape to waist measure is generally 1/4 of the man's height. In this case that worked out to 17 1/4". A full inch less than the taken measurement. The question was which number was correct?

The answer is that both are, but lets go backwards a bit.

I recommended drafting to the proportionate waist length to start. Then think about why the other number is longer. In this case, the contour of his back makes it longer. Why- well, like many men he is at the gym working out and the building up of the back muscles is a very common occurrence. The trapezius muscles are large and they bulk up easily.

So, to apply the extra measured length on the draft by marking the waistline at 18 1/4" from the nape, and drafting everything else in relation to that length of waist would be a problem. The length needed in the draft is above the scye line not below it. You have to put the fabric where the body needs it.

To demonstrate we just cut a proportionate coat and put it on him. What happened? The centre back waist stood away from the body. There were drag lines running from the blade toward the side waist and the front of the coat was pushing against the front waist area.

To boldly show how much and where the extra length in the back was needed, I had my student cut the coat straight across the upper back. Gently then, don't cut his shirt!

Lo, and behold, the coat dropped an inch at the centre back seam and a full 1/2" at the armhole.

We then pinned in a strip of fabric, so it was held together. The drag lines disappeared. The back waist dropped into his body, and the pressure on the fronts was released.

The other thing that happened is that slightly more width was needed across the back- I'm not sure the original measurement was accurate to begin with, but since the body is three dimensional, an increase in one dimension- length, corresponds to an increase in the opposing direction too- width.

It is always fun to do this. Of course you wouldn't just cut open a real coat and waste fabric, but for teaching it is the most direct method to illustrate the point!

Edwardian tailcoat

I've been very, very busy these past few weeks and along with my regular gig, I have a small side project that involves making a set of Edwardian tails.

I finally got a chance to nail down the details and the measurements and fabric just arrived this week, so off I went to make a pattern.

First, I have a good number of visual references for this look but since I left them at work I will have to show you an image from a fairly popular book depicting menswear of the period.

This gives a good illustration of the ideal silhouette and gives me a lot of information about the detailing required for the period.

The trousers are flat fronted, cut with a high rise and are quite narrow at the hem.

I look at the waistline of both the figure and the garment to determine where the waist shaping is in the garment, where the front hem of both the waistcoat and coat sit in relation to the body's proportions. You always have to take into consideration that these are fashion illustrations, and then, as now, they can be disproportionate in order to show off an ideal look.

I will be making a DB white pique waistcoat with a deeply cut out front and a laid on collar.

These coats have a long low rolling lapel that can be cut on or grown on. The lapels are either fully faced with lapel satin or have an inset facing of satin (not shown in this illustration).

The tails also generally retain the "strap" at the waist. If you look closely, you can see a narrow horizontal waist section that is part of the tails. A remnant in my view of the time (1820's) when the tailcoats first developed a horizontal waist dart that later developed into a seam, before the seam was discarded in favor of the separate "tail" that does not have a horizontal component.

I also have a draft for a tailcoat that I think is quite similar to what I am after, so that also gives me an idea of how the shape in the pattern is created. This gives a good idea of interpretation of proportions for the period, so with all this in hand along with the design sketch, I have come up with a pattern.

It was difficult to get a photograph of the pattern on my cutting table, so I brought it home but between the distraction of the floor, the lighting, and the cat trying to sit on it, I could barely get an adequate shot, so this will have to do.

I am going with the cut on lapel and the strapped tail in my pattern. The sleeves will also have a seamed on cuff detail or else a trim applied to delineate a "cuff".

My pattern isn't quite the same shape as the one in the book because my client isn't the shape that the book uses as a standard to ilustrate the draft. Also, when I draft, I like to have seam allowances bigger than the 1/4" standard of the time (I prefer a full 3/8" or 1cm) and I like my armholes to have no seam allowance so that also changes the visual aspect between the draft and the pattern.

I have to cut this right into fabric for someone whose measurements I did not take, which makes me a bit nervous, but I tried a quick half muslin on the stand to make sure I was happy with it so tomorrow I will lay out the fabric and start cutting.

I'm hoping to have it all together for a fitting by mid March so I'll be posting its progress.

tails basted up

Here is the tailcoat in question basted up for a first fitting. Time was of the essence so we didn't even bother to put the breast pocket in right away.

The chest canvas is just basted in and the edges basted back. The collar is basted on.

There is some extra seam allowance on the waist of the body that allows for possible lengthening.

The skirt is hand basted to the waistline so that I can remove it easily if needed. The sleeves are lined and just basted in as well.

I like to have the CB of the skirt section basted back so it hangs edge to edge for the first fitting. It will then become apparent whether the tails are crossing over or pulling apart or sitting straight. If they aren't sitting straight it could be that the upper body isn't sitting properly - the fronts may be falling away and need to be lifted, or it could be that the waistline or the skirt needs adjustment. I leave about 3 1/2" of hem allowance too, just in case the designer wants longer tails

The coat doesn't really fit the stand very well. Many of our stands are based on an average height of 5' 8" - 5' 10", so the waist length is only around 17". This coat is for someone 6'4" tall so the coat waist is sitting on the upper hip area of the stand which is about 4 1/2" bigger then the person in question.

Therefore I cannot tell on the stand whether the tails will sit properly. I will need to be patient and wait for the fitting.

full dress tailcoat

Full dress evening suit. Circa 1940's.

Every so often I realize how lucky I am when I am assigned work like this. A set of tails and trousers. They are going to look for a stock waistcoat but since the gentleman is quite tall 6'4" and a size 44, I may get to make that too.

One of the things I do before drafting a pattern is consult some research on my own. I like to get a feel for what the period details are, I had notes on a donated 1938 tailcoat and below, I have a picture from a 1933 tailor sample book as well as a description from a 1935 Progressive Tailor magazine. I have some reference from the early fifties but I don't think that is quite the style we are looking for so I am going to use the earlier references with a bit of modification for the tails we will make.

I looked at one reference from 1943- another tailor's order book and realized that there was a ban (in the U.S.A.) for the general public on ordering certain suits. No double breasted tuxedos, or tailsuits. In fact only the clergy was allowed to order either morning coats or frock coats. Of course, what the rules were for the general public, often didn't apply to people with money and connections, but there you have it.

I have cut the trousers with a high waist, as they ought to be, and the designer likes pleats so I am giving them two forward pleats. I will be using a silk grosgrain for the trouser stripe. For the jacket I will consult some of the period drafting references I have but I usually combine that information with my own drafting methods to make the pattern.

tailoring details

Well, I ran across a discussion thread regarding Mr. Obama's choice of clothing for his inauguration and the opinions of those who follow style and style etiquette. It's an interesting discussion and reflects the kind of details that we who create for the stage ponder all the time.



Menswear is rife with small details, width and shape of lapel, width of trouser leg, cuffs or plain bottoms, pleats or flat fronted trousers, the break of the trouser on the shoe, waistcoat or cummerbund, length and shape of the tails on a tail coat. White tie and a tuxedo jacket? Sorry Mr. Obama. I bet they have an advisor around the White House somewhere!
Our current formal wear has evolved over the past two hundred years, more or less, and it seems that its etiquette has settled into a set pattern-with occasional variations- by the early to mid 20th century. It's a beautiful look when done correctly, and I think that it is epitomised by stars like Cary Grant and Fred Astaire among others.


I doubt that most people ever think about things like this anymore, and just buy what is available and never even notice the style of, or the etiquette of, wearing certain garments. It's too bad, because then we are dependent on the whims of modern manufacturing styling (and bad fabric) Styling that comes from an attempt to save money instead of improving or exploring a design.
I don't know if you've seen the horrible tailcoat styling that has princess seams and no waist seam....ugly. That's all I can say.
Don't fix it if it's not broken