tuxedos and tails

Ahh, this post will be a bit rambling! I feel quite tired!

What have I been up to lately?

Well it seems formal wear has figured prominently this fall. I had a call from a friend who was working on a tv show, and they needed a tailsuit in about two weeks, could I do it?

I already had commited to making some skating costumes but I did not have designs or fabrics yet  and you know what happens once you say yes to one thing, then all the other things suddenly start to happen!

So I said yes and the fabric arrived two days later. I started patternmaking, then cutting and then we made up a period tailsuit - waistcoat, trousers and coat, using very inadequate measurements, no fitting and crossed fingers.
Rush job number one!
Of course part way into the process, I received designs and fabric and the deadline info for the skating costumes. Yikes!
These had to have a fitting- just time for one fitting mind you- and the only time that everyone was able to be together- skaters, myself, and the designer, only left us a window of 5 days to finish and deliver.
That was rush job number two.

It had its share of challenges stretch fabrics for a tuxedo, non stretch for a sweater like garment....which I hope to get time and inclination to organize my thoughts so I can post about it!

A big sigh of relief when I received messages that everything was great and off they went to compete, and they won! Hurray!
Three days later I get an SOS message, and it turns out they needed to change their program completely and they had two weeks to pick new music, do new choreography and have new costumes made. Could I do it?
What can you say?  How terrible for them to be put in such a position!  I said yes.
So the change was to a tailsuit, with a nod to the Edwardian era, and with a bit of ambassadorial splendor.
So trousers, waistcoat, bow tie, order and medal, sash and a tailcoat. The fabric arrived Friday morning. I cut all day Friday, we sewed Saturday, fit it on Sunday and finished it on the Friday.  They tried it on ice on Sunday, and flew to their next competition Tuesday.
Rush job number three.
Oh, they won by the way! yay!

Then I got sick. Of course- too much stress and your body kicks you when you are down.

I leave tomorrow to work for a month in Montreal.
Four weeks to cut and make a show- which compared to what I have been doing, seems like "bloody luxury" as we say -but I am sure it will have it moments of being a rush job too.

Here's a photo or two for good measure. They were taken from their tumbler site. No photos of the tails for the tv show- I don't know if it has aired yet....

These two - Andrew Poje and Kaitlyn Weaver are just wonderful - as athletes and as people- they are as lovely as they look.

 That's all for now, I have to go and pack.

Almost finished or A rack of suits

Oh, we are almost finished the project!
I started bagging up the suits today. I tagged them and double checked everything.
It is very gratifying to have accomplished all this work.

We made five complete tail suits, which included altering the shirts, adding dance briefs and quick changing the bow ties by snapping them to the collars.
We also made 9 other suits, five of which were three piece suits, plus an extra pair of trousers.
We put period collars on the shirts, and quick changed some of them as well.

I put the last eight buttonholes in today as well, so that is done too.

I need to box up the remaining fabric, finish up my paperwork and arrange delivery. I am looking forward to seeing them worn when the show techs.

Next week I start back at my regular gig, and I will be working on three very different shows: Fiddler on the Roof, Mary Stuart, and Blithe Spirit. It should be interesting, and I will keep you posted.

Tailcoat layout

I have been so busy these last few weeks. All I can do is check in here and show you what is keeping me so busy.

On my table is the last two of the five tail suits chalked out and ready to be cut.

I have an extension piece that is piano hinged to the length of my table so that it can be extended to allow 60" wide fabric to be rolled out flat. This is so helpful when cutting capes or other large projects. In this case, I am cutting five sets of tails so I can utilize the fabric better with it laid out flat. As you can see here, in one trouser length, I can also lay out the front, back and side panel of one tailcoat as well as the front of the next one. When I lay out the next pair of trousers, I can get the next tailcoat back, side and the skirts of two tailcoats. Once that is done, I can cut all the sleeves.

As of Friday afternoon, I had all five pairs of trousers bundled separately with all their components and all five coats in nice little bins awaiting sewing. I have all the period collar patterns made and cut out for the men's shirts, so for all intents and purposes, I am finished the major cutting work until I can fit again.

Monday I think will be a day off just to catch up with all the things I have been neglecting over the past month, then I have a week and a half of instruction with Lela to finish up her training. Funnily enough, we will be delving into body coats. I have a fit model lined up and think that a tailcoat and a frock coat are in order, as well as some period styling discussions. I am hoping we can document a bit of that process here.

That should take us into December and one or two more Ballet fittings before Christmas, then it will be after the New Year to fit all the tail suits before starting back at the Festival.

Where has the time gone?

My busy week

I have had a very busy week. I am going to try to take as much time off as I can this week-end but I know I should get into the studio tomorrow to keep the ball rolling. I got back from Boston last Sunday night, went in Monday morning and started in on my week.

Boys tailsuits:

I have to finish altering my patterns for these tailsuits, so I can cut them out and get them going.

I was very happy with how they turned out. 

I basically made four sizes based on heights that I was given. 

All the body length measurements were spot on for the sizing, it is just that I made everything a bit big through the chest and waist for these guys. Well, better a bit big than too small I say.

It is so much easier to pin excess in than rip things apart to let out or worse, to guess how much more you may need. This is important because often the fittings are very short, I think I didn't have anyone longer than 25 minutes. It felt a bit crazy, but that is what we are up against sometimes.

I cut all the trousers on Monday and Tuesday and Denise has most of them together already, I have Lela on board cutting shirt dickies, then she and Denise will switch to making coats next week while I then cut the waistcoats.

For Mr. B: 

I fit his suit on Wednesday.

Here is the trouser pattern to go with the suit jacket that I was drafting here.

As you can see they do not require a lot of fabric, just a metre is enough.

This gentleman prefers to wear his trousers under the fullest part of his belly and you can see that I have cut the front waistline down to accomodate this.

He is definitely not and easy shape to fit and I have to make some more adjustments now that  we have had a fitting. I think I should make the legs a bit narrower now that I see the pattern with fresh eyes.  I still have to mark the alterations on the jacket for Silvia, who is making this. 

I also went in to Toronto on Thursday for a fitting with a 1920's suit on another project, which I was very happy with. I managed to shop there for linings for the boys tailsuits and waistcoats, buttons for the suit above and his next suit to come and dropped off fabric for covered buttons as well. I got caught in rush hour traffic on the TTC, and just barely made it to the train station for my trip home.

Friday was spent altering the tailcoat patterns, shipping fabric (which is a mound of paperwork), shopping for more supplies, and then updating and doing work on the computer.

Next week looks about the same. I think I will go and put my feet up and have a glass of wine.

Boy's tail suits are together!

Whew!
It has been quite the week around the studio.
It seems that the fabric shipment I was waiting for had a month long vacation around the USA and it finally made it to Canada Customs on August 22nd where it was kept for a week because of a paperwork issue.
I was ready to give up, by then, but lo and behold, it arrived on August 29th, where it was quickly unwrapped and organized.

Luckily I had all my patterns ready to go, so I started cutting the next morning and I recruited Denise and Lela to help put things together so we could ship them back to be fit. Four tail suits for boys, and four shirt dickies too. Pretty good for a weeks work. I saved some time by just making mock-up sleeves, as I'd rather get the body fit first and not waste fabric.

That shipment went out yesterday afternoon at 3pm and has arrived safe and sound at its destination.
A big sigh of relief when I saw that.

Next week I follow, to do the fittings and then I will be tremendously busy making pattern alterations and then cutting and stitching all the rest.

     Today I managed to get the studio tidied and worked on the pattern alterations for the suit I drafted  here in the previous post. The fitting went very well, I was really pleased with the overall fit. Still needed a bit more length through the front to the hem, needed a bit more through the waist too, and an alteration for his shoulder that is distorted from a surgery.
Updated his trouser pattern too. Then I cut the coat out. I'll have to finish that tomorrow so I can get it to Silvia on Monday. I must remember to take a picture to post.
     On Monday I should be starting onto another project for another ballet company, and this time it is suits, yay!
     As I was in the midst of the rush this week, I had one of those moments where I stood there and realized just how much I enjoy the process of what I do. I like figuring things out -like that suit pattern- and that I can work with people I like and we work in a way that pleases us. We could spend time figuring out how to do things faster or with more shortcuts, or with less handling, and in some situations we do, but mostly we work the way that makes us feel gratified with not just the final result but with the journey of getting there.

Boy's patterns

While I am waiting for fabric to make its way to me, I thought I had better get started on some pattern making and a toile, since my next project involves making costumes for boys.

Conveniently I have a neighbour with a seven year old who has graciously let me use him for a fit model. It has been a great help and I promised to finish the mock-ups for him for Hallowe'en- a win-win situation!

I haven't made a lot of costumes for children, the last time was for a production of Oliver! and strangely enough, earlier this year I culled a backlog of patterns and guess what I tossed? Yes, Many of the patterns I had made for that show. Why does that happen? Is there something in the air that senses the moment I get rid of something, I will have a nee of it within the next 6 months.? Does that happen to anyone else?

Anyway, I did keep a few of them but I started with going through my collected cache of measurements and trying to compare them with some standards from a variety of sources. I was looking at Metric Pattern cutting for Children, and I have some more historical measurement tables from tailoring books as well.
The costumes I make will be worn by different children over the course of the next few years and the children range in age and height between 7-13 years and 51" to 63" tall. I keep all measurement sheets and never throw them away! I am putting them on a spread sheet so hopefully I can compare them by chest size, height or age to get an idea about the average size ranges.

Having a daughter, now almost 16, I do have a sense of the strange proportions that children have at different ages, but when you start trying to make patterns, it looks so odd on the table that you start second guessing everything.

Some things I have made note of:
Children have big heads. Being a mother makes this obvious!

In adults you can safely estimate proportions by dividing the height into the ideal of eight heads. Doesn't work with kids. If I take Master H's height of 51 3/4" and compare it to his measured nape to floor, from the top of his head to the nape is 8 1/4" which is more or less proportionately the size of an adult  of 5' 6" in height.

Children have a bit of a belly even if they are slim and have great posture. The patterns need extra room in the front waist area, and front length which is evident in the photo above.

Their limbs are slim and long compared to their chest, waist and hip measures. I remember my daughter seemed to stay the same circumference for many years even though she grew taller all the time.

They tend to have larger feet than you would think they should have.

They grow. Sometimes a great deal in a short time. I think my daughter grew over 4" in height one year. Big hem allowances are needed!

Not sure about their shoulder slope. I thought most kids had squarer shoulders, but I might be wrong about that. Master H above has sloping shoulders and the children I am making for will likely have sloping shoulders as well since they are baby ballet dancers.

I'm trying to see if I can relate their nape to waist length to a percentage of their height, or nape to floor length just out of curiousity. Trying to make the process make more sense.

another uniform...

Sometimes when working in the tailoring department, you can find yourself working on a lot of dark colours, so it is almost a shock to the system to suddenly have colour to work on!

Our uniform of a different colour had some inspiration from the New Years Day mummers parade of Philadelphia.
Mummers parade? Who knew?
Mummers in Canada are associated with a Christmas tradition mostly in Newfoundland of masked or disguised neighbours showing up at your door for merrymaking. So I didn't really have a clue about the parade in Philly.
Holy Cow!
Well this is just tame by comparison, but fun anyway.
The pants are orange by the way, with the yellow and red trim centered on a wide green stripe.
Oh and theres the sash and rosette too. And a gold and red decorated sword belt with a sword too. (Didn't have it to photograph as is was in the weapons lock-up).

Now that this is up and on stage, I am onto some understudy fittings with some extra costumes being built and the next show, which will not be as bright as this.

19th century waistcoat finished

Here are the finished photos of the waistcoat that I posted about here.

I am very happy with the way it turned out. If I had to change anything for improvement, I would deepen the shawl collar at the back so the neck edge was completely covered.

Top stitching by machine is not what I usually do on period waistcoats but it was a designer's request for that detail and I have to say I like the effect. It is like adding a line of trim, it delineates the edge, drawing your attention but not in a loud way.

We had inserted a "slip vest" of blue silk, which again draws your eye to the neckline and delineates the waistcoat from the shirt and cravat, and picks up on the colour in the coat.

It is always interesting working with designers for the first time and I have to say that this one has a wonderful and sure eye for colour combinations that are so appropriate for each character.

It is one of those things in design that if done correctly is almost imperceptible to the average audience member- you just feel that it is right. When it is wrong, it feels off, but not many people know exactly what isn't working.

anyway, that is all I have to say today.

I'll post some more finished garmens later but this has been a long and stressful week due to many things.

Upcoming tech dress, long distance project alterations that were required, and most sadly the death of an old friend and colleague after a prolonged battle with cancer.

Til later.

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.

tailcoat finished

Here is the tailcoat all finished- We were still waiting for the shirt to arrive but took the picture anyway. I found another stand to put it on- one that is longer in the body but it has a strange shape overall and very square shoulders. Maybe the state of stands/dummies should be addressed! That's another post.

Well, I'll get to see this being worn this week so I hope I'll be just as happy then.

I find that doing this kind of work with two fittings is a bit pressured, but the time constraints don't ease up and we try to do the best we can in the time we have.

I also try to take a look when a coat is finished and analyse it a bit, looking for areas that I, as a cutter can improve on for the next time. On this it's the sleeves....I think I should tweak the pattern a bit- something for next time.

Susy did the tailoring on this one and I think she's done a fabulous job, as usual.

I am continuing to wonder about the term in my reference to French press the pleats- (in the text image).

Evan and I think it means to press the back skirt pleats of the tailcoat so they form a ridge rather than a soft pleat. He is going to try that press on his tailcoat and I am going to leave mine as is and we'll see if it makes any difference on stage. I have one more person I think I can ask about that because I think his tailcoats are pressed that way so I'll have to give him a call when I get a moment.

Next up for us is a bit of late eighteenth century menswear, which I haven't cut for a number of years. I've already started by drafting some fall front breeches and I'll keep you posted.

tailcoat progress

Here are a few pictures of the tailcoat in progress. After we fit it, it came back to the table for the alterations to be marked and the main construction to begin. That means it came apart. So, the chest canvas comes out of the left front so that the breast welt pocket can be made. Once that is done, the chest canvas is rebasted in. The roll line is basted and then taped and then the lapels are padstitched by hand. After padstitching the canvas is trimmed to just inside the finished line, then the edges are taped.

The lapels will be finished with a heavy silk and cotton corded fabric, but before the fronts are covered, Susy sewed a layer of washed and preshrunk flannelette that covered the padstitching. This flannelette is trimmed up to the inside edges of the tape and provides a layer of cushioning between the thickness of the seam allowances that will remain in the front edge and the rest of the lapel. In other words you won't have a thick edge and then a thinner area- the lapel will have equal thickness from the edge inward. This will help when the lapels get pressed, now and in the future.

You would also cover the padstitching with flannelette for a satin lapel. In that case the flannelette also keeps the padstitching from marking the satin when pressed. You have to sew the flannelette in very carefully because you don't want any of its stitching showing through.

The third photo is of the step vent in the centre back of the coat. We usually finish this area before the whole coat goes together- it is easier to handle before it is joined to the fronts. The lining is also easier to arrange and slip down while the coat is apart. I only mention it because some people like to make up two complete halves or a tail coat and join them in the centre back last.

The curved back or "frock seams" are sewn to within an inch or so from the waistline. Once the side seam is sewn, the skirt will go on and then the frock seam will be continued to the waist and then down the skirt to the hem.

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.

tailcoat started

Tailcoat cut out and ready to go.
I don't usually cut my patterns "net" or without seam allowances but I did this time. Most cutters here have their own method of pattern making and some include seam allowances everywhere, some have specific areas that have allowance included and some cut without and add them on the fabric. I usually have allowances included in certain areas but I changed my method here so I could be clear as to the shapes and sewing lines.

After I cut all the pieces in wool, I then cut all the linings and the canvas pieces to complete the whole package for the tailor. I then lay out all the pieces for her and we talk through the garment, to make sure that I know that she understands how far I want to go to the next fitting, any construction details that may pose problems or require creative solutions, and to convey an overall sense of the piece.
The next stage for the tailor is marking all the pieces, in this case by tailor tacking. We use a slightly heavier and coarser cotton thread, waxed with beeswax to do this. This thread, along with the wax, has more "tooth" and grips the wool so that the tacks don't fall out. We use cotton thread for all basting as it is easy to break by hand and less likely to cut the fibres of the cloth when being removed.

One change that I made after a little more research, was to the sewn on lapel piece. Instead of cutting two separate pieces, to be sewn together along the outside edge, I cut the lapel on the fold, and it will just have a little dart at the tip of the peak portion. It is pictured in the upper left of the photos.

More to come......

coatee pattern continued

Continuing on, my apologies for taking so long to post . Many things are conspiring to use up my spare time, most are enjoyable - our band has been playing music, and others not so enjoyable-my 16year old cat is dying. Big sigh.

Onwards.

When I discovered that the draft was fully double breasted it didn't make any sense when I was making the pattern. So, I decided to move the seam of the lapel one inch in from my usual CF construction line and then draw in the lapel shaping. That puts the break point of the lapel beyond the CF by 1 1/2 inches. The original draft shows darting in the seam of the lapel to the front, both at the neck and at the waist..
I draw the waist seam from the side back panel at the waist up to about one inch below the natural waist construction line and then curve down to the centre front. In the original draft it looked too low so I have put it where I think it should be.
I used the original draft reference points to locate the front edge of the skirt and the size of the "strap" which is the narrow section of the skirt at the waist.
I then cut my pattern pieces apart, walk or measure all the seam lines to make sure that they are correct and also true up the lines such as the armhole, shoulders, lapel and waist.
I then cut it in muslin and had it made up and ready to fit.
I sure hope that the measurements are correct, cause it is a pain to go to all this work and then find out that the person is 2" bigger around than what you were told. Smaller, I can deal with- bigger is much more difficult.

coatee pattern drafting

So here's the beginning of my pattern for the Footman's Coatee. Again, my apologies for the photo quality, I had to put these on the floor to take a full picture.
First the basic information:
Measurements- I didn't take the measurements for this actor and in fact I have never seen him, which makes me work on the side of caution. I think that some of the numbers are wrong and therefore when in doubt, I revert to standard calculations and hope for the best.
I read through, well actually I skimmed through the period draft looking for the details that will help recreating this look. I find some of these drafting instructions so tedious that my eyes glaze over while deciphering them.

As a side note, I find it interesting to look at my patterns like this, because I see right now things that I want to change....hmmm, anyway, onwards.......

One concern that I had right away is that these coats are supposed to be closed with a link fastening, but the draft is fully double breasted. Mistake or something that I am missing? I decided that I would have to modify it because it didn't feel right.

I'll start with the back:

I decided to draft this without seam allowances because I feel its easier to develop the shape that way.
I start with a long vertical construction line and a line perpendicular to that at the top.
I find the scye line and it's divisions above that, square out.
Mark the width and height of the back neck and draw it in.
Mark the waist length. His waist length measurement seemed a bit long so I reverted to using 1/4 of height as his natural waist and drop 2" for the "fashion waist".
Mark the full length of the coat. I chose to start 4" above his nape to back of knee measurement
Mark in the amount of waist suppression at the CB waist.
Draw in a gently curved CB line.
Mark out the across back width and square up to the top line.
Mark out the shoulder slope and draw in a rough back shoulder line.
Mark in the width of the CB panel at the waist line, using the draft as a guide to the width.
Determine where the curved back seam from the draft falls on the scye line and where it ends at the back armhole, and draw it in.
I start with a 3cm suppression at the side back waist and draw in the other side of the curved back seam.
Measure along the scye line, 1/2 chest plus 5cm ease for the CF line and square up and down.

I use the scye line as one base for balance in the draft, so I measure the seam line of the curved back seam, on the back panel, from the scye line to the armhole. I then measure the corresponding seam line on the side back panel from the scye line to armhole and extend it as required so they are the same measurement. I go through the same procedure form the scye line down to the waist for these seams to reconcile the measurements.

Measure the width for the armhole, and make a mark.
Now I start working back from the centre front line.
I think his chest width measurement could be wrong so I have to use my judgement here. I mark it and decide on a happy medium between the armhole width and the cross front measurement. Square up to the top line. I measure toward the front along the top line 1/6 working scale on the square(neck width), and again 1/6 scale. I draw in a tentative front shoulder line.
Now I mark 2.5 cm below the drafted waist on the CF line and check the measurement I have for nape to CF waist against the pattern, and I raise the front balance on this pattern, 1 and 1/4 " above the top line and square up my neck and shoulder lines, redraw them in the new location. Then I draw in a basic armhole shape.

I then measure down from the neck point 1/6 working scale minus 2cm and give myself a guide line for the gorge line angle. Draw it in.
Now I need to decide about the link closure and how to make sense of the look of the seamed on DB lapel.

I will stop here and continue tomorrow.

Oh yeah, ok, I know I use metric and imperial measurements interchangeably, or some may say randomly, but I grew up with imperial and draft in metric and use whatever measurement system that suits the situation-no pun intended. You'll just have to forgive me.

tailcoat

In our upcoming show, two of the costumes that I am building will be for footmen.
The footman will wear formal wear consisting of trousers, waistcoat and tailcoat. The designer had a photograph from the 1950's and I found what I think is the technical draft reference of the "Footman's Coatee" in the c.1917 "Climax" System for Cutting Gentlemen's garments by W.E. Leggat and T.W. Hodgkinson. I don't think the design of these coats changed much between 1920 and 1950, so it is a good place to start.
I like that they sign themselves "Faithfully Yours" in the endpapers.

I am going to use this text as a guideline. I am not going to try to reproduce the draft as written. I find these drafts very interesting and I have drafted them up in the past for the sake of trying them out and to see what the accepted style and shapes of the era were, but I have to do this under the time and budget pressure of work and so I will use my own method of drafting tailcoats and I will use the information in the original drafts to guide my eye.
I thought that this would also be an opportunity to document and share both the pattern making and the construction methods that we will use to make theses coats.
I am trying to get my scanner working so until then I will have to just photograph the book for you to see.
My apologies for the lack of quality photos!

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