SMASH THE SHELL

When a guy needs a nice dress for his elevation…

The materials (a fine black wool twill and all of the trim) were provided by Joel’s spouse, Aife. I took measurements and made up a pattern based on the example garment picture she sent me. After cutting the fabric with large seam allowances and doing a partial assembly with the rest pinned, we did a fitting to check for any areas that needed to be adjusted. Once we had something that fit, then the rest of the seams were sewn and the seam allowances trimmed down. The fitting is an important step when making clothes for someone else!

Faced and pressed neckline for a sharp outline.

Sleeve cuffs and elbow trim of silky, shiny woven material. (Yes, the cat hair was removed before delivery. Nimitz was not a tidy kitty.)

Getting wide trim to lay nicely on a rounded skirt is tricky. The edges of the band were angled at the side seams of the tunic to address most of the flare of the skirt, but the upper edge of this trim still required a little wiggle room because of the gores in the center of the tunic. That’s easier to do with a whip stitch along the edge than if you try to topstitch the whole edge down flat with a machine.

All finished and ready for delivery!