Breeches Reflection and Tutorial

Breeches Complete aside from Buttons

Breeches Full Front without Buttons

Breeches Full Front Open without Buttons

Mini Evaluation 

In sticking to my goals set in my calender I (mostly) completed the breeches on Thursday March 24th. The button holes, buttons, hanging loops, and name tag are what is left to complete on the breeches before turning them over to the National Theatre Hire Department. I am very pleased with how the breeches turned out. Initially I thought that making these would be an identical process to how we made our breeches for Candide (see first Costume post) with the only difference being the pockets. However this was a very different process; we were given the patterns instead of drafting them and did not cut a calico layer first for the first fitting and then line the breeches with the calico. Although the core techniques were similar it took an adjustment to a process I thought I already knew about. Probably the biggest challenge in putting the breeches together was putting in the cash pocket hidden along the waist-band. Unlike the welted pocket it actually affected the way the garment was put together (at least on that side) making sure the pocket bag was sewn to the leg of the trousers and then working it into the waist-band. [The welted pocket was completed on the waistband before the waistband was attached to anything. I wouldn't consider it a simpler process but it was a bit more straight forward.] However I am proud of each pocket and how they work with the rest of the garment. The example pair of breeches the National Theatre Hire Department sent were very useful in finishing the breeches to a high standard. They were able to give us the amount of seam allowance left in the leg seams and what was over-locked or hand-sewn, ect. I really think that having made a pair of breeches before was really important in helping me complete this pair. Since there were no written instructions to accompany the patterns a combination of previous study, tutor assistance, and an example pair helped me complete these breeches to a high standard.

Tutorial

I had a tutorial with my tutor (Dexter) on my breeches this past week. They are to a good standard and made well, which was incredibly rewarding to hear. But I do have a few things I could adjust and few techniques to perfect. Making sure my hand stitching is really secure is very important. I think in some areas I was afraid of pulling the thread too tight and pulling the fabric. In areas where it is stab stitched (cash pocket, full front flap, ect) the thread shouldn't be pulled really at all. However where slip stitching is used to secure something ( like the arrows on the full front) the thread needs to be pulled tightly so it is actually secure. Recognizing the different needs for different stitches is important and something I am putting into practice for the waistcoat. The welt on the welted pocket on the waistband is gapping just a little. In order to fix this I should have tacked the welt loosely before slip stitching the sides to the waistband. I also had some issues with the knee-bands at the bottom. The knee-band and the over-hang for the button are not the same width. To correct this I will sew my button on so the smaller width sits more in the middle of the knee-band instead of aligning one side and making the inaccuracy more noticeable. In the future I need to be more careful and precise when bagging out the knee-band before sewing it onto the knee of the breeches. Even with a few changes and things to fix I was really happy with my tutorial and I feel like the breeches are a great success and good first garment for this unit.