What I'm Working on (More on Vintage Pledge 4) #vintagepledge

Brief update on my Vintage Pledge 4, McCall's 5297. (See last week's post for my rant on fitting.) You can see the gorgeous batik I'm using for the jacket (on sale at Hancock), and the blue is some silk I've dyed to match for the lining.  And speaking of linings, there's Connie Long's masterpiece, Easy Guide to Sewing Linings.  

About that silk (which I also used on this Vintage Pledge item), it's silk habotai, 5mm weight, from Dharma Trading.  In order to get a "deal," I bought a whole bolt (about 50 yards).  I must be nuts!/But it was a deal!  I'm slowly getting through the 50 yards, but it will take a while.  If I ever get all the projects done that are in my head, it will be used up; I promise.

I also would like a bolt of 8mm habotai.  This 5mm silk is lovely, but very light, and it needs to be sewed down as it doesn't have enough weight for gravity to keep it down.  For example, I'm thinking of making a slip with it.  And I will probably just double the fabric for all the parts, so there's a bit more weight and it will behave under a dress.  

Also, I mostly buy my dyes from Dharma, too, because silk dyes are special.  Meaning that if you buy non-silk dye (like Rit), it will work great on cotton, but won't do a thing for your silk.  Follow directions carefully, and don't use your dying utensils for anything but dying.  I keep all these items in our basement, well away from the kitchen.  

Finally, I'm still having a few more fitting issues, but I think I'm pretty close to getting this pattern modified to suit me.  If I get a princess-seamed jacket that fits me out of this torturous fitting process, I will be pretty darn happy.  Wish me luck!