The CRR version of Vogue 8209

Tuesday was spent taking photos of the CRR dress which is now appearing on the Mood Sewing Network. I've finished the jacket and skirt from the remaining piece of the Chado Ralph Rucci double knit fabric.  The jacket was made using Vogue 8209.

I've made this unlined jacket before...my favorite version being this blue & white seersucker version in August 2007.  I remember this sew well because I locked myself in my bedroom (where I sewed at the time) and sewed for 13 hours straight to finish the jacket and the pants.  It was that kind of day...

I chose to make it again with the Chado Ralph Rucci fabric because it's unlined, has a great fit due to all of the seams and the darts that add shaping. I've been looking for a way to use a pin closing on a jacket ala Olivia Pope and this one will allow me to do so.

Materials used for the jacket's construction ~

A pair of 1/2" shoulder pads

Yards of rayon seam tape

Black silk organza

Construction Techniques ~

Since this is a wool double knit with some stretch, I did a few things differently.  

*I didn't add the sleeve splits.  This is a fall/winter jacket and I don't need the ventilation.

*I've supported the facing and collars with black silk organza.

*The shoulders have a little twill tape in them to prevent them from stretching out.

*To decrease bulk in the seamlines, I cut the neckline darts open 1" and pressed them flat.  It really helped when applying the facings at the neckline because there was less bulk in the neckline seam.

*Alot of pressing and steam was used in this garment.  It seems like I spent so much time waiting for seams to cool and dry before moving onto the next piece.

I also used a technique from the Cynthia Guffey Skills video ~ she doesn't backstitch. She sews in about an inch, then she flips the garment around so that she can see the seam and stitches straight.  Then she flips it back and continues to stitch the seam in the right direction.  This may seem involved but it only takes a few minutes and it means that you're always sewing on the seam and not adjacent to it. Love this technique, especially since it's easy to incorporate and hopefully I'm building a new sewing habit.

Like the first two versions of this jacket, I've added rayon seam tape to the facing seams and the jacket's hemline.

So besides a lot of steam used during pressing, this was a pretty easy sew. The pattern was simple enough to highlight the awesome fabric and it works perfectly with the straight skirt.

More info ~
The sleeves offer the most interest since they were creatively cut from the remaining scraps of fabric.  It adds a little funk to the jacket which I'm fine with because this suit was never going to be a high holy days meeting suit...just a suit that could be worn to work that shows a little more of my personality.

Finally a few pictures of the jacket on Lulu ~

Pictures of me wearing the jacket and skirt combo will appear on The Mood Sewing Network on Monday, September 9th.

Finally, I'm moving onto other items on my sewing list.  I've already pretreated a piece of wool crepe and steamed a wool pinstripe ~ decisions about what they will be is forthcoming.

...as always more later!