Last week on Friday I fitted what I’d hoped would be the final garment on Clare. Unfortunately it turned out that we had not cracked the fit around the bust at all – so I treated this as another sample round, made my alterations and went away to make remake it. The darts were looking far too pointy! The seam under the bust was also sitting too high on her and the neck didn’t lie nicely against her body:
Oh, and also, she couldn’t get into it! That was a pretty big hitch. I had to cut a seam and pin her back in. The trouble was that we’d taken it in to be a closer fit, but with an invisible zip like this one I needed to keep a short length of closed seam at the bottom. Or at least I thought I had to… until I found an amazing open-ended invisible zip at Kleins, which has really saved the project! I’ve no idea how I could have solved this issue without it.
So a week later I went back to see her again, with much better results!! The fit is vastly improved, and I think she’s looking lovely in this feminine but cool outfit.
I’ve altered the Charlie Brear skirt now too, taking out 180cm from the volume at the bottom, hemming it to Clare’s required length and shortening the train. I’ve also added a lining and removed one of the two layers of mesh, which means the skirt is now less big and much less see-through, a win-win in this instance!
Clare will get married next weekend and I’m super excited to see the photos! I’m sure it’ll be a lovely day, and hopefully the Welsh weather will be kind to her xx
S A R A H B A R K E R 