Pretty Pelisse

Thank the stars it IS pretty after all this work it’s taking!

I’m rushing, so it doesn’t bear VERY close inspection, but it is now a complete garment at least.  I’m coughing for hours after coming out of the sewing room though, this is fluffy, fray-y stuff.

Tonight I got the long sleeves in, tacked on the additional lower sleeve bands by hand, and got the sleeve lining pinned into place for more hand sewing.  Seriously, there are more than 10 layers of fabric in places round this armscye!

I laboriously pleated the back skirt, and gathered where the darts are supposed to be, and got the skirt attached, and the skirt facings on as well.

Then I pinned the enormous skirt LINING into place over that, for more hand sewing.  For a bit of extra support, I put a bit of twill tape in to support the back pleats.

The buttonholes were the work of the bloody devil.

I kept running out of black thread, and for some reason couldn’t locate the reel I KNEW I’d bought not long ago.  I tried various little spools of cheapo stuff- no good.  I tried using a big spool of overlocker thread.  Nope.

The fabric layers are thick, and although this automatic buttonholer on the Pfaff is good, it doesn’t like much thickness to contend with.

Sample buttonhole after sample buttonhole, fail, fail fail.  Eventually got one the right size and shape AND found the reel of black thread and unwound and re-wound one of my scant supply of Pfaff bobbins.  Sigh.

I only wanted four buttonholes, and it took well over an hour, as they just kept messing up!  Unpicking black buttonholes on back velvet fabric when tired.  Yeah.  That.  I think one of them took 6 attempts.  ONE OF THEM.

Now I ‘just’ have to stitch in the seam linings, and skirt lining, trim and finish a hem, and sew on the buttons.

And work out the damn hairstyle.  Whose bloody idea WAS this?