By Laurie Pessetto Here are some tips and tricks to ensure your tailored jacket turns out looking professional. Skill Level Intermediate sewing and pressing skills Tips Fusible Acro is a fusible, washable hair canvas. The fusing makes the interfacing firm and controls any motion in the fabric. The interfaced fabric will not stretch and the natural ease is controlled. If the fabric piece needs to move and return to shape, but have good support, non-fusible Acro is a more suitable interfacing. A garment using Fusible Acro should be gently laundered and also may be dry-cleaned. Materials: Fusible Acro Fabric(s) Thread Buttons 1 Stitch Witchery 2 Spandex Tools: Pattern Scissors Pins Needles Seam Gauge Iron Pressing Cloth Ironing Board Sewing Machine Clappers (Wooden blocks) Disappearing Ink Pen Use the measurements on the back of the pattern to determine if you need to alter it to fit. All alterations to the pattern should be completed before you begin to lay out the pattern on the fabric. Use tissue and tape to add or remove area to make the pattern fit. Altered pattern pieces should still lie flat. If the fabric frays, you need to use a flat felled or enclosed seam, zigzag the edges, or encase the seams using narrow fabric strips of a nonfraying fabric such as spandex. The other choice is to line the garment. Grading seams helps them lie smoothly. Trimming each layer in the seam at a different width is called grading, leaving each fabric edge visible. It is important to grade seams when using hair canvas as it is a heavy interfacing designed for fabrics with body. The Fusible Acro seam allowances can be gently lifted from the edge and trimmed. Non-fusible Acro is easier to trim. Pressing with a cloth will protect the fabric s finish at steam temperatures on sensitive fabrics. Use a clapper or piece of wood as the base, cover the wood and the fabric with a press cloth. With the second block of wood in one hand, apply steam, and lightly tap the wood block on areas with many layers of fabric. The steam softens the fibers and tapping with a clapper flattens the fibers, thinning the look and feel of those thick areas.
Purchase fabric as guided by your pattern. Washable fabrics should be prewashed. Dry-clean decorator fabrics do not need preshrinking. Assess the fabric characteristics to determine if the seams need to be finished to prevent fraying. You might use flat felled seams if the fabric frays or if the jacket is to be unlined. Follow the pattern instructions to construct the garment. 1. Prepare your pattern. 2. Lay out and cut the fabric pieces. 1. Remove and cut apart the pattern pieces, dry press the pieces flat, and make any needed alterations to fit the pattern to your size and shape. Note any special sewing instructions in the pattern such as seam allowances. 2. Lay out and cut the fabric pieces on the grain. 3. Lay out and cut the Fusible Acro on the grain. 3. Lay out and cut the Fusible Acro pieces. 4. Fuse the Acro interfacing to the fabric pieces on the wrong side. 4. Fuse the Acro to the collar, cuff, facing, and tab pieces. 5. Draw the seam allowance on the tab with disappearing ink. 6. Sew the interrupted back seam of the tab. The back tab can be folded into the correct position before sewing the points so it will be easier to turn. Fold and lightly press the tab with a press cloth, then stitch the corner ends. 5. Mark the seam line on the tab. 6. Sew the back of the tab, then match the tips and sew the ends. 7. Grade the seams and turn to the right side. 8. Sew the turning gap shut by hand and press the tab. 7. Grade the seams and turn to the right side. 8. Sew the gap by hand and press the tab.
9. Sew two basting lines, one ¼ and one ¾, from the top edge to gather the top of the sleeve. 10. Sew gathering stitches at the wrist end of the sleeve before sewing it onto the cuff to distribute the fabric evenly as the cuff will not have ease once the fabric is bonded with the Fusible Acro. Sew two basting lines, one ¼ and one ¾, from the edge. Tie the thread ends together at both ends. Position the cuff on the sleeve as instructed. Place a pin at the beginning and end of the gathered area. Tether the threads at one end around the pin. Use the free tied thread ends to pull the gathers. This method of creating gathers results in straight gathers that can be evenly dispersed. When the gathered section lies flat with the cuff piece, tether the pulled ends around the pin. Use your finger or a T-pin to evenly distribute the gathers. Be careful not to pull too hard. If you break the gathering threads, you will need to start over and resew the gathering stitches. After the gathers are sewn onto the cuff piece, you can remove the basting stitches easily. 11. Use the cuff seam allowance to enclose the seam and topstitch it down. 12. Pull the gathers at the sleeve top. When gathering the top of the sleeves, follow the instructions as with the wrist seam to disperse the gathers evenly along the sleeve opening. 13. Sew the sleeves to the body and remove the basted gathering stitches. 14. Finish the inside shoulder arm seam by enclosing it with a 1 ½ strip of spandex and trim any excess. 15. After you fuse the Acro to the facing, fold over the hem edge and fuse it to the back of the Acro with a narrow strip of Stitch Witchery. 16. Sew the facing to the jacket body, then trim and turn the bottom corner seams. 9. Sew the gathering stitches on the top of the shoulder piece. 11. Enclose the wrist seam with the cuff seam allowance and topstitch. 13. Sew the sleeves to the body and remove the basted gathering stitches. 15. Hem the facing edge with Stitch Witchery and the iron. 10. Gather and sew the wrist to the cuff. 12. Pull the tied threads to create the gathers at the top of the shoulder as with the wrist. 14. Finish the arm sleeve with spandex and trim. 16. Sew the facing to the body and trim and turn the corners.
17. Before using the button hole template to mark the button hole placement with disappearing ink, determine the bust center line and space the rest of the button holes up and down from this point 18. Sew the button holes. 19. Use the button holes to position the buttons on the front and cuffs by sticking a pin through the button hole in the position you want the button to rest. Hold the pin in the fabric as you lift off the button hole side. Mark the spot with disappearing ink and sew on the buttons. 20. Turn up the hem ¼ and zigzag if fraying is a problem. Turn up the hem ½ and hand or machine stitch the hem. 21. Hand stitch the buttons and tab to the back of the jacket in one step. 22. Press the jacket, shaping the collar with the iron. 23. Using the clappers (wooden blocks) and press cloth, flatten any corners that are too bulky. 24. Generously steam and then tap the corners with the wooden block. 25. Your jacket is ready to wear! 17. Find the center bust line and mark the button hole positions on the jacket front. 19. Sew on the buttons. 21. Stitch the buttons and tab onto the back of the jacket. 18. Sew the button holes. 20. Sew a ¼ hem, then turn up ½ to form the hem by hand or machine. 22. Press the jacket and shape the collar. 23. Use the clappers and a steam iron to flatten bulky corners. 24. Steam and tap the corners with the clapper.
25. Your jacket is ready to wear! About Fusible Acro Fusible Acro, #87008, is a woven hair canvas interfacing suitable for garment construction where crisp detail or firm control is desired. Offered by HTC Retail, it fuses securely with no stretching or bubbling. It s ideal for a suit, jacket or coat. Made of 54% polyester/ 27% hair/ 12% cotton/ 7% wool in a natural color, it can be washed or dry-cleaned and used with medium to heavyweight fabrics. It is ideal as an interfacing for the front of a men s suit jacket or other fine-tailored garment that requires a firm hold. It is not suggested for use with triacetate, seersucker, lace, or rainwear. It comes in a 23-inch width on a 25-yard bolt. For more information, go to: www.htc-retail.com/fusible-arco Please like us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/htc-retail/141149719304699 We publish free projects, events, and news about interesting books, videos, products, and competitions every month. If you ve created a project with an HTC material, we d love to see it. When you post it to your Facebook page, please tag our Facebook page as well. If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas you d like to see, please contact us: Phone: (678) 514 0400 Toll Free: (800) 275-4275 Fax: (678) 510 0349 Email: info@htc-retail.com