Saturday, February 11, 2012

Vogue 8776

Pockets
Not the best outfit with this: long sleeves and pants would be better




Back
Open (I like it better closed)

Vogue describes this as a semi-fitted, unlined cape with convertible collar, lower side front seams with pockets and stitched hems. I guess it is a cape. I think of a cape as not having any arm openings and this has them. They providelimited mobility though so maybe we should just go with "cape".  I used size M which is one size smaller than my measurements as usual in an unfitted garment. I made View C, the longest one.


The designation "very easy" is wrong IMO. The slit buttonholes and slit armholes are a bit confusing I think. 

I love the unusual style and shape but I'm not so sure I like the low wearability factor. 


I used a raspberry red boucle that has been in my stash for many years, maybe 25. All this time I thought it was a woven wool. Once I got it down from the shelf I discovered that it is a knit, with a backing similar to fleece. Probably not all wool either as the moths had showed no interest in all that time. I'm quite happy to have this bulky fabric off my shelf. Now if I just had more closet space!

This fabric made the project much harder than it would be with a lighter or thinner fabric. Because of its bulk the buttonhole slits and a few other places were hard to maneuver and required careful hand stitching to make it look right. Because it is a knit, stretch was a factor in sewing seams. I didn't think about it ahead of time as I should have so some seams stretched as I sewed them. The bottom armhole openings grew as they are not reinforced at all. The top armhole openings are doubled with the self facing so they stayed more in shape. Fortunately I used a lining fabric for the pocket lining which helped to stabilize the pocket edge. I left off the extra buttons as the fabric was a nightmare and I knew buttonholes would look terrible.
Have you been watching Project Runway Allstars? Mila made a cape somewhat similar to this pattern. The silhouette is the same but the arm openings are vertical and there is no collar. Very sharp looking.

4 comments:

Mary said...

Your cape is gorgeous! I love the fabric and the deep raspberry color. I too liked Mila's cape-but yours is my fave.

velosews said...

I love the colour of your cape. It takes the greyness out of winter.

Gail said...

I agree with velosewer about the colour. Capes are much more versatile than we give them credit.

Shona said...

This is the loveliest version of this pattern I have seen. The dark cranberry red is perfect for it. If you still have the pattern and ever have any interest in selling it I would be very interested in buying it. I have been looking for the pattern online and in stores for the past 2 years to no avail. It's so frustrating that they get discontinued.