Bralette Month

 We’re cozying down into the cold months way up north. Let’s get comfy!

Our assignment in the Mentorship is Bralettes. First, try a pattern that has the most support elements already in it, add the missing ones, then alter it to fit! Easy peasy! 😅

We moved on to actually drafting it from measurements. Drafting a bra is not too difficult. Drafting a bra that fits is challenging. I think I’ve mentioned that I have difficulty with buying or making bras that fit. Well, I found out a big reason is the band!

In high school, my now husband was in the marching band. He also played in a smaller band that would be displayed in restaurants and at Disneyland. Ah, the actual perks of Calif. You play, then you play! I was in choir, and we had a similar thing, sing and then enjoy the rides. Oh, wait, wrong band…

If you’ve ever tried to find info on how the back of a bra should fit, you’ll discover pics of bra bands that are halfway down the back and tight vs arched up in ridiculous lace rainbows arching for the neck. I’ve always done the former, but then I have wires that don’t stay snugged against the inframammary fold (IMF). Last night, I discovered why. 

I have a narrow back waist, and medium shoulder width. And between the two is a V shape. The bra back band has always sat at the narrow point of the V. (This pic has already had the band moved up some)

Following the directions of my teacher, I shifted that up onto my shoulder blades, on purpose, to make the band be more level with my apex. Not level with under the breast, level with the centered weight of it. Do you know how weird that felt?

Do you know that it also felt good? 

So, now I really do have lofty ambitions for this journey. 

Why is this important? Well, that’s a great question. 

If you are trying to hold an object in place and you’re only holding it up from the bottom and the straps, then the object is not as sturdy in place. The pressure goes through the shoulders, which may then ache. 

If you, instead, have the force go through the center of the area of the object, you have a better grip, and the shoulder straps are used as an anchor instead of the main pulley. Comfort increases, and lift is easier to achieve.

At the Raven

 I saw the cute pattern over on Mood Fabric for a Wednesday dress and offered to make it for my daughter. Then: My laptop died. Kaput. Worked fine one day, the next it refused to turn on. I was able to print the pattern from my tablet, but it has no size control for the printer. The gauge came out smaller than it wa supposed to be, so after a little math, I picked a size and went for it.

The ruffles took a bit, but I used a rolled hem foot (not narrow, sadly), and they came out nice. Once all that hemming and basting prep was done, everything went together smoothly. 

If my daughter was at home, I would have pinned the skirt to the top and hemmed the bottom of the bodice for an even hem. But, I think the slight high low hem will be fine. I hope she likes it!

Maya early October Update

 I’ve been working on the Maya Bra as time becomes available. After the wire issue last time, I went up a size to see if the wires fit better. Yes, and no. The wires fit into the band, but the band has issues. I used the cutting grid to figure out the balance point of the Orange 42 wire and lined it up with the mark on the pattern when the seam of the lower cup joins the cradle of the bra band. The front arm was well low of the center front, and the side arm was above the edge of the pattern. Also, there seemed to be no included wire spring in the pattern. 

I tried the 40D in SCL and they looked like a reasonable fit. But, then I made a mockup with an embroidered lace from a different company, and the cups were huge! Why did I have such a difference?

I made the loose cups that fit into the larger band, and did I ever get an (online equivalent of an) earful over that! Wasn’t the 2024 spring Bra Bee all about fitting the band first? I just wanted the girls up out of the way while I fixated on that band. So, does that mean the whole idea of a fitting band is wrong? Because they don’t have any cups… or is it that important to start with the cups in that might not fit in the end anyway?

Anyway, I digress. So, I made the original pattern size that the website spit out, 38B. I cannot post those pics here, I’d get dinged for the explicit content. As usual, a pattern generated for my BCD was too small. I received good info from the group.

I sewed up the next size down. Remember that the calculator said to use band size 85/38, but it was too tight, so I went up to the 90/40 band (I currently wear a 36 band in RTW). The ill fitting fitting-bra was in 90/40D, and now down a cup to the C. This looks like it almost fits…

The first underwires I had tried were the Emerald Erin brand Carmen 40. They pinch in a bit at the top. In the 38D version, I thought the cup may be too small because the wires pinched. It’s possible the lack of wire spring could contribute to this pinchy feeling. But, the Round 42 are about the same length as the Carmen, with straighter ends. So, that loose cups bra trial was with these wires.

Next, I tried the 42 Orange wires. I dropped the front center of the pattern to fit them. This new size (40C) along with the 42 Orange wires seemed like an okay fit. I think I’m supposed to be in size 40 wires, if there’s enough room in the cup, so I did swap out the 40 for 42 for a day. The wire spring may not be enough yet because they cause discomfort by day’s end. I went back to 42 until I can figure this out.

In the fitting forum, Linda Crawford suggested that I raise the side and back band. To do this, I printed a copy of the Eve bra band for Vertical wires. Size 46 seems to be about right for the Orange 42 wires. And the cups fit almost perfectly in the band. This one came with lots of wrinkling on the lower side seam area, so I’ve been raising that to try to combat the issue. It was not that bad on the original band.

Today, I’m trying the 40 Round wires to see if they fit in this Eve band Maya cups mashup. Still needs more spring!

September Sewing

 In September, the Bra Making Mentorship kicked off with fitting underwear. I struggled with this as there are few clear visuals of where things are supposed to line up on the lower human body. I know there are plenty of pictures of underwear clad individuals, yet I want a more clinical description, and drawings or pictures to collaborate the descriptions.

How do basic briefs fit you? I’ve always known they weren’t made with my body shape in mind. If they have enough coverage for a full seat, the back waist may be folds and the front waist slid down. The gusset  is not placed where it would be useful for what it looks like it’s supposed to do. Thankfully, there newer cuts in RTW that cover comfortably.

I took the Bravo Bottoms #1 pattern, and cut out and sewed the size it suggested. The elastics were stranglingly tight! The fabric may have partially fit, but the elastics threw me off. I know I have a bit of belly after having kids, so I went up a size. The elastics were still too tight! In both sizes, my butt cheeks were out like what the “cheeky” fit is supposed to be.

During a sewing meeting, some of the other students suggested applying the elastics in a more one to one ratio. Just pull a bit along the bum edge to help bring the fabric in place.

I had a zoom meeting with the teacher, and she told me to widen the gusset. She gestured at the general area, tried to point out and describe where the back gusset should sit. It wasn’t that clear to me (way too kinesthetic a learner for this distance learning!). I asked about concrete structures, does it belong at the tailbone level, she said butt fold. 

I sewed some more. I tried another pattern. I went to an online measurements based pattern. Something just wasn’t quite right. Back to the first pattern! The teacher had said she only used the bikini cut from her pattern when she was at a larger size. I went through the sizing process again in the bikini cut.

Finally, something clicked. I pulled on a pair and looked as best I could at the back side of myself in the mirror. I could see the gusset near my tailbone, as it usually is. I pulled the underwear down until the gusset was at the fold where my bottom and legs join. This! This is the spot! I removed about 2 inches of the long gusset to get it in place.

In the group meeting, someone described it as where the (yoga) sitz bones are. the ischial tuberosity is the bones lowest on the pelvic girdle that you basically sit on. They are about at the level of the fold where the thigh meets the bum.

I realized I was overzealous when fixing that first gusset, and added an half inch to the next gusset, as the front leg line was pulled low. I used a larger size for the front and a smaller size for the back (yes, Sue, my big butt needed a smaller size!). Next, a small wedge was added just to center front as the bikini cut skims the beginning of my fullness of belly. Now, the pattern is 3 sizes slightly changed to fit together with a wedge added in front. I have a pair that fits.

To fit a brief will still take time. And, I’ll need to change the height of the pattern to fit less stretchy fabrics -these are in rayon. But, this is a start.

Bra Nerds Unite!

 For the month of September, a group from the (Bra Bee) Hive has agreed to use the same pattern so we can compare the fit and changes needed to fit the pattern to ourselves. The pattern chosen this month is the Maya Bra by AFI Atelier. This pattern has been available, at no cost, for about nine years now!

Inputting my measurements in the AFI calculator spit  out a size of 85C/38C. I measured the pattern, had a laugh and immediately printed out the next size. The width of the cup would just not have enough space in that size.

I sewed up the 85D, straight from the pattern. I have Carmen wires, so I tried the size 40, as they look close to the right length for the wireline, and they seem more able to spring open. 

First version, Maya Bra 38D, Carmen 40 (similar size to BMS 42L) 

*Made to pattern* no adjustments at all 

Gore: Wide, sitting on breast tissue.

Band: Bottom band tight, upper band loose: need a rib flare adjustment to raise it a touch and give me breathing room.

Cups: feel too small, wire is sitting on outer breast tissue; which makes me unsure if the wire is too small.

Straps: set wide in front, but at a good angle in back, only wearing it a while will tell if they stay up or not.

Synopsis: if this was the first bra I had sewn, I would have thought it fit and been initially happy, but had no clue how to make it comfortable!

I decided to cut and sew right into this first version. First, the gore. I had sewn the last inch or so of the channeling in with a basting thread that I could remove to get the channeling out of the way.  I sewed 1/8-inch from the fold to remove 1/4-inch from the gore, this alleviated the wire sitting on my tissue. 

I plan to alter the band to give more room under the bust, but first I have to know how much. I cut into the side cradle, widened the bottom band by a thumb’s width, then sewed a patch of SCL (sheer cup lining, also called marquisette). I figured that would give me room to breathe, and if I added enough, make the looseness equal to the top band and then I could reduce the back band evenly. It didn’t quite work that way. I still need to take some out of the upper band, but now the bottom band feels better. This tells me to go up a band size on the next iteration (^/v goes together, up in band and down in cup size).

I made one other change in this first Maya attempt. I switched the underwires. I have some of each of the wires from Emerald Erin, and I switched the  Carmen for the Round 42 wires. The Carmen are rounder and the tops pinch in just slightly. The Round wires are straighter at the ends, but are long like strapless wires. The pressure on the sides of my breasts was mostly relieved. I think the larger side cup can still use a smidgeon of room through the cross cup. 

Last note, the underwire is too long for the wireline in this size. I thought it would be okay for a trial run, but it is sticking out almost a quarter inch! I’ll need to alter the pattern for that.

Supersock World Championship 2024

 I’ve been under the radar a bit with more sock knitting. As Sock Madness ended, Supersock was beginning. SWC is a knit along (KAL) based on a racing theme.signs ups are in early May each year. During each Lap, the Racers can choose which Lane they want to knit in, a simpler or more complex pattern.  The Finale lap just started on August 1 and runs for 2 weeks. My socks are done, finished in the wee hours this morning, turned in, and approved.

With the exception of the qualifier socks which I gave to my son and couldn’t find this morning, here’s a group photo of my SWC socks

The Qualifier Alhambra socks by Anna Zhuravleva , had to be knit up within a 2 week time period starting mid May.

Then, about twice a month, a two week period was set for each Lap of the KAL race. Each lap can earn points, or just knit along for fun.

Lap 1 Boudicca Socks by Robin E. Johnston, surprised me with the sizing,, these fit my 8 year old.

Lap 2 was fun to knit, Thorny Issues by Fran Lorie

Lap 3, I chose the “easier” pattern, Ellie's Plaid Socks by Clair Wyvern

Lap 4, I chose Mesotherm Socks by Carolyn Lisle I made these to minimum requirements, and they are wide enough for my feet, but a tad short on my 8 year old model here. I would like to take off the toes and give them an extra repeat of that cool pattern. 

Finale sock is called Fluidity Socks by Nicole Simmons The Finale actually started Aug 1 Australian time, where the designer lives. This was a surprise and I did not have the yarn and needles needed. I was at the local knit night, so I picked up this lovely yarn. However, concentrating while chatting doesn’t make for the best competitive knitting! 

All in all, the patterns were nice. Though, as with all patterns, yarn and needle size need to be considered well if one wants to make a certain size. If one wants more points, knitting to the minimum requirements is the way to go. 

Pinning Quarters for Undies

 I’m finishing up some underpants for my littlest girl. I made her a trial pair and she said the crotch area was a bit tight. The elastic in the pattern is put on the legs in even quarters. So, I asked some sewing friends and they suggested an uneven distribution. 

While pinning the last pair’s leg holes, I thought I’d get some pictures to show how I do this. I’m actually going to pin them in eighths because of how the quarters lay and which are easier to pin on this pair.

First, I fold the pants so the wide seam is about centered in the gusset:

The green pen is aimed at the side seam (where the serger threads are attached) and about the center of the gusset. This isn’t always perfectly centered, so after I pin the folded edges, I refold so these pins are touching.

In the second picture, the gusset and side seam area are pinned. The back side is convex and front edge is concave, so this has to be adjusted somewhat to even it out. Sometimes the “side seam” pin is off by a small amount.

The next thing is to mark halfway between each of these quarters. On this pair, I’ve used the yellow pins.

These pins that wind up close to the ends of the gussets on the crotch side and high on the back and front edges are in a better spot for my elastic to focus its stretch.

Along the front edge, I want to give the leg a bit more elastic to stretch and move, but against the backside, I want the elastic to snug in a bit and hold the fabric next to the cheek. 

In order to do this, I fold the elastic in half, then give the front a bit of the back’s half. In this pair, it will be about an half inch. Then I’ll quarter the elastic and connect it to the underwear. This gives the back about 75% stretch on the elastic compared to the fabric, and the front doesn’t stretch quite as much.

The blue pin on the left marks the halfway point from the blue pin on the right. The yellow pin shows the adjustment for more elastic on the front half than the back half. Next, I’ll remove that extra blue pin from the left and pin halfway between the right blue pin and the yellow pin, on both sides. Note: I find pinning the elastic in eighths gives me just a bit better control, so I’m not taking the extra pins from the leg edge. Once I pin the longer front edge into the leg, I’ll pin the elastic for the back and pin that in. 

 Pinned in, the back leg edge has a bit of looseness (about 75% elastic to fabric), and the front edge almost matches. The elastic on the front will barely need to be pulled (about 90% of the distance).

On first pass, the leg cinches in nicely, but the gusset isn’t pulled too tight.

Done!