Dating US 4-piece Sport Suit Brown Fleck

[Fastuni]

I joined the raw edges on the backside by handstitching them together (thus creating a "slouch").

I feared that leaving only a little edge (like 1 cm) would mean that the vertical seams of the pleats will show through. Guess it's also due to the rather light fabric. Maybe inserting a strip of stiffer cotton fabric will help "straightening out" the belt, no?

In any case maybe I worry too much... after all my German sports suit's half-belt also shows horizontal "pull folds".

 

[herringbonekid]

I joined the raw edges on the backside by handstitching them together (thus creating a "slouch").

I feared that leaving only a little edge (like 1 cm) would mean that the vertical seams of the pleats will show through.

what i normally do is press the belt into the width i need, trim off the raw edge to about 1cm, baste it in place then machine it on.
you sometimes see a hint of a vertical pleat underneath, but you do on old jackets too.

if you're worried about the vertical edges being really visible, because the fabric is lightweight, then a piece of interlining wouldn't hurt.
(but don't use anything heavier or stiffer than the fabric itself... you don't want the belt to act unnaturally stiff).

 

[Qirrel]

You could trim the turn-in to 1/2" and insert a strip of linen (or other non stretchable fabric) large enough that it will be caught in the machine seam, and then stitch the turn ins to the linen. That should prevent stretching and also to some degree the folds you have problems with. A good pressing always helps, too.

 

[Fastuni]

Thanks for the suggestions. I will certainly do something along this lines... due to the fabric the belt certainly could use some sort of modest "stiffening".

 

[reetpleat]

Wow, that looks so fantastic. Totally transformed. Not just from the front but from the back. Weather it had a belt originally or not, definitely worth doing. It would make the difference between me wearing the thing or not.