The Vintage Tailoring Thread

[herringbonekid]

this melton undercollar was taken from a 40s Hepworths DB which i took apart for patterns. machine padded:

the edges would have been machine stitched right-to-right with the top collar, same as the two in previous post.

 

[Vampyre Master]

this new thread is to discuss the finer points of tailoring techniques, details and construction of vintage suits and other garments.


.....

Qirrel posted this image of an action back jacket pattern-draft over on the 'Gentlemen show us what you've made!' thread:

here is a mid 30s American jacket which shows the same sort of construction, with slight differences:

here is one made by myself:

this part is the bit that does the 'action':

it's basically a pleat or 'hinge' which opens out when the arm moves forward. i think mine and the jacket above differ from the illustration in that the piece nearest the body is cut as a seperate and attached to the rest with a bound edge. the American one also curves into the side seam rather than going straight down into the belt.

hi there, fascinating stuff, I have this jacket but its too big at the waist do you think a tailor of seamstress could do the same as you

regrads
VM

 

[Nick D]

Nick if you look at your Burtons 50s suit i'll wager it has the same style as this.

I'll take a look tonight and put up a photo for comparison in the morning. My '50s tailcoat has the same collar construction as that blue one.

 

[herringbonekid]

hi there, fascinating stuff, I have this jacket but its too big at the waist do you think a tailor of seamstress could do the same as you.

afraid not, there isn't enough fabric in the back of that jacket to make an action back. you could: take the belt off, put a couple of pleats in the back, and put the belt back on.

 

[Vampyre Master]

afraid not, there isn't enough fabric in the back of that jacket to make an action back. you could: take the belt off, put a couple of pleats in the back, and put the belt back on.

ok good suggestion thanks
VM

 

[Qirrel]

More collars!

Here is the 1910 frock coat. (French) Notice that it has been padded very thickly.

A gratuitous picture of a very beautiful buttonhole:

1880-1900 Norwegian evening tailcoat. This too has been padded very thickly.

Early 1930s German. I can't see any padding stitches on the collar, so I think it has been padded by machine.

A 30s-40s (Norwegian) womans jacket. Cross stitched at the lapel, but turned in and felled along the stand. Machined along the fall edge.

Norwegian RTW 1960s. All machined except for the turned in edge. Common practice throughout the 60s and 70s; I see it all the time in vintage shops.

30s-40s Norwegian, probably RTW. Black stroller jacket or one of those "uniform" jackets for waiters, receptionists etc. This jacket was made by the "bagging" method. The collar is as you can see completely machined. The only hand stitching is the armhole lining, and the inside of the collar, where it attaches to the lining. That is probably where everything was pulled through after bagging the linings. You can also see the faint lines made by the lapel padding machine.

Finally, a late Victorian frock coat, American. Here neither the suiting nor melton was used, but rather a fabric with a tight weave and smooth finish, which does not feel like wool. I can't quite decide what it is. Could be cotton, mohair, something with silk in it, or what I have seen referred to as "italian" or "art silk" (which I gather were made from cotton).

 

[herringbonekid]

plenty to think about for the collar maker !


here's a bespoke 30s melton that has been machined right-to-right around the outer edges, and hand stitched along the neckline:

i still prefer the look of the first examples i posted where there are no visible raw edges. everything is sealed in.

 

[Nick D]

And speaking of collars, I've been fighting with one all day. I've just basted on the top collar for a suit jacket and the collar just refuses to lay perfectly smooth on the sides. I think it's the depth of the fall, but I even trimmed it before I put on the top collar and thought it was sorted. I don't know if re-basting the top collar will do any good. I'm not thrilled with this collar anyway, the next time I use this pattern (for either a black stroller jacket or a linen suit, not sure which yet) I'm going to re-draft the collar from a different draft.

 

[Matt Deckard]

Any thread that talks about belted jackets is a thread I love.

 

[herringbonekid]

... I've just basted on the top collar for a suit jacket and the collar just refuses to lay perfectly smooth on the sides.

do you mean the collar is lifting up at the outer edges, or the fabric is rippling ?

 

[Nick D]

do you mean the collar is lifting up at the outer edges, or the fabric is rippling ?

The fabric is rippling, but it's the canvas, not the top-collar itself. I've re-cut the collar but haven't put the top collar back on yet.

 

[herringbonekid]

what sort of canvas are you using ?

 

[Nick D]

Linen canvas. Thinking about it again I think part of the problem was I didn't lay the top collar on quite right, but even without it on I could see the slight bulge on the sides of the canvas.

This is also the first time I've used a straight collar instead of a crooked one, but I don't know if that's a contributing factor. It has been more difficult to shape and fit.

 

[herringbonekid]

Linen canvas. Thinking about it again I think part of the problem was I didn't lay the top collar on quite right, but even without it on I could see the slight bulge on the sides of the canvas.

i've got my head around straight and crooked jacket fronts but not collars.

 

[Qirrel]

Linen canvas. Thinking about it again I think part of the problem was I didn't lay the top collar on quite right, but even without it on I could see the slight bulge on the sides of the canvas.

This is also the first time I've used a straight collar instead of a crooked one, but I don't know if that's a contributing factor. It has been more difficult to shape and fit.

Could you show us a picture of that collar?

 

[Nick D]

Could you show us a picture of that collar?

After the earlier discussion I machine stitched the roll-line:

Padstitched:

Stretched and pressed:

First try:

You can see the bulge a bit more on the right. It was much greater when in wear and with the top-collar on. I cut the bottom edge of the fall (and fixed that left bridle!). The bulge is much reduced if not completely sorted. It's not the best collar I've done, I'm afraid.

 

[Vampyre Master]

the films on this site are super beyond my budget though
http://www.anderson-sheppard.co.uk/index.html
VM

 

[Mario]

Nice films. What I found interesting is that they explicitly mention that they cut small armholes for comoftable wear and to keep the jacket 'on the neck'.

 

[Vampyre Master]

Nice films. What I found interesting is that they explicitly mention that they cut small armholes for comoftable wear and to keep the jacket 'on the neck'.

do you think that means it doesn't ride up when you move?
VM

 

[Nick D]

do you think that means it doesn't ride up when you move?
VM

High armholes allow for ease of movement without shifting the body of the jacket. It's one of the defining features of vintage and quality tailoring versus modern suits.