i haven’t been updating much on the lady grey progress, mostly because i’ve been slogging through the boring stuff.
i cut out my pattern pieces…
serged all the edges…
and marked each one with a small note so i would know which piece was which (since i need all the help i can get!).
i am actually not finished with the cutting yet… i still have to cut the pieces for my interlining (lightweight flannel) and i have more interfacing and hair canvas that needs to be cut. cutting is the worst!
last night i worked on bound buttonholes for the first time.
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME BUTTONHOLE PRON????
i used this bound buttonhole tutorial from gertie. greatest tutorial ever – very clear and easy to understand!
my first attempt was pretty sad:
WAAAHHH
no, really, look at how awful that is.
also the back looks like crap because i didn’t care about clipping threads on a ~sample~
my second attempt:
better, but still crooked.
and my third attempt (oh man, y’all are about to get sick of all these buttonhole pictures):
HOT DAMN!
AMIRITE
SO SEXY
CUTEST BUTTONHOLE EVER
anyway.
this is what i learned about bound buttonholes:
– don’t clip all the way to the edges (which clipping the corners to push out the organza) else your triangles will become double-triangles and be difficult to sew
– count your stitches in the “window” to ensure that parallel sides are the exact same length. i cannot stress this enough. i ended up leaving long thread tails so i could pick out any extra stitches or thread a needle and sneak in a needed stitch.
– those lines need to be STRAIGHT. i actually don’t have a clear ruler/grid thing (shame on me!) so i made creative use with a piece of paper because i am trashy (ha ha get it?). but seriously. straight.
– definitely slip-stitch the lips (lol lips) in place before sewing the triangles. this will ensure that nothing shifts around. my first attempt, i clearly did not slip-stitch. my second attempt, i half-assed it. i actually tried with my third attempt and it absolutely makes a difference.
– i can’t stop loling at calling the lips “lips”… i keep thinking they are going to start singing to me or something i don’t even know.
– make sure your silk organza matches your fabric. mine doesn’t because the girl at the fabric store had no idea what she was talking about and said i should buy the blue:
GJ
i have to spend extra time carefully pressing the sides so that horrible blue doesn’t poke out and clash with my beautiful blue 😥
wait, you say you want to see another picture? aw shucks.
one other note that is unrelated to bound buttonholes but totally related to the lady grey:
plz to be checking the amount of fabric you need to buy before you actually buy it. i recommend cutting out the tissue paper and measuring to get an exact amount. otherwise, you will end up with this:
OVER A YARD OF EXTRA FABRIC
my fabric was $18/yard so needless to say, i am pretty pissed.
i also ended up with an extra yard of lining, but at least i bought bemberg rayon and i can *always* find a use for rayon. but blue wool coating? NO.
LLADYBIRD 
Your buttonholes look great!
How much hair canvas did you end up buying? Did you get it online?
I originally bought a fusible product from JoAnn’s, but now I’m regretting that decision. (It’s not fused yet!)
We don’t have anywhere local that carries hair canvas, and I’m confused by the online shops that carry it. 😦
thank you!
i ended up buying close to 2 yards of 68″/70″ hair canvas… the first time around, i bought it at my local fabric shop, and it was expensive as SHIT ($27.99/yard). then i realized i needed more, so i bought hymo at atlantathread.com – it was cheaper at $9/yard, but the hair canvas is much much much better quality. hopefully 2 yards will be enough; i haven’t cut the hymo yet bc i’m a horrible procrastinator.
i really liked atlanta thread… shipping was a little expensive, but their products are cheap so it evens out. it shipped fast, too!
Atlanta Thread is a great store!
Your bound buttonholes look great, wow! That’s gonna be a gorgeous coat. Maybe you can make a skirt or a hat and scarf with the extra fabric
I adore the fabric you chose–the color, the texture, everything about it! Your buttonholes look fab, and the beaded buttons are amazing.
Grr I get so frustrated when I end up buying way too much fabric because I followed the suggested amount (Colette seems to be particularly bad at this). Especially when you spent a lot on the fabric – I ended up with almost 1m red wool left over from one project, original price = $35/m (bought at a 50% off sale).
I almost had a cry recently when I bought 2m of fabric, then realised it would make a great Colette Ceylon (once I get around to muslining it) but I didn’t have enough…. decided to lay it out and hey presto, I had enough fabric, despite buying 80cm less than suggested!