So, it’s almost done.

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

So, it’s almost done. The last and trickiest thing is left to do - sew on the collar, which needs to be done by hand.

I’m still not sure about the seam pockets. They went in easily, but they’re fucking with the line of the garment. If you look closely at the side seam, it’s sagging a bit. Probably not going to be obvious when it’s worn, but still. I’m wondering if it would be better to pull them out and make front patch pockets instead. What do you think?
#Sewing

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

In the continuing saga of the side seam pockets, I removed them. And as you can see, the line is back to pretty close to perfection. There’s still a bit of bagging on the sides, where the pockets used to be, but I’m pretty sure that’s from fabric stretching and it will wash back to flat. #Sewing #Haori

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

Now… shall we have patch pockets on the outside, or make useful ones on the inside? A coat without pockets seems a rather silly thing to me.

I do like the way the pockets break up the expanse of fabric. Hmm. What do we think?

#Sewing #Haori

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

Alrightee. That was a bit of a slog, but here we are - a haori coat with side slits and patch pockets. For those of you who know about Japanese garments, you’ll be aware of the dramatically long collar’s friend is not at all traditional, nor is the collar that stops before the hem, in the echo of a kimono collar. It’s eccentric but in a very quiet way. I’m rather proud of it. #sewing

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

Meanwhile, look what I scored: two old vintage tanmono (fabric bolts specifically for making kimono).

Both are pure silk. One is 12 meters and the other 22 meters. 26 and 27 Euros respectively. (for each entire bolt)

I don’t know what the import duties are going to run me, but if it’s feasible, I’m going to seriously consider starting a business. #sewing

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

It’s going to be a learning curve to figure out what to do with these. They’re both raw silk. They’re 60 years old.

Making stuff that requires dry cleaning seems fundamentally ecologically unethical to me, so I’m going to snag a little from each bolt and wash it in the machine and see what happens to it.

Garments should be wearable, and not require you to break the bank or ruin the planet to get it clean. #sewing

[erik@mastodon.infrageeks.social]

@Remittancegirl At the risk of opening a bottomless rabbit hole, what did we do to wash silk before dry-cleaning? I’m guessing we had several thousand years of silk clothes before this was an option.

[remittancegirl@mstdn.social]

@erik I don’t know what they did in Europe. In Japan they would completely unpick the kimono, sew it back into a full bolt, with the bits stitched together with whip stitches and join it in a giant belt, and they had a mechanical machine like a spinner that ran a single layer over a huge vat of steaming water. It took about 3 hours of the belt of silk rotating over the vat to get it clean. Then someone would dry it indoors, and sew the kimono back together.

[valhalla@social.gl-como.it]

@erik @Remittancegirl for western clothes (because that's what I know best) one option was simply not washing them

you usually wore at least one layer (often two) of sturdy, white-ish linen close to the skin, and that got washed regularly with the harsh methods in use back then (boiling and beating), while the outer layers only got brushed and aired out

of course one wouldn't wear their fancy silk clothing while doing dirty work of any kind, and other clothes were protected with aprons and other strategically placed items (e.g. sleeve protectors when writing or doing other office work).

to be fair, at the end of the season your fancy clothing could at times end up being unpicked and re-dyed, which I assume involved some kind of washing (and any stained part could be avoided when reusing the fabric to remake a different looking dress).

[valhalla@social.gl-como.it]

@Remittancegirl @erik also, as long as you're using a protein-safe detergent (i.e. no enzymes, and acidic rather than alkaline) a lot of silks can go quite safely in the washing machine, especially on a delicates cycle.

others can go in the washing machine and remain usable, but they change properties (so it depends on whether the garment you're making needs those properties)

sartorbohemia.com/article/14/h… ----> this is a shop that tested the fabric they sell and there are a lot of details

[valhalla@social.gl-como.it]

@Remittancegirl @erik do you know if they were also wearing an under layer (I believe they did) that was easier to wash and washed more often (here I have no idea), or if that was the procedure for every kind of garment?