3263: Tweaking

 I made some of the changes mentioned in the previous post and ended up here

 

 The changes did help!

 Also a help: the print of this cotton didn't completely obliterate the visibility of the darts like the previous busy stripes did

This meant I could more clearly see if the darts were all gesturing at the correct spot now.  They're still not perfect, but they're better than they were before I added a half inch to the length of the shoulder areas. 

I also took a few moments to trim about an eighth of an inch from where the facing pieces attach to the shell, to force the edges to roll toward the insides around those seams. 

You know I'm feeling weird about not top stitching everything, but the proper vintage vibe here has no top stitching...not that the dark purple thread I used is particularly visible when it is on top of this print, like where the lapped zipper is, or the bottom hem. 

My lapped zipper skills are still works in progress. 

This print is very saturated, to the point where the back is almost as dark and crisp as the front.  When I thrifted it, I thought it was a wax print, but the mill name on the selvedge indicates it's from India.  The print is not the least bit on grain, and I decided to cut it by the print more than the grain. 

I chose this fabric partly because I had enough of it and no clear plans for it, so didn't mind using a lot of it up, and also because I had used an Indian print cotton years ago in an attempt to try to make another pattern be this pattern.  It didn't really work.

The backs of the arm openings in this version still gape a little, since I was only addressing the dart position and waist fabric excess this time.  I've edited the top of the back shoulder to (hopefully) address the gaping issue, and will make another try soon.  As it is, this version is good enough to wear under a cardigan (as is the previous version, although I'm still not sure about the aesthetics of those stripes in a piece of clothing.)