Work in Progress: Faux Fur Vest - Going from Yeti to Betty

It was suppose to be the simple project. I was going to just follow the pattern with a sleeve alteration, and call it a day. Three simple pieces of faux fur, and a lining with pockets.
My first encounter with making a faux fur jacket was the last post. I changed the pattern drastically from a varsity jacket to a box coat. It went so well, that I thought following a pattern for a vest would be a piece of cake. After all, there are no sleeves.
But I think I picked the wrong pattern...
I chose another Vogue Very Easy pattern, #V8753. They show faux fur on the front of the pattern, so I thought this would be a good choice. I was golden. Easy peasy. All those phrases before the other shoe drops. Including Whoops!

Now, I'm usually very good at picking a pattern and imagining the outcome in a certain fabric. And in my defense, it is a nice pattern, and lining drapes beautifully, so this is great for soft thin fabrics. But I misjudged how the bulk would effect the drape of the garment. Even cutting the pattern in an extra small minus seam allowance, I created this:

Inside-out, you can really see the sizing faux-pas

I should mention here, that I'm slight of build, especially around the shoulders. What I wanted to create, was a feeling of luxury and femininity. What I did create, was a friend of Yukon Cornelius. It was so big, I looked like a Yeti. The shoulders were a good six inches too big (and this is AFTER I cut down the pattern!). It completely overpowered  my frame. Wasn't this suppose to be the easy project?

The first thing I did was create a curve in the figure. I took about four inches off of the side seams, up to the shoulders. Next, I cut down the big scarf by two inches. I also took two inches off the bottom. I left the bottom edge raw, and will trim it, but not hem it, it will stay well because it is a knit.

So far, it looks like this:

It's better, but I have more sleeve to take off, and pockets to fix (the side slits aren't laying right).
Then there's all of that extra lining.

What a waste of good fabric.

Working with faux fur is very different then I imagined. It's harder, because you really have to sculpt your design. I found that using an exacto blade is perfect for avoiding cutting the hair, and creating exactly the line you want. I hand finished both furs, and I think overall it's a good choice.

This isn't finished. An this isn't over. Faux fur, I will prevail.

Fun Fur- The Faux Fur Jacket

I found two FABULOUS faux furs while I was in Downtown LA's Fashion district. These will be perfect for the two faux fur pieces I'd like to add to my wardrobe: a shorty "fun fur" jacket, and a luxurious long fur vest.

The shorty jacket is almost done. I used New Look #6120 Teen Wardrobe pattern, which has a varsity jacket pattern. Of course, I altered the pattern! I lengthened the jacket and sleeves by 2", changed from a club(? i think that's what it's called) collar, to an eased rectangular collar. Instead of hook and eye closures (which are impossible to find in this colour, without being prohibitively expense), I used gold plated magnetic snaps! At first I thought that it was a bit of a wacky choice, but I really like the look of it, and it matches the "fun" theme. For the lining, I used a digital camo  print charmeuse I found at Joann.com
Here's the result:

The 2.55 Homage Bag

This was one of the hardest things I've ever tried to do. I love the result, but I will never endeavor to anything like this again (for now).

 I still have to make a small pinch on the side seam, so that the bag will hang correctly

Hard to see in the pictures, are the quilted chevron stripes. This was SO much easier with my new Brother sewing machine.