Customer Reviews

Jackets for Real People: Tailoring Made Easy (Sewing for Real People series)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a fan of Palmer and Pletsch books and have found them very helpful in many ways, but this book was a bit of a disappointment. While there are photos of many "real" women being fitted (helpful) the instructions for the actual tailoring are mostly illustrations. If you need to SEE what something is supposed to look like, a drawing can be inadequate, and that is why I have not given this book more stars. That said, if you get both the Singer Library book on Tailoring (which is full of photographs) and this book, you will have the tools you need to make a jacket. I was able to make a lovely tweed jacket on my first try using the Singer book alone. Then I tried to make one using JACKETS FOR REAL PEOPLE and kept going back to the Singer book for clarification. JACKETS FOR REAL PEOPLE is high on fit, lower on technique, while the Singer book is high on technique, lower on fit. Hope this helps.

This book teaches you a lot of useful tailoring techniques, primarily speed tailoring using fusible interfacing. The book will guide you through each step of the process of making a jacket, from choosing appropriate fabric and pattern for your sewing skills, to fitting, cutting, marking and sewing the jacket and lining. They have excellent instructions for making welt pockets, bound buttonholes and bagging the lining. I don't know how I survived without this book! They also have a chapter about the most common fit alterations, but for more complete directions I recommend their book Fit for Real People.

Of the Fit For Real People Series, this is the most difficult of the three books. Perhaps rightfully so because a tailored jacket is a much a much more difficult garment. However, this book works hard to make the process more understandable. Early on, the book devotes a few pages to defining tailoring. Now, you know what you're in for! To increase your chances of success, the book suggests you divide the process of making a jacket into four blocks of time:

-Planning and Fitting

-Cutting Marking, Applying Interfacing and Pinning the Pieces into a ready-to-fit position

-Sewing and Pressing

-Finishing

The fabrics chapter is very informative. It's a fabric glossary with suggestions as to which fabrics are easiest and those that are not the fastest to sew. The section on appropriate seam finishes was helpful.

Chapter 4 is all about shaping fabrics. It defines lining, interfacing, underlining and interlining. It's mostly devoted to the discussion of interfacing. Surprise! There's a recommendation to use Perfect Fuse interfacing.

Chapter 6 covers pressing. The fitting discussion starts happening in Chapter 7. The real how-to begins in Chapter 9, Cutting Marking and Interfacing.

The next few chapters break down fitting and construction according to the various pieces of the garment:

-Jacket Front

-Back and Under Collar

-Sleeves, Shoulder Pads and Chest Shaping

-Facing, Upper Collar, Lining and Hems

-Bagging a Lining

-Buttonholes

-More Pockets

-Mitered Back Vent

-Finishing Touches

-The remaining chapters are:

-Tips That Will Improve All of Your Sewing

-Plaids and Stripes

-Men's Jackets

This book would be an excellent addition to any sewing library. It provides a wealth of information. There's an in-depth knowledge here that you won't get from the tailoring chapter in a general-reference sewing book. I'm glad I made the purchase.

I have just taken a tailoring class and have read several books on tailoring trying to figure out all the techniques and I would say this text is the most thorough and up-to-date. They mention sew in interfacings, but don't give enough information for the sewer to actually be able to do it. Singer's Tailoring book from 1988 has clear photographs for sew-in interfacing. JFRP is the authority for welt pockets and bagging linings.

The book contains a ton of information about fitting, but I have moved on to the joy of computer pattern drafting and so no longer need to struggle and struggle with trying to tissue fit patterns.

I liked the book so much that I purchased the matching DVD which I also highly recommend purchasing.

Everything you want to know on up to date fitting and construction of jackets.

How to alter for your specific figure shape.Achieving a fine finish.Photos and line drawings make the process easy.

It's like having the teachers in your sewing room.

Like its companion Palmer-Plesch "real people" books on general fitting and pants fitting, this does not confine itself to the perfect size 6 figure. The photos are inspirational for that alone! More importantly, it gives valuable pointers in how to work with the bodies most of us actually have (versus the runway models' bodies the pattern manufacturers have designed for). I own several books on tailoring, and I would rate this one of the very best in explaining how to do it. Making a tailored jacket is an intimidating project; with this book, the mystery is reduced. The photographs are excellent and the instructions concise and easily understood. Anyone making a tailored jacket for a woman of just about any shape or size would find it helpful--and much of the information would apply to making a comparable garment for a man.

I own Fit for Real People and Pants for Real People, so this one rounds out my collection of books by these authors. All of these books are my go-to references when I sew. Any book or article by the Palmer/Pletch folks are full of information regarding the topic they cover. This one is no exception. I highly recommend it for anyone who sews.

Arrived without fuss, however book cover was damaged although advertised as new.