Deconstruction & Pattern Tracing Process
Bridge 2: Material Transformation_Documentation to Deconstruction
Garment 1 Deconstruction
Patterns from Garment 1
Garment 2
Patterns Pinned onto Garment 2
Cut Pattern & Reconstruction
Final Work
Process
Pocket with the Front Piece:
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- Cut one pattern of the front piece.
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- Leave the thread and snips to indicate the position where the dart ends/starts.
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- Sew the darts.
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- Pin the bottom piece of the pocket to the accurate position.
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- Sew the pocket.
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- Make the top cover of the pocket.
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- Pin the cover of the pocket in place.
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- Sew the cover onto the front piece.
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- Complete one of the pocket.
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- Patch the fabric onto the hole.
Back piece:
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- Use the zig-zag stitch to patch two separate piece together to make the back pattern.
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- Indicate where the folds are.
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- Sew the folds and the top piece of the back.
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- Connect the front and back piece.
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- Look from the front.
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- Finished front and back.
Collar:
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- Cut the pattern of the collar which needs two patterns.
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- Sew the two collar patterns together with the seam allowance.
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- Refer to the indication to sew front the front.
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- Finished sewing from the front.
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- Sew the stand-up collar.
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- Finished sewing of stand-up collar.
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- Iron the collar.
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- Close-up look of the collar.
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- Install thee collar onto the front and back piece.
Sleeve & Sleeve Cuff:
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- Organize ways to patch the fabrics to make the sleeve pattern complete.
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- Use the zig-zag stitches to patch the fabrics.
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- Pin the sleeve pattern onto the patched fabrics.
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- Cut the fabric.
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- Patched the fabric for the other sleeve.
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- Indicate the place for wraps of the sleeve and cut along the line.
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- Cut the pattern of the sleeve cuff.
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- Sew the wraps to the indicated position.
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- Sew the sleeve and then sew the sleeve cuff onto the sleeve.
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- Sew the casing. Since the fabric of the Garment 2 is firmer than Garment 1, it would be hard for casing on this fabric. I used folds instead to reduce the extra length.
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- Finished sleeve.
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- Indicate the shoulder line and sew the sleeve onto the finished part of the garments.
Last Step:
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- Iron the seam allowance to flat.
Reflection
I named this project as “Another Way for Preservation” because I think the reconstruction is a special way of keeping the garment as my work so that it wouldn’t end up in landfill one day. I bought Garment 1 from the store particularly for this project since I like how the patterns are organized. Nevertheless, I have had Garment 2, the beige trench coat, for years. I haven’t worn it for a long time because I got acrylic paints onto the garment and it could never be washed away once it got on the fabrics. Garment 1 is probably made from polyester chiffon which has a silky and light touch. Garment 2 is made from cotton. The most challenging part is assembling of the garment referred to patterns of Garment 1 since it has a complicated form. After I deconstructed it, It has up to twelve patterns in total. The techniques of assembling sleeve cuff and collar is harder when using a firmer fabric from trench coat. The most time-consuming part is also thee assembling of the sleeve cuff and collar because I had to redo them for multiple times. The most enjoyable part is the process of patching the fabrics since it is my first time to try the zig-zag stitches and it is amazing to see the fabrics are interestingly sewed together. I am most satisfied with seeing the reconstructed garment finished and contrast the differences of before and after forms of Garment 2. The most surprising thing about the project is the big differences of fabrics being employed in various forms and patterns. For instance, the cotton used in trench coat is firm and strong, but it looked lighter after being applied to the form of blouse. What I learned about myself through this project is my interests in pattern making. What is charming about pattern making to me is that the patterns are like puzzles that wouldn’t look like anything until looking at the final piece. The project introduced me to a new way of studying design which is to deconstruct. The deconstructing process helps me review the structure of a garment and learn a faster way of studying patterns of a garment which I am interested in.
