Marfy-ficial Intelligence



I just received this Italian import from the mail, and just had to make it right away (consider it a belated b'day present to myself). I needed a new challenge: my first Marfy! I already find Burda WOF directions, in general, to be cryptic and vague. Maybe after sewing a Marfy, I will see Burda WOF in a whole new light!


Scroll down for review of original version



First version with wild fabric



One of my inspirations for my second version:
Spiegel's ruffled collar blazer




This is my second version of this Marfy which I hereby name, my Sparfy jacket!
Sparfy = Spiegel+Marfy



Collar with flash lighting


Pattern Description
"This short, form-fitting jacket has an original collar set to the side and overstitched several times to create a flower petal effect. It has 3/4 sleeves and is closed with large buttons. Suggested fabric: shantung, crepe, satin, taffetas. Approximate fabric required 1.6 meters (1,40cm wide)"

Size
Pattern was precut to a size 46. Here's the Marfy's size chart

After not being happy with my first version due to being "under-fitted" to my form (I only liked the fabric), I decided that the pattern was not for me after all.

Then, the unexpected happen the following day. I found a draped ruffle blazer/jacket in one of my recent Spiegel catalogs while my mind was continuously hearing Steve Perry's amazing vocals on "Don't Stop Believing". I liked the simpler style of the Spiegel jacket, doing away with the princess seams. Then, nostalgia set in and I found Steve Perry performing with Journey in his glory days on youtube.com. Wow! For some unknown reason, I became inspired to give this pattern another try, but this time by redrafting every piece! Maybe, if he ever hears my heart-wrenching or "seam-ripping" story, he will return to Journey (the new lead singer is also extraordinary, but I prefer the original), miraculously get back his distinctively fabulous singing voice, and perform again. Imagine Stevey making a comeback and saying, "To all of you ladies, I dedicate this to you, 'Who's Sewing Now?'" Still I am trying to find the logic and relevance between an iconic 80's rock idol and sewing....

Modifications after the first version
*I used a navy double knit I purchased from Lucysfabrics.com. This fabric sewed like a dream! Yay no fray!
*Eliminated the princess seams and redrafted the front and back of blouse, while adding seam allowances


*Drafted the front facing using my new front piece

My new front facing piece.

*Raised the neckline 2"
*Extended the front edge 1"
*Drafted a back facing
*To prevent bulk, especially at the back of the neck, I omitted the overcollar.
*I folded the lower raw edge of the remaining collar and stitched a scant hem.
*Added 1" to the length
*Slip-stitched or hand stitched the hem after making a 1/8" little hem at the raw edge
*Added large circular op-art buttons, taking a cue from Michael Kors' current jackets with eyepoppingly large buttons.
*Added snap closures

Conclusion
I recommend this pattern if you like Marfy or want to try it for the first time, but beware of the exceedingly low neckline! From the look of top of the sleeves, Marfy probably intended for this jacket to have little shoulder pads, which I omitted. My amateur redraft of this pattern will serve as a basis for creating shirts/blouses with a tad more tweaking. I wish that I could be more ecstatic about my new jacket! But at least I can breathe better while wearing it!

Now, I know why I gave this pattern another try. Maybe subconsciously I imagined myself as a screaming fan wanting so much to redraft a new shirt for Steve Perry to replace that hideously wild yellow shirt he wore that time. I'll give him credit for the boleros and crop jackets which are still in style.

Some equations that I discovered:
Sparfy jacket = Spiegel-inspired + Marfy jacket
SParfy jacket = Steve Perry-inspired + Marfy jacket



I am still looking for the logic in this!


* *
Original unposted review

"Counter-fit" original

Pattern Description
"This short, form-fitting jacket has an original collar set to the side and overstitched several times to create a flower petal effect. It has 3/4 sleeves and is closed with large buttons. Suggested fabric: shantung, crepe, satin, taffetas. Approximate fabric required 1.6 meters (1,40cm wide)"

Size
Pattern was precut to a size 46. Here's the Marfy's size chart

Fabric
"Metro Retro Charmeuse - Black/Pink/Yellow" from Gorgeous Fabrics. It seems to have a poly/silk blend. I like the print and the texture, but sewing with it posed challenges. To prevent seams from further unravelling, I edgestitched them.




Favorite Features
* Princess seams in the front and back
* Ruffled neck collar
* Form fitting silhouette
* Pre-cut! Wow!
* Lettered seams
* I must confess, I like puzzles. I think of this project that requires some form of logic to make the pattern pieces fit!

Challenges
* No written directions. I only had the illustration that I printed from the McCall's website to refer to.
* Runs a bit snug
* Attaching the ruffled collar
* I experiened thread tension problems on two of the princess seams, hence leaving it with a slightly "ruched" effect. I gave up the option of re-doing for fear that I would ruin the fabtic.
* Missing back facing. I could not find one in the mailer. I figured out that the ruffles did not have a center seam, and I was debating whether or not to draft a back facing piece with each end to be attached to the ends of each collar piece.
* Getting the collar to drape as illustrated. Of course, the collar had difficulty draping due to being composed of an under, over collar, and fusible interfacing, which I should have skipped!
* Neckline came much lower than illustration
* Somewhat uncoooperative fabric
* Back armscye was large for the back sleeve cap. Operator error could be the culprit!


Directions
Marfy patterns do not have directions. If you have constructed shirts and/or jackets with princess seams, then you can use the order of construction with which you are familiar.

*I added a 5/8" seam allowance to each pattern piece. Marfy patterns do not include seam allownces.
*I cut out and ironed on fusible interfacing to the over and under collar pieces and the front facings
*I staystitched the front and back pieces at their princess seams.
*Sew side front to front (left and right)
*Sew center seam of back
*Sew side back to back (left and right)
*Sew shoulder seams. I stabilized them with a piece of bias.
*Sew side seams
*I sewed each under collar (ruffle type) piece to the over collar piece. Hmmm, somehow I had to trim a corner of an over collar that seemed unusually large. I attribute it to most likely cutting inacurately, forgetting a seam allowance somewhere?
*Topstitch the edges of the collar
*Attach left and right collars starting from the front edge and with each ending past the shoulder seam.
*Attach the front facings, tapering to the bottom rounded edge, prior to hemming the entire lower edge of the blouse
*Understitch the facings
*Finish the back neckline with bias trim
*Attach the buttons
*Ease the sleeve caps, sew sleeve seams, hem the sleeves.
*Baste and sew sleeves to the armscyes, paying attention to the include the finished edges of front facings coincide with the sleeve/armscye seams. I had to redo the sleeves due to the bunching caused by not pressing the edges of the front facings well enough.
*Hem the lower edge


Modifications
* Due to the somewhat delicate and ravelly nature of the fabric, I attached 5 button loops along the right front edge.
* Replaced 3 large buttons with 5 small hook-type buttons
* Took in the side seams below the armscye so that the sleeve cap could align a little better with the back of the armscye
* Added bias trim to finish the back neckline and the back ends of the over collar.

Conclusion
I recommend this pattern if you have experience in making shirts/jackets with princess seams. The construction is simple, but can be tricky and may be somewhat time consuming when done for the first time. My only reservations are the collar construction and the very low neckline (which can be remedied by wearing a camisole underneath).

If I do make this again with more time to spare, I would raise the neckline, draft a transition piece or a back facing to be attached to each front facing, and rework the sleeve cap and back armscye so that they better align with each other (strong possiblity that it is operator error.) I spent an inordinate amount time fussing over the slightly bulky collar with the front facing while dealing with ravelly nature of the fabric. It probably would have been handy to have a tube of fray block!

Despite some minor stalls and steep climbs, I still enjoyed my first Marfy roller coaster ride. Return visit? Maybe!




I like it better unbuttoned for a carefree look!