Sewing Bras - My First Merckwaerdigh Bra and Panty set!
After much anticipation, it arrived! The Highly rated Mix30 Sewing pattern from
Dutch designer Merckwaerdigh.
How excited was I that stayed up all night to sew this baby?
After copying the pattern and adding the seam allowance (European pattern companies don't include them), I got right to work on the muslin in a 32E after sister sizing from 34D. Turns out that we too small - fit was much better is in usual 32F (sister size 36D). I also noticed after my first muslin that this bra provides a more pointy bustline. So for round 2, I went ahead and rounded it out a bit.
In my excitement to sew up my first Merchwaerdigh, I neglected to notice I didn't have enough channeling for the underwire. Thankfully, that's one of the lasts steps so I went ahead and ordered the part and continued sewing.
One thing I did to save time was to use the full band from the Maya pattern that already had all my changes (narrow set, wider band, ballet back, etc).
Things to note for next round:
- Move the straps in the back in a bit. The straps in the bra is bit more wide set typical of a balconette. Visually appealing but not so great on my sloped shoulders. Alternatively, move the straps in 2 cm at the cups or just do away with the fabric strap section entirely.
- Google when in doubt! (see below)
- Try 4 hook eye closure
- Try wider elastic for band
FIT
Alas, the bra didn't fit. Cups were slightly too small as I was quadding at the top. I'm not sure if that was partially due to the fact I used foam instead of the lace as indicated on the pattern (although the Merckwaerdigh blog specified that you can use foam for just about all underwire bra patterns). More likely though, it due to the fact I tried to "round" out the apex a bit and possibly reduced the projection too much. Otherwise, the center gore was flat, and the wires were comfortable. I may try this again in a larger cup size later.
While I was waiting for the shipment to arrive, I decided to start on the matching panty. Cutting went well but when it came to assembling, I couldn't wrap my head around Step One of the instructions. It might have been due to me sewing so late at night or lack of sleep (4am!!) from the night before. I got it stuck in my head that the lace piece needs to lay on top of the back piece and was not comprehending plain English it seems. A graphic of some sort would have been extremely helpful! They apparently meant for you to lay the lace piece above the back piece - overlapping 1 cm - essentially extending the height of the back. (Thank you Google!) The rest of the assembly was pretty smooth once that was figured out. Incidentally, I wasn't the only one who made this same
mistake
!
did the exact same thing and her post saved me from pulling my hair out!