Apparently I'm not smart enough to install a zip fly.
I'm not sure I can even recall the long backlog of things that went wrong as I attempted to put the zipper in the Banyan shorts, but at this point I am ready to either pick the zipper out and try to faux fly this disaster, or just scrap the whole %&#@! thing. My seam ripper is overheated right now. The sad part is that they were looking great up until this point. Well....my pleats looked nice anyhow
I wasn't kidding when I said I can't even remember how many things I've screwed up and had to redo at this point. There are lots of really nice tracks of needle holes where I had to take stitches out. One major thing was somehow ending up with essentially an exposed zipper. I ripped some stuff out and adjusted a bit so the flaps of fabric overlapped the zipper better. Now if I zip it open and closed the fabric gets stuck in the zipper. Oh, at least when I could USE the zipper, because I had to reattach the zipper flap that goes behind everything. The second time I attached it I stitched too close to the zipper (overcompensating for when I stitched too far away from it) and now I can't even get the zipper up.
Sadly, I'm not even sure I started the whole process of the zipper right, even from the basting at the beginning. yeah. This is looking bleak. I also don't know what to do with the zipper length excess. Oy. This basically consumed my afternoon yesterday, at first being super fun, and then descending into a deep, dark prison of horror and doom. Ok. Maybe I'm exaggerating. But that's what it FELT like. So who is going to come fix this for me?
How about something happy?
I gave this doll to a friend who just had a baby. I think she's pretty cute. She might be smirking at me over the whole zipper thing though....
Dang it, doll! Stop silently judging me!
Your doll is super cute! Love the stripes. As for the zipper... well I can't judge, I admire you greatly for trying. (You know, big zipper balls and all.) I'm sure you've seen the little tutorial for this part of the pattern on the Figgy's blog? I'm not sure how helpful it is, since I haven't tried any of it myself. (And yes, you're pleats do look great! And love the color! I really hope you can save them, maybe you just need to cool off for a week or so!)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the encouragement! I think I will just let the shorts cool off for a bit. Maybe I will throw together a baby blanket I'm planning for our neighbor. (valori wells +Sarah Jane= happy!) I tried using the tutorial on the website but it starts at "once you've got it all basted and prepared" which I'm not sure I did right...lol. So sad.
DeleteI've never attempted a zip because I'm too scared! I was going to try today strangely enough but I don't have the energy to murder someone if it goes wrong. Aren't there any tutorials for attaching zips??
ReplyDeleteI bet there are plenty of tutorials that will walk you through it. I was trying to stick to the specifics of my pattern and not do it some other way that would screw something else up. But now that it IS all screwed up I will go see what is on YouTube for starters. Now I'm feeling indignant and determined to master zippers, just because.
DeleteBtw I think that a zip fly is more complicated than an invisible zipper or exposed zipper. So they shouldn't be so infuriating. After I let it sit for a few days hopefully I can sort out this mess I've made...
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