When trying to make maximal use of the little material remaining, dividing the front panel into a conundrum of pieces became the only option; joining leather frame with silk underground to create a natural resource combination that makes mistakes of any kind non-permissible and clarity in marking twice as important.

Bought shirt, untailored.

Drawing darts in the back.

Basting, stitching ironing.

Elegantly tailored shirt.

Buying Gothic clothes is difficult, especially when they have to be combinable with made-to-measure items that are exact in size; making it often more rewarding to – instead of looking for a perfect fit – keep an eye out for minimal effort candidates, that can be easily accustomed into fitting one’s own shape and wardrobe.

Due to the method by which the golden bias trim emerges from within the seamline to lay over the adjoining piece of fabric; gaining a symmetrical semblance when seamlines meet requires the correct calculation and incorporation of a hidden standoff, a tricky issue that re-manifests for each and every junction on the cape.

Drawing sets of parallel-lines to denote the exact locations of the folds, the backfolds and the foldless parts while using their relation to the side, front and rear centers as key points to fuse the vastly amassing paper pieces together before including tailoring by redirecting the foldlines to deepen the pleats from the hips up.

For a fitting framing, the gothic windows -just like the collar- are in need of proper interfacing, provided by a venerable form of coat canvas that’s resilient enough to brace the angles but not too brute on the curves.

Contrary to the red-finished version of the cape, the new design shows a collar that has standing and falling sections in separate pieces, keeping the same semblance, but replacing the vertical middle-back seam with a horizontal one that tops the construction, a solution, far more suitable for this kind of high-texture fabric. Next to adding a lot of extra work to the equation, it also allows to vary between thread direction for visible and invisible sides of upper and under collar, delivering a superior roll whilst upholding continuity in grain.

Prototyping to find the desired shape..

..adding sufficient material to carry it..

Using the availables to mold the non-evident, yet neither far-fethched structure of the shoulder-construction straight onto myself, looking to deduce fitting sewing patterns whilst gaining padding to further incorporate.

..cutting and securing the final form..

..and trying to obtain patterns from it.