SPG Rabbit Vest Part 1

One of my friends has recently got very into the indie band Steam Powered Giraffe. For Halloween she wanted to cosplay as the member "Rabbit" and got me on board to create the vest.

I've made vests before. I've done jackets. I worked in men's alterations for nearly a year. But I've never done anything quite as tricky as this asymmetrical vest. It took a lot of fussing around, especially with the collar, but thankfully I was able to utilize my dressform to make the process a bit easier.

After cutting everything off the dressform, I copied it onto butcher paper and added seam allowances and other markings.

I reinforced all but the back panel with fusible interfacing.

I had to lay it all out, to make sure I was matching up the right seams on the lining, as it would be very easy to stitch the side seams backwards. Ah, the woes of asymmetry!

The vest called for two welt pockets, a new endeavor for me. My friend said the top pocked could be a mock one, but she did want the lower one to be functional. So I dug out my tailor book from the Singer Sewing Library and followed the instructions...

It was complicated, but the instructions were great and I really didn't have any trouble installing it.

Looking so snazzy...

Interior of the pocket.

Almost done! (I tacked down the sides later). It was worth the extra time to get an end result that looked so professional!

This was also my first time using a covered button kit and I loved it. So much easier than sewing covers, and they looked so nice when completed!

See part 2 for more red fabric, finishing details, and eyelets!