Lay the left cape right side down on the table and position the fly, right sides up, on top of it. The fly should be set back about 1/8″ along the front edge, and the top stitching on the fly should match the top stitching at the neck as closely as possible.

Baste the fly in position with a diagonal stitch down the middle of the fly.

Flipping to the right side, mark the vertical stitching line to match the right cape’s top stitching. This should be about 1 1/2 graduated inches from the edge, or in my case, I went with 1 3/4″.

On the right side, mark the point where the curve begins on the lower front edge.

And use the same curve you used on the cape to mark another curve from that point, curving upwards into the line 1 1/2 graduated inches from the edge.

Here’s the curve so far.

Starting at the neck, begin top stitching through all layers about 3/8″ away from the front edge of the cape, through the stitches you’d previously made.

Then rotate and top stitch along the vertical chalk line (1 1/2 graduated inches from the edge), then moving into the curve you just made.

Here’s what everything looks like at this point.

Turning to the inside, trim the excess fabric from the fly below the curved area down to about 1/8″. Don’t trim all the way up the vertical stitch line, just curve towards the edge of the fly.

Finally, starting a little ways above the curve, continue sewing the fly to the cape along the vertical line to the hem.

The draft for the Buttonhole Fly is very easy. You can draft this on paper but I usually just measure everything out directly on the cloth.

Start with a horizontal line that will eventually form the fold line. This should be two or three inches longer than the length of the cape.

Draw two parallel lines 1 1/2 graduated inches above and below the first line, for a total width between the two of 3 graduated inches.

Add a 1/2″ seam allowance along the upper and bottom edges. No need for an allowance on the ends since we added a few extra inches already.

It’s finally time to start on the buttonhole stitch! I’d recommend doing a buttonhole or two on some scraps before working on the real thing. Begin by cutting a piece of buttonhole twist about 1 yard long and tying a knot in one end.

Insert the needle at the beginning of the buttonhole, between the layers, so that the knot will be hidden, and pull taught. The needle should re-emerge just beyond the four-cord.

Pass the needle underneath the buttonhole this time, going through all layers, and exiting the fabric next to the original stitch. Don’t pull the needle all the way through yet.

While the needle is still in the fabric, grasp the two threads coming from the end of the needle. Pass these in a clockwise motion underneath the needle as shown.

Pull the needle out and gently tighten the thread. As you get closer, you’ll want to use your fingers to help guide the purl into the right position.

Here’s the first purl after tightening. You want the purl to lay just to the inside of the four-cord, not on top, and also not falling into the buttonhole. There’s definitely some room for personal preference though, and tailors usually have their own unique style of buttonhole.

Continue making stitches along the buttonhole. You’ll want to pay attention to both the depth of the stitch, which should be about 1/8″, as well as the spacing between stitches. This spacing should be about the width of one of the purls – close enough that they touch each other, but not so close that the purls end up on top of each other.

Don’t worry too much if yours is not perfect on the first try. It definitely takes a bit of practice.

When you get to the point where the teardrop shape starts, begin moving the purls gradually more to the top of the four-cord.

It’s really subtle but you can see the purls moving towards the top here.

By the time you get to the eyelet, you want the purls to be completely on top. This makes more room for the purls while maintaining the same distance between stitches. If you’d kept the purls towards the inside, there would not be enough room for them all inside the eyelet.

Work your way around the eyelet – you can really see the affect that moving the purls has.

When you get to the other side of the eyelet, begin tapering the purls back towards the inside, matching the stitches you made going into the eyelet as best you can.

After tapering the purls.

Continue along the straight part of the buttonhole towards the end.

When you get to the end, pass the thread to the top but don’t form another stitch – just move the thread out of the way.

Then pull the left hand four-cord underneath the right.

And pull both four-cords to the underside, pulling them tight.

Back on the right side, take your thread and make about 4 bar tacks across the width of the buttonhole. Be sure to catch the four-cord in the stitching underneath.

Then turn the needle perpendicular to the bar tack and make a series of about 8 stitches around the bar tack, catching the top layer of wool with each stitch.

After the last stitch, pass the needle and thread to the underside.

Pass the thread underneath a number of stitches on the wrong side, first in one direction, then the other, and then back the original direction for a third pass to secure the thread.

Trim the thread and four-cord flush with the buttonhole stitching.

Here’s the completed buttonhole. This one came out okay, I would have liked the transition of the purls to the curved area to be a little more consistent between sides, and maybe the stitching to be a little more even in tension.

Here’s the underside of the buttonhole. I wouldn’t worry too much if yours are not quite as neat yet. Concentrate on getting the right sides looking good and the undersides will naturally follow.

Before starting on the buttonholes themselves, we must create and attach what’s known as a four-cord, or gimp. This four-cord gives some additional structure and strength to the buttonholes, and raises the purls of the buttonhole stitch above the surrounding fabric.

To begin, cut a piece of silk buttonhole twist about 6 – 8 feet long. That should be long enough to make enough four-cord for the seven buttonholes in this project. Double it up and knot the ends together.

Note for demonstration purposes I cut mine a lot shorter, maybe 3 feet, just so I could get everything in the camera frame.

Loop the knotted end of the thread around a heavy or immovable object like a chair or iron and then through itself as shown. You want the knot as close as possible to the object so it’s out of the way.

Put a pencil through the other end of the loop and begin twisting the thread with the pencil. I like to hold the thread a few inches from the pencil, and then distribute the twists down the length of the loop as the start to form more tightly.

Pass your fingers along the thread to distribute the twists evenly.

Depending on the length of your thread loop this can take a few minutes. Eventually, you’ll see the thread is completely twisted, by how it wants to naturally curl up on itself, as well as how it will begin to get stuck on the pencil.

At this point, grasp the thread at the midway point.

And then bring the pencil to the looped part of the thread, basically folding the thread in half.

Let go of the halfway point, and the thread will quickly twist around itself firmly. Rub your fingers along the length to distribute the twists more evenly as necessary.

Near the bottom in my left hand, you can see a few twists that need to be better distributed.

Cut the four-cord off of the object, while holding it closely so it doesn’t unravel.

Knot the cut end.

Pass the four-cord over some beeswax a number of times until it is firmly coated.

Place the four-cord on a scrap of cloth and iron it to melt the wax into the threads.

When you’re done you should have a strong thread that will stand up on its own.

Attaching the Four-Cord

Start attaching the four-cord to the buttonhole by first taking a few stitches in place with regular thread at the beginning of the buttonhole. On the fourth stitch, leave a small loop and insert the four-cord as shown.

Then take another stitch or two directly under and across the four-cord. It basically just needs to be held in place as firmly as possible.

Now insert the needle one more time next to the four-cord at the beginning of the buttonhole, only this time not going through all of the layers. The needle should reappear about 1/8″ away on the other side of the four-cord, as shown. The four-cord should be about 1/8″ at most away from the edge of the buttonhole.

Take the next stitch immediately across from where the needle left the fabric, encasing the four-cord in the stitching. This is known as the couching stitch, also used for sewing on various types of trims and braid. Continue stitching along the buttonhole.

As you get to the eyelet portion, form the four-cord around the eyelet first to get it into its rough position. That way you have a better idea of where the next stitch should go. Continue stitching around the eyelet.

Keep stitching until you reach the end of the buttonhole.

At the end, make a few stitches in place across the four-cord to hold it in place.

Trim the four-cord, leaving about an inch on either end.

This concludes the preparatory work for the buttonhole.

It’s time to cut open the buttonholes. If you don’t have a buttonhole cutter, the easiest way is by using a block of wood, hammer, a 1/8″ hole punch, and a small chisel.

Begin by cutting open a hole centered on the intersection of the lines nearest the folded edge.

Now use a small chisel (I recommend 1/2″ so you can get a variety of buttonhole sizes), carefully chisel open the rest of the buttonhole between the two layout lines.

Instead of lifting out the chisel between strikes, it’s a good idea to slide it over, keeping part of the chisel in the part you’ve already cut, to keep the line nice and even.

Here’s the buttonhole so far after cutting it open.

Use a small pair of scissors or thread snips to cut off the little triangular bit where the eyelet meets the chiseled section.

It’s really a tiny amount you’re snipping off here, just enough to smoothly transition between the hole and the chiseled section.

You should end up with a bit of a tear drop shape near the front edge of the buttonhole.

Now starting at the beginning of the buttonhole (shown in the photo), make a couple of stitches in place using some regular thread. Catch all of the layers of the fly as you do so.

Now begin overcasting the buttonhole, using stitches with about 1/8″ to 3/16″ in depth and about the same distance apart.

Continue sewing around the eyelet section.

And continue sewing back towards the end of the buttonhole.

At the end, make a bartack across the width of the buttonhole as shown, using about 4 or 5 stitches in place.

Here’s the buttonhole so far. These felling stitches help secure the buttonhole while we work the other parts of the stitch, as well as provide additional strength over the years of use.

Repeat for the remaining buttonholes.

Moving on to the buttonhole fly, ensure yours is cut just a few inches long than the length of the cape. I’ve cut mine on the selvedge but it’s not really necessary.

Press the fly in half lengthwise, wrong sides together.

At the neck end, about 1/2″ away from the top of the fly, draw a line square across.

Along the folded edge, draw in a curve similar to the one you added to the facing at the neck.

Top stitch along the line and curve, tapering into the folded edge.

Trim the fly to about 1/8″ above the stitch line.

Lay the fly in position on the wrong side of the left cape. The fly should be set just behind the facing at the top and bottom edges.

Mark the fly at the bottom just where the curve of the cape facing begins.

Now open up the fly and insert a piece of linen that’s just slightly narrower than the fly and long enough to cover all of the buttonholes (compare to your pattern to make sure).

Close up the fly and baste it closed along the inside edge. Here’s how everything should look so far.

Now line up your fly with the cape pattern and transfer all of the buttonhole positions to the fly. This is the last chance to adjust their positions. I ended up moving the top buttonhole about 3/4″ from the top edge, and centering the middle buttonhole again. I also couldn’t figure out whether or not to put the top buttonhole on the bias or not – since the original was square across I finally just went with that.

Then mark the buttonhole widths, starting about 3/8″ from the folded edge, and then the final width being about 3/4″.

Baste around each buttonhole with a diagonal basting stitch to further hold the layers together and keep them from shifting.

Here’s the fly so far. I recommend placing into it’s position on the cape and ensuring that all the buttonhole markings are in the right place, on the correct side, and so on.

If you pieced together your cape, trim off any triangular bits of seam allowance if you haven’t already done so.

Here’s where we left off with the cape.

Turn to the wrong side of the cape and focus on the facing near the neck. Fold under the remaining part of the facing at the neck by about 1/2″, keeping it aligned with the crease as it comes out of the curve.

Baste the seam folded seam allowance in place with a couple of stitches.

Now fell across the top of the facing from the inside edge to where the machine stitching starts at the cut. It’s only about an inch and takes just a minute.

Along the bottom edge of the cape, mark a distance of 1″, or twice the width of the seam allowance.

Using a straight basting stitch, baste the seam allowance to the wrong side along the bottom edge.

Give everything a good press to help hold the seam in position.

I used a bit of extra weight near the pieced section to make the seam even firmer.

Now here’s something you’ll have to consider. In the original pattern from 1866, it indicates a 1 1/2 graduated inches width of the finished facing. For larger sizes (I’d say size 40 chest and above), it works out fine, but for anything smaller, I’d recommend 1 3/4″ (actual inches) as a minimum width. It just gives a little extra room with regards to spacing the buttonholes and such. One downside though is that the top stitching won’t align with the edge of the finished cape after they’re overlapped.

Mark a line 1 1/2 graduated inches from the edge. (Note: I’m using a regular ruler here because I’m using a 37 1/2 pattern to fit my tailor’s form, and the graduated inch is equal to a regular inch in this size).

Or use a 1 3/4″ spacing if you prefer.

Starting along the bottom edge of the skirt near the side seam, begin top stitching through all layers, at about 1/4″ from the edge. Work from the opposite direction when you do the other cape half if it’s easier.

Maintain the same distance from the edge as you round the lower front curve.

Use your left hand as a pivot to help get around the curve smoothly.

Continue sewing along the front edge.

Continue around the upper curve.

On the left cape only, stop your stitching just at the chalk line you drew in. We’ll continue the top stitching after installing the buttonhole fly.

For the right cape only top stitch along the chalk line, 1 1/2 graduated inches (or whichever distance you used) from the front edge. End your stitching just as it meets the stitching at the lower hem.

(And sorry, this is the left cape in the photo, I had to make friends with the seam ripper after demonstrating this for the camera).

Here are the results after top stitching.

Begin the cape construction by turning over the extra fabric at the center front, right sides together, and folding along the mark stitched line.

Diagonal baste the two layers together at the top and bottom for a couple of inches.

Mark the 1/2″ seam allowance along the neck and bottom edges.

And then mark in from the folded edge 3/4 graduated inch for the center front marking. You’d actually be better off marking this and the seam allowance in the previous step on the other side of the cape so that you have the mark stitch available – a lot more accurate.

Now draw in a curve at the top near the neck, starting at the folded edge and ending at the mark stitches 3/4 graduated inches from the edge.

Repeat on the bottom edge, only this time with a larger radius. You want the curve to blend in to the bottom just as it reaches the seam allowance, 1/2″ from the cut edge of the facing (not the hem edge).

Here’s what mine looked line (in chalk). I went on to sew and turn it but was not happy with the results. You definitely want a larger radius as shown in red, and it’s more faithful to the original draft as well.

Sew the top curve from the mark stitched point, 3/4 graduated inches from the edge, to the bottom of the curve at the folded edge, blending it into the folded edge as smoothly as possible.

Sew the bottom edge from the cut edge, around the curve, again blending into the folded edge of the facing.

If you hold the fabric taught with your left hand, you can rotate your arm with the fabric and get a much smoother curve, rather than trying to force it perfectly on the guideline.

Here’s how my first attempt turned out – again, you want a larger radius here.

Here’s what everything looks like so far.

Now trim the lower curve to about 1/8″ away from the stitching. This does depend on your fabric though and how much it frays. You could keep a little more if necessary.

As you get towards the edge of the facing, curve outwards to the hem, forming a bit of an ‘S’ shape.

At the neck, cut through the main front layer only (not the facing) to the end of your stitching, which should line up with the mark stitched point.

Trim the upper curve in the same manner, tapering up to the neck just at the snip.

You can also trim off that little excess to the right of the cut. Not sure if I did or not but I forgot to photograph it at least.

Remove the basting stitches and turn the facing right sides out, ensuring both curves are arranged smoothly.

You actually want to roll the facing edge back behind the main edge ever so slightly, maybe 1/16″ to 1/8″, so that the facing is not visible from the right side.

Here’s the bottom curve showing how it’s set back a little.

Baste along the entire front edge from the mark stitch at the neck, to the inner edge at the bottom. Arrange the fabric with your fingers as you baste, setting back the facing at the curves as discussed above.

Now baste with straight stitches along the inner edge of the facing, about 1/2″ away from the edge. You’re doing this by feel – it doesn’t have to be perfectly accurate, just that the layers all lay smoothly in place after you’re done.

Now firmly press the folded edges.

Repeat for the other half of the cape. Here are the results so far. Check and ensure that both capes are still the same length – with some fabrics things can shift out of place sometimes. Better to know that now than later!

We’re now ready to begin piecing the cape, if you’ve cut yours in this manner. First lay the cape piece and the small triangular piece in position, right sides up. It’s easy to get the smaller piece turned around the wrong way so refer to your pattern if necessary.

Lay the small piece onto the cape, right sides together.

Be sure that the ends line up correctly. the edges should overlap each other 1/2″ from the edge at both the top and bottom.

Baste the two pieces together with a diagonal basting stitch as shown, keeping the stitching just over 1/2″ from the edge so they don’t get caught in the machine stitching.

The results after the diagonal basting.

Move over to the sewing machine and stitch together with a 1/2″ seam allowance.

Remove the basting stitches.

Pressing Seams

I’m going to go over the method I use to press seams here, the same basic principles will remain throughout the course. Pressing is one of the most important aspects of tailoring, and it will frequently take me longer to press than to sew the seam to begin with.

First, with right sides together, dampen the seam with a bit of water. I just use an old spray bottle.

Gently press with a hot iron. This loosens the fibers, especially from the sewing machine, making everything more pliable and kind of setting the stitches.

Now turn to the wrong side and open up the seam with your fingers. Apply more water and press firmly.

Turn to the right side, apply more water if necessary, and press firmly. You may want to use what’s known as a press cloth here, I usually cut a small square from scrap fabric of the type I’m actually pressing, to avoid marking the cloth with the iron. It really depends on the cloth whether you need one or not.

Finally, I like to use my 16 pound ‘goose’ iron to finish pressing the seams, especially on heavier cloth. The iron here is used cold, and it helps remove excess moisture. The weight really sets the seam nicely. You can usually find them at antique stores, usually inexpensively.

And that concludes my method of pressing.

Before separating the cape halves, we need to mark stitch them using what is called a tailor’s tack to transfer the markings to the lower half of the cloth accurately, as well as make the chalk marks a little more durable.

Start by doubling up a length of basting thread if you have it. Regular white cotton thread will work okay, but it’s a little slippery compared to the basting thread so will fall out more easily.

Starting from one end or the other of the fold line you marked, make a row of running stitches about 2″ apart, taking a very small 1/4″ ‘bite’ with your needle for each stitch, going all the way through both layers of cloth.

Try to keep the cloth as flat as possible while stitching. Working on a wood table helps a lot.

If you do take smaller stitches, as shown on the left, leave a bit of extra thread instead of pulling it snug.

Snip the threads between each stitch.

Now gently open up the two layers, until about 1/2″ of thread is exposed inside.

Then carefully snip the threads between the layers of fabric.

Opening it up a little further, you can see how this gives you neat little mark stitches on the right and wrong sides of both pieces, exactly where they need to be.

Along the top, you’ll want to trim the longer threads down to about 1/8″ – 1/4″ to make them a little harder to pull out accidentally.

At the neck edge, there’s still the center front point to mark. Make two stitches in place with the doubled thread at that mark, making about 1″ loops with each stitch.

Open the fabric again exposing the threads in the middle and snip.

And again trim the threads on the top most layer.

Shake off the cut thread pieces, and here are your cape halves fully mark stitched.

I also like to mark an X on the wrong sides of every piece just to avoid mistakes when sewing.