Steam punk waistcoat

Challenge : XL wooly waistcoat with an asymetrical fron and 10 button holes, using a home-made pattern that has never been tested, in 8 hours without any failsafe.

Get ready!

Place the pattern, pin, cut, place te pattern, pin cut...How could I have two front left side?

Split on the lining frabic

Some use a table, I use the floor 

Lining cut and assembled (will it fit the waistcoat, time will tell...)

Front and side before interfacing them. The asymetrical front is pretty obvious here. I won't hide I had to cut again at least one piece.

Fabric after being interfaced. I really like this part, the fabric has a greater firmness and holds much better. I'm also starting to be smug and use good quality interfacing, it really does make a difference. The result are cleaner and without crease.

Did you know you could buy stretchy interfacing? Yep! I haven't found a project yet to try it on, however it is only a question of time.

Finding the right shade of blue before doing button hole trials (with te sewing machine, I haven't seriously started to make them by hand.

Sewing machine made button holes with the correct foot, on thick interface fabric is nearly easy. Nearly. 

Nearly done (the famous last words)

Everything is closed up but not yet ironed. I won the crease battle using a wet cloth and a lot of patience. 

Asymetrical front with 10 button-holes.

The giant (6"4') and his waistcoat. He looks really serious here. I think he likes the waistcoat, I'm a bit scared too.

A Steamed punk giant, handsome and all, on the D day of friends' wedding.

(I must apologise to Kate who I cut from the picture. I didn't asked her before hand if I could use the picture).

Conclusion 

1. For waistcoat: do some facing for the inside of the arms and the bottom of the back of the waistcoat. If you don't the lining will try its best to escape however well you iron the waistcoat. To tame the waistcoat I had to reopen it and stitch the two (gigaaaantic) armholes and the bottom. It took several hours however it was worth it.
2. Good looking button holes are not only down to practice. A thick fabric that doesn't slide around helps enormously. 
3. Stitch buttons in a straight line is more difficult than it seems. I repositionned 4 buttons when I modified the lining.
4. I can make my own patterns...from blocks. I need to make my own blocks, I need to make my own blocks, I need to make my own blocks.
5. No is a word that can be used in some cases with parcimony (no hard feelings :-).