Better to adapt old robe or make a new one?

17 years ago

I canÂt find the style of robe I like to buy, so IÂm planning to either sew one or adapt one I made some time ago. Most robes wrap around the front and tie, which I donÂt like; they always gap open and the style to me is kind of sloppy. My house is cold and I work at home, so I wear my robe a lot. So I would like it to be both really warm and in a style that is more elegant.

A long time ago I made a robe from quilted satin in a double breasted style that closed with buttons and loops, and snaps on the inner flap and down the front opening so it would not gap. Stylistically it is like the elegant dressing gowns you see in 1930Âs movies. Lauren Bacall would have looked at home in this robe. That one was perfect: it had fiberfill between the layers. I was very painstaking and even covered the snaps with the same fabric. I was very thin at the time and that one no longer fits. I did not get to wear it much before my first pregnancy pretty much enlarged me all over. Even the sleeves are too narrow; IÂm physically active now which means I have muscles I didnÂt have in my sedentary days.

Which would be better: to enlarge that one, or start from scratch and make a new one? I donÂt have the time or patience I used to have (before children) to make anything with the kind of details as I did with the old one. IÂve never tried enlarging anything. IÂm guessing I would have to remove the sleeves, add a panel to the side seams on the body, and another strip to the sleeve seams at the underside.

If I made a new one I would have to find a pattern, which I could see taking a long time, as I imagine few people bother making robes. So I would like advice on which would be most time-effective, adapting my old favorite, or starting from scratch.

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Comments (6)

kathi_mdgd
17 years ago
I have a chenille robe that buttons down the front,and i love it.I got mine from one of those junk cataloges a few years ago,like Dr.Leonards,or Carol Wright.It's warm,it's a long one(to my ankles) which i love as my legs always get cold first.

There are stil robe patterns out there,but i don't think i've seen any like the one you mentioned.
HTH
Kathi
damascusannie
17 years ago
If you do a google search for "vintage bathrobe patterns" you will turn up sites that specialize in vintage patterns. Based on what you said, I don't think it's going to be possible to rebuild the existing bathrobe to fit you.

Annie
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krissie55
17 years ago
Find a suitable fabric to go with the satin robe you already have and then open side and sleeve seam. Sew a strip the width needed to enlarge on both sides from wrist of sleeve to hem of the robe. Yes, one long strip on each side.
kathyg_in_mi
17 years ago
I was going to say what Krissie said. That is the easiest and quickest way to enlarge it.
Kathy G in MI
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author
17 years ago
Thanks for the advice! Do you mean NOT remove the entire sleeve? I was assuming I had to do that since originally the body sides were stitched first, then the tube of the sleeve, then the sleeve set into the body. I want to make sure I have this straight: open up the body side seams all the way from bottom hem to top, then open the sleeve seam from underarm to wrist? It never occurred to me to do it that way!
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author
17 years ago
I went shopping for fabric to match the robe, but could not find any quilted fabric at all (is it out of style?), much less black satin. (The original robe is all vertically quilted satin, teal green with black satin accents of shawl collar and cuffs) The closest was a plain crepe-backed black satin. So to make the fill-ins of a comparable weight to the rest of the robe, I will have to add my own batting and quilt it myself. I am planning on 5 inch wide inserts (counting seams), tapering to narrower by the time I get up to the sleeves.

Tell me if this is the right procedure or if there is a better way. I will cut a 10 inch wide strip of satin, fold in half vertically, sandwich the batting in between, then run some rows of stitching up and down to quilt it. Then sew it into place into the side seams.