Well, that old August moon has had me up three mornings in a row at zero-dark early. I'm usually up by 5 a.m. anyway, but 3 a.m. is, well, earlier. However, I've always enjoyed the quiet and stillness of the early morning hours. They go great with fresh coffee.
I have a TV in the loft and
I've liked this pattern ever since I found it - it's kind of funky, kind of Lagenlook, and it has lots of mix-match potential:
Last year I sewed View A and completely redrafted it to use fitted sleeves. That was a lot of work, and, afterwards, I didn't like it. The sleeves were stuffy looking and just didn't meld with the ruffle. This time I sewed View C, and I left those sleeves alone!
- I sewed the Medium. Yes, it appears to have a lot of ease, but the Small would have grabbed me under the arms. And it's supposed to be full and swingy.
- No pockets. IMHO, those are some weird pockets.
- As with my first version, I brought the center front hem down a bit. The original curve line is just too extreme for my taste.
- And I added 1.5" to the hem, front and back.
On Emile - I Iove that hi-lo hem:
The neckline is faced - and the facing fits! But be sure to staystitch both the neckline and the yoke edges before sewing. The instructions remind one about the yoke, but forget to mention the neckline. And it's needed - there's a lot of bias in the front, back, and yoke neckline edges.
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| Facing: cotton/poly broadcloth, which is more stable than challis. |
Now the challenging part - my fabric. This is a pretty simple pattern, just seams, nothing fancy. My first version was cotton lawn, which is easy-peasy to sew. But this time I used rayon challis, which squirms, eludes, escapes, ravels... Aack. I spent more time pressing, pinning, and basting, then I did sewing.
But it was worth it. This is incredibly comfortable to wear, and I like how it looks!
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| Pants - Pattern Emporium Harem Pants in ITY knit |
I debated adding this next bit - but I will. Please please don't sew the armhole and sleeve the way Butterick suggests. If you look at it carefully, this approach leaves lots of raw edges at the armhole. Yuck.
An alternative: I serged the side seam allowances, continuing about 1" into the armhole area. Then I stitched the sides with a 5/8" seam and pressed them open. When I hemmed the sleeve, everything came out nice and tidy. This approach, or a variation, works with just about any 'kimono' sleeve.
Parting shot: It's Sunday, and my sewing loft has reached it's maximum messiness level. But I don't mind.
I hope everyone is enjoying a safe weekend,
Tchau! Coco
p.s. Blogger got really wild this morning and published this 2 times, plus put 2 drafts in my files as well. It needs coffee!
The full moon produced a lovely top,Coco! Thanks for the useful tip about the kimono sleeves.( Your sewing room is MUCH tidier than mine!)
ReplyDeleteSuper cute top! Agree rayon challis is hard to deal with, but oh-so-wonderful to wear. This top just looks like it is such fun to wear! :)
ReplyDeleteCreativity in chaos. Lovely tunic and great sewing tip. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteLove the new top, but then again I love everything you make, which I don't believe I've told you. My bad.
ReplyDeleteYour sewing room maximum messiness is my sewing room maximum tidyness. But then again, my sewing dungeon is in the unfinished basement, and yours has walls, and is pretty 8-D.
I love what your lack of sleep produces! Yep, love wearing rayon challis but dislike working with it. And like you, I enjoy the freshness of early mornings.
ReplyDeleteI think your top is lovely, the swinginess and floatiness is a winner and perfect for warm sunny days, I wish I was a morning person, it's a wonderful part of the day.
ReplyDeleteLooks like the perfect summer top! Cool and breezy.
ReplyDeleteI have wondered about instructions sometimes - very often they ignore the whole issue of finishing off seams and keeping things neat and tidy on the inside. If it's not neat and tidy when you've just finished sewing - what's it going to look like after several washes?