A Good Wardrobe

Pattern: The BurdaStyle Sewing Handbook – Our Blouse

Fabric: Silk Cotton Lawn from Harts Fabric

Notions: about a yard of 1/4″ elastic

Notes:

Something that I enjoyed most in 2011, was sewing with one pattern multiple times. It gave me a chance to work on my construction skills, knowing already the pitfalls from the previous attempts. Since the pattern was already fitted, I felt secure to be creative with the details. Best of all, it was possible to see how fibers and weaves behave differently under the same style lines. This blouse exemplifies this and I was amazed at how it moves and falls in a different fabric. Sewing with a trusted pattern is the best education out there and I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s see a challenge this year featuring multiple garments from one pattern.

Although I’m posting this after the challenge deadline, I did complete the blouse on Saturday – well within my original timeline. As my last garment in my winter wardrobe challenge, I couldn’t be happier. Originally, I purchased this fabric for the Pussy Bow Blouse but I decided to pull away from it after finishing my first one. Now that I’ve worked with it, it would have made a fantastic Pussy Bow Blouse. This fabric is heavenly and if I could find it in other colors and patterns I would buy nothing but it! It’s soft as butter and has the most beautiful drape. It reminds me of rayon challis but it doesn’t wrinkle! The cotton made it a dream to sew with, too. It comes in white, also, and now I can’t stop thinking about using it for Truffle from the Colette Handbook.

For this version, I changed things up by eliminating the princess seams from the front. This left me with a “dart” at the shoulder seams which I chose to sew as a soft gather. Hopefully you can see it in the bottom picture, although the polka dots do have a way of hiding the details. In addition, I eliminated the neckline slit, drafted a corresponding facing, and chose to use elastic through the entire waist. If I weren’t trying to make more long-sleeved garments, I would have left this sleeveless as I liked the shape better. Once the drafting was complete, the blouse went together very quickly. For those thinking of making this up, I would recommend making notches on the shoulder pieces because it can be a little hard to distinguish the orientation of the front piece. I had to rip out the shoulders to flip the pieces on this blouse as well as my last. Overall, I’m thrilled with the changes and I’m excited to experiment more with this pattern in the future.

I’ll be back tomorrow with my closing thoughts on this challenge. I hope everyone had a wonderful New Year and here’s to a spectacular 2012!

As promised, here’s the Pussy Bow Blouse on the dressform. After having some time to think about it, I’ve come to following conclusions:

1. I like the arms. They are softly gathered at the cuff and the sleeve head. They fall perfectly at the top of my forearm.
2. The body does nothing for my curves. Other than the side darts, the torso is extremely masculine. The side is a straight cut with no shaping and it seems mismatched with the arms.
3. I should have made the pussy bow. The masculine body and the feminine arms wouldn’t seem so mismatched with it. It’s like the dude’s rug – it would have really tied to blouse together.
4. It’s white. Seriously. I started looking at my closet and it turns out, other than white undershirts, I don’t own all-white garments (edit: that’s a lie. I made this over the summer and love it! What gives?) I think my subconscious has known all along that white isn’t flattering to my skin tone. Molly may be on to something when she suggested dyeing the blouse.

I set off this afternoon intending to get shots of my latest creation only to get rained on a few minutes in. I managed to get two shots; unfortunately, the blouse is almost entirely covered by a pullover in both. If nothing else, I’ll try tomorrow (update: see here) to grab a few on the dressform of the blouse alone.

Pattern: Pussy Bow Blouse by Pattern Runway

Fabric: Cotton Batiste

Notions: 8 white buttons (that I ripped from one of Kelley’s shirts… shh!)

Notes:

This was my fourth pattern that I’ve used from Pattern Runway and as always it was very well drafted. The collar came together very easily which was what I was most apprehensive about. I cut a medium but in future makes I’ll grade the hips to a large – the bottom spreads when I move but nothing awful. The only part I struggled with was the curved hem. The pattern calls for a 2″ hem allowance which seemed excessive for a lightweight garment and was entirely impossible with my skill level. I consulted my sewing guides which suggested running a gathering stitch to help ease the excess which helped on outside curves but did nothing for those inside ones. I finally gave up and did a narrow hem which looks more than acceptable.

The original intention of this project was to check the style on before I cut some luscious cotton/silk to make a copycat of this blouse. I grabbed a stashed cotton batiste but I was short about a yard so I left out the bow. To add some visual interest (and texture!) I took inspiration from this lovely top and beaded the collar tips. It’s nothing revolutionary but I had a lot of fun planning it out and beading fabric for the first time. I was actually pretty amazed that the only beads that I had in my stash were copper-colored! Just waiting for this project, weren’t they? I had to rip out my first attempt as I wanted a machine washable shirt and I had my doubts that they would stay on. Once I got the hang of securing the little buggers, the process went really quickly. I’ll definitely be adding beads on future projects (wouldn’t it be divine as a hem accent?).

Here’s the thing – I think the shirt is lovely. It fits well and is well sewn (not to toot my own horn) but there’s a reason why I don’t own white button-down shirts. They just don’t speak to me. I went through my entire closet trying to feel comfortable in an outfit that showcased the blouse but nothing was “me”. Most left me feeling like I was in a catering uniform or perhaps playing the bells in a Christmas pageant. This is baffling because browsing through pinterest shows so many inspiring button-downs but, at the end of the day, the only way I wanted to wear the shirt was heavily layered. Fine but it doesn’t make the most thrilling sewing showcase!

I’m going to keep trying but until I feel more comfortable remixing the button down, I’m going a different route for that cotton/silk!

Pattern: The BurdaStyle Sewing Handbook – Our Blouse

Fabric: 1 yard polka dot poly blend, 1 yard silk/cotton voile

Notions: A smidge of 1/4″ elastic

Notes:

What I love about documenting my sewing is it’s often forced me to take a second look at shapes and lines that I’ve previously dismissed. I am so in love with this blouse and if I’d seen it on a rack in the store I would never have tried it on. I’ve always thought that peplum blouses like this would be unflattering on me and draw negative attention to my hips but after spending a week diligently working on it,  I was determined to find a way to love it. I tried on at least a dozen outfits to find ensembles that weren’t just acceptable but some of my favorites this year. The best part is it forced me to dig out this skirt that I’ve had for ages but only wore once. The blouse breathed new life and possibilities into the garment and this revelation is going to do major damage on my ability to get rid of old clothes!

The blouse was a joy to make. I cut a 38 and I’m pleased with the overall fit. When I make the blouse again, I’ll take off about 3/4″ at the back waist and remove the same amount in the form of a french dart in the front. This is something that I’m learning I need to do for princess seams but luckily the gathering at the waist hides these issues. The only major change that I made to the pattern was to get rid of the side seam zipper. Since the elastic and tie-waist left quite a bit of room, I felt like a zipper would be rather silly.

This is the first long sleeve blouse I’ve made and it’s actually the first long sleeve woven shirt in my closet. I’m not sure how this happened but I’ll continue to work on correcting this closet-error. That being said, I’m really thrilled with my work on the set in sleeves and gathering in particular. I always worry about getting the gathering even on each side (especially gathering that’s so prominent) and I took extra caution when completing this step by hand basting the sleeves in first. In fact, yesterday’s post shows that I hand basted throughout the project and it really helped to keep the shoulder “lining” stable and in place.

I’m pleased with the results and look forward to using this pattern again. I think there are so many opportunities to make a really unique garment with these lines. Has anyone else made up this blouse yet?

Pattern: Burda 09/2011 #128 Sleeveless Blouse

Fabric: Dobby Broadcloth from Vogue Fabrics

Notions: (5) buttons, white broadcloth for facings and bias binding

Total Cost: about $16

Notes:

You know how everyone says that a serger will speeds up the sewing process?  I didn’t believe them. I thought, ya ya – another justification for your expensive equipment. Well, holy crap, it does! This blouse would have taken me the better part of a week if I had to finish the seams on the sewing machine but with the serger’s help I had it done in a few short hours. Oh and I even learned how to thread the machine by myself!

I’m pretty amazed that this photo shoot even took place considering how lousy I feel. I may look pale but at least I have some energy in these shots.

This was my first pattern purchase from Burda. Maybe I’ve been spoiled by Colette and Pattern Runway but I was a little disappointed in how vague the instructions were. It took some insane amount of paper for a simple blouse and after assembling I realized that the pattern included sleeves and was long enough for a dress. I’m guessing that this is another version (yes, found it). Of course, the pattern makes no mention of the pieces you actually need to make the blouse so I had to deduce this on my own. That being said, the blouse was well drafted with everything trued and notches lining up. Once I started sewing, everything fell into place.

Looking at the sizing chart on Burdastyle, I chose to cut a 42. There must be some crazy ease on this because I shaved off nearly 4 inches from the side seams. I could have taken more in but the armhole shaping would have been disturbed. The front ease doesn’t bother me but the back bunches something wicked so I’ve been considering making an open boxed pleat at the center waist. Next time, I’ll cut a 38 but I want to check the measurements first.

Despite the negatives, I’m actually quite thrilled with the finished garment. The fabric is a dobby cloth I purchased from Vogue Fabrics last spring. Gail, from Today’s Agenda, made a darling Violet top from a similar (the same?) fabric recently. I hope you can get a sense of the texture from the photos because it’s a really fun take on a polka dot. I think it goes quite nicely with the pleats and the slanted shoulder seams. The blouse should pair nicely with my black dress and upcoming projects and I anticipate it getting a lot of use!