Heidi top for spring

Heralded by beautiful pink cherry blossoms in our back yard, spring has officially arrived in Northern California.  All the gorgeous wool and plaid fabrics I purchased this winter, with unrealistic dreams of making warm and toasty work clothes, must be packed away for another couple of seasons.  But remember this fabric, purchased on our trip to Zurich, Switzerland, last summer? 

With the beautiful, crinkly yet crisp texture, I envisioned a structured, yet pretty blouse.  With only one meter,  a pattern with separate sleeves wasn't an option.  So, I used the bodice of this Vintage Vogue dress pattern V1044, with cap sleeve integrated into the yoke, and drafted a basic peplum.  (Yes, another peplum.  It's really becoming a signature staple in my wardrobe and I still love them!)  The yoke lining and inside button placket were made from white cotton lawn, to get more mileage out of my meter.  Yup, mixing my units of distance right there :)

In my mind, this top reminded me of Heidi, and then I did an image search to refresh my memory.  Clearly, it's only vaguely referential (at best!), but I'm sticking with it; I like the idea of making a Heidi-inspired top from Swiss fabric.  On an previous trip to Switzerland, we stayed in Hirzel, within walking distance to Johanna Spyri's childhood home.

For the pattern, I lessened the depth of the waist darts and made some fitting adjustments (I cut a Size 10, but ended up taking in the sides about 1/2").  Overall, I like the design, but this pattern was not simple!  The pretty pleats were about the most straightforward bit of the whole top.  The directions for the button placket seemed unusually complicated, and sewing the yoke to the bodice (and then the yoke lining to the bodice) was absolutely curse-inducing. 

I used to avoid garments with buttonholes, but my new(ish) machine makes them truly effortless.  Love that. 

Super happy to have finally put this lovely fabric to the machine (and especially happy that the result is worth wearing!).  Happy Spring!