Granville Shirt by Sewaholic

Collared, cuffed, button down shirts.  They are a little bit outside my wardrobe comfort zone, to be honest.  They feel a bit masculine to me, and I like pretty.  But, I know I should own some, so I was pleased that Sewaholic released a version with some details I could appreciate: the Granville.

My main beef with button down shirts?  Not enough waist definition.  This pattern style solves that problem with princess seams in the back and significant waist shaping at the side seams.  Enough that I could easily (and very flatteringly) tuck it into pants without looking like a balloon on top.

The sleeve width is narrow and flattering, with no gathers at the wrist.  I know that seems like an insignificant thing, but no extra fabric at the wrist makes for a much more attractive garment, in my opinion :)

I sewed a straight size 2, with some petite alterations.  However, for my next version, I'll shorten the length above the waist, instead of where indicated on the pattern (below the waistline). I also shortened the sleeves by about 2" (which was perhaps 1/2" too much).  I made the initial shortening before cutting out the fabric, but realized they needed additional reduction after sewing on the cuffs. Thankfully, I had enough fabric to recut the cuffs.  This shortened the sleeve placket, but I think it looks just fine.  In the next iteration, I may also reduce the hip flare a bit.

I really like this pattern.  A lot.  Some alterations for a personal fit and construction directions aside (next time, I'll construct the sleeve placket and collar differently than instructed), I am most definitely planning a second.  And next time, I'm really going for it with Liberty cotton, if that gives you an indication of how highly I consider the quality of the pattern :)  Several of the Glenjade colorways would be lovely.

Oh, speaking of fabric!  This is Marc Jacobs shirting from Mood Fabrics (no longer available).  It's light and pretty and the print is a little retro.  I bought it to make an unspecified top a while ago, but since it was pretty inexpensive ($15 for 1.5 yards), I used for this wearable muslin here.  Which reminds me--I made the top (with a second set of cuffs) in 1.5 yards, so that's good to know when I'm shelling out the big $/yard.  

Here's how I wore it, with a bright orange sweater (from Anthro, a few years ago), cuffed-up jeans and maryjanes.  And here is where I start to see the utility of collared, cuffed and button down shirts!

Resewlution 2015, January garment #2

Camas Blouse by Thread Theory

After making several Thread Theory patterns (peacoat and boxer briefs) for my husband, I was super excited to hear that they were releasing a pattern for women.  And when I saw that it was a not-so-basic knit top, well, I was all over that.   Come to me, Camas Blouse!

Overall the top is just great.  It has a few more pieces than the average knit op, but those small details really make the pattern interesting: button placket, yoke with gathers, and a curved hem.  I sewed the whole top in the same knit fabric, but the original design suggests using a contrast fabric (woven or knit) for the shoulder yoke pieces.  Check out other versions here and here.

I sewed up a size 4 top.  Knowing the v-neck was going to dip low, I shaved off about 1/2" at the top of the front and back (at the yoke seam line) and reduced the sleeves a bit to accommodate the smaller arm scythe.  I also made my standard petite adjustment at the waist.  

For the yoke pieces, there are front and back yokes attach at the shoulder.  However, I ended up combining the front and back yokes into one piece to avoid unnecessary seams at the shoulder.  It worked out great (even with the wacky grainlines).

Even with my new machine (I haven't introduce her yet!) I'm still a bit unhappy about making buttonholes on knit fabric, so I was really excited to see that the directions suggested making faux buttons, which is exactly what I did!  Sewed those things straight through the button placket.

Overall, the top is a bit roomier than I would like, but that's an easy fix.  I'll probably size down to a 2 for the next one, but mostly, I'd reduce or even eliminate all the gathering in the back.  It just looks a bit blocky and blousey on my frame.  Or, it could be the fabric, which is a bit thick.

Oh, so yeah, the fabric (and the elephant in the room, for those in the know).  I used this lovely, lovely knit fabric (Utopia, by Frances Newcombe).  And I oriented it in the wrong direction.  The stripes are supposed to be vertical, but I had it in my mind that the stripes go horizontal.  Since the fabric is a 4-way stretch, it wasn't obvious and still works just great, but yeah, I feel pretty silly.  

Thank you to Thread Theory for providing the pattern and letting me try out.  I am SO hopeful they will continue releasing women's patterns--I love their style!

Am I doing a Resewlution 2015?  I don't know yet...maybe?  If so, January garment #1!

2014 Resewlution Wrap-up

At the start of 2014, I set a goal for myself: sew at least one garment per month for the year.  It was a low bar, but it wasn't so much about sewing 12 more garments for my wardrobe as just creating on a regular basis, even when life got busy.  Here's the big round-up of all my garments this year (click on the photo to go to the blog post):

January

February

March
April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

That's about 39 garments (conservatively--I didn't count all the undies and random tee shirts that made and didn't get posted):

• 11 tops
• 11 dresses
• 5 pairs of pants
• 1 pair of shorts
• 6 skirts
• several pairs of underwear and a camisole
• 2 jackets

So what's up for this coming year?  I am not taking any patternmaking/ sewing classes this year (again, they don't fit into my work schedule), but I'd like to draft a few new garments, focusing on blouses.  And I've got heaps and heaps of fabric, recently purchased, that are earmarked for various garments.  But the one thing I MUST do this year is sew a quilt for my littlest man.   That is my primary goal for 2015.

Thank you for stopping by and sharing my sewing adventures this year!  Have a happy and safe New Year!