Pattern-al Instincts

Just before noon, I met up with some ladies for some fabric browsing at our local Yardage Town in San Diego.  It is situated at a corner of  a little L-shaped shopping strip mall consisting of specialty shops, a karate school, and small restaurants, just off a freeway exit.   Some drizzle did not preclude six of us from meeting at the front of the fabric store.  Michelle (aka "michelle74" from Pattern Review) first arrived and as always, she can brighten anybody's day with her beautiful smile.  I have not seen Michelle in 3 years since fabric shopping at the Yardage Town closest to my home. It was nice to chat about our experiences with patterns such as Burda WOF (tracing can be a challenge), fitting, sewing for family, and more.

Allison ("AllisonSews"), Atasha, Susan ("KnittersDelight") and Susan's adorable mom visiting from Vermont, also joined us at the front of the store.   There was something familiar about Michelle's cute knit top and Allison's breezy top, but I could not exactly pinpoint where I have originally seen them.  Their tops looked really stylish, even more stylish than RTW or off the rack. 

I told Susan that it was a pleasant surprise to find out through her blog that she is expecting a little girl. It is interesting how news travels to people nowadays. Also she looked snazzy in her pink cowl top. There was something uniquely special about the top, and again I was not able to pinpoint why.

From left to right:  Atasha, Michelle, Allison, Susan, and her mom.

Before Atasha, Allison, and Susan arrived to meet us at the front of the store, Michelle mentioned that her top was from Butterick (5522).  It really looked lovely in person, even better than what I see in many stores. She was not satisfied with it as a dress and transformed it into a top.  I  told her that because her top looked really nice, I would not think that it came from a sewing pattern.



Allison's top came from Simplicity 3535.  There were many nice tops made with this pattern that I saw in PR. 

However, the top I made three years ago made me look frumpy.  I recently donated it to charity.

Although this Yardage Town (about a half an hour drive from my home) is not as large as the two stores closer to my home, its selection is still impressive.  To the left, not far from the entrace, were the discontinued patterns ($1.98 each).  I quickly looked at the tables of patterns and had to turn my head the other way and wandered around the bolts of fabric.  By the store's entrace were Halloween specialty fabric, slinky knits with animal print, and knits with abstract print.  I also saw some linen, quilting cottons, stretch velour, bottom-weight fabrics, fleece, charmeuse, and a decent selection of trim.  When I turned my head to eye the clearance patterns table, I saw Susan and her mom poring through envelopes, and I thought Susan would resist the temptation of purchasing more patterns.  Hmmmmm.

Michelle and I were still empty handed.   Just thinking about the stacks of fabric that I have not yet sewn up, helped me resist the temptation to buy.   Allison was holding some fake fur for a vest and I already saw Atasha with some fabric.  Before heading to the cutting table, we congregated at the table that had pattern catalogues (adjacent to the clearance patterns) and had a very pleasant time randomly chatting about our sewing experiences, especially where fitting is concerned, fashion inspirations, and future projects.  Susan's baby will be due mid-December and she still looks gorgeous.   I told her that she will have so much fun sewing for her little girl.  She and her mom were happily going through the pages of patterns, admiring the styles for little girls. 

Susan mentioned that she had made her top and had purchased the fabric from this store.  Now it's all coming back to me now.  She sewed and reviewed  Vogue 8597 last year.

I did not leave empty handed.  I purchased 2 1/4 yards of what I call "Zebraffe" fabric, 2 zippers, and a Simplicity pattern on clearance all for $22.79.  The fabric regularly sold for $8.98 a yard and with its advertised discount of  30%, it came to $6.28 a yard.  It seems to be a soft, yet stable knit.  I have not yet decided what to do with this "wild" fabric.  This jacket of this pattern is suited for sheer fabrics, and both the top and skirt are suited for knits.   If I sew the jacket, I will use a drapy knit and one size smaller. 

On a positive note, I have noticed that my sewing purchases have been gradually decreasing.  Last week, for under $35, at JoAnn's,  I purchased some stretch velour, sheer chiffon, and gold trim (I was surprised that this was from Simplicity) for Heather's genie costume and two Butterick patterns.  I was not able to fight off some PA (pattern addiction).  This what happens after reading about the successes with certain patterns on  PR. 

I am still on the hunt for Simplicity 3626, the genie costume for girls and misses, which was not in stock when I checked during the most recent Simplicity sale.

Maybe it will be more sensible to follow Atasha's lead and draft my own pattern.  Atasha  prefers her self-drafted patterns over commercial ones.   If you ever see the precious outfits she sews for her little girls, you would not believe that she has been sewing for only a few years.

Michelle was good. She left empty-handed, but still smiling!

It was very nice to meet Michelle again, and Allison, Atasha, and Susan for the first time.  This is the second time that I got together with people who enjoy sewing and wish that there were more opportunities.  Sewing is a foreign activity with almost everybody I know, and it seems that as populous as the county of San Diego is there should be a fairly visible sewing community.  I have been discovering that scrapbooking, beer-drinking, baseball, and football, and other non-creative activities seem to be the norm.  At least there is a wonderful portion of the PR community that also exists in my neighborhood.  

Status of Leopard-y

Several weeks ago, Heather requested that I sew her a new Jalie 2788 twist top from a knit printed with leopard spots.  I promised to sew her one once the fall vacation from school starts.  It has been two months since my most recent sewing project.  My sewing "mojo" is slowly returning.  Now into the second week of our "stay-cation" from school (school resumes in a few days), I found the time (and the mysterious productive energy) to re-trace the pattern in Heather's new size, cut out the pattern pieces, and sewing the pieces together in fewer than two hours.  Now that I think about it, I could have made her more tops if I did not forget how quickly the Jalie twist sews up.

Once I gave Heather her new top, she was very ecstatic that she immediately wore it!  Her sweet response inspired me to get jump back on the sewing bandwagon.

This is the same palm tree ("Ferna") that we pose next to for photo ops.  Here is Heather (wearing a Simplicity dress) and "Ferna" three years ago.

.

I wanted to sew a new top for myself from the same leopard print fabric as Heather's top.   I did not feel like browsing through pages of my most recent Burda WOF magazines and tracing pattern lines.

Instead I sifted through a stack of pattern envelopes and found this uncut pattern dated 2007.  Oh no!  The models are the girls from "The Hills", Lauren, Audrina, and Heidi (before more transformations)! With the popularity of Project Runway, I would not be surprised if they come out with their own line of patterns following the cancellation of their show this year.

I think I purchased this out-of-print pattern from ebay.  I recall that I was immediately intimidated to sew this after seeing the number of pieces (more that what I expected) in the cutting layout for what seemed  to be very simple tops to sew.  When I revisited this pattern just recently, I realize that I could omit the front and back facings and topstitch the hems along the neckline. Since there were mixed reviews of this pattern in PR, I was still uncertain as to whether I should start cutting out the pattern.  "Nothing ventured, nothing gained" comes to mind.  So, I gathered confidence and boarded B5084 with a destination of at least a decent knit top in mind.

Pattern Description:
From 2007, here are knit tops with neckline and long sleeve variations. Views A and B have the crossover front and pleated upper bodice I sewed view B, but not with the bell shaped sleeves a la Stevie Nicks.
                                                                                   

                                                                 

I did not know that these MTV reality stars existed until this year, which coincided with the series finale.  Not surprisingly, this show makes Desperate Housewives and Melrose Place geared for the intellectual.  Pictured from left to right from their first season (2006) on "The Hills" are Heidi, Audrina (top), Lauren, and Whitney. Heidi looked naturally pretty here before looking like Barbie.

 The style that closely resembles view B of the Butterick pattern, is the upper portion of a Sans Souci dress from the Tommy Bahama website. The dress and top versions have the illusion of having empire seams. However, upon closer inspection they do not, and the pleats or ruching extend below the waistline, drape gently across the upper portion of the abdomen, forming a faux wrap style. From a distance, the pleats seem to be concentrated just below the bust line where the empire seam would start.

Surplice top, TommyBahama.com, $98

Pattern Sizing:

I sewed a 12 at the shoulders and a "14" elsewhere.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes.

Fabric Used:

Poly knit with nylon characteristics from Emma One Sock. Although the fabric is slightly slippery with my sewing machine, it remains resilient and retrains its stretch after the stitches.

Were the instructions of the pattern easy to follow?

Although I did not use them, they look fine, especially if you prefer to use the front and back facings. Reading earlier reviews (and also the comments from fellow PRers ;-)) of this pattern were very helpful.



Favorite Features

* Simple to sew, especially if you omit the facings and the banded neckline from view A. I had the pieces pre-cut the previous evening. With all my changes and fidgeting with the upper bodice, I was still able to complete the entire top one entire morning.
* Square neck and v-neck options

* Contoured fit.  The distinct inward curves are apparent on the lower skirt portions.


Not-so-favorite Features

*The front and back facings along with finishing the hems seem "dated" now that there are sleeker ways to finish the neckline (coverstitch, serger, using elastic or stay tape before topstitching)
*After attaching the lower skirt (after adjustment), the length is still long for me.

*The neckline is very low (a la mode de Burda).

*Although the front pleats below the crossover portion were easy to make, I did not like the way they draped horizontally across my chest. Maybe it is simply an issue of style. I would rather wear the ruching or pleats nicely distributed across my abdominal area, as in a crossover faux wrap top. The pleats in the upper bodice also seemed to contribute to the sinking neckline.

 *I found the pattern form fitting than expected. 



Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:

* Made a 1" petite adjustment at the waistline

* I shortened the upper back 3/4"

* Folded 1/8" of the raw edge under, pin, and topstitch with a narrow wavy stitch while gently stretching the fabric beneath the presser foot (works better than my current machine's stretch stitches).

*Since, I did not want to break up the layout of the shirt the shirt, I eliminated the back horizontal seam formed by the upper bodice and the lower skirt, by cutting the back as one piece as if the upper bodice merged with the lower back into into one big piece. For future reference,  I traced the silhouette of the composite back, onto tissue paper.

* Since I discovered there was quite a bit of ease at the sleeve caps, I took out a maximum of 3/4" from the top, tapering to 0" at the ends.

* I added slightly flounced cuffs (3 1/2" wide and 1" longer than the edge of the sleeve, past my upper arm). I lettuced edge a narrow 1/8" hem of the cuffs using closely spaced zig-zag stitches.

* As a quick fix, I secured the center front with a few little "invisible" stitches, which serve the purpose of raising and stabilizing the neckline (if they do not come come undone...). Because I was still not satisfied with the look of those pleats, I audaciously separated the front bodice from the lower front skirt and even undid the the basted pleats (seam ripper does come in handy in desperate situations). Now I got my mind singing the chorus of Carrie Underwood's catchy hit single, "Undo It".

Then I lapped the right over the front, basted their edges (above the zig zag cut edges, below the original pleats were located). and with a slight stretch, I re-attached the entire front bodice to the lower front skirt. Then just what I predicted, the neckline was noticebly raised to a wearable depth! I really did not need to pleat the bodice in the first place, because now I could see that the overlapped bodice piece "naturally" formed its own pleats or ruching over the seam line.



Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Having also traced the front as one entire piece with a modified neckline , I would use my modified pattern pieces (front, back, sleeve) for a future top. I am still not satisfied with the pleating across the upper front bodice. If you have this pattern in your stash, I suggest making a muslin first to to determine style and fit compatibiity. Although it is currently out of print and now selling at suggested retail at the Butterick website, you probably could purchase it at popular auction websites.


Conclusion:

It's a good idea to make a muslin to determine the fit of the the bodice, especially for views A and B.

A week of record breaking desert temperatures are followed by precipitation, cooler temperatures and overcast in Southern California.



I was surprised that animal prints are still trending after doing some "snoop shopping" on the internet.  So, I have Heather to thank for reminding me about the leopard printed fabric that has started to age in my fabric stash. Note the price on the Blumarine knit dress...