Double Take

Here are some current styles and patterns with identical style features:

Dresses with a pleated neckline

Chetta B Belted Ponte Knit Sheath Dress for $118

The pleated neckline reminds me of Vogue 8663

Other patterns with pleated necklines:

Vogue 8593

Butterick 5382 dresses

DKNY knit dress with draped front for $160

McCall's 6282 with draped fronts

Body Central's knit kimono dress

McCall's 6287 top/dresses

My version of McCall's 6287

Banana Republic's Silky V-Neck Dress for $150

Banana Republic's V-neck sheath dress for $130:

"V" for Vogue 1221 by DKNY

Vogue 8631

Adrianna Papell Layered Chiffon Sheath Dress, Nordstrom's, $158

Kwik Sew 3756

Suzy Chin for Maggie Boutique in a ruffledcotton

Nordstrom's, $118

Variations of Butterick's (#5320) version from the same designer!

Shirt Dresses

Carolina Herrera polka-dotted shirt dress for $495, Saks Fifth Avenue

TBags, SalonZ for Saks Fifth Avenue, $198

Hot Patterns' Plain and Simple Shirt Dress

McCall's 5547 shirt dresses

Lafayette 148 knit shirt dress, Saks Fifth Avenue, $368

Macy's INC knit leopard print dress, $79.99

Same dress at our local Macy's:

My Hot Patterns iconic shirt dress from 2 years ago

Hot Patterns iconic shirt dress a la 1970's Diane Von Furstenberg

Ann Taylor LOFT's January Floral Drape Neck Shell, $49.50

Butterick 5493

The silhouette of Ann Taylor LOFT's Placed Print Cowl Neck Top

That reminds me of Butterick 5463

Tess Sew-lation

It's hard to "believe" that McCall's 2254 came out the same year when Cher's "auto-tuned" disco-esque song became a big hit.

From 1999: a fitted knit top with sleeve (long or short raglan) and neckline options (sweetheart or slight scoop). 

It was interesting to see that Cher wore a tube top and a long-sleeved shrug at the Late Night with David Letterman on November 1998.

YT video clip of Cher singing "Believe" at Late Night with David Letterman, Nov. 1998

The pattern that I used was sized 6-8-10 (small).  I had hoped to find a "medium" somewhere on-line.  Since this pattern seemed to be rare, I settled for what I was able to find. 

First version in stretch velour that I do not recommend with this pattern. This top is not flattering on me, and it will not be worn out of the house after this photo.

 

Favorite Features:

*The directions and illustrations were easily deciphirable.

*I like that the mock shrug/bolero contains a separate pattern piece unlike Burda Style's #129 from the January 2011 issue.  It is attached the same way with its lower edge attached to the upper bodice.  The sleeves are raglan instead of the "set-in" type.

Burda Style pattern #129 knit top from January 2010 issue

My second version of Burda Style pattern #129

Not-so-favorite Features
*I did not encounter much extra fabric below the back of my neck and upper back as in Burda Style's #129.

* The neckline contained some extra ease seemed to a size or two larger than expected. I would suggest grading down a size, or taking in the front neckline when attaching it to the mock shrug/bolero section.

*Since I anticipated that this style is form-fitting, I added an extra seam allowance (5/8") to the waist/hips section. 

                                               

Second version in poly knit:

Alterations/Modifications:

*Took in the upper bodice (neckline) 3/4"

*Petite adjustment (1") at the waistline

*Stabilized the neckline (above the bust) by stitching elastic (1/8" width, 2" shorter than the length of the neckline joining the two mock shrug/bolero sections) close to the edge on the wrong side, turning under and topstitch.

Current patterns with the mock shrug/bolero style:

Butterick 5525

McCall's 6284

Kwik Sew 3756

Jalie 2794

McCall's 2254 is overall simple to sew and looks fine in a solid or print.   On a precautionary note, since I am finding that the necklines of this and similar tops have excess ease as drafted, it helps to make a muslin before delving into the nicer fabric.   Although this pattern's age is more than a decade, this classic style has stood the test for time.

Flashback Fun, July 2008: Wearing Jalie 2794 knit tops, Heather and I being silly.

Ex-Seam Make-Over, Part 2

For probably the sixth time I used my reliable pattern for knit tops, Vogue 8451. But this time it is to "re-style" another of those "freebie" t-shirts.

Ex-Seam Makeover, Part One

Oh no, it's that time AGAIN to promote our school's goal to improve its API (academic performance index).  For the past two years, we wore those beefy looking Hanes-type t-shirts.  As you can see I am pretending to be very thrilled about wearing these "glamourous and chic" tops. 

Last week, one of my assistant principals mentioned to start wearing the new shirts (second version) to get the students to start thinking about surpassing last year's overall performance on the California Standardized Tests (CST's).  So, I took the shirt that I had stuffed into a box and decided to make it more "fashionable" to wear the next day.

I cut the shirt into "pieces".  I snipped the shirt along the seams and cut along the "seamless" sides to separate the front and back.  It's time to detach that unflattering wide ribbed knit collar.  I wish that the logo had been placed lower on the front due to the depth of the new neckline. 

 It would have been nice if school's mascot and letters were placed on the front to connect the school with its goal of  "stellar performance".  My hair prvents the school's insignia from being visible on the back. 

I adjusted and pinned the front pattern piece taking into account some fabric shortage. 

After stitching the shoulder seams, topstitching the neckline, hemline, attaching the sleeves flat, sewing the sleeve and side seams, sewing casings at the sleeve hems, and inserting 1/4" wide elastic (2" longer than the circumference of my upper arms),  I am ready to wear this shirt. However, due to fabric limitations, theis the only issue I have with this top. 

Side by side comparision.  From a distance, the "800" looks like "BOO", which is not the intended message that I want to send to my students!  I now like the style of my "new" top, but not the logo.  If  I had an opportunity, I would have voted for a different design that included the school mascot and initials.

When I was at the school office, one of my colleagues after saying "hi" immediately looked at me in amazement.  I was clueless as to the reason. Before she could say anything else, she complimented me on my top and pointed out that she liked the shaping below the neckline and the arms.  I was surprised that she noticed my "modified shirt" when I was wearing a red sweater over it.   I told her that I cut the shirt apart at the seams, re-shaped the edges according to a pattern, and re-stitched the seams.  She even excitedly told our registrar what I did to make the top more "girly" or more flattering.  This goes to prove that it does not take space-age technology to make something SEAM and SEW interesting to others!

Flutter-Fly

From the McCall's patterns website

As I was looking through the current McCall's catalogue at JoAnn's, I noticed patterns associated with young and upcoming designers. This pattern comes from Megan Nicolay (first time I heard about her) for Generation T.

More about the designer Megan Nicolay in her Generation T website.

Description: Pullover top A, tunic B or dress C have wide neckline and unfinished edges; top A front and back extend to draped sleeves, very narrow shoulders and lower band; tunic B, dress C instructions to create woven chain detail are included, tunic B at neckline, dress C along hemline band; dress C has contrast inner hem band.

I made view A, with a few changes.

Sizing:

Misses' XS-S-M. I sewed the "M".

 Here are the directions in a nutshell:
* Sew the tiny shoulder seams (1.3 cm or 1/2") and sides of the top.

* Stitch the seam of the hem band and fold in half lengthwise with the "wrong sides together".

*Attach the hem band to the lower edge of the top, right sides together, while aligning the seam of the hemband with a side seam and the notches.

*Reinforce the tiny shoulder seam by stitching on a piece of twill tape.
*Which I am not accustomed to is leaving the neckline and the split sleeves "unfinished".

Fabric Used: Polyester knit.

Likes/Dislikes

* I like the simplicity of the view A's design which consists of a front piece (which is also used for the back) and a hem piece, both cut on a fold. However, I notice that the envelope contains two front pieces of each view, which I thought was an error, but soon realized it was for convenience in laying all the pieces needed for a particular view. It would have been more simple to just label one of the fronts "back" for clarity.

*Ideal for printed knits, especially for showcasing certain designs such as "mandalas".

*I like the hem band which gives the top a flattering silhouette. It was also easy to create and attach to the lower edge of the top, by aligning the notches.

*I did not like the appearance of this split-sleeve design on me. The drape was nice, but did not suit me at all, so I stitched the entire upper arm for a "kimono" look. Now, I like it much better, even though I feel like I will "fly like an eagle".


*The neckline is wide, and note a tad of my right bra strap that happened to "blend" with my neckline. Any more slippage of the neckline and then I would be promoting 1983's Jennifer Beal's iconic Flashdance look!

*I like the look of the bateau neckline but it is wide enough for a bra strap to peep out, especially for those with narrow shoulders. I should have raised the neckline a tad in order to have enough allowance to hem and topstitch it.

 My pants are from Simplicity 4135 that I made last year.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:

*Topstitched the neckline instead of leaving it "unfinished" as the intended design.

*My usual petite adjustments at the waist (1") and upper back (3/4")

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

If I make the pullover top again, I will add elastic to pull the neckline in further. I would like to try the other views. I definitely recommend this pattern, especially for those new to knits and for anybody who wants a "quick gratification" project. It took less than an hour for me to sew!

Conclusion:

It's very simple to sew!


 Fly Girls

Wearing those "fly-away" looking sleeves....

Natalie Portman (??) modeling a BCBG Max Azria caftan, $248, Nordstroms.com.

A Parker tunic dress for $297 at SaksFifthAvenue.com

This model looks angry modeling a BCBG Max Azria silk asymmetrical top from SaksFifthAvenue.com for $158. 

Purple reigns sew-preme today!