I finished up this cotton top on Friday. It was much easier than the last top I made.
I used Simplicity 8949. I was unable to buy this pattern in her size, so I simply cut everything a little bit larger. It was simple enough and it worked great.
The sleeves looked fuller on the picture for View B. I guess they were fuller than A, but if I do this one again, I’ll cut them even larger as she had hoped for ruffly, fluttery sleeves. I added some lace to the sleeves, though, and she was happy with that.
The alterations I made to the pattern were: I enlarged it. I added lace. I did a little top stitching and then tack stitching to the center front V-part. I did this so it would lay flat and hopefully not rip out as she pulled it off and on. I also put a small zipper in the back as those work for her better than things like loop and button closures. I lengthened it slightly.
I think it will be cool and comfortable when she’s warm, and layer easiy when she’s not. A long time ago, I liked to post projects on Fridays. This qualifies, since I finished it up on Friday! It really wasn’t very hard, folks. I just have been super busy this week, so that’s why it took all week. Hopefully, on Saturday, I will get a longer chunk of sewing time in on the next project.
This top was very economical to sew because I had the fabric on hand for years, and it might even have been some Lovana left behind when she moved out. Even better, the pieces of this pattern fit on the piece of fabric and there was none left over! Since I still have quite a bit of fabric on hand, I’ve been trying to use some of it and have been having trouble matching patterns with the lengths or styles of fabric I have. I got the pattern at JoAnn’s for $1.99, recently. Thread was in my thread bin from projects in the past. The zipper was a loose one in my zipper bin, so it was either torn from another garment at some point, from a yard sale, or given to me over the years. People are very generous when they know you sew and Rob also looks for notions and lace at garage sales and often gets handfuls for very low prices.
It was easy enough that I would make it again in another color. I will, however, wait until I see if she really likes it enough to wear it a lot. It’s all about comfort around here, so we shall see:)
Pretty girl and pretty blouse!
I like think green is a lovely color on her.
I like the color, too.
That color is so pretty with her hair!
Thank you. I like it, too.
That is definitely her color! She looks so good in greens and blues.
Jeannie@GetMeToTheCountry
I like that color on her, too.
Great job!! Do you mind sharing specifics on how much you enlarged the shirt? (I would also need to enlarge the pattern but I have never tried to do so.)
This pattern was easy to enlarge because it didn’t have very many pieces. It was a multi-sized pattern. It was easy to see how each larger size was about 1/4″ larger than the size below, so I just continued adding about 1/4″ everywhere they did until I got up to the size I needed. I added more under the arms because she likes a looser fit. However, I will add more to the sleeves next time, to make them more fluttery. One thing to watch for when you enlarge patterns…If you add, say 1/2″ under the arms on the side seams, make sure you add a corresponding amount to the sleeve part that goes under the arm, if it is set in or the sleeve will be too small for your new, larger, armhole. Same for any other area where you add…just look for the piece that you will be sewing that larger part to, and add the same amount to the corresponding one, too. It’s easier when there are gathers involved because it’s easier to add the right amount because you can always gather more or less to make them fit together. One thing to do if your chosen fabric was expensive is to try out your newly enlarged pattern with an old sheet or other junk fabric. Then, just baste it together to make sure it’s going to fit before you cut your good fabric. I’ve done that before when making fancy dresses for the girls, and also “made” my new pattern on some white paper I have.
That looks like such a nice, comfortable blouse! I really like the color on her.
Thank you. She’s worn it a few times, now, since I made it and it seems comfortable for her. She’s a girl who loves it comfy!