I picked up a length of green knit from the bargain table to put together a quick muslin. Interestingly, almost the same shade as the one in the illustration. The pattern looked promising, there were bust darts which were a nice touch. I could live without the buttons at the shoulder...does it remind anyone else of a baby's onesie?
Anyway, I set off on my muslin, and based on my measurements I cut a size 20 at the bust, morphing out to 22 at the hips. Here is the finished shirt:
The first issue is immediately apparent, the neck. According to the drawing, it is supposed to fit similarly to a turtleneck. But that is not what I ended up with. The pattern describes it as a "scrunch turtleneck collar," and the illustration shows a much closer fit:
However, there are a couple of indications that the collar was never going to look like that. For one, the "turtleneck" collar piece is just a giant rectangle. However, for the turtleneck to fit like the drawing, the pattern piece would have to be contoured in some way. For example, in the recent (September) Burda magazine there was a turtleneck pattern, and according to the line drawing, there is a clear contour to the turtleneck...almost like an hourglass shape:
Also, in the vogue top, the turtleneck collar is sewn directly onto the same neck countour that is used for the crew neck:
So as a result, you end up not with a turtleneck, but with a little bitty cowl:
Which, is not exactly a bad thing. I have other shirts in my closet with similar collars. But one remaining issue is that it is HUGE:
Just look at that mess! Why am I smiling?? And it is just as bad from the back. Look how much extra room is at the hips:
And darts or no, it is utterly shapeless. So, back to the drawing board. I decided that it needed a couple of things, a center back seam for contouring, overall shortening, more contouring at the side seams, and a smaller size overall.
Because I am inherently lazy....I decided to use a pattern that I was already satisfied with and use it as a template to redraft the body of the shirt. I decided to use New Look 6735, a pattern that had been selected a "Best Pattern of 2008" at Pattern Review.
The pattern consists of a close-fitting tee, a skirt, pants, and cardigan. The tee also has the advantage of a center-back seam:
I had made the tee before and was very happy with the outcome so I set out on morphing together two patterns. I used the sleeves and neckline from the Vogue pattern and the body of the shirt from New Look. Morphing together a shirt with raglan sleeves (Vogue) and set in sleeves (New Look) does present a challenge, so as I was tracing, I aligned the pattern using the top of the side seam (armpit) as a marker.
I also ended up going down from a 20 to a 16 in the Vogue top, grading out to what was an 18 at the hips for the New Look top, as opposed to grading out to a 22 as I had in the Vogue muslin. I also cut the sleeves and neckline in the Vogue top down to a 16. I also shortened the pattern significantly. I had some knit left over from my Butterick 5522 dress and my BurdaStyle 08.2010.140 dress, so decided to make a bi-color version:
Here is the final verison:
The center back seam allows for a much-needed contour:
For the crew neck, I just cut a strip of fabric on the cross-grain (with the stretch), folded it over, and stretched it as I sewed it, just like I normally do collar bands:
But of course, the proof is how it fits, not how it fits my butt-less dress form:
Some of the differences in the new pattern includes a lack of bust darts, but the New Look pattern accomodates some extra space for the bust by making the front pattern piece longer than the back, and that extra length is eased in during sewing. The contoured waist makes a HUGE difference, as well, and the shorter length is a vast improvement.
So, what was initially a quick, easy pattern turned out to be a two-week-long odyssey but ultimately yielded good results.
17 comments:
Interesting! I have this Vogue pattern too, and will remember your changes. I have never put much faith in the line drawings, but maybe from now on I should. The Vogue one is clearly less curved and longer looking than the New Look one, and that's just how they sewed up.
You did a great job on the tee and so figure flattering What a big change from the vogue top. I have that new look pattern, which I use for making vests.
what i like about the second one is the change of material. very good choices i think. It makes your figure look more define and looks smarter... maybe if you did the other one in a smaller size it could be better, it looks way too big for you, but i agree it is a bit shape-less... i actually think the neck has potential.
Interesting...except for the scrunchy neck, the loose fitting and shapeless sides is exactly why I purchased the pattern. I will have to remember the thing about the scrunchy turtleneck and make my rectangle piece smaller...but thanks for the review!
Nice improvements in version #2. Very flattering.
Love the second tshirt very much. I find patterns in general are very hit and miss.
I very much dislike pattern envelopes that have no photograph, but ilustrations. The illustrations seldom depict what the garment actually looks like. Your tee, however, turned out great! Sometimes, we have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince!
Great shirt! It's so cute. I love the contrasting sleeves and neck. What a great way to use up some leftover material too. I'm frustrated with pattern sizing too. I should, according to measurements, cut out an 18 but it would be huge on me...grrr! But great result on the tshirt!
What a difference! I seem to be finding more often that the illustrations on patterns is not what you really "get" from the pattern. I'm going thru a similar exercise currently. I'll blog about it, but essentially, I'll be using a different pattern for the "body" and using only the collar pattern from the one I started out with.
Excellent morphing! That grey top looks so good on you! I love the fabric you used on the sleeves.
The baseball shirt version is a clear winner! Love the fabric choices and you got an excellent fit, well done.
You may not love it, but it will certainly do the job when the temps drop and you want to be comfy. I like them both, and think you have much, much, much more to show for the last 2 weeks in the sewing room, than I do!
Thumbs down on the first top. You know the Chell's are not feeling htat. The second top get a resounding thumbs up. It so cute. The fit is perfect and the length is a better proportion. Way to go!
I was somewhat afraid of the Vogue pattern for some reason. Your second top is better than RTW!
Cute new franken-tee!
LOVE the second shirt! It fits your perfectly!
Thanks for the wonderful post...I've been having major problems with my Vogue knit tops - and I own this pattern - this is a great review. I don't know why they put so much easy - I'm a 37-32-37 and I am cutting out the "A" pattern or sometimes 12/14...ridiculous!
I appreciate the warning....
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