First of Sixteen

Or maybe 17, thanks to Carolyn. She is a naughty, naughty enabler who sent me a link to the most luscious brushed cotton/wool plaid from Sawyer Brook that would match the colors I have picked for my SWAP perfectly:


Wouldn't that be a fantastic jacket? Or possibly a pencil skirt? Oh, Carolyn, you naughty girl!!

In the meantime, after nearly a full day of hemming and hawing over which fabric to start with, and then agonizing over what pattern to use, I finally settled on using the purple knit with the woven diamond pattern for Butterick 5525, view C, the long sleeve version with the cowl front:


First, the good. I have made raglan sleeves two different ways...one, with a two-piece sleeve, which is how the Vogue top I struggled with recently was made, and also the way the Hot Patterns Uptown Downtown dress (which I adore) is constructed. The second way that I have made raglan sleeves is using a one piece sleeve with a dart that extends from the neck down over the shoulder. The only other time that I had used these were in a New Look shirt I had made for my niece, and they made little pointy shoulders. So, to say the least, I was wary of them in this shirt. One thing that I did do as I was sewing the dart was to deliberately curve the seam to imitate the curve of the shoulder, and that seemed to work well. So, in the end, for a one-piece raglan sleeve, this is a good draft.

Here is a photo of the finished shirt, on my hipless, buttless dressform:


The cowl worked very well, you baste in pleats which helps with making sure that the cowl drapes just right. On the other hand, the neckline is very broad, and in my muslin, my bra straps peeked out of the "corners" of the neckline. However, there were some changes that I made that rectified this.

The most major change that I made was to add a center back seam, something that I have learned that I need in a fitted shirt. When I added the center back seam, using my last knit shirt to trace, I ended up taking a significant amount (2.5 inches) out of the back neckline, tapering down to the center back, and then curving in at the waist and back out at the hips. This meant that the front neckline lifted slightly and tightened up, completely hiding the bra straps.


Second, I shortened the shirt. I ended up removing 3 inches in length. Otherwise it was just as saggy and frumpy as that last Vogue shirt that I made. The best length on me is when the hem hits right at the top of my hip bones. Anything longer makes me look like shorter and rounder. The sleeves were also shortened by 1 inch.

Here is the top "On the Hoof" so to speak:



Overall, I am quite happy with the way that it turned out, and I like the subtle diamond pattern. I will say, though, that that pattern dealt me fits in sewing. One thing that I didn't notice until I was cutting the fabric is that the diamonds are varying thicknesses. The ones that appear lighter in the photo are actually woven in a way that makes the fabric thinner, and the darker ones are thicker. The thinner ones also stretch a different amount than the thicker ones, so it was impossible to have exactly the right thread, tension, etc. In the end, I was able to finish it without opening the window and tossing it out into the yard, but it was a close call.

As for progress on the Garanimals SWAP, here is the list:

1. Dark heather gray wool jersey, dress
2. Wool blend flannel, pants
3. Periwinkle charmeuse, blouse
   
4. Grey/black print charmeuse, blouse
5. Black and grey herringbone suiting, pants
6. White jersey knit, top
7. Purple jersey knit with diamond pattern, top, complete
   
8. Purple/ivory cotton shirting, shirt
9. Heather gray knit, top
10. Silk Tweed suiting, skirt
11. Plum jersey knit, top
12. Black jersey knit, top
13. Black boiled wool knit, jacket
14. Orchid stretch shirting, blouse
15. Plum and orchid striped jersey, top
16. Gray cashmere wool suiting, pants

I think that next up I will make a blouse, perhaps out of the orchid stretch shirting, that is almost identical in color to an old JCrew blouse that I had and wore until the seams frayed. The JCrew shirt had dark gray shell buttons, and for this one I have coordinating buttons. Depending on how I feel when it comes time to make the buttonholes, I might use gray since I liked the way it had looked on the other shirt.