Cotton Lawn Tunic

With all these tunic posts I've been coming across lately I decided to see what all of the fuss is about and make one for myself.

I opted for Simplicity 1461 view D. It is offered in misses' and plus sizes. I love the length of tunics and am already thinking about others I can make.

I need to look up reviews for A, B, and C because they just seem like they would be really revealing...

I love how this pattern has different pattern pieces for bust sizes. I'm lucky and rarely need bust adjustments on patterns. But for those who need to make adjustments all of the time this can be very time saving.

I do unfortunately still need to make adjustments for my hips. So I sewed my standard size 12 top and graded to a size 14 for my hips.

I love the fabric I used. It is called The Hit Parade Lawns Unicorn Hunt Orange and you can find it at Fabric.com. It is a combed 100% cotton lawn.

The only thing I would do differently is fix the placement of the unicorn. I really did not mean for it to end up on my stomach. Lower left/right would have been better. But oh well. 

Cotton lawn does wrinkle easily. I did iron it before the pictures. Me iron? I know, shocking. But I did. But after sitting it looks like this. Probably won't be a top I put in my suitcase for my cruise...

The sleeves were simple and turned out well. On these I did purposely place the unicorn on them.

This is the stitching looking at it inside out. I do like how on the tunics they are stitched a second time about an inch or so in. Not only does it give the top a higher end look, it keeps that darn interfacing from being able to pop out.

Overall I really like the top. I think next time I will try it with higher end soft material like a silk or something. I'll have to do some more peaking around blogs to get ideas. It is definitely a pattern I'll keep around.

Simplicity 2372 - A work top

I still need more tops for work. This one seemed easy, boy was I in for a surprise.

I decided to try Simplicity 2372 view C.

I should have noticed all of the pleats. The ones at the top were fine, I think I have those down okay. But they also have them on the sleeves. And darts on the sleeves. Also, although you can see it if you look closely, the front and back total 4 pieces, not 2 like I expected. A lot of things for a newbie like me. It made for a longer process than expected.

The fabric I used is called Whitecap Gray Floral Printed Silk Crepe de Chine and I bought it from Mood Fabrics online. Sadly, it is now sold out. But it is on their website still, maybe they will restock?

I did pre-wash the fabric in my washing machine with cold water. Mood recommends dry cleaning all silk fabrics but, ain't nobody got time for that.

If you look at the front you can see it pulls up in the middle. Yep, that's because I failed to line up the bottom when I connected the front right with the front left. If this would have been one piece it never would have happened. Luckily though when I'm moving around and wearing it it's only noticeable if you're looking for it.

I lined up the back better than the front. It's just wrinkled. There I am being lazy with the ironing again.

All that time spent making the pleats and with this fabric it is barely noticeable. If I were to do it again I would skip pleating the sleeves for sure. Might even skip pleating the front too. To me it just makes it seem wrinkled. 

Overall I do like the shirt. Even with my screw up in the front. But I doubt I would ever make it again. There are other tops I've made that were easier that I would wear just as often. But of course I'll keep the pattern around, because maybe once I have more sewing under my belt I'll think this was easy.

Tank top time!

I made this a week or so ago but life got busy and I could never blog about it. The weather warmed up here and got me ready for the warmer weather.

I decided to attempt McCall's M6751.

The model is super cute in it so I looked forward to the end result. I tried finding a similar colored cotton fabric but nothing really stood out to me at the store. I ended up finding a cotton fabric at Joann's. The fabric is called Burnout Cotton Fabric-Packed Floral Multi and is 100% cotton. It was see-through so I lined it with a plain white cotton (basically I cut out two identical tops using each fabric and sewed them together).

I cut a size 12 and graded it out to a 14 for my hips. I also added 1" in length because it seemed short on the model and I know I couldn't pull it off.

And the result?

I apologize for my hair. I've been lazy with it lately. I should have put it up like the model...

The front neckline does not lay flat. It isn't bad but can be noticeable. Not sure if this was my fault or the way the pattern is done.

The back is where I am most disappointed. The hole is right where your bra strap is. I am not one to be able to go braless. Not sure what to do about this. Any suggestions?

Even adding an inch my belly still shows when I raise my arms. Something you might want to think about if you're making this top.

With the exception of my bra showing in the back it's not a bad top. It is comfortable, easy to move around in, and good for warm weather.

Taking a look at my top now and the model's I see her straps are smaller. I might go back and make mine smaller as well. But it won't fix the bra hole :(