White Seafarer tops for summer (Part 1)

The weather is finally starting to warm up (only last week we had the wood fire going) and with 40 degree summer heat looming around the corner I've started thinking of suitable clothing. 

My plan this year is to make a few quick to sew/easy to wear items from pattern's I've already tried before, then if time permits I'll move onto something new...

This week I managed to make two tops from Sew Much Ado's Seafarer top pattern (which I tested here last June). 

I've said it before -I LOVE this pattern- it sews up super quick (2 pieces only if you choose) and is a great casual all rounder piece to wear, figure flattering and easy to throw on with jeans or a skirt. IMHO you can't go wrong.

That is unless - like me- you mistake super fine ribbing for cotton Lycra, then hold on for the ride (and keep the unpicker handy)!

The fabric for this top below IS super fine cotton ribbing: 

 

Superfine ribbing is GREAT for cuffs, necklines and fold over waistbands, it stretches and curves beautifully. 
It's also an absolute *biatch* to sew without an overlocker. Seams stretch and wave like crazy- even when using the stretch stitch option (lightning stitch) on the sewing machine. 

Originally I planned to just make this using the basic front/back 2 piece basic pattern. After ripping out the sleeve ends twice due to waviness (I used a triple zig zag stitch in conjunction with"Steam-a-seam lite" tape) I decided that the only way to stop them looking like wings was to overlock armbands on as a sleeve finish. I then overlocked  bands to the neckline and bottom hem as well, in an effort to try and salvage the top. 
Even using an overlocker the seams still wanted to stretch so I changed the differential feed setting from 1 to 2.2, after consulting the user manual. 

Due to the fabric thickness this top feels more like a sweatshirt than a t-shirt (my daughter said "mummy jumper **?" when she saw it) and it looks quite "made by nanna circa 1980's". NOT that there's anything wrong with that- it's just not the look for me (when I was five years old maybe...)
 Safe to say it has now been put in the house/lounge/PJ wear drawer, I feel like a marshmallow in it so it wont be leaving the house!

How did I manage to make such a fabric blunder? Largely trying to choose and  buy fabric in a hurry- combining fabric shopping with family outings has never really turned out well in my experience.

Also -up until now- I had never had anything to do with this type of fabric. It wasn't until I was sewing it, trying to work out why it stretched like crazy, did I happen to pull it the right way and see that it was in fact ribbing! 

Bit of a light bulb moment there ;)

Guess that explains why it seemed to be a fabric narrower than usual in width (I ended up having to put a centre seam in the back fabric piece). 

Anyway I think I've waffled on enough for one post so I'll leave the top that actually DID work out until next time!

Until then ...

Happy (hopefully trouble-free) sewing!

Kate :) 

P.S in case you are wondering where you can get this type of ribbing from- I brought this fabric from Janome Balcatta.


** We tend to call sweaters/pullovers "jumpers" here but I know "jumpers" refer to a different type of garment elsewhere in the world.

Floral Kwik Sew top goes out

So finally got a snap of my floral Kwik Sew 2643 being worn. We were on our way to the public library and I asked hubby to grab a quick shot before we left, not super "styled" but an acurate reflection of my day to day wardrobe :)

 This version was actually the first top I made from this pattern- you can see my original post here. Fabric is from Spotlight- $7 (or thereabouts) a metre on special. A bit thin for my preference as a single layer but I fell in love with the big fluro-bright flowers on the tan background. Plus having a $10 voucher that was due to expire helped cinched the deal (birthday voucher that is- thankyou Spottie!)

Now I'm not so sure what I was thinking picking a fluro/beige colour combination, I think I may have been swayed by all the pinterest boards I've been browsing lately. At least -if nothing else- it's a bit "unusual" ;) And luckily enough it worked out well for my first shot at this pattern.

Originally I made this this up with full length and full width sleeves. What you see now is the hacked and trimmed back version. I serged a fair bit off the width of the sleeves, chopped the length to near elbow and took it in a little more on main body seams as well. The neckline is the original neckline, I thought it was a bit too high on first wear but now I thinks it's OK. In fact -on reflection- it probably the ideal neckline for a work top (or for any other situation where accidental cleavage flashing is a no-no).

I've played around a fair bit with this pattern now and think I should probably put it away and try something new...

However with summer around the bend I find myself wondering what the short sleeve option looks like made up...and how hard it would be to alter it into something more "wardrobe friendly" if I don't like the original design.

Lots to consider ;)

Happy Sewing!

Kate :) 

Blue Kwik Sew 2643 (modified) top finished!

Excuse the pyjama bottoms and bathroom shot but I've finally finished my blue version of the Kwik Sew 2643 :)

This is the forth time I've made this top up. I'm still catching up on taking photo's of and posting about the other versions, but you can read about one of them here.
This time around I decided to add a cowl neck collar to my widened neckline and bands to the sleeve ends.
The bottom hem I had to redo four times - this fabric was just a real doozy in this area for some reason. After trying to twin needle the hem (my usually easy and favorite method ) -and then having to rip it out- three times, I gave up on the twin needle and sewed it down using a blind hem stitch and then top stitched over that with a triple zig-zag stitch from the right side. The hem finally behaved after that ;P

Oh I forgot - this was also after trying to add a band to the bottom hem (to match the sleeves) and then taking it off as it made the length funny. Not quite long enough for a dress but too long for a top, might work on a willowy teenager but just looked wrong on me.
So that makes it FIVE times I redid the bottom hem - crazy!!!!

I guess you could say I've really been practising my stretch fabric hemming techniques with this top.... Hopefully my next project (jeans) will require much less unpicking *fingers crossed*.

Happy Sewing!

Kate x