Ready to Sew Janis Feather Top

When I sewed the original Janis top it started a number of ideas percolating, so I had to sew another one to explore some of them.

The finished garment
We didn't bother trying to do these photos with my head in them as it makes the photo shoot less frustrating for my beloved.  He does love photography but prefers landscapes (or subjects that don't keep closing their eyes) and his fancy camera. I get him to use my phone for blog photos because it is easier to transfer them into the computer.

I really love this top, the colours and drape are great and my pattern alteration ideas worked out.

The fabric
This is a silk jersey purchased from Silhouette Patterns in early 2016.  I only bought a yard for some strange reason so always knew it would have to be paired with another fabric to make a garment. I think it looks good with the white sleeves and curved piece in the side body but I wish there had been enough of the feather fabric for the peplum without needing to piece in a bit of white knit.

The white is a burnout knit which looks great but is a real pig to sew as it curls terribly.  I have no idea where this knit came from or what it is made of.

The pattern
Janis by Ready to Sew is described as a peplum style top with two collar options, both available in short and long sleeves.  It's fitted at the shoulders and falls into a relaxed fit below the bust. I made an adaptation of view one with the round neckline.

The pattern alterations
This top used the same alterations to shoulders and sleeves as the one I made originally, but lowered the front neck edge by another 1/4".  For this version I wanted to use a different fabric in the curved section at the side body and have the peplum sewn on in a straight line.

For the curved waist piece I marked the seam allowances on the front and back pattern pieces then butted them together, matching the seam allowances at the top and bottom of the side seams.  I then used the seam line to draw the shape of the insert piece on light weight sew in Vilene and added seam allowances.  I marked alignment notches on both the front and back body pieces matching them on the insert piece to ensure they could be sewn together properly.

For the peplum the depth was reduced by 2.5".  I also realised that it wouldn't need to be as wide so I measured the front and back pieces with the insert piece in place to determine the circumference of the peplum at the seam. The total circumference was 6" less than for the original peplum, so I removed 3/4" at each side edge.  Both of these alterations were made because the peplum no longer needed to travel around the curved edge at the side seams.

The sewing
Another simple top, apart from fighting the white fabric to lay flat, sewn on the overlocker.  Hems (sleeve, bottom and neck edge) turned under and hemmed with a straight stitch and ballpoint needle in the sewing machine.

The styling

Here it is worn with Meredith green 3/4 pants and Andrea Moore Geisha Point shoes.