Vogue 1454 DKNY Gorgeous Butterflies Top

It is quite amazing how easy it is to blog or not depending on the priority placed on it.  Over the last few weeks blogging has seemed like just too much effort and it would be very easy for my 10 September blog post to be my last as there are so many other things to do.

Like all of my sewing done over the past few weeks it took longer than normal - two weekends to get from start to finish of what is a simple pullover top.  Tidying up to try and limit how far the builders dirt travels through the house takes up valuable sewing time.  (Progress on the renovation is being made and I am sure it won't be too long now before our bedroom and ensuite are finished).

The making may be slow but it is the photography that is the rate limiting step. I even enjoy the writing although I am a bit compulsive about the proof reading. However onwards and upwards with a new post.

The finished garment

We took the photos in the dappled evening light by the ornamental cherry tree (which looks fabulous when in flower).  But the photos are perhaps a bit too dappled so I took some more the following day to try and get the pictures of the top a bit clearer.

This is a great top that feels luxurious to wear especially if you ignore the envelope sizing and make it according to the amount of ease you like in your tops.

The fabric

Whilst the fabric has been in my stash for three years I don't think I can class it as old given the age of some of my fabric. It is a silk crepe de chine purchased from Gorgeous Fabrics in 2014 to be made into a top for my trip to the Houston Quilt Festival. Like many sewing plans before a holiday the list to be sewn exceeded the available time so this fabric was consigned to a plastic box waiting for its moment.

I haven't bought lots from Gorgeous Fabrics but it will be sad to see them go as their fabrics have always been high quality with excellent customer service.

The pattern

Described as very loose fitting, pullover top has back flounce (wrong side shows) longer than front, side slits, and stitched hem on sleeves.  And very loose fitting it certainly is.

This pattern is copyrighted 2015 hence it wasn't the garment I was intending to sew when I bought the fabric. So it is just as well the fabric matured a while as it worked really well for this pattern.

The pattern alterations

This first thing to mention is that I started off with the size 6 not the size 16 which in theory is the size appropriate to my bust measurement.  The size 6 according to the finished garment measurements on the pattern tissue is 43" at both the bust and waist. Ideal.

The size 14 (the largest size in my pattern envelope) is 48.5" at the bust so I estimate that the size 16 would be at least 50". This would give me 12" of ease and the finished top would probably resemble a sack.

After I chose the pattern size most appropriate for the amount of ease I like in my garments the following alterations were made to the front pattern piece:

• lowered the bust point 1" (slightly less than my normal alteration of 1.5")
• created a bust dart to give the garment some shape
• lengthened the top in total by 1.75"
• 0.5" forward shoulder adjustment
• narrowed the shoulder by 2.75" (this top was meant to have a dropped shoulder which I changed to a normal set in sleeve which I prefer)
• raised the armhole 2" by using my favourite armhole template to re-draw the armhole shape

For the back pattern piece I made the corresponding changes for the overall length, forward shoulder, shoulder width and armhole shape.

For the sleeve I used my favourite sleeve pattern from Silhouette Patterns Traditional Blouse for the cap height and sleeve width but kept the same length as the original DKNY top.

The sewing

As this was such a nice silk crepe-de-chine I felt it needed to be nicely finished so used french seams for the shoulder, sleeve and back flounce.

For the side seams I used the standard 5/8" seam allowance, pressed the seam open, turned the seam allowance under and top-stitched.  This gave me a neatly finished side seam and a narrow hem on the side slits.

For the neck finishing I cut a 1.25" wide bias strip rather than using the facings provided.  The bias strip was folded in half, stitched to the top right sides together (with the cut edge of the bias strip at the neck edge) then folded over the seam and catch-stitched in place on the wrong side. This gave me a nice 3/8" narrow binding around the neck edge.

Outfit of the day

Nothing very exciting just thrown on with my Andrea Moore trousers and One Trick Pony pink loafers. Even my hair looks flat (the end of a hard day).

I found this outfit rather underwhelming so here is a second outfit of the day.

Still Andrea Moore trousers but in navy blue this time with my navy Vic Matie Theo shoes. Just love the way the back flounce flutters in the breeze.

Or thirdly worn with my United Nude Fold shoes in colour Horizon and my Untouched World wrap (for when the air conditioning gets a bit much). Please excuse the squinting I was facing into the sun which makes for good picture lighting but a screwed up face.