Silhouette Patterns 4000 Swing Dottie Dress

This dress was made in May, a little spot of sunshine in early Winter. Although the week it was made was warm for the time of year and sunny at the little bach we rented over on the West Coast.

Whilst this is the fourth version of this pattern it is the first to make it to the blog as a pattern review. Two were photographed as part of my end of 2019 round-up - one is worn often and the other has left the wardrobe.  Luckily number four is a keeper.

The finished garment

The cut out dress was taken on holiday to be sewn as the colour perfectly coordinated with the other yellow / mustard items in the travel wardrobe. It was sewn on the Sunday and worn on the Monday. A perfect match for the Untouched World Weekend jacket in a colour they called Kowhai with Ernest Wyler Keesha booties in colour sunflower. The Weekend jacket is in my favourite Ecopossum knit, warm and cuddly for early Winter.

This dress had an unsolicited compliment from the farmer's wife we rented the bach from, and generated even more admiration when I said I made it the day before!

Love the "colour pop" picture Google created for me

The finished garment pictures were taken without make-up or shoes. A truly back to nature west coast photo shoot!

The fabric

A lovely bluey grey cotton jersey printed with two inch mustardy yellow dots from Fabric Vision. There is quite a bit of this fabric left over as originally I thought it would become another version of V9243 The Twirling Dress but then I decided I would prefer it as a knee length dress. I am sure you will see it as a top at some point as the dots make me happy. 

The pattern

Silhouette Patterns #4000 Swing Dress is now discontinued and comes with pattern #4009 Morocco's Dress as the under dress.

I have pattern #4009 but never really considered making it. I was curious writing this post to know how my version of #4000 compared. The skirt of #4009 is almost twice the width of #4000 and whilst longer than the original length of #4000 is a couple of inches shorter than my TNT version. Below is a picture of my TNT version of #4000 on top of #4009 for comparison. I am intrigued now and might find a cheap lightweight fabric to make #4009 as a swing dress without the overlay.

The pattern card

All of the pattern alterations are not written on the card because it is a TNT pattern with the original made so long ago (early last year) that until I wrote this blog post I had forgotten all of the changes made to reach this stage.

The ½" forward shoulder adjustment is my standard alteration and the only one I remembered! Will go back to the pattern card and make a note of the length changes.

The pattern alterations

This is one of the few Silhouette Patterns that have caused a bit of head scratching. The reason is the sizing. I make the smallest size (size four) in a D cup which has a finished garment measurement of full bust 36"; waist 36" and hips 44". Normally I make knits in a size 38" with two inches of negative ease at my full bust so the first dress I made was in the size eight. This version was so big I took it apart and re-cut the fabric. The size four Swing dress in a firm knit is just right. When I have made it in an ITY knit I have sewn it with a ⅝" seam allowance (sewn first with a ⅜" seam allowance; then tried on and looked too big; sewn up again chopping off the previous overlocked seam).

I have also had problems with the length. The pattern as printed seems very short more tunic than dress length. My TNT version has been lengthened 10" at centre front and 7¾" at the side seam; centre back was lengthened 7" and 7½" at the side seam.

Other than that I have made my normal ½" forward shoulder adjustment but no sway back adjustment which looking at these photographs I should probably add.

The last change made is more to do with a sewing preference as I cut out the dart to mimic a french dart otherwise there is too much dart fabric sewn in at the side seam.

The sewing

A very easy sew whipped up on the overlocker using four threads. Took me longer to find the right colour grey thread in the little fabric store in Westport (Buller Fabric and Fibre) than it did to sew. And yes I took both my overlocker and sewing machine on holiday with me - well we did travel by car. Even I'm not brave enough to suggest I take both on holiday if we fly.

My order of sewing is to sew the darts first from the tip down to the side seam, then the right shoulder. Whilst the left shoulder is unsewn I attach the neckband then sew the left shoulder seam. The sleeves are attached in the flat and the side seams sewn. All seams are pressed to one side (to the back generally or down in the case of the bust dart) before the next seam is sewn over it.

For the hems I turn up the hem and press it in place whilst the fabric is flat, as it is easier to iron at that stage (I don't sew the side seams with the hems turned up). Once the side seams are sewn and pressed it is easy to fold the hem in place using the previously ironed crease and sew it down. The hems for this dress were sewn with a straight stitch on my old faithful Singer 221 Featherweight.

To make this basic dress a bit more interesting I did the Katherine Tilton twisted neckband as demonstrated on the Craftsy Artful t-shirt class. The twisted neckband requires a fabric where either side can be visible and whilst the dots are only printed on one side I didn't think that mattered for the neckband.

A 2½" strip of fabric folded in half was used for the neckband. The finished width is ¾" so the seam allowance was removed from the dress neckline before the neckband was attached. I sew the band to the neckline with a ½" seam allowance (the overlocker chops off ¼"). I mark two points (with a pin) on the front and one on the back neckline for where I want the twist to occur. I started sewing from the left shoulder down the front neck edge with right sides of the neckband fabric together, as I came close to the pin the fabric was twisted so wrong sides of the neckband fabric were together and sewn in place. The closer to the twist you hold both sides of the fabric together the tighter the twist will look. At the next pin the fabric is turned right sides together again and at the last pin it is turned wrong sides together.

Close-up shot of KT's Twisted Neckband

It is a bit persnickety to attach and get the twists sewn in but it gives an interesting finished neckband that is worth the effort.

The swinging winter red dress

This version of SP4000 was the first version sewn - sometime last year, ages before the Dottie dress. It was never blogged, partly because it took a while to become a finished garment. I thought it was so unlikely to become a wearable dress that I purchased more of the fabric to make something else. 

For this first version of I lengthened the dress the same amount at all seams which when worn the hem curved upwards very noticeably at centre front. This also started off as the size 8 and looked so baggy on. The fabric saved this dress as rather than going straight in the bin it sat on the sewing table for some months awaiting inspiration. Eventually having sorted out my starting size I only had the length problem to deal with. I decided to just shorten it to a long tunic length for wearing with leggings. At home it can be worn as a dress but it's a bit short for me to feel comfortable wearing it in public as a dress.

I loved this fabric and was only brave enough to fix the problem with scissors after I managed to buy some more. This version hasn't been worn very much and may eventually be sent to the charity shop and the dress made again (properly).

Another clue that it was sewn and photographed some time ago is I am actually dressed up complete with make-up. Post pandemic wave one getting all dressed up with nowhere to go is a rare event. 

Style Arc Palermo Satin Cloud Knit Jacket

This simple jacket jumped many queues to become a finished garment within moments of acquiring both the pattern and the fabric. The plan for the 2020 Pattern Review Wardrobe Contest had already been formulated but I found myself re-thinking the options so this oh so cosy fabric could leap into my wardrobe for a few wears before the temperatures became too high.

The finished garment

Whilst the name of the pattern is the Palermo knit jacket the garment itself is more of a shrug than a jacket. It can be worn as outerwear on a warm sunny day but so far it has been worn as a shrug to snuggle into on a cool Spring day.

Not exactly demonstrating its warmth and cosiness with me squinting into the sun during the photo session, but here I am in my super cosy comfortable shrug not sacrificing style!

The Palermo Satin Cloud knit jacket is worn with the WORLD Pink Mustard Black Stripe Positivity Tee, Megan Nielsen Flint Boyfriend Mustard trousers and Ernest Wyler Keesher Sunflower booties.

The interesting seam lines of the jacket

Whilst it was a relatively simple sew the wrangling of the back hem warranted the use of one of my treasured labels. A gift from a friend they are used sparingly for those oh sew special garments!

The fabric

This wonderful Liberty Linford brushed sweatshirting entered the stash on 3 October 2020. It wasn't quite washed in time to be whisked away for holiday sewing but it was desperate to be made. A true love at first sight fabric. 

Liberty Satin Cloud B Linford Brushed Sweatshirting

This is a 300gsm 100% cotton fabric, one of the new range from Liberty of London at The Fabric Store.

It is described as "an Italian made Liberty cotton sweatshirting from the Linford range. Echoing the billowing pleats of the silk route’s prized flowing silk cloth this delicate Satin Cloud Liberty Fabrics print has cloud-like softness and energy. Linford Fleece is cosy and breathable, with a long-wearing pliability that only gets more comfortable with age. This super cosy fabric has been knitted with a loopback which has been brushed to create a fleece style fabric, super cosy and soft. The printed face of the fabric has a dry, flat texture whereas the reverse is a fuzzy texture in a plain bubblegum pink colour. The print design is made up of tones of clementine, purple and black on a black and pink base. A heavyweight knitted fabric perfect for sweaters, winter dresses, cosy loungewear, children and babies' winter clothes."

The pattern

I knew the Palermo knit jacket pattern had to be part of my collection the moment Style Arc sent me the email back in August announcing the release of the "gorgeously comfortable new discounted Palermo outfit sewing pattern bundle". I did wait until early October to purchase it as neither of the free pattern offerings in August and September appealed. Luckily the October freebie (Wilma woven top) tempted my fancy as the Satin Cloud fabric was desperate to become this jacket.

Style Arc describe the pattern bundle as "perfect if you are taking it easy and looking for ultimate comfort without sacrificing your style. The Palermo Jacket features interesting design lines, that are surprisingly created with only two pattern pieces! The relaxed look contours the neck and sits just below the waist. A shrug style jacket featuring long sleeves, neck hugging collar and interesting design lines."

Suggested fabrics are: sweater knit or any fabric with slight stretch and drape. Yippee for once my fabric choice matches with the designer's suggestion.

The other two patterns in the bundle (Palermo knit pant and Teagan knit top) were not purchased as drop crotch, elastic waist lounge pants have never appealed and I didn't need another basic t-shirt. Although now I have snuggled into my Liberty Linford brushed sweatshirting Palermo jacket I am sorely tempted by the idea of using the fabric for trousers. Luckily I am saved at least for the moment by the fact that we are fast approaching Summer so warm snuggly trousers have less immediate appeal.

The pattern card

The pattern alterations

Absolutely none. I did however sew the size 6 due to its oversized nature rather than my usual size 10 or 12 in Style Arc patterns. The finished garment measurements for the size 6 are bust 47¼ inches; sleeve length 27⅛ inches; centre back length 21½ inches and hem circumference 39¼ inches.

Very oversized garments don't usually suit my shape and I moderate the amount of ease by sewing a smaller size. It is a balancing act to retain the essence of the garment without swamping me.

The sewing

Style Arc class this jacket as an easy make as long as you follow the A, B, C notations - carefully marking them on the fabric. I would agree with this assessment. The seams were sewn up on the overlocker in no time. Up until this point the most time consuming part was changing the overlocker threads. With the high contrast between the the pink fleecy inside and the black exterior I overlocked the outer garment edges in black to finish them. Then for the seams changed to pink thread in the upper and lower looper and right needle with the left needle staying threaded with black thread to match the fabric right side.

Four thread pink overlocked seam - left needle threaded with black

The Style Arc instructions with their informative little diagrams were more than adequate for sewing up this knit jacket. The A, B and C notations were clearly illustrated and easy to associate with the markings on the garment. As my fabric was fluffy I snipped the fabric at the A, B and C points.

There were three instances where I didn't follow the instructions:

• After the side seam was sewn I sewed the centre back collar seam together. Then I folded the sleeves in half and sewed from the right sleeve hem up the arm, round the back neck edge down the left arm to the hem in one continuous seam.
• When I attached the shawl collar to the back neck edge I didn't sew in the facing. The entire facing (front opening and collar) were hand catch stitched in place at the end with the hem.
• Hem depth was increased for sleeves and garment body

Once the seams were sewn the sleeve hem was turned up 1½ inches instead of the ¾ inches allowed in the pattern. This deeper hem was perfectly accommodated within the width of the sleeve and made the sleeve length appropriate for my arms! The hem was hand catch stitched in place.

The sewing machine made a fleeting appearance to sew the facing to the garment body at the hem right sides of the fabric together with a 1 inch seam allowance to match the hem depth. The garment was then turned right sides out without trimming the seam allowance to make a sharp square corner a la Louise Cutting.

The hem was turned up 1 inch not the ⅜ suggested. Whilst I think it is better with this deeper hem it did cause the only problem I had when sewing this jacket. With the curvature of the design the hem would not lay flat at the side seam so I ended up cutting a strip of fabric as a hem facing for the back hem only. At the folded fabric edge the back hem is 16⅝ inches wide and the top of the hem is 1 inch wider at 17⅝ inches. This is clearly an improvisation at the end because the hem edge has pink thread overlocking not the black used for the other edges.

Improvised back hem facing

The styling

Whilst my entry for the 2020 PR Wardrobe Competition may never see the light of day as I have sewn only four of the ten necessary garments, the Palermo Satin Cloud knit jacket fits perfectly into another PR competition currently running - Warm and Cosy. This competition was discovered by accident when looking to find out the closing date for the Wardrobe Competition.

Luckily the rules were simple, requiring:

• the garment to be sewn in the month of October 🗹
• it to be something you can wear or use at home (no outerwear) 🗹
• take part in the contest discussion (well I registered my interest on page 34 of the discussion thread!)  🗹
• a review to be written that illustrates how my jacket is warm and cosy, with at least two photographs (and they don't need the garment to be shown on a person) 🗹
• contest entry to be before 11.59 EST on 31 October (hopefully fingers crossed)

I do curl up on the sofa like this next to the log burner but have to confess that this is very much a staged picture because it was a warm gorgeously sunny day when the photograph was taken. If we had taken the photograph a day later the log burner would have been roaring away keeping us toasty warm. Such are the vagaries of Spring.

At least I am not wearing sandals as I was when we took pictures of me wearing one of my other wardrobe contest items.

Left: Palermo Satin Cloud jacket; V8710 KT Happy Flowers top; Megan Nielsen Flint Boyfriend Mustard trousers; Arche Ikhini Yellow sandal

Right: Palermo Satin Cloud jacket; V8710 KT Happy Flowers top; Megan Nielsen Flint Prince Check trousers; United Nude Zink Pop Mid Black booties

Pattern Review Endless Combinations

After failing miserably and not participating in the Stitcher's Guild 2020 SWAP I was tempted by the Pattern Review Endless Combination contest. Given my productivity over the first half of the year the desire to sew nine garments in four and a bit weeks was either ambitious or stupid depending on your view point. At least four needed to be sewn to participate - that was my real goal with everything above four a bonus.

The plan for Endless Combinations is a distraction from the garments cut out and waiting patiently for their turn on the sewing table. As they are left over from my 2019 summer sewing plans it is not too much of a disappointment - there is still time to make them before the start of this Summer.

The official rules

The idea was to build a flexible wardrobe of pieces that go with each other. You start with one garment, and then each subsequent garment you sew must coordinate with the one before.

1. Create and sew an "Endless Combination" wardrobe of at least four items that coordinate in the way described above. (A+B, B+C, C+D). There is no limit to the number of items in your Endless Combination.
2. Any pattern can be used or no pattern at all.
3. Accessories are not allowed as an official “item” but may be sewn/worn for styling purposes.
4. The fabric may be pre-treated (washed) and patterns may be trialled before the contest start date of 1 July but the fabric for the contest garment can't be cut before the contest start date.
5. All entries have to be submitted by 11.59pm Eastern time on 31 July. This should have worked in my favour as that is 3.59pm on 1 August (a Saturday) in New Zealand.

Not discovering the contest thread until 1 July left no opportunity for pattern testing ahead of time.

The original plan

I flitted about between various fabric and pattern options, where was the start and what followed what. Eventually I produced this initial plan but when it came to sewing it required too much brain power and was abandoned (also truth be told new shinier fabric entered the building).

Top row

(a) Top based loosely on the Style Arc Rosie pattern in Reef viscose knit from Drapers Fabrics 

(b) Thread Theory Lazo Trousers in a viscose/silk blend twill from The Fabric Store
(c) V8710 KT top in Lady McElroy Sacred Symbol viscose crepe jersey from Stonemountain & Daughter

Row two

(d) Megan Nielsen Flint trousers in a white/mustard check grey lightweight wool from The Fabric Store
(e) Diane Ericson The French Fold Shrug in an ochre coloured merino knit from The Fabric Store

Row three

(f) Named Kielo Wrap dress in a sheer poly bug print from Drapers Fabric or

     V9243 (OOP) Twirling dress in an ochre merino knit from The Fabric Store

Bottom row
(g) Sew Different Sheer top in Sunset sequins from Stonemountain & Daughter or

      DP Studio LE702 Trompe l'oeil trenchcoat in D&G Sweet Home Italian wool from Marcy Tilton

The (almost) executed plan

The Firebird mohair finally arrived from The Sewing Workshop and turned my plan on its head. The three months it took the fabric to swim across the Pacific ocean is what happens when you order fabric during a pandemic just as borders close and international travel stops.

Top row

(a) Papercut Fjord cardi Firebird mohair wool from The Sewing Workshop (this fabric is still available at Elliott Berman)

(b) V9243 Twirling Firebird dress

(c) Sew Different Sheer top in a paisley cotton lace from Fabric Vision

Middle row

(d) Megan Nielsen Flint trousers in a white/mustard check lightweight wool from The Fabric Store

(e) V8710 KT top in Blue Temptation rib knit from Miss Maude

(f) Megan Nielsen Flint trousers in peggy yellow heavy tencel twill from Miss Maude

Bottom row

(g) Style Arc Rosie top in Lady McElroy Sacred Symbol viscose crepe jersey from Stonemountain & Daughter

(h) Thread Theory Lazo Trousers in a viscose/silk blend twill from The Fabric Store

(i) Style Arc Rosie top in Reef viscose knit from Drapers Fabrics

The pattern cards

Sometimes the Grainline Studio pattern cards are an after thought, and my line drawing of the garment are anything but polished. Yet I have maintained the practice of filling out a pattern card and making notes about alterations etc for each garment sewn. Will report back in a few years as to whether this practice has been useful!!

The finished garments

Eight of the Endless Combination were finished in July but still not entered into the competition for two reasons:

(1) I haven't written reviews for each of the finished garments; and

(2) I don't have photographs of me wearing all of the garment combinations

Even three months later no reviews are written or photographs taken. Instead what I have are the garments in a flat fashion layout.

The seven items in their endless combination

All three of the tops in this endless combination can be worn with either pair of trousers as well as with the Fjord Firebird cardigan, extending the wearing possibilities even further.

Item nine - the Rosie Reef top

The Rosie Reef top was unable to join its friends as an endless combination because item eight the Lazo trousers were not made (and still remain flat fabric). 

The frenetic sewing during July was followed by an extended pause until September and the advent of the Pattern Review 2020 wardrobe contest...

Dreaming of travel - Stitcher's Guild Sunset SWAP

Once I caught up with the Stitcher's Guild SWAP 2020 rules late last year I began playing with a plan of my own. The ideas were all over the place and whilst I had an inspiration photograph and fabrics to execute it deciding on which patterns to sew with which fabric was elusive. The other fly in the ointment was that in the first half of this year whilst I made ten garments they were chosen based on ease of sewing rather than my SWAP plan. So all in all, despite being very enthusiastic about this years rules, it was a very feeble attempt at participating

The SWAP rules

The Stitcher's Guild SWAP 2020 rules were simple and very achievable. You had to make eleven pieces, in two groups:

• nine or ten that may coordinate (be worn together) to form outfits
• one (if you make ten) or two (if you make nine) that MUST coordinate with all of the others
• no required garments
• no required colours
• one garment could be knitted, crocheted, or handwoven
• one garment may have been sewn before the SWAP rules were announced on 29 October 2019 plus one RTW garment (or two pre-sewn garments)
• one garment may be included that was sewn after the rules were announced but before SWAP officially started on December 26
• one garment to include a technique that stretches your skill set and is something you have been wanting to learn
• all garments to be finished by 30 April 2020 (later revised to 30 June 2020)

There were supposed to be two overseas trips this year one back to England to visit family and the other a creative sewing trip to the Design Outside the Lines retreat in Ashland Oregon then on to the International Quilt Festival in Houston. As usually happens with thoughts of travel for me I wanted to sew some new clothes for the travel wardrobe. Then as travel fell off the list of things you could do and 2020 became the year of staying at home sewing to a plan became elusive.

The SWAP intentions

There were many ideas for inspiration with Diary of a Sewing Fanatic back in mid March posting about a Chico's advert for twelve pieces to make twenty-four outfits and Fit 2 Stitch series 700 being about making nine garments for a complete wardrobe. The potential fabrics were even curated into a plastic tub so the ideas could ferment.

However, nothing could compensate for the lack of focused sewing and the SWAP remains a work in progress.

My eleven piece Sunset SWAP wardrobe

My plan was for five tops, two dresses, two pairs of trousers, a jacket and a coat. Both the jacket and the coat went with everything. The Centre for Pattern Design Smaller dress was the garment to stretch my skill set, as it was based on subtraction cutting a technique I had been wanting to try for some time. My Morse Dot Sun top was the item sewn before the rules were announced (finished way back in 2017) and I included the Untouched World Weekend jacket as my ready to wear item. Not required by the rules but all of the tops would go with either pair of trousers.

I managed to make four versions of the Katherine Tilton V8710 top and the Swing dress #4000 from Silhouette Patterns before 30 June; with the Megan Nielsen Flint trousers made at the beginning of July.  Three of the garments remain unmade.

The SWAP mini travel wardrobe

The Sunset SWAP, with a few additions, did however become a mini travel wardrobe.

So what did I take besides the four finished tops?

Top row: This is the ready to wear section! Moochi black Puffed coat; Untouched World Ecopossum Weekend jacket in colourway Kowhai; Untouched World black Pure Skinny jean; and Andrea Moore black Boyfriend jean

Second row: V9243 Twirling Rebecca Taylor dress; Sew Different Sheer Fly Birdie Fly top; Silhouette Patterns #4000 Swing Dottie dress; and B6232 Morse Dot Sun top

Third row: Four Katherine Tilton V8710 tops - Busy City; Dreams of Summer; Fall Blues; and Little Mustard Stripe

Bottom row: The accessories - Uashmama dark grey Mini Bag; Ernest Wyler Keesha boots in Sunflower; and Ivy Lee Courtney flats in Yellow Faux Python

Outfits of the day

A miracle occurred and I managed to take an outfit of the day picture every day we were away.

Okari Lagoon

X marks the spot!

By the end of May we were quite keen to take our postponed Easter break and just laze by the sea. As this trip was about relaxation rather than frenetic sight seeing (and we drove to our destination) I took my overlocker as well as the Singer Featherweight. Both of which were used. This was my opportunity to make the Silhouette Patterns Swing Dottie dress (and then wear it), as well as finish Silhouette Patterns Lana's wine metallic linen jeans started in Easter 2019 whilst we were away in Northland. It seemed appropriate to take them with me to finish sewing them on our Easter 2020 trip even though it was postponed until May.

Our most strenuous activity was walking on the beach and talking pictures of the view.

View from the bach

Ripples on the lagoon

Sunset over the water

The birds

Quilt at the bach of the local wildlife

and here is the Google movie

Vogue 8710 a versatile Katherine Tilton top

In a search for the perfect top pattern to use with a wonderful Liberty of London jersey knit I rediscovered a Katherine Tilton pattern Vogue 8710. Like many of my Tilton sister's patterns it had never been used. I seem to admire the style lines buy the pattern and store it as a collectors item rather than using it. Don't know why because I usually love the finished garments made from their patterns.

Once it was rediscovered I proceeded to make view B four times, only the second top pattern I have sewn since Christmas. Other top patterns have been selected and the fabric cut out but they haven't made it to the sewing machine. I normally loathe the cutting out stage and can't wait to sew. This year however garments have been cut out and no sewing has followed. There are currently about ten to be sewn items sitting on my sewing table.

The finished garment

All four of these tops have been on constant rotation since they were sewn. Even though it is Winter now I am still wearing them with the addition of a woolly layer.

V8710 KT Dreams of Summer top

V8710 KT Dreams of Summer top

V8710 KT Little Mustard Stripe top

V8710 KT Fall Blues top (never to be worn again with these trousers)

V8710 KT Busy City Top

The fabric

The journey started with a wonderful Liberty of London jersey (94% modal and 6% elastane, 160gsm) called Dreams of Summer and sadly sold out. It was pretty expensive so I only bought one metre (137cm wide). My first plan had been to combine it with a plain mustard jersey knit but as luck would have it there was enough fabric for Vogue 8710 in size small.

The second version made from the mustard stripe knit fabric (95% cotton and 5% spandex, 190gsm) was chosen because I wanted to emphasise the little cut out by placing the stripes vertical with the rest of the garment having them horizontal like the top on the pattern envelope.  This fabric is extremely wide (175cm) and was bought from Fabric Vision here in Christchurch but is available online from Miss Maude (Torpedo Little Stripe Jersey Knit). There will be more versions of this top as I bought the same fabric in two other colourways duck egg blue and blush pink.

Then followed Fall Blues a brushed ITY knit from Silhouette Patterns. This is a light weight fabric originally intended for Vogue 9243 the Twirling dress. I made the mistake of cutting the fabric for the dress double layered creating a hideous pattern join at both the centre front and back seam. It looked so bad that I only sewed the centre front and back seam before throwing it in the bin. The positive side to this was using the left over fabric for V8710.

Finally I used the off-cuts from another dress Giorgio's Busy City Dress made using Silhouette Patterns 312 Giorgio's Top lengthened to the knee. The remains of the Busy City French digital print viscose knit 130gsm also from Silhouette Patterns was intended to be combined with other left-overs for a different Katherine Tilton pattern B6492. As soon as I saw how much fabric remained it inevitably became V8710. Maybe the scraps could be combined with two or three other fabrics to become B6492. I do want to get better at using up the fabric remnants rather than just storing them. If I continue to sew in themes combining the left over fabrics should be easier.

The pattern

The pattern includes two tops. I was attracted to View B for the little cut out piece and if you make it with short sleeves it fits on less than a metre of 137cm wide fabric. View B is described as a semi-fitted pullover top with top stitching details, forward shoulder, mostly cut on crosswise grain, bound neck edge, long sleeves, and stitched hems.

The pattern card

Back in March 2020 Grainline Studio wrote a getting organised blog post about pattern cards they specifically designed for home sewers.  Pattern cards are used in the garment industry to accompany a pattern around the sewing facility giving the people working with it the information they need to correctly cut and sew the garment. For me the value is in having notes about what pattern adjustments I made, the pattern pieces and fabric used, my measurements when the garment was sewn and the pattern size cut.

I downloaded the pattern card and have been trying to remember to fill it out as I alter the pattern and cut out the fabric. Not entirely convinced of the value of having one for each garment sewn from a pattern, when they are sewn in quick succession like these, as opposed to one per pattern or one each time the pattern is altered.

Storing them is a challenge I haven't quite conquered yet, as I don't keep my patterns on pattern hangers and even reduced to A5 size they are too big to be inserted into many pattern envelopes.

The pattern alterations

As this is a Vogue pattern it has ⅝" seam allowances. I chose to use the size small sewn with ⅜" seam allowances which increased the circumference from 35½ to 37½". This provided me with 2" of negative ease (the right amount for me).

The bust point was lowered by adding a 1½" strip above the bust point in the front pattern piece. For the side front piece I cut across to the side seam and created a wedge 1½" larger where it joined the front pattern piece and nothing at the side seam. I made the alteration in this way to increase the depth for a 1½" FBA.  For the fourth version (the Busy City top) I increased the FBA by an extra 1" as I was still getting a little fold of fabric at the bust which can be seen most clearly on the Little Mustard Stripe version. It is a bit hard to see in the before and after photos below due to the print in the Busy City top but in real life the difference can be clearly seen (if you sew and are attuned to these things).

The difference in the pattern pieces after the total 2½" FBA change can be seen in the photo below.

Pattern piece 8 (at left) is the side front; fitting into the curve on the left of pattern piece 6 Front

Rather than use the long sleeve intended for view B I altered the armhole to match my preferred sleeve from Silhouette Patterns 195 sweater set and used the short sleeve length.

Writing this blog post highlighted a small faux pas. Reading the pattern envelope and the notes on the pattern card identified I made a forward shoulder adjustment when one was already incorporated into the pattern. This explains why the finished garment sits a bit oddly on the shoulders. However this is preferable to the top always falling backwards strangling me with the neckline as tops without a forward shoulder adjustment do. For the next version of this top I will correct the double forward shoulder by putting my ½" adjustment back on the front pattern piece and removing it from the back.

The sewing

The pattern instructions are good and include some design studio tips. I veered off from the instructions by using the overlocker and not top stitching the seams. Also whilst the neck binding was attached as per the pattern instructions (albeit using the overlocker) I didn't use the neck binding pattern piece cutting a 1½" strip instead. This strip is stretched slightly as it is stitched around the neck to give a nice snug neckline.

The old Singer Featherweight was used for the hemming and stitching the neckband in the ditch.

Outfit of the day

These four tops went with me for a week away by the Okari lagoon near Westport on the west coast of the South Island of New Zealand. This was meant to be our Easter break but we weren't allowed to leave home then so it was deferred until late May.

V8710 KT Fall Blues top: Andrea Moore Boyfriend jeans; Ivy Lee Courtney Yellow Faux Python flats
V8710 KT Dreams of Summer top; Andrea Moore True Love orange pant; Birkenstock Arizona Metallic Silver sandals
Untouched World Ecopossum Weekend Kowhai jacket; V8710 KT Busy City top; Andrea Moore Boyfriend jeans; Ernest Wyler Keesha Sunflower bootie
V8710 KT Little Mustard Stripe top; Andrea Moore Boyfriend jeans; Face & Cie glasses

On the way home we stopped at the Maruia Falls. This waterfall was created by the 1929 Murchison earthquake which triggered a landslide in the Maruia Valley diverting the course of the Maruia River westwards and forcing it to cut a new channel over an old river bank. Once the river had eroded the gravel, the bank became the Maruia Falls. Immediately after the earthquake, the falls were only about a metre high, but after a year, the drop was 5 metres, by the early 2000s it was 10 metres.

Moochi Puffed Coat; V8710 KT Dreams of Summer top; Andrea Moore Cropped Boyfriend jeans; Ernest Wyler Keesha Sunflower bootie

This outfit was worn to breakfast and for my first haircut in eleven weeks. When I arrived home I took a selfie in the sewing room to record the moment! All of the other pictures in this post were taken at various points during this eleven week period. Is this proof I don't need a haircut every six weeks?

Untouched World Ecopossum Weekend Kowhai jacket; V8710 KT Little Mustard Stripe top; Andrea Moore Boyfriend jeans; Ernest Wyler Keesha Sunflower bootie