So here it is, at last! I luuurve my new blouse, it’s everything I wanted! After all the fuss & hassle I think I have something I can work with, put in different sleeves, add collars & mess with the shoulder line. Overall, this is perfect!
The print is just right, I don’t like them too big, or too busily small either. (I sound like Goldilocks…) I even found a photo today of another blouse in the same fabric, it’s on my Wardrobe Architect Pinterest board 🙂 The colours will go perfectly with my current & future trousers & jackets.
So what did I do? I moved the shoulder seam on the back forward 5cm so from the front it looks like there is a shoulder yoke. I transferred some of the fullness from the shoulder dart into a 4cm underarm dart & converted the remainder into gathers to go into that “yoke”. I eliminated the waist darts on the front & back & took in the side seams one extra cm so it wouldn’t be too unshaped on the sides. I drafted a grown-on facing for the front v-neck & instead of a collar, made a long narrow tie to be sewn onto the back neck & left free from the shoulder seam.
The sleeves were slashed from the hemline to the sleeve head in two places, front & back & spread 6cm at the back hem, 3 at the front. I also curved the hem of the sleeve 5cm outwards (downwards?) to make more of a “pouff”. The sleeve hem is gathered into a narrow band.The hem of the blouse is shaped like a shirt hem, with the sides being 5cm shorter than the centre front & back. I like a shaped hem, it gives the impression of more shape underneath! 🙂
For the construction, I used French seams throughout, little squares of interfacing under the buttons & buttonholes & double turned hem. I didn’t want any part of the blouse to have structure, keeping the nature of the viscose to drape & hang.
Now I am full of ideas of how to use this as a basic pattern from which to make all sorts of variations. Problem is, I’m pretty sure I need to go fabric shopping because most of my fabrics are meant for the girls, not me! This could cause a bit of a problem as I signed up for the big stashbusting effort with Lelie from Bouquet of Buttons. I did fairly well with my stashbusting efforts last year, but I still have plenty to get through. I will do the same as last year, using 2 pieces from the stash before being “allowed” to buy one new piece. Unfortunately this leopard print is not from the stash! I bought it this year specifically for the Jungle January project.
So I guess I’d better make more for the girls, or use some of the stash for my Vintage Belle projects so I can free-up some fabric shopping for me! 🙂
