Special Sleeves

I don’t have access to my sewing machine right now. We’re living in a sublet while renovations are going on at our apartment and the sewing equipment didn’t make the cut. And the place where we’re staying? These people don’t even have an ironing board! (There’s one in the basement, 12 floors down. So I guess they go all the way down there to do their ironing? I have no clue.) And before you ask, no, I don’t know when I’ll be able to sew again. When we go back home, it might a be weeks before I can set anything up.

In the meantime, you’ll get everything I made last Spring that didn’t get blogged before our trip. The advantage is that everything I’ll be showing in the next few weeks has been worn more than once.

First up is this T-shirt. The fabric is rayon jersey from Mood. Silver stripes! It’s quite thick for a rayon jersey, which made it easy to sew. I originally bought it to make a baseball T. I was going to combine it with a flower print for the sleeves. Then, this pattern came along and it wanted the fabric. It’s by Hot Patterns and I can’t find it on the website anymore. It was one of the clearance patterns and they must have sold out. I found someone who made it in the Facebook group and she says it’s the Riviera Once, Twice, Three Times a T-shirt 1015. I’ll take her word for it since my patterns are all packed up in a box… I can’t even remember what size I made! It must be the 14. I made the variation with the fancy sleeves. The other options are a color blocked and topstitched T, and a plain T.

The front and back are identical. Two big rectangles. The sleeves are rectangles too, well, except for the flounce. That part is more like a crescent. There are very important notches on the pattern to help you get everything properly aligned. There’s a facing at the neckline that extends all the way to the sleeve (it gets sewn to the sleeve too so that it doesn’t flop around). So basically, the shoulder seams on the facing and bodice are sewn first. Then, the bodice and facing are sewn together at the neckline. It’s simple and easy.

I love the way the top looks and if this were my usual post about something I made, that would be the end of it. But I’ve worn it and can report back. First off, and this isn’t the pattern, but I’m very annoyed with the interfacing I used (it’s on the facing and it was optional). I’ve used this type of iron on knit interfacing before and it was great. Now, it starts bubbling after a wash! It’s done that on another garment too. I’ve forgotten which one but I remember it was someplace visible, unlike on this T-shirt. I got it to behave with an iron but I think I might need to iron it every time I wash it.

Otherwise, the sleeves are fun and not in the way at all. Love them. I like the neckline too but it’s fiddly. It’s just a slash neck, identical in front and back. I was hoping for a boatneck from the pictures but on me, it wants to dip forward a bit, like a mini cowl neck.

I read somewhere that it’s supposed to do that, possibly on the pattern page. Or maybe in a video the designer made? In any case, when I arrange it with the forward dip, it stays put. And I do have to arrange it like that. Despite being understitched, the facing needs to be put in its place each time I put the top on. Once in place, it stays there but I don’t want to fiddle with it! I’ll permanently be annoyed because I’m still going to wear this top as much as I can.

I don’t know that I’ll make another top like this one just but I’d be curious to see if something can be done about my facing issues.

PS: Pictures were taken after a walk in the heat and yes, I got a little sweaty. Sorry ’bout that.

PS2: I did an awesome job matching my stripes but of course, I forgot to get a picture. You’ll just have to trust me.

About deuxsouriceaux

Creative mommy at home to two wonderful little girls, trying to juggle family, sewing, exercise, family, knitting, photography, and did I mention family?