Three Tops - Quick and Dirty

I needed blouses in a hurry so I cranked out three over several days of quick and dirty sewing. Here are the results.

KwikSew 3586

This blouse was so easy, it's hardly worth importing the review template from Pattern Review. KwikSew patterns are the best patterns to use when you need clothing in a hurry.

Pattern Description:
Long or short sleeved Oxford-styled blouse.

Pattern Sizing:
1x - 4x

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Absolutely

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Totally. I like KwikSew for including instructions for sewing a blouse yoke without hand sewing. The method is now very common, but years ago, I saw it in KwikSew's sewing instructions first.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
This is a classic, casual blouse. I needed a blouse quickly and I liked this pattern because it's fast.

Fabric Used:
Cotton

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
None

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
I'll probably come back to this pattern whenever I need a quick blouse and I can't decide what other pattern to use.



Burda 7882 (OOP)

This was another very simple pattern, but it wasn't born that way. I was prepared to spend more time on this second blouse, but I couldn't use the pattern I originally chose. Burda 7882 won by forfeit.

Pattern Description:
The original version of this pattern has a bib insert. I eliminated that design element and made the blouse more ordinary.

Pattern Sizing:
44 - 56 (European plus)

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes. Since I eliminated the one feature that might have given me any trouble (although I don't believe it would have) the instructions were very easy to follow.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
"Like" or "dislike" was not a consideration. I just needed a blouse.

Fabric Used:
A cotton tone-on-tone stripe.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I would have liked to have made this blouse without any design changes and included the bib, but I wasn't sure I had enough fabric. Besides, did I mention I was in a hurry?


Vogue 8151

I made the black and white BWOF top pictured and, in my prudish opinion, it showed way too much skin. So, I made this top to wear underneath and cover up my oh-so-sexy decolletage.

Pattern Description:
In addition to the t-shirt, the pattern contains a mock-wrap shirt.

Pattern Sizing:
This is a Today's Fit by Sandra Betzina and uses her special sizing (A - J)

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Basically, yes. I made minor design changes.

Were the instructions easy to follow?
There isn't much you can say about instructions for a basic t-shirt. The pattern contained instructions for a tie that was not pictured on the pattern envelope.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
I needed a knit top that fit closely around my neck without being a turtleneck. I was only trying to cover up skin.

Fabric Used:
A ribbed knit of unknown content. It looks and behaves almost like tricot, but it's the weight of a jersey. I needed a black knit and this fabric was a black knit. Remember, this was "quick and dirty" sewing. I'm not a big fan of knits and I learned a valuable lesson while sewing this fabric: when sewing knits, the conventional machine is your friend, too. I basted the neckband with the conventional machine and then serged it. This method yielded a neater appearance and allowed me to keep the width of the neck band consistent.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I learned from a previous Today's Fit pattern the top would need to be lengthened. I slashed and spread at the "lengthen or shorten here" line to make this change. This pattern has two sleeve lengths - a 3/4 length for the t-shirt and a long sleeve for the wrap top. I put the long sleeve on the t-shirt. To do this, I traced the t-shirt sleeve cap onto the long sleeve.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
I recommend this top with the following caveat: measure the pattern for length or make a muslin. I'm taller than average (5'9") but I felt the torso was unusually short. I usually add about 1" to the length of tops and blouses. I added almost 3 inches to this blouse. I had to do the same with another Today's Fit pattern I made.

I'm still not totally happy with the look of the black and white top with the t-shirt underneath. Since the black and white print fabric came all the way from Morocco, I really want to be able to wear it. My daughter sent the picture to her host-mom in Morocco - the one who helped DD select the fabric. The host-mom , who sews professionally, liked my results. If I see an inexpensive black turtle neck, I'll probably buy it to layer under the blouse. Or I could just be satisfied with what I have.

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After this quick and dirty period I'm ready to get back to my usual, leisurely pace.