Made By A Fabricistas: Summer Staples

Hi Fashionistas!

Summer is in full effect and we have had some really hot days.

I sewed up a couple quick summer tops. I wanted something basic but cute, to wear with shorts, skirts, or jeans. So I decided on two summer tops. The first one is in a gray jersey knit. This fabric is so soft and comfortable. I ordered one yard and that was enough and I have a little bit leftover fabric.

This is seriously the most comfortable thing in my wardrobe right now. 

I self-drafted this top. The drafting took about 30 minutes. The sleeves are dolman, which means there is no setting in the sleeve, which also makes the sewing very quick. 

Also, I  love the clean cover stitch on here.  I used my Brother Coverstitch machine, which I absolutely love and have been using for over two years

I drafted cuffs for the sleeves and a band for the waist.

Here is the back view. I made the neckline on the front and back exactly the same, and gave it a boat neck shape, which is one of my favorite.

Now moving on to the next top, I also made a white top in a white french terry. This was my 1st time working with a french terry. It is also very soft and is a stable knit. It is thicker, more like a double knit.

Since this fabric had more structure, I decided to play with the sleeves a bit, and create some pleats/gathers.  I call them pleats/ gathers because although they are technically pleats facing up, they look more like gathers because the fabric is a knit. This same pattern manipulation on a woven would look very structured, like pleats.

I chose the McCalls M6886 pattern and changed up the sleeves and the hem, and also turned the dress into a top. I do this often. 

I did a curved hem. 

On the sleeves and neck, I once again used my Brother Coverstitch machine, which I highly recommend. 

I hope you enjoyed reading about my latest makes. Next I am working on creating a custom dressform cover for myself. A custom dressform is something I have wanted for a very long time. I'll be sewing up my custom shell using this online class on Craftsy, but instead of using a commercial pattern, I plan on creating my shell from my custom sloper, which can be drafted using this Bodice Sloper Class

So lots of sewing and fitting for me in the near future, but a custom dressform has been a life long dream :) I'll share my progress with you once that is done.

See you in July!

XOXO

Vatsla from Fashion Behind The Seams