Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge top

Taa dah!!! This is the third garment I said I'd sew for my Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge 2015. My pledge was for 3 garments so I'm ahead of time, yay! There could be another one simmering away in the darkest recesses of my brain but that's a place we don't really want to go!

The fabric is totally man-made. No natural fibres here. At. All. The pattern is Butterick 6693 (links to an Etsy listing so when someone buys it, it's gone). There isn't any copyright year printed on this sewing pattern but it looks more likely to be from the second half of the eighties as the pattern envelope artwork looks quite stylish and tasteful. Not something you often find yourself saying about the early eighties!

I made view A. It's a round necked top with off the shoulder sleeve seams. Because of that quite high up neckline I even muslined the pattern! Then there is a front wrap and a back wrap which tie at the side. I added 2" to the body length but that's it for any alterations and I left the neckline alone.

The front and back overwraps all combine to make this quite a heavy top. Surprisingly heavy! It's definitely an autumn top rather than a summer one so it's also an ideal candidate for the Fall Essentials Sew-Along. As you can see I've cunningly accessorised my autumn top with autumnal trees and carefully arranged the fallen leaves in the background. We haven't had a puff of wind or more to the point, downright gale force winds that characterise Edinburgh from October onwards. It was a bit chilly taking these photos though.

This pattern was a little challenging, more challenging than it looks. There's quite a lot going on at the neckline with a complicated facing to sew and a button closure. If I make this again I'll just make the neckline larger so I can do away with this complication. The sleeves were also a bit 'Aaarrrghhh!' to sew. You have to sew up the side seam to the arm. Sew the arm seam and then do a kind-of set in sleeve. Except it's not that easy and involves clipping the body seam allowances to the point where the body stitching ends. There must be another way to do that better and if I make it again, I will modify the arm/sleeve thing. And yes, I think I will make it again in the future.

So, what do I remember from the late-eighties? I was at art college and studying away as you have to with these things. My musical taste veered away from the Top Twenty etc and our art college discos every Friday night played a hefty wallop of soul music - I was introduced and grew to love James Brown  Louis Jordan , The Mohawks The Jackson 5 and even this from Louis Prima ...it was all about the beat (man!), if it had a good beat, we'd dance to it!

I seem to have 'discovered' 1980s vintage patterns! What's that all about? I've really surprised myself with this and if anyone had asked me at the start of the year I'd have said 'No chance' to 1980s clothing and patterns but I seem to be drawn to the bat-wing sleeves and unusual styles. I quite like 1950s clothing but I'm not really a dresses person, as you've probably gathered by the rest of my blog. I've really enjoyed the Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge and I'll be looking out for more vintage patterns from now on...and here's a quick 'flash' of the wraps unwrapped!

Vintage pattern pledge - with a twist

Well, I took last week off work to sew and boy did I sew! One of the first things after my Project Jacket was an easy, quick sew which is also No.2 for my Vintage Pattern Pledge. As soon as I saw this pattern I knew I had to sew it. It's Style 3982 which has a basic batwing sleeve top with neck and shoulder variations. The copyright date on it is 1982.

So what's the twist, I hear you asking? Well, I confess that in the early 1980s when I was a child sewist (!), I had this pattern and made view 4 in black poly-cotton. I wore it all summer long and certainly during a family holiday to Kent. I really loved that top and thought I was the bees-knees in it! Somewhere back in the mists of time, I got rid of my copy of this pattern (why?!?) so when I saw it again on Etsy or Ebay I'd bought it faster than you could say 'Duran Duran'. And so, Vintage Pattern Pledge No. 2 (pattern) was decided. 

The pattern is very simple, containing just two pattern pieces. The front is cut on the fold and the back has a seam. There are folded back cuffs and that's about the most difficult and time-consuming thing about making this top. 

So, I'd got the pattern, but the next big question loomed up for me - what fabric could do justice to this 1980's gem, this trip down memory lane? Does anyone else get so attached to a me-made piece of clothing it instantly brings back where you were, what you were doing and the music of the time? Just out of interest, the best-selling single of 1982 was Come on Eileen by Dexy's Midnight Runners. Also big in 1982 were Adam Ant, Haircut 100, Yazoo and of course, Madness. Enough of that mental-meandering and back to 2015! 

It was difficult but I did find a worthy fabric for this pledge, an electric blue, purple and black animal print which I feel know is very reminiscent of the 1980's. 

It's 100% viscose which I pre-washed. I made view 4. Again! I cut the back on the fold as there's more than enough room to pull the top over my head. It also avoids unnecessary pattern-matching! 

It's really quick to sew this up. There aren't any facings or bias binding for the neckline. The edge is just turned over and stitched. I pinked the edged as the fabric frays, especially after washing. I've not used this technique recently so we'll see how long the neckline lasts!

I decided not to do the folded over cuffs and just turned up the sleeve hems an inch and then folded the raw edge under and machine stitched them. No raw edges are showing but as the sleeve is quite wide the wrong side can be seen. The close-up of the sleeve hem lets you see the fabric in all its glory!

For the hem of the body I turned up 7 cms and then turned under the raw edge. I prefer a wider hem on the body. The hem is also machine stitched. 

You can't really see the shape of the top so here's a photo:

 And then just when you thought I'd finished...ha ha! I decided that I needed to make a snood (going full immersion in the 80's here) to go with the top. So I used up the fabric left-overs and here is a photo of the whole ensemble. They're quite a sight together, aren't they, but see how happy I am wearing both?

I have thoroughly enjoyed this Vintage Pattern Pledge and although it has been very easy and quick to sew, that's the point about this make. I really needed an easy sew after Project Jacket but I also thoroughly enjoyed the unexpected memories of long-ago 1982 and a much younger me! 

My first garment for my Vintage Pattern Sewing Pledge- a nightshirt

Hi everyone, I did say yesterday I'd be blogging about my Vintage Pattern Sewing Pledge 'make' very soon and here it is! I decided I would only things I know I need and will wear (disasters aside) and a vintage nightshirt in eye-watering Paisley fabric fits the bill for me! You will be seeing lots of other PJs coming up though the next few months as they all seem to have gone kaput at the same time.

Anyway, fabric comes with a warning for those of a nervous disposition as it is a big, bold pattern. OK, you've been warned! So where did I get the vintage pattern from? Well, I've now developed a serious Ebay and Etsy stalking, lurking and buying addiction. Wow, I seriously love some of those patterns! Here's the pattern I chose which is from 1976-

I cut out view 1 and shortened it by 5" as I like to wear a nightshirt (and trousers) instead of a normal RTW PJ jacket which is usually too short for my height. This pattern has a long button opening in the front with a pleat detail from the bottom of the button band to the hem. There's a front pocket, grand-dad collar, long sleeves and a curved hem.

This is a unisex pattern and I never thought anything about it until I was sewing the buttons on at the end, but the buttoning is on the wrong side for me, it's for a man. However, I'm so lazy I won't be undoing any buttons as this is so roomy I can pull it on.

Now, are you ready for the fabric? It's a 100% cotton paisley print that I bought in John Lewis sale at half price. I know there's a contrasting fabric used in the pattern for the sleeve hems, pocket top and collar but I just couldn't have anything in competition with The Paisley!

When I started hemming I thought it was still too long so I cut another 5" off the length but I feel I've made it a little bit short, especially when I look at the photos, but that's fine. Here are some atmospheric evening shots of the nightshirt in its natural habitat and under normal lighting conditions!

I've decided to wear the collar turned down as it's quite high at the back and I never do the buttons all the way up. Here's a photo showing what I mean-

And here's the pocket, if you squint at it you might be able to make out a pocket shape, it's kind of in 'Paisley camouflage'!

And of course, some photos of yours truly wearing the finished nightshirt -

I added this last photo just because I like it and I'm laughing...probably at the thought of the next project I've started which is another vintage pattern. I think it's nervous laughter as it's a project with a capital P!