FO: Pinwheel Plan-Frew

I had the itch to sew a new shirt to go with my Brown Melissa Skirt a few weeks ago - my wardrobe tends to favor cooler colors, so kind of hit or miss on wearing with brown. Why not make something, right? I've had this cute Pinwheel jersey in my stash since July and really wanted to make something with it. I ended up with my Thanksgiving outfit:)

I've officially named this the Pinwheel Plan-Frew. I love the fit of the Deer + Doe Plantain, but the neckline is a bit low for me, so after making several versions by laying the Sewaholic Renfrew pattern over top to raise the neckline, I finally grew a brain and traced it all together as a new pattern; thus, the Plan-Frew. I also have noticed a bit of gaping at the neck when I sit down (i.e. hunch my shoulders) on previous versions, so I also took a 1" wedge from the center front as a hollow chest adjustment. I'm happy to report this doesn't gape at all!

I had 1.5 yards of this jersey (from Joann's Doodles line - yes, it's for toddlers) and I really wanted to jazz things up in some way on this shirt so I decided to make the 3/4 sleeve version with elbow patches. The blue on the elbows is a scrap of thrifted cotton interlock that went well enough with the other colors involved so I went for it. I can't believe it's been over a year since I made the 3/4 sleeve version of this pattern! I love it so much - the patches are so fun! I used a nice narrow zig zag stitch on their very outer edge so the stitches disappear more than they did on previous versions. I love how they turned out.

Since the neckband had the pinwheels on it as well, I made extra sure to keep the pattern even when I cut as well as when I folded it over. I top stitched the neckband with a twin needle as usual.

I took quite a lot of care when cutting this out so I could match the lines of pinwheels from front to back as well as on the sleeves. I'm incredibly pleased with how well the sides seams matched up! They aren't matched to be invisible, but I think since the lines are consistent it helps hide the seams.

Obligatory mannequin shots. The top looks more drapey here than it is on my body. While this is a jersey, it's a very heavy jersey and it has a crazy amount of 4 way stretch, all of while made it fit a bit tighter than some of my other versions. I think the fit is flattering though.

Details, of course. I'm pretty proud of my neckband and elbow patch stitching - much more precise than any previous version of this shirt, that's for sure. I can definitely tell my skills have improved over this last year.

Did I mention I love the elbow patches? lol I kept flashing them at everyone who said anything about my shirt all evening on Thanksgiving. I know that I will get lots of wear out of this top since it's fun, goes with mt colors I like, and is really comfy. I couldn't be happier!

Summary:
Fabric: 1.5 yards of Doodles Teal Pinwheel Knit - $8.25, scraps of teal ribbed knit (thrifted) - stash
Pattern: Deer + Doe Plantain with Sewaholic Renfrew neckline
Notions: knit stay tape - $0.15, thread - stash
Hours: 3
Total Cost: $8.40