This project had an unconventional start. I was walking through Old Navy (which is an incredibly rare occurrence one its own) and was loving the fact that they had so many items in my favorite color green. I grabbed a few items, but they had one that I would never wear: A spaghetti strap knit dress.
The fabric was a lovely and soft viscose jersey and I felt it thinking I wish it was not this dress. I went home and was ordering a different dress from their website (because they didn't have my size in the store) and I had the idea - Duh! I can sew things. And this dress has more than enough fabric to remake into a top I would love.
I made a whole video where I outline the whole process of using this dress as yardage - things to consider, how to know if you have enough for the pattern you want to make, etc. Click through to watch the video and see how to do this for yourself!
This is still a blog though, so now back to the regular post about this FO :)
I was able to cut the front and back pieces on the fold at the center front and back of the dress, so these areas all look exactly as any other shirt would. I went with my new love - The Vera Knit Top, which is a free pattern from Forget-Me-Not Patterns. This pattern is everything a free pattern should be - a wonderful gift to test out the style of that company's patterns and get a great garment in the process.
The first time I made this pattern, I was very happy with how it turned out, but having never sewn a V neckline before it wasn't 100% perfect. I am so proud of the V on this version. It turned out exactly with the seam on the middle line of the V. Excellent.
Really the only difference between this version and one sewn from yardage is that I have a seam going down the center of the sleeves. With these large sleeves and limited fabric, I had to use the original side seams. I just made sure to line up that seam with the center of the pattern piece and it is perfectly aligned with the shoulder seam, so it looks very deliberate. If I didn't tell people this was formerly the skirt of a dress, they would never know. The seam line just looks like a design detail.
I am so incredibly happy with how this top turned out. I have worn it several times already and it goes with a surprising amount of my skirts, which is a great bonus considering I was so smitten with the color that I didn't really think about how well it would incorporate into my wardrobe, lol. Now no knit dress is safe! They all look like fabric to me :)
Summary:
Fabric: Size 4X Old Navy Dress - $15
Pattern: Vera Top by Forget me Not Patterns - Free
After the sad state of my Miranda Gathered (?) Tee, I didn't want my Sew Frugal entry to be a bust. I had printed out the Vera Knit Top by Forget Me Not Patterns quite a long time ago, but I never sewed it up. This was the perfect moment to finally give it a try! Since I had never made any Forget Me Not patterns, I did want to make a mock up just to be sure, and this turned out to be a great wearable muslin :)
For full details of this make, you can head over to my YouTube channel and watch this video :) But I wanted a written review as well. So the fabric I chose was a coral pink swan print bamboo knit I grabbed in the clearance section at The Sewing Studio sale a year or so ago. This fabric is buttery soft and lovely. I grabbed 2 yards back then, which is perfect for this pattern. Since i got this for a very good price and I wasn't 1000% adoring of the swan print now, I didn't mind using it as a potential sacrificial fabric if this didn't work out. Thankfully it did and I love the print now that it's all done. Funny how making fabric into something cute can make you fall in love with it again.
So the construction is pretty simple and the instructions are very detailed. I was able to get a nice V neckline even though I've never sewn one before. Sadly, I had my iron just a smidge too warm for this fabric and it made the seam allowance beneath the neck band press in a shiny line there. I didn't really pay attention to the fact that this shirt has a high-low hemline, which I honestly don't love, but that's a simple change for next time. There was enough length for me to do a standard 1 inch deep hem though, so that was nice.
The sleeve length I have here is my own fault and not the fault of the pattern. It's not awful or anything, it's just not what I intended. The pattern comes with 2 cuff lengths - the long cuff gives full long sleeves, so I thought that the short cuff did too and I would need to shorten the sleeve. Turns out, the cuff is the only difference in the sleeve length. I should have cut the normal sleeve as drafted and used the small cuff piece for 3/4 sleeves, but instead I shortened the sleeve to the lengthen/shorten line, which put my finished sleeve just above my elbow. It's still cute and I have already worn it, I just know that next time I want to use the whole sleeve because it's a bit fuller as well.
So that's my successful Sew Frugal project for 2024 :) I'm really happy with how this turned out and I know that I will absolutely be making more Vera tops in the future. This is a fantastic free pattern, and I hope everyone makes one for themselves.
