Aria Saga

Why? It is time to perfect a new basic shirt pattern. Influenced by influencers on Instagram and YouTube, and because I've been having good results with their knit tops, I decided to try Love Notions Aria.

Sizing: Love Notions has you select your size by your upper bust measurement and then choose between their standard bust or full bust front pieces depending on the difference between your upper bust and full bust. My measurement put me between a Medium and a Large, so I went with the Large standard bust for the first shirt. The finished garment measurements given with the pattern looked fine.

Fabric: lightweight crisp cotton chambray for the first, a more coarsely woven cotton for the second.

Alterations/Modifications: Foolishly, I cut and sewed the first one without making a muslin. Because this isn't a fitted garment, and because I'd been having good results from this pattern line, I thought I could forge ahead and that small tweaks would fix any issues. That was so wrong. 

A try-on of the first shirt without sleeves was surprising. The fit across the upper chest was more snug than I like, but acceptable. That all changed when the sleeves were set in. I thought I took a picture, but maybe I was too upset. The sleeves were all bunched up under the arm, and the front of the shirt would no longer overlap. What a mess. I tried scooping out the armscyes which helped a bit with the bunching, but there still would have been no way to button the shirt.

However, the back of the shirt did not hang up on my tush. This has been a huge point in Love Notion's favor and has been true of the other patterns of theirs that I've made. Because of that, I decided to try again. This time I picked the full bust piece, which included a dart. (One of the other disappointments with shirt #1 were the folds that draped from bust apex to hip.) And I made a muslin.

What a mess.

Not only was the bust point way low, but look at the weird folds around the armscye and the poor fit of the sleeve in general. There was also pulling across the chest from the armpit, like you sometimes get in tee shirts that don't fit. When I released the basting at the top of the sleeve cap, the folds in the sleeve improved. The sleeve cap as drafted is pretty flat. I needed to add about an inch in height.

Here is the strange shape of the armhole. The pulls were coming from the point of the notch, where that odd angle is. Maybe this is typical of patterns for full-busted figures? Feeling frustrated, and with nothing to lose, I decided to redraw the armscye, adding fabric to fill in that weird angle and scooping out to accommodate the extra height I was adding to the sleeve cap.

Huh?

red line shows new shape

That helped.

Results: I completed shirt #2, the pink one, with all the changes, and will wear it. In the photos it doesn't have buttons yet, because I want pink buttons and only have white. It will take a while to find pink ones. I also removed the sleeves (that I had done such a good job on) from shirt #1 because it would be wearable sleeveless. Had to make darts in the armhole because of gaping, and finished those edges with bias tape. I really wanted the sleeves, but at least the shirt isn't a total loss.

left off the buttons towards the neck where it is tight on me

deep back yoke and pleat

no sleeves, alas
The pattern has square corners on the cuffs, I prefer them rounded

What's good about the pattern: Doesn't hang up on the tush! Also, the pattern has excellent instructions for making the sleeve placket and I got my best results ever using their pattern piece and instructions. This alone was worth the price of the pattern.

What's bad about the pattern: I had to do more work fitting this pattern than any other I can remember, including redrafting the sleeve and armscye.

Conclusion: Because of the drastic redrafting I had to do, and because I don't have a lot of confidence in my drafting, and because of the voluminous fit, this is not going to be my new basic shirt. I'm just glad that in the end I didn't totally waste my time and fabric.

shirt #2, better than shirt #1 but not perfect.

pieced the back yoke to make chevrons

Love Notions Coda

 Deadline sewing is usually not a good idea for me, but circumstances lined up just right to try to make a warm layer before some predicted cold weather arrives. There was a leftover chunk of heavy French terry in the stash, and there was the Coda Coat pattern that I wanted to check the fit on. The terry has zero stretch so the fact that it’s a knit wouldn’t make a difference. 

So here’s a Coda, size L at the shoulders and bust (used the standard bust piece) blended to an XL at the hip. It was lengthened 1-1/2 inches and there is a 3/8 inch forward shoulder adjustment. Added some additional length for a hem. Left off the sleeves to make a vest.

This works just fine with a center zipper, but there is not enough overlap to use a button or snap closing. One day I would like to make the pattern as it was intended, so maybe check out the full bust piece and see if that would solve the problem before making it again. I know how the hips and body fit, now.

The collar is just a rectangle the length of the neckline, after the center front was extended up to make a round neck. (And seam allowances added.)

I made good use of my sewing feet for the topstitching and also did plenty of hand basting, which paid off.  

Critiquing my work, I’d say that the armholes are a little too big, but that means it can be worn over bulky and oversized layers, so I’m not really bothered. 

Bring on those cold temperatures!

2024 Challeng-ettes

 Making new year's resolutions is a sure way to doom and disappointment, in my experience. But it's still useful to take advantage of the fresh new year to examine old habits and think of ways to shake yourself up a little. With that in mind, here's a "Make 9" grid I put together for myself, with 8 itty-bitty challenges that should be easy and fun to accomplish.

1. Stripe Play - do something with stripes besides matching them across the front. Maybe some fancy miters, chevrons, or something like that.

2. Upcycle/Recycle - use salvaged fabric, from something I never wear or some other pre-used source.

3. Fabric Paints - over a year ago I treated myself to a bunch of fabric paints and have yet to use them. This could end up being potato prints or watercolor-like paintings or anything in-between, made into a garment.

4. Current Burda - Sewing magazines do not reach perfection after sitting in the cellar for years. Sew something from the current Burda Style.

5. Wild Card - got to leave room for a whim!

6. Current Ottobre - same as #4, different magazine.

7. Print Garment - would a floral kill me? I am not usually a print girl, so this will be a little bit of a stretch.

8. Copycat - some of my most fun projects have been copies of inspiration pieces. Do it again in 2024.

9. Take a Class - support at least one pro out there by taking their class and learning something new!

Sounds like a fun year to me. What are your plans?