 Like most of you out there, I'm constantly looking at patterns. I feel like I've either seen, purchased or sewn just about every pattern out there. So, I absolutely love when a blogger shares a project from a pattern I've seen a million times before and simply passed over. My happy stripe tee uses one of those patterns.  The lovable Sunni from A Fashionable Stitch made a beautiful blouse from Simplicity 1620 and I immediately went out and bought the pattern. Although Sunni's version is much more elegant than this one, this pattern is perfect for filling the cute t-shirt gap in my wardrobe. I have plenty of basic tees from Target but I wanted a couple of shirts that were not quite so basic but still really comfy for the summer.  I purchased this fabric from a store that was closing because it looked so happy it almost said "Hi" as I walked by. I made a size 12 and I changed the straight hem into a shirttail. It looks much better when I wear it with pants. Here's how I did it:  I made a mark 3" up from the hem at the side seam.
Using my French curve ruler (every sewer needs one and they are super cheap here), I made a curve from my line almost to the hem, then flipped the curve and continued the line all the way to the hem. I repeated this on the other side and got this:  Looks like it was meant to be, right?
Knits can be a little unruly when trying to put a tiny hem in them, so I serged the bottom and used that as the guide for pressing in the hem. I used a zigzag stitch to finish it off.  This entire top took less than two hours to make. It's a quick victory which we need every now and again.  Here it is tucked into my favorite skirt (not a great picture but the Santa Ana winds were in full force when I took this picture so I had to take what I could get).  I've got more clothing projects on deck but believe it or not I need to finish a DC comics "Squirrel Girl" costume for my niece first. Because every girl needs a squirrel girl costume... What are you making?
Diane
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 Hello! I'm glad to be back on the Fabricmart blog and joining the other Fabricistas with a new summer project for May. Well, I may have been one of the few people on the sewing planet that hadn't made Wiksten's Tova Tunic, but folks things have finally changed. I'm bringing summer in with a sunny sunburst Tova.  There are plenty of reviews of the Tova tunic out there so there's no need for me to review it here. But I will say although the blouse has simple lines and lends itself to all types of fabrics and embellishments, I wouldn't recommend it for a beginner. It's a seasonless pattern and would be a great project for an intermediate sewer.  Some time ago I pinned a Steven Alan shirt onto my I Wanna Make This pinterest board because I loved the fabric. Eureka! I found it! Fabricmart's abstract bursts 100% lightweight handkerchief linen in white, blue and pale coral is just that fabric! This linen is lighter than any other I've ever worked with but still is crisp like other linens. I machine washed and dried it before I cut it out and it came out lovely.  The colors are beautiful in this fabric and I decided to highlight the coral on the bib of the tunic using embroidery thread and my sewing machine. Reverse bobbin work is popular among art quilters but I don't often see it anywhere else. Quilters take decorative threads that don't fit through sewing machine needles and wind them on the bobbin instead. When you sew from the wrong side, the decorative thread from the bobbin shows through on the right side.  For the reverse bobbin work, I used DMC embroidery floss and wound it by hand on a bobbin and loaded it into my machine without changing any settings. Don't be afraid...just do it...it'll be okay.   Working from the back of the blouse, I stitched along the seam line of the bib of the tunic so the bobbin thread would show on the front. It's as easy as that.  It's subtle but isn't it pretty? I also added some to the band of the sleeve. Once you get going it's hard to stop. And yes, reverse bobbin work washes well.   I ended up shortening the blouse 4" (I found it longer than the drawing suggests) but otherwise made no other changes. I will probably make it again this fall in a cozy flannel. Wouldn't it be great? But right now I'll enjoy my new sunny blouse.  Have you made a Tova?  |
About MeHi! I'm Diane, a wife, mom, sewing teacher and pattern designer from sunny Southern California. I share my sewing adventures here on the Blue Dot Blog formerly Gatorbunnysews. For more info click here. 
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