Iris Top

I purchased this lovely iris colored rayon knit at Homespun Boutique in Ithaca, NY last summer, and have been eager to sew it up for spring and summer wear. I love the fit of Katherine Tilton's Vogue 8710, and decided to make it again, with short sleeves.

The pattern was a pretty good choice for the fabric, except the neckline didn't recover from being stretched when I applied the band. The fabric has no lycra, so its recovery is not good. I thought a run through a wash cycle would help it, but it didn't take care of the problem.

Before: Droopy and Sad
(and I'm talking about the neckline here, not the girls!)

Part of this droopiness may be due to the forward shoulder seams of the pattern. But it was mostly an issue of being stretched out. I undid my hand and machine stitching, ran an ease stitch along the front neck edge, and pin basted the band back on, making it 1-1/2" shorter. I'm glad I chose to redo the band, as I don't think running elastic through the neckband would have looked this good.

After: High and Happy

While constructing this top, I realized I had made some alterations to the pattern that I had forgotten to mention on the green version. I had narrowed the shoulder seam by about an inch and a half, because the sleeves hung off my shoulders. The underarm is also quite low. I raised it and inch on this top, but will raise it even more next time. I will also narrow the width of the garment at the front neckline, as it's just a bit too wide.

I still think this is a great pattern for us full figured gals. The generosity of fabric at the lower part of the top helps it fall nicely over wide bellies and/or hips. This version is really comfortable, and I know I'll get lots of wear from it in the coming months!