summer sewing

Here's a little, vintage-inspired, sewing project that I made this week. I really like this pattern + can imagine using it in a bunch of different ways...long sleeves, collared, hooded, in a block-printed voile or in a sweatshirt-weight fabric. 

This summer version involved shortening the sleeves a bit + leaving the collar/hood off. I wanted to make sure that this top was not too snug + also wanted to use a woven fabric. The pattern calls for stretch knits only, so I added 1/2 inch at the fold of the center back + front (+ also on the facing pieces). This added an extra two inches total to the bust circumference.

​The pattern includes some lovely large facings (why don't we get many of those in modern indy patterns?) which I usually like to sew down for a clean finish that needs no ironing. (yay!) I like vintage, hand-embellished Mexican + Indian tops...and also like to spend time hand stitching...so I hand stitched around the facings + at the sleeve edges. I might add some little patch pockets as well, but ran out of black thread toward the end of sewing the drawstring. I like the slightly cropped length, but might add a couple of inches to the length next time I sew this pattern. 

Sewing always makes me think of garment workers. I think about all of the costs involved in making this top including the pattern, fabric, shipping, thread, embroidery floss, use of my sewing machine + all of the other tools involved. These costs don't consider the time I put into planning, cutting + sewing (not to mention the unpicking of stitches + restitching I had to do). I was not in a rush, but this top took me most of one day to sew. This always gets me thinking about what a garment should cost, what it is worth + how nondisposable it should be. 

Pattern :: vintage Simplicity 7847
Fabric :: lovely, Gordon Cotton, crinkle cotton from Fancy Tiger this time (though I've seen it elsewhere online as well)

Love,
Jane