This morning I had a very productive time drafting a pattern for a pair of leggings. By lunchtime I’d transformed a piece of lovely cotton jersey that I bought from The Cloth House several years ago, and in the afternoon I started on a simple tunic to go with them.
Say hello to Simplicity 2927:
It’s not finished yet, mostly because I was taken by surprise at how complicated this little dress turned out to be!
It’s one of Simplicity’s Project Runway patterns. As it happens I’ve never actually watched the TV show, but I’d sort of assumed that the point of the patterns was to encourage young wannabe designers into sewing their own clothes.
We’d already discovered at work that the patterns are quite difficult to read. The back of the envelope is quite confusing in terms of being able to work out what you need (more so than normal!), and the instructions often seem unnecessarily complicated.
This particular design comes in a choice of two lengths, has three different sleeve styles, and optional pockets. Directions are also included for piping all of the seams. Throughout the pattern you’re sewing concave to convex edges to make the curved side front seams and the neck band. The sleeves are either faced or bagged out. The front facing’s rather fiddly, and the sleeves and neck band were a nightmare to put together neatly.
I sew three or four days out of every week, and I found this pattern rather difficult!
I certainly wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who didn’t already have plenty of sewing experience – and plenty of patience. It took me around six hours to get this far, and I was expecting it to take about half that time.
As I was putting this little tunic together, I was a bit worried that my choice of colours was going to make me look like a dental nurse. Looking at the photo though, I think the style is quite cute. Slightly sixties-looking, and I think the button makes all the difference. I don’t know whether that’s going to be my final choice of button – I need to see the colours in daylight – but I think whichever button I choose, it needs to be a big one.
All I need to do now is put in the zip, finish off the last few loose ends, and give the whole thing a good pressing. I’m disappointed that I couldn’t get it finished today, as I was planning on wearing it to work tomorrow, along with my new leggings!
Still, I’d rather do it properly, than try to finish it in a hurry and make a mess of it.
I keep going back to these little raglan tunic patterns, so I guess my next step is to draft one of my own. Whatever I come up with, I do know that it won’t have a neckband, and it won’t have such complex curves! I’m still in love with the pockets though.
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