Ali Lartner Top (KW 3620)

1/4/13 Edited to add another photo.

I keep forgetting to take a photo of this shirt so I'm just gonna post this one taken over Thanksgiving. Doesn't show the black tie at the waist but does anyone notice the perfect matching of stripes (patting myself on the back...)

Several (many?) years ago, I came across a photo of Ali Lartner wearing the cutest little top. It was a white / black plaid and had a little bow just above the waist.

 I found this Kwik Sew pattern (#3620 OOP) and thought I could make it work.

I cut my version out of a black/ivory windowpane plaid flannel during my marathon sewing session almost exactly one year ago.  I began and almost finished sewing it back in February 2012; only the buttonholes remained. I decided to finish it up recently and realized that with a 25 lb weight loss over the last year that it no longer fit. I attempted to take it in but it is still too big across the shoulders and bust.  Oh well, it's comfy and will be a nice stay-at-home top for the chilly winter weekends.

 It looks a lot different than the inspiration top shown below but I still like it!

Black on Black top (M6435)

1/4/13 Edited to add modeled photo:

 

One can never have too much black but it's nice to add a little interest so this pattern and some stretch lace fit the bill. Most photos are lightened to show detail of the black fabric.

McCalls 6435, View B
Size: I cut a 10 at the top and graded out to a 12 at the waist and hips. 
Fabric: Stretch lace and black slinky knit.

The example on the pattern doesn't appeal to me at all:

  
But the line drawing gives a better idea of what it could look like:

I used a great technique for finishing that I learned in Joi's workshop at the Novi American Sewing and Design Professionals Expo in September.  Starting with foldover elastic and fusible tape, I bound the neck edge and sleeve edges. Creates a stretchy finish that is neat and professional looking. I fused the tape onto the wrong side of the foldover elastic, right down the middle. Then, I pressed the elastic around the raw edge of the fabric. After a little trial and error, I found that I needed to stretch the foldover elastic slightly as I pressed, to avoid a stretched out sleeve. After pressing, stitch close to the edge (use an edge foot on your machine) to secure the binding. The pressing while stretching was a little fiddly at first, but I got the hang of it and am very happy with the end result. If you use this method, you will need to cut off the seam allowance before binding. I actually did not do that for this because I thought the neckline looked awfully low after I cut it out.

Here are some close ups of the bound sleeves and bound neckline.

I plan to wear with the glimmery skirt from last post but Mark put in a request that I wear this with some jeans and high heels: