Vogue 1282, Donna Karan Cowl Variation
I have had Vogue 1282 for a while, but wasn't motivated to sew it until I saw Cenetta's (The Mahogany Stylist) outfit; she originally wrote about the top here. Suddenly I saw the possibilities!
I made most of this fabric into a dress, but had a large piece leftover. Rather than just make a t-shirt, I pulled out this pattern. I cut a 6 at the shoulders and bust, transitioning to a 10 at the hip. Fabric limitations prevented me from cutting a 12 at the hip, and I needed it.
This is one GIANT pattern piece cut on the bias. I appreciate that they give you a full size pattern piece, instead of a half pattern that you have to copy yourself into a full one. I had to cut it on the floor, which involves knee pads and a lot of groaning.
I've never really understood bias with knit, but I figured I had enough fabric so I'd give it a try. The resulting drape is very nice, but I'm not sure it's more drapey in this particular polyester knit than it would have been on grain. For a sturdier rayon and definitely for a cotton knit, I can see how the bias would make a difference.
I cut a 6 at the shoulders and bust, transitioning to a 10 at the hip. I ended up taking the tiniest seam allowance possible in the center back seam at the hip, so next time I will cut a 12 at the hip.
I stitched the center front seam up about 2 1/2 inches higher than marked. It was impressively low. Once I determined where I wanted that CF stitch line to end, I fused interfacing patches to both sides as suggested. I shortened the stitch length to 1 near the end, using tiny stitches for extra strength. I didn't have any issues with the stitches ripping out, though I may go back in and do a narrow zigzag at the top just for extra insurance.
I tested out a weight in the bottom of the cowl, as directed in the instructions, but I didn't think it added a lot to the top. In my tests at home the weight did not stop the "pocket" created at the bottom of the CF seam from poking to the outside rather than staying inside the point close to the body, a phenomenon you can see in the photo at right. And since I was making this for vacation, I didn't want to accidentally wear this to fly in and fail the metal detector!
Now that I'm back and not going near a metal detector for a while (nor hiking many miles in the top with the weight bouncing against my sternum all the way up the mountain) I'll put the weight in and see if I like it better.
I wanted to try out this pattern with a sleeve, because I think it would make a nice winter top in a sweater knit or other heavier fabric. I used my favorite flutter sleeve from Burda 03-2008-113 (which has a fairly standard sleeve head) and just popped it into the armscye. The armscye is cut out of this one-piece top in a very oblong shape with a point at the armpit end, kind of like an (American) football shape, so I wasn't sure how a sleeve would play with it. Other than having to set it in in-the-round because there is no side seam (I infinitely prefer to set in in-the-flat), I had zero issues with the sleeve, even with the unusual armscye shape. Knits are so forgiving. This pattern is definitely on the list for Fall/Winter sewing. Now I have an excuse to go sweater knit shopping, right?
The only thing I don't love about this pattern is the back neck. When sewn as drafted I had serious sad little droopage/gapage at the CB neck, so I curved the seam in, taking about 1 inch on either side of the CB seam and it sits much more flush. You can see that the neckline opening is finished by turning under a narrow hem, and then folding out and tacking down a cut-on facing.
I am not crazy about this, as I prefer elastic in the back neck of a knit top. Next time I will probably create a casing using the facing and thread elastic through it, stitching in the ditch at the shoulders to catch the elastic. I do not like a gaping back neck. I could also experiment with trimming the cut-on facing off at the back only, serging in elastic and turning it down and then folding the front facing in place as before. Because there are shoulder seams, this can be done cleanly.
For my Greece trip I packed 4 dresses, 3 tops, a pair of shorts, and a pair of yoga capris. Everything got worn twice except for this top, but that's because it was new and I didn't want to sweat-stain it! I wore it on the day we hiked from Perissa beach to Kamari Beach by way of Ancient Thera, where these photos were taken (yes, we hiked up from the black volcanic beach you can see in the background--it was steep!).
Although I only wore it once it is immortalized in my favorite photo of myself from the trip, at the "end of world" at Ancient Thera. I think you can see how happy I am (though admittedly the top didn't have *that* much to do with it). (You can see the photos from the trip here.)
All photos are here and the pattern review is here.
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