Summer Sewing No. 2 – Emerald Blouse

Here is number 2 on my list of summer sewing – a sheer, emerald colored blouse made from McCall's M6512. I love this top but making it was so tedious. I don't want to tell you how many late nights I spent sewing this thing. We kind of have a love-hate relationship now. But I'm hoping it will grow into a love-love relationship and I feel like it was all worth it in the end. This is a classic blouse with some beautiful details and I'm sure I'm going to love it for years to come.

Summer Sewing No. 1 – Pink Pleated Top

I'm steadily continuing on my Summer Sewing Plans and today I'm sharing the first item on my list, the pink stripe pleated top. The pattern for this blouse is Simplicity 1661, View D. I used the pattern once before in View C with yellow polka dot fabric. I love the pleats at the neck, the swingy shape, curved hem and open back.

Simplicity 1661 – Yellow Polka Dot Blouse

Still on my polka dot theme, I whipped up this super bright yellow blouse. It all came together in a rather kismet way. I was trying to think of another polka dot project to share with you this week. Then I found Simplicity 1661 on sale at JoAnn’s and remembered that my great-aunt had given me a couple of yards of yellow polka dot fabric – the perfect fabric for this pattern!

Vintage Sewing Patterns - Tie Neck Blouses

As I mentioned the other day, I love Tie Neck Blouses. Here are a couple of my favorite vintage patterns featuring a sweet little tie neck. Above is McCall 8396, circa 1951, which is actually a pattern for pants but the blouse on the model on the left is so chic. Did you notice that the pattern says McCall instead of McCall's? This pattern is actually available for sale from Etsy seller MollyPopVintage.

Next up is Simplicity 7896, circa 1977. I think I might have picked this one up at a thrift store somewhere. My favorite used to be the blue floral on the right but now I rather like the white blouse in the front.

Moodboard - The Tie Neck Blouse

Tie Neck blouses have been trending for a few years now but IMHO an elegant blouse never goes out of style. So to get your inspiration juices flowing, here are some of my favorite tie neck blouses from around the interwebs.

1. RACHEL Rachel Roy The Clara Scoop Neck Blouse from Macy's
2. Trinity Tie Neck Blouse from Piperlime
3. Yardley Tie-Neck Blouse from Nieman Marcus
4. Pleione Tie Neck Pleated Blouse from Nordstrom
5. Pins and Needles Chiffon Tie-Neck Tunic from Urban Outfitters
6. Parker Tie Neck Top from Shopbop

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Thursday Vintage - Tie Neck Blouses

These beautiful tie-neck blouses were lovingly home sewn by my grandmother Louise. The tie neck is very easy to sew and a really lovely feature that can be worn loose or tied in a bow. This first one is made of silk with fabric covered buttons and ruffles along the yoke and wrist.

The second blouse is a brown-green check with decorative plastic buttons, short sleeves and darts at the waist.

How cool are those buttons? They're kind of like little flowers.

My grandmother was much smaller than I am. Thus these blouses have no chance of fitting me. For some reason though, I still have them hanging in my closet, waiting for their opportunity to venture out into the world.

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Thursday Thriftday - Red Blouse

Last week I showed you a couple of blouses I was working on refashioning. This blouse was very boxy with a drop shoulder and simple little sleeves. I loved the buttons on the front and back but didn't want the blouse to overwhelm with too much fabric.

My original plan was to remove the sleeves, take in the blouse at the sides, move the shoulder seam up to the end of the shoulder and then put the sleeves back on.  I started by removing the sleeves. Then after some futzing around decided that moving the shoulder line and putting the sleeve back on would look pretty much the same as just leaving the sleeves off altogether. So, I just took the blouse in a little bit  at the side seam and hemmed the armhole opening.

It's still a pretty boxy blouse but just by removing the sleeves, the blouse no longer looks like it's just ridiculously large. It works quite well tucked into slim pants or a skirt. The bright red color is a little bit patriotic so I wore it on Tuesday in honor of voting day. Are you working on any refashions? What's your go to change to make a too large blouse look better?

Anatomy of a Sleeve - The Dolman and The Kimono

The kimono sleeve is always created from the same piece of cloth as the body of the garment like a traditional Japanese kimono. The sleeve can be very short or full length, with a narrow or wide hem. Sometimes for a more fitted kimono sleeve, a gusset is added at the armpit.

The dolman sleeve has been trending for a few years now. Also known as a batwing sleeve, the dolman is characterized by a large armhole opening that dramatically narrows at the wrist. The armhole can extend as low as the waistline. The dolman sleeve is often, but not always, made from the same piece of fabric as the body of the garment.

For more about the history of the kimono sleeve check out these posts from Gertie and Coletterie.

Thursday Thriftday – Blouses

I bought a couple of blouses at my corner thrift store earlier this month planning to do some basic refashions to make the fit a little more well, fitted. Well, I haven't finished the refashioning part so I thought today I'd show you the before's and hopefully I'll have the after's to share this weekend.

The top above is a loose fitting polyester with buttons on the front and the back (see below). I'm planning cut off some of the shoulder fabric, just moving the sleeves in more towards the shoulder.

The second shirt I'm planning to refashion is a classic plaid men's shirt. I'm working on slimming down the silhouette, again moving the shoulder line closer to the collar. I'm also thinking about the hem line, maybe doing a high-low hem.