September 6, 2019

Colorful, Chic & Professional Blouse | Simplicity 8512

Colorful, chic and professional blouse - Sewing Pattern Review for Simplicity 8512 by Styles InSeams

This shirt is a moment! Color, print and silhouette are my style-forward ideal for workwear. I love the modest collar with just a touch of a sexy shoulder; just a little bit of fun and sass for the office.

When I saw this fabric on Mood Fabrics’s Instagram feed in December 2016, I had a huge wow moment. I was enamored by the beautiful colors and went into the NYC store that day and had the store associates track down the unopened bolt so I could buy it. Just the same, when I saw another make of Simplicity 8512 on the McCall Pattern Company Facebook group months back, I had a wow moment and ordered up the pattern.

With gorgeous fabric and a pattern I felt could do it justice, I still delayed sewing this shirt until I was brave enough to take on princess seams. I thought I would need a full bust adjustment plus a lot of curve correction while adding length, but this fit was much easier than expected. When I compared the measurements on the pattern to my own, I found that my curves were pretty similar and only length needed to be added. Rather than my lazy method of adding length by measuring the addition directly on my fabric, I cut this pattern at the lengthen and shorten lines for all of the pieces and measured in just enough extra pattern paper to keep the curves smooth. This also helped me to align the bottoms of all of the front and back pieces on the fabric so the colors would match all the way around with green at my hips, darker purple to slim my waist, and bright pink at my chest.

This shirt was my plan B outfit for Essence Fashion House event during New York Fashion Week and it worked beautifully. I spoke briefly with celebrity stylist Jason Bolden and he said it looked like it could have been made by Marc Jacobs! Considering he’s dressed some of my favorite style icons – like Yara Shahidi! – in Marc Jacobs, that’s an incredible compliment for my me-made top!

Fabric

Lightweight cotton from Mood Fabrics, no longer available

Pattern

Simplicity 8512, View D
Sewing Difficulty – 2/5
- I found attaching the drape and sewing around the collar to be difficult
Fit Difficulty – 1/5
- I was surprised by how little I needed to change to make this work for my curves and height
I already have more fabric in my stash that I want to transform with this pattern!

Fit & Modifications

I cut a size 16 and added 1 1/2″ in length at the lengthen and shorten lines as my standard adjustment – That’s it!
As I review these pictures, I see some bunching in the back which might mean I need to make a little more room in the hips so the top can slide down more. Either that or I need to shorten the pattern a little in the back. If you know, please tell me what you think!