Can this top get any more fun!?! The fabric is really bold and graphic print but the soft periwinkle and pink keep it very feminine. It was one of my first fabric purchases when I started sewing but I saved it in my stash for just the right make. In other words, I saved up this fabric until my sewing skills were up to par and I wouldn’t ruin it!
With this fabric I had originally envisioned an over-the-top fun romper, but it’s far too lightweight to be used for pants. It’s also 100% cotton which makes it very prone to wrinkles and creasing. Those fabric qualities actually make it perfect for a loose top with ruffles. Cotton is as easy as you can get for pressing and stitching.
Still, I dreaded hemming along the curves! I was 75% finished sewing this blouse more than a year ago in anticipation of wearing it to a Reggae brunch party on my first weekend in London. Once I missed that deadline, I procrastinated finishing it until I needed a last-minute outfit switch for a concert date night. With only about two hours of sewing time, I cut the excuses and finished what was left in a careful hurry. Check my tips below – it wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected.
So now I have a super cute and original asymmetrical top with a sexy exposed arm on my right side and a sleeve that reaches all the way to my wrist on my left. I first wore this top to see Shakka, AKA the voice behind one of my favorite songs of 2018, Heart the Weekend, and we snapped a few quick pics right outside the theater. I could barely stand still for the photos and I β€οΈ this top.
Fabric
- Periwinkle, magenta and pink 100% cotton print from Mood Fabrics, no longer available online
Pattern
- Self drafted based on a tutorial by withwendy on YouTube
- Similar – McCall’s M7753, Views B and C
- Sewing Difficulty – 1/5
- Fit difficulty – 1/5
- I’m looking forward to making another top like this!
Fit & Modifications
- Top has 3 ruffles: 1 along the shoulder seam and 2 along the neckline
- Since this is made from a woven fabric without a closure, it’s made a bit loose to get over my shoulders and chest. To keep the side without the shoulder from dropping too much, I’m going to go back and sew a bit of elastic under the arm to help cinch the fabric in and take out the ease while it’s on. The gathered fabric will all be hidden away under the ruffles.
Tips
- For the ruffles along the neckline, sew the right side of the ruffle to the wrong side of fabric. When they’re flipped, the seam allowance will be hidden away under the ruffles.
- Keep the ruffles from flipping inside the one-shoulder shirt by understitching the wrong side of the neckline to the seam allowance
- To hem the ruffles:
- Stitch a long basting stitch 1/4″ away from the edge
- Pull one side of the thread to gather the hem slightly and distribute the gather evenly along the entire edge
- Fold along the stitching and again to fold under; press and use lots of pins to keep it in place
- At your machine, continue to fold under the hem as you go, keeping the basting stitches along the inside of the fold
- A clear presser foot can be helpful at the sewing machine so you can see what you’re doing and make sure that you’re sewing on the folded hem while stitching
Tutorials that were helpful
- I self-drafted this shirt loosely following a tutorial by WithWendy on YouTube
