Tank top with gathered front panel

 
Tank top with princess seams, gathered center front panel.

Princess seams for design interest and shaping. I included a gathered front panel for design interest and to reduce the transparency of the quite sheer jersey. I don't think it turned all that well.

The fabric is a very lightweight rayon jersey.

Next time I will try it with a plain front and a firmer fabric.

Then neckline is not as drafted. I don't like the shape very much, but it was a successful save of the original neckline, which stretched and flopped. I tried a turned over edge for the first version and it seems to have been a poor choice. The finished version is a band.

I'm quite comfortable sewing jersey, but this very lightweight one was not very easy to sew. My sewing was less than accurate, but I found the top quite forgiving of my errors (trained eyes may beg to differ!).

In a future gathered version, I would like to modify so the drape starts from the shoulder seam and includes a bit of a cowl at the neckline. I wasn't willing to spend the time to develop that this time around.
 
I'm not excited about the top, but will probably end up wearing it until I fill out my wardrobe with tops I like better. It feels nice to wear and should work well enough as a casual top.

Sleeveless top (unfinished)

My first woven top and collar.

I was aiming for a quite boxy, unfussy top.

It just needs buttons and buttonholes to be completed, but I will leave it unfinished for now.











It's a little tight at the hips, so binds in an unflattering way. I let it out a little at the front side seams, but this adversely affected the princess seam at the bust, which was sitting very nicely in the half muslin I made-drat. I also still have extra fabric at the back neck.

Winter pajama pants and top

 Basic pants and an experimental top.

I love the pants. They fit well and are very comfortable as pajama pants.

The top was an experiment. The concept was a faux jacket over the top of the base layer, but actually sewn as a single top. The whole thing took ages to draft and sew (since I'm a newbie at all this), so I kept dumbing down the design to be done with it more quickly. In the end, I like the deconstructed look of the curling exposed seams, but am very bothered by the unstructured (floppy) area around the neck. Luckily, the seams are falling apart, so I will be rid of it rather soon!

The top was an experiment not just in terms of design, but also in terms of my approach to the learning, design, and sewing process. Turns out I really can't enjoy the results of taking shortcuts (as I expected), so I will try to take the time to learn the techniques needed to achieve the look I'm going for in the future.