This was originally
supposed to be a dress inspired by this one.
The fabric in mind is a stretch knit.
The same sort of design hit the shops here half way through the summer
and I tried on a few examples to help me envisage the finished dress. All was able to envisage was every lump and
bump in my imperfect figure outlined and hi-lighted for the world to see! Horizontal stripes? What was I thinking? I was ready to push this one aside and see if
I had got rid of any lumps by spring, until I happened to spot the fabric in my
stash next to the remains of a sort of green/teal fabric that I had made a
skirt out of. The colours looked quite
striking together.
As a
separate train of thought I had been watching the pattern reviews for the lace cardigan in March Burda Magazine. I had
considered it for one of my patterns for the Curious Kiwi’s recent Burda Sew-a-long,
but didn’t have a stretch lace.
Once I
let go of the striped dress and considered the fabric for a top to wear with
the green/teal skirt, I was ripe for grays08’s review of the pattern in a solid,
sort of stripe. Inspired by her finished
cardigan, I made one in my striped knit.
 |
| Look at those Stripes! |
I did
make a few changes. All the reviews
point out that this is a very close fit, so I used white drill (non-stretch)
for the button band to avoid gaping across the bust. Obviously this required a little grading and trimming
round the curves, but it was not that difficult.
When I
gathered according to the instructions I ended up with a sort of lump in the
middle at waist level. After some experimentation
I also replaced the gathering with small pleats, but only over the top half of
the gathered area. This seemed to lie
flatter, and produced a nice shape across the bust.
Overall? I like this pattern. I will wear this as a top, rather than a
cardigan as it is a snug fit, but it works well as a top. I’m not sure I’d make it in the lace, as
suggested in Burda, as that would require a camisole or similar underneath, and
I suspect that would make it all a bit lumpy. I will, however, almost certainly make it again.
