I LOVE this blouse! This is the first time I’ve cut a garment on the bias. I drafted the pattern myself, the only way I make things nowadays. When I did the neckline and the hem I was somewhere in the lovely grey area between tipsy and drunk, so that’s my favorite part. Gots to have my rum.

in the alley the back of the blouse

RUM + SEWING MACHINE = ADVENTURE ON THE SEWIN’ SEAS

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All the fabric is 100% cotton. The floral fabric is pretty thin, and if I were to wear anything dark under the shirt it would be visible. Like I said, it’s cut on the bias, and there are darts in the front and the back that give it a fit that I love. One of my favorite things about this blouse is that it was all made of scrap fabric. The only thing I bought for this project was the cording that went into the green piping, so I spent about $.75 on my new favorite shirt. Incidentally, the green floral is leftover from the first garment I made without a pattern, a dress way back in early 2006.

the neckline underarm piping the fabric detail of the keyhole neck

Working with the bias definitely presented its own special set of challenges. Making the front and back darts even took a surprising amount of time. The original sketches for this shirt included sleeves, but once I attached them I wasn’t wild about the look, plus is made the body of the blouse fit very differently than it had without sleeves. I love the way the armholes came out and impressed myself with how neat the piping and red trim came out.

my black pants black pants

I made the black pants too, and no pattern for that either. I can’t remember ever having owned black pants before. I wish I’d been able to find some heavy weight fabric with a bit of stretch in it for these. Hopefully in LA I will find some awesome material to cover my butt in.

i am also a monster