Posts Tagged ‘selfish sewing’

rayon raglan

rayon raglan on elsie marley

There are a bunch of sewing-for-yourself sew-alongs going on at the moment. It’s hard not to get swept up in all the bloggy excitement.

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scoop top

scoop neck top by elsie marley

Normally I can’t stand sewing clothes for myself.  There are many reasons…

scoop neck top by elsie marley

#1. I am not a rectangle. Unlike my children, I am not shaped like piece of spaghetti. All the curvy bits make for complicated patterns that involve darts and tucks and cutting just right and actually (for once) transferring markings from the pattern to the fabric.

scoop neck top by elsie marley

#2. I am not a child. Which means I cannot make a top out of 1/2 yard of whatever random fabric I have lying around. I need to buy something I like (I’m horribly picky) and I need to buy rather a lot of it (I’m horribly cheap). So more often than not I leave the fabric store with a 1/2 yard of something cute for my kids.

scoop neck top by elsie marley

#3. I do not have the world’s most perfect body. I know this, I don’t dwell on it. I just try to accept myself and move on. But when you make a pattern, every way your body differs from the norm becomes hugely amplified. It’s like the damn pattern is mocking you at every turn.

scoop neck top by elsie marley

#4. I do not like looking at pictures of myself. And seriously, there were like a 100 to look through just to get a few decent ones. This one has some subcategories: #4a. I make ridiculous faces when my husband takes pictures of me and #4b. Hello?! did you not realize your jeans are dirty? 

scoop top on elsie marley

But! But! in spite of all that I hate about sewing clothes for myself, I love this shirt! I found a lovely, super neutral, sweater knit fabric in the sale bin that worked out perfectly. The pattern–a free pattern by Kristin from skirt as top–was very simple and easy to follow.  I’m happy to report the pattern did not mock me as I made it. And! And! I’ve worn it multiple times since I’ve sewed it.

scoop neck top by elsie marley

This is what victory looks like, wonky seams and all.