Friday 26 June 2015

Anita Tie Top

For those of you who are interested, I thought I'd give a bit more detail about the Anita Tie Top I made recently. I drafted it myself using the bodice block from Sew Over It Vintage (review here).


You can see from the diagram below that the original block is slightly shaped at the waist, (line H/I/E). For the Anita top, all you do is square the side seams off for a looser fit (line H to M). As I wanted a slightly more fitted look, I kept the original shaped waist, then joined point E to point M (M is the hip line). This gives a little bit of shaping, but leaves enough ease to create the gathers around the waist.


My version of the top still turned out looking quite a bit shorter than the example in the book. What happened was that the original bodice block finished noticeably higher than I was expecting (probably because of my bust taking up too much room). I made a mental note to lengthen the block by a couple of inches before I drafted the Anita top, but never actually wrote this down. You can probably guess the rest, the mental note flew straight out of my head, never to return, and I forgot to lengthen it, doh! I think the finished top is fine though, and on me I actually prefer it sitting on my hips instead of lower down - it gives the illusion of longer legs!

Original Anita Tie Top in Sew Over It Vintage
My (inadvertently) shorter version
The one other tiny change I made was the height of the shoulder/kimono sleeve. The pattern calls for a lightweight, drapey fabric and although Tana Lawn has a beautiful, silky hand, it isn't as drapey as a silk or rayon. Consequently, the kimono sleeves looked a bit wing-like at the shoulders. All I had to do to remedy this was to lower the outer edge of the shoulder opening by about an inch, tapering to nothing in the middle of the shoulder.


The front and back pieces are identical so it's a very simple top to sew together. 

For fabric I used a Liberty Lawn (Capel in navy). As Liberty fabric is quite wide, I managed to cut the front, back and bottom band out of the measly half metre I had in my stash. I was thinking I wouldn't bother with the ties, but once I'd made the top, I realised it needed the ties to give it that chic 1920's vibe. There was a hitch though, Capel fabric in navy is either out of print or exceedingly scarce, as I couldn't find any anywhere. In desperation, I sent a begging email to Susan at Sewbox as I knew she stocked a good range of Liberty prints. By an absolute miracle, she happened to have a remnant of  navy Capel print squirrelled away (it wasn't listed on her site). She wouldn't accept any money for it either, she was just happy to help out - sewing folk are so lovely sometimes aren't they?! Once again, THANK YOU Susan!

It's quite difficult to see the tie belt amidst all that floral, but it's essentially sandwiched into the seams at both sides of the bottom band. The tie is then wrapped around at the back and tied at one side.

Bottom band and ties
It's worth noting that the grainline of the ties runs perpendicular to the long edges, which means you need fabric that's at least 1.4m or 55 inches wide. This is especially important if you have a directional print. Liberty fabric is a fraction under 1.4m wide so I just about got away with it.


I'm so pleased that my experiment in pattern drafting resulted in such a lovely, wearable top. There's a gap in my wardrobe for semi-posh tops that can be worn with jeans and this fits the bill perfectly. My next version will be in a solid colour as I suspect this style will look great with a statement necklace.  Have a good weekend! x


39 comments:

  1. Very chic, and yes would look amazing in a solid silk....

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    1. I think it would, there's only one way to find out…! x

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  2. this is so lovely! i must order me a copy of this book!

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    1. Thanks Joanne, the book's great, there are so many possibilities! x

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  3. I like your top. I'm not sure what you mean by the neck alteration?

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    1. Do you mean the shoulder alteration? I'll use the bodice block illustration from the blog post to try and explain it. I measured down an inch from the outer shoulder edge (point B), marked a point halfway between B and K (inner shoulder point), then drew a line between the two points. This was the new stitching line and made the cap sleeve less boxy.Hope that helps? x

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  4. I would need a wardrobe of those, stat! It's so satisfying to find everyday basic - but interesting - garments, and I think you hit the nail on the head here!

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    1. Thanks Jenny, I think I did. I foresee lots more in the future! x

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  5. The top looks great! You are very good at picking just the right fabrics and prints :)

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    1. Thank you! I spend a LOT of time sighing over fabrics and prints, so I'm glad it's paid off! x

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  6. Very pretty! And your right, it does make your legs look longer

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    1. Oh good, they need all the help they can get! x

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  7. What a fantastic top! It looks lovely on you!

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  8. gorgeous top! def need the book!

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    1. Thanks, the book is well worth buying! x

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  9. I like it and I think that length is perfect for you, isn't it great how sometimes these moments of Oops work out better! It does remind me of my wild years, all those tees that tied on the hip, with tight coloured legging and Nova Slides (mules with heels), and fluffy hair, or as in my case, a bowl cut like do.
    Your Tana lawn interpetation is infinitely classier, of course!

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    1. I hope it is! I also remember massive t shirts tied on the hip with leggings underneath, usually falling off one shoulder too! Sadly, I sported a massive poodle perm at the time which still makes me cringe to this very day! X

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  10. This looks gorgeous! And what a wonderful shape. Very flattering.

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  11. This is gorgeous! I love this top and the sailor top from the book, so it's interesting for me to read about how you got on with this. Also, I was sorting out my fabric last night, and found just over a metre of lawn that I completely forgot I had! (Ahem...) So I think I'm good to go with this!

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    1. Go, go, go! Would love to see your take on this top Lynne! x

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  12. Lovely top! I really like the length, suits you beautifully

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    1. Ah thanks, I like the length too (luckily!) x

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  13. This top is adorable! I like your shorter version better!

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  14. Ugh, my phone made my comment disappear... summary: brilliant! So flattering, the colour and accidental length are fabulous!

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    1. Thanks Jo! I love it when accidental cock-ups work out well! x

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  15. Love your version. I've just treated myself to the book on the back of your review of it and this top. How much fabric did you use in total incl ties?

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    1. Sorry, only just seen your comment - I used just over 1m, probably nearer 1.25m.It might be sensible to allow for 1.5m, especially if you sew it the correct length! So glad my review prompted you to buy the book, best of luck with the top! x

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  16. You look fantastic...I really like the shorter look...didn't quite get what you meant about the sleeves, but they look fab too! Love the fabric...lucky you....would have been a shame not to be able to do the ties. xx

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    1. Ah thank you, yes, I think the ties make the top too! I've explained more about the shoulder adjustment in my reply to Anne's comment (4th comment down). Hope it makes sense! x

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  17. Wow, this is probably my favorite thing you've ever made! The pattern itself is so pretty, and I think the proportions are perfect for you!

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    1. Gosh, thank you so much! I think the proportions work better on my shape too. x

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