This simple t-shirt almost sewed itself. I'll be making more of these for summer.
I used the Maria Denmark Kirsten Kimono Tee, available as a free PDF download when I signed up for her newsletter. (I also purchased the Audrey dress pattern, but that hasn't yet been sewn up.)
I lowered the neckline by about an inch. For the neckline finish I used the fabric inside out for contrast. The sleeves are finished by turning the inside out. I basted both the neckline band and the sleeve hems by hand, then stitched them using a double needle.
The fabric is a cotton rayon lycra mix, I believe, quite drapey.
Looking for something fun to sew and wear on a recent vacation to Mexico, I settled on V8499 - a Marcy Tilton design.
They were comfortable and easy to wear while walking on the beach or in town. I like to keep my legs mostly covered because of skin damage earlier in life and very bony knees.
After reading
about these pants on Pattern Review I cut the
smallest size available (6). I made a number of changes to the pattern. I used a medium-heavy weight cotton fabric with a bit of stretch in a pale gray.
When I cut out the pattern, I overlaid a self-drafted pattern on top and used that to trace the crotch seams, front and back. After cutting the pants (full width) I stitched the pockets and center seams on the legs (front and back). I then basted the side seams and inner leg seams, and took them in again and again, for a total of 4-6 inches.
For the waist, I thought of putting darts into the back to take in the fullness, as I'm not fond of elastic waists, but ended up not needing to do that. I'm pretty straight through the hips and waist. I added an invisible zipper as closure at the center back and a narrow (1 inch) waistband in place of the facing and elastic.
I like the pockets on these pants and will be making another pair for the Travel Wardrobe Contest on Pattern Review. Next time, I'll take some width out at the center leg seams as well.
