Totally free top!

It must be my Scottish blood, but I love the idea of a totally free top!

Total cost…£0.00!
Total cost…£0.00!

The pattern was the Sorbetto top free download from Colette Patterns (OK – I know everyone else in the sewing blogosphere has already made this umpteen times but I only joined the party 11 months ago)  and this

Guess what this started as? (picture of remnants of a man's shirt)
Guess what this started as?

is the remains of my material – an old shirt of my husband’s where the collar and cuffs had worn out but the body was fine.  I treated myself to a bias binding maker and used the shirt sleeves to make matching bias binding:

Handmade bias binding (don’t use the steam setting on your iron – you’ll scald your fingers!)
Handmade bias binding (don’t use the steam setting on your iron – you’ll scald your fingers!)

Unlike some other people I had no problem using the bias binding widget (just watch your fingers if you’re using a steam iron) but I did have a problem trying to get all the stripes to go in the same direction and had to enlist my engineer husband’s help.

But it was worth it…

Yes – the buttons still work!
Yes – the buttons still work!

The back of the shirt became the back of the top and the fronts of the shirt became the front of the top – I just folded the pattern back along the line of the centre pleat and didn’t even need to add a seam allowance.

Here’s what it’s like on:

front view
Front
back view
back
side view
side

And the last photo?  Well, I meant to use the shirt tails to give it a high-low hem but forgot when I was cutting out the first piece so it’s just got a slight curve at the sides!

Sheena

One Response

  1. You clever girl! You could always try doing a miniature version for one of your dollshouse dolls out of the bits left over…?
    Scaling down the pattern pieces should be a doddle with an engineer husband on hand to guide you!
    Hugs………Annette

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