Doctor T Designs

So, I had originally hoped to get this mini wardrobe sewn back in 2020 in time for the pattern review contest, but, as predicted in my original post, that did not come to pass. I’m still enamored with this plan, however, so I’m going to whittle away at these garments and see how far I can get in 2021. When I had started the project I traced out all of the patterns I had planned to use, and I pulled all of the fabrics for these garments, but I didn’t get very far with the actual sewing during the time period of the contest. At the time I had decided to sew according to color so that I could minimize thread changes on my serger and cover stitch machines (when sewing for a multi-garment contest time is of the essence!), and since the fewest and easiest pieces of my plan were the aubergine purple colors, I decided to go with those first.

The first pattern in my plan was BurdaStyle 08/2020 #103:

I really liked this top because I thought the neckline was really elegant, and I also felt that the style would work well for me and be versatile within the planned collection. The sewing wasn’t too complicated, and I’m pretty happy with how it turned out:

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As you can see from these photos, I’m giving a bit of a sneak-peak at the skirt pattern that I’m going to review next, but I think for this pattern you can see a few of the great design features, like the wide v-neck, the raglan sleeves, and the super long length of the top. For the construction I used my serger for all of the major seams and my coverstitch to do the hems. I did use my sewing machine to set in the neckband because I wanted to have a bit more control than I had with the serger.

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The neckband isn’t the cleanest finish on the inside, but I think it looks great from the outside, so I guess that’s what’s most important. I did use a bit of fusible interfacing at all of the angled points on the neckline (at the center front and on the tops of the shoulders), and while it isn’t really noticeable on the shoulders, it does seem to cause the fabric to pull a bit at the center front when worn. There are some minor construction issues that could have been better, but since this isn’t the Great British Sewing Bee, I’m not going to be too fussed about them.

Pattern Review

Pattern Description: Knit top with deep v-neck band.

Pattern Sizing: Burda sizes 36-44.  I made a size 40 at the shoulder and graded to a 44 at the hip.  I made a 2″ Full Bicep Adjustment, a 1″ FBA, and added 1/2″ at the back hip to adjust the fit.

Were the instructions easy to follow?  The instructions were pretty straightforward. This was the illustrated pattern instructions for this issue of Burda Style, so the instructions were actually better than most! I found the pictures helpful for the neckband, although the rest of the pattern is very straightforward to put together.

Did it look like the photo/drawing when you were done with it?  Yes, I think it looks very much like the magazine photo and line drawing.

What did you particularly like/dislike about the pattern?  I love the style and particularly like the way the neckband overlaps to create the sharp V shape at the front. I think the neck opening may be slightly wide if you have narrow shoulders, but it works ok for me. I like the length of the top (I have a long torso), and I really like the fit and style of the raglan sleeves.

Fabric used: I used some sort of mystery jersey. It is really soft and can hold a crease if it gets wrinkled for a long time, but it is also really warm, so I’m guessing it might be some sort of rayon/poly/lycra mix.

Pattern alterations or design changes you made:  I made a 2″ Full Bicep Adjustment, a 1″ FBA, and added 1/2″ at the back hip to adjust the fit. I didn’t make any changes to the design.

Would you sew this again?  Would you recommend it to others?  I would definitely sew this again. It was a very quick pattern to sew, and I love the style. I think it works best in a soft, stretchy, and drapey fabric, so I would need to find the right material before I sew it again. I also might try the variation (pattern #104 from the same issue) which adds some ruching to the side seams and sleeves.

Conclusion:  I really like this pattern! Honestly, due to quarantine and health related weight gain over the past year, it’s probably the best-fitting top I have at the moment and I think it will get a lot of use. It’s really comfortable and I definitely think I will make more in the near future.

How does this fit in with the Sew Your Kibbe Challenge?  Does it work as well for you as you expected it to? So, this isn’t technically part of my Sew Your Kibbe Challenge, but the open neckline and closer fit at the waistline definitely fit with the Kibbe Soft Natural recommendations. The style feels very comfortable to wear and I think it will look great with both more formal and more casual looks, so I expect it to get a lot of use as part of a wardrobe.

And that’s it! The skirt will be posted with a full review soon, and after that I’ll hopefully be back to working on the next pieces for the wardrobe plan!