McCall's M6653 Misses' Top

I made this McCall's M6653 Misses' Top a few weeks ago. I confess, I have made a few garments since then, but I have been remiss in contributing here. I hope to catch up this weekend.

This is a loose fitting pullover top with cut-on sleeves. Two pattern pieces only! It took longer to sew on the bias binding than to construct the actual blouse. I made it out of a cotton voile, for summer weather.

Your posts have inspired me so much. I do enjoy reading them and getting great tips. Thank you!

I blogged about it here:
http://threadsovmetal.blogspot.com/2013/05/mccalls-m6653-misses-top-using-denyse.html

StitchSlapped: Stephanie

I tried to make this McCall's M6437 blouse in style D. It ended up looking like a martial arts Gi or Victorian bathrobe!

I made a muslin that fit, but the final fabric still made it look stifling and old-fashioned.

I get exasperated trying to gather that fabric! I really want to know - ladies, do you use a gathering foot? Doing this with basting threads always looks uneven to me, and I get tired. If you do use a gathering foot, how do you measure the gathers to fix exactly around the joining piece that is not gathered? Does the foot just help do the work that your arms would do, or does it sew down the gathers, so that they cannot be spread apart or put back together to fit?

I even added button loops on the back using the voile. The final disaster was the bubbling of the interfacing. I learned that I should use sew-in interfacing, or pre-shrink it, or use more expensive kind that does not shrink? What do you use?

This gave me quite a sad face. I hope I can remove the collar and save this fabric for something else.
I posted more details here.
I'm not giving up on our challenge, and I look forward to seeing more of your new clothes! It is very motivating for me!

Burda 7576 and Butterick 5249 Complete

I'm done! Let me just say that I love, love, love this skirt (Butterick 5249)--primarily because it has no darts! As you can see I made the belt loops as well. I haven't done that since high school.  I'm trying to push myself to do things I haven't done before (or that I've shied away from).  I figured I'd better get some practice since Lynn convinced me to order Jalie 2908 an it is on the way (yay!)

I am pleased with the Burda top; however, next time I will use a knit and lengthen it a bit (I may also need cut it a size larger--it's clearly cut for a B-cup).  It's a nice pattern to have on hand.  I had the tags made in the mid-90s.  I've begun using them again in finished garments.  I will have a few more pics when I post to my own blog.

Conversation with my son:
Me: Buddy, I need you to take the pics of my outfit
Son:  Which one?
Me: The one I wore Sunday...
Son: Oh...you mean the one with the blouse that looked like it was exploding! And the color of that skirt made my head hurt!
Me: Er...uhh...then, you were looking at it way too long son, way too long....

LOL, Vita

Burda 7576

I had planned to make Vogue 8772 with this fabric, but I didn't have enough. I love Burda 7576.  It's a great top and easy to construct.  The button loops on the back are a nice feature.  I can't remember the last time I made those.  I hope to be finished with a coordinating pencil skirt by the weekend.  Vita