A floral bias top

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Happy Friday everyone! I like to buy souvenir fabric whenever I’m travelling, and when I was in Malaga last summer competing in the World Transplant Games I bought one meter of a lovely floral poly satin at a fabric shop we stumbled across in the centre of town.

I’m not usually a floral woman but this digital print really spoke to me for some reason, and now that the weather has warmed up it felt right to cut into it – and what better way to showcase the beautiful photo print than with a little bias top pattern I’d already tested? So I pulled out Burda 6501, which I’d made last summer in a viscose print and worn loads since.

I didn’t have quite enough fabric to lay the Front and Back at right angles (supposedly the “right way” to do a bias layout), but it doesn’t feel any different when worn and doesn’t seem to have caused any seam pulling issues so… shrug?

This Burda pattern has a few different options but I went with the rounded neckline and the little cap sleeves as I had done before, but I scrapped their edge finishing in favour of my usual narrow bias edge technique, which I’m always pleased with. I managed to squeeze a bit of extra bias binding out of the yardage, too, so I’ll probably end up using those on some random project in the future when I need a lightweight binding fabric.

I did a two-pass narrow hem on the bottom to make it as lightweight an inconspicuous as possible (it pressed flat after I took these photos, too).

I’m really pleased with the way this top fits and feels, and I’ve gotten quite a few compliments when wearing it (perhaps because it is so different to my normal style?), but my only regret is that this fabric is a polyester instead of a silk. I knew it when I bought it, and it’s a high quality poly, but it still tends to get quite staticky despite it’s nice hand.

I’m sure it’s not the last you’ll see of this pattern because I always end up with one metre lengths of lightweight wovens in my stash and this is a great no-closure blouse that has a bit more shaping than most, and bonus points for being so easy to sew up!

5 Comments

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  1. 3
    catherinedaze

    Very nice! I see what you mean about the print – it’s more technical than the average floral. I would have thought the reason for doing the pieces at right angles is to keep very directional fabrics running the right way with respect to the body, but this one looks good both ways

  2. 5
    Patsy O

    This top looks nice. Well done on managing to get the pieces to fit the fabric if it was a little difficult. I haven’t read this blog for a while or done much serious sewing (broke right humerus before Xmas) though have made a few small things – panties etc. This is a little off-topic but I was looking online for some material for casual slacks and it looked as if the Josery site might be closing. If so I will be sorry. I’m not a terribly sporty person – ladies’ keep-fit is about my limit and the class I used to go to for that closed because the teacher hurt her leg. The sleeveless top will have been useful I imagine because we have had some decent weather for once in the UK recently (though the sky is overcast this morning while I type this).

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