Saturday, June 22, 2013

Datura 2.0 (the Art Deco Datura)

Oh Datura. Such a perfect little summer top! I am considering drafting some sleeves  for it. Wouldn't it be a wonderful blouse even in the wintertime?

This is my second version, and I made the first view, in size 38. I think I need to go down a size, as it is a bit big. I could take in the size seams, but I did french seams, and I am a bit lazy... It is the same size as my first version , but the fabric is stiffer, and the size issue is more noticeable.

The fabric is a pretty floral cotton which I think has a nice art deco vibe to it. I had to resort to quilting cotton for the contrast yoke, and while it was super easy to work with, it is a bit too stiff to drape nicely. I am really into the cut-outs, and they echo the geometry of the print nicely.


Again, I just sewed the buttons through all layers without doing buttonholes. I'm not really friendly with the buttonhole function on my machine... I placed the buttons quite high. I see now that I need to work on my patternmatching skills, but really, it's not bothering me. It may bother someone walking behind me on the street. Not that I care. I also finished the hem with bias tape, and I LOVE the result. There is a nice weight to the hem, and the curve is perfect. Now I want to hem everything with bias tape!


A detail shot of the neckline. It would be really easy to mess that bit up. You have to pin the bias tape quite perfectly, not stretching it, and not too loosely either. The cotton I used was helpful for that part because it really stayed put, but I can see this being really fiddly. And then you have to be very precise with the topstitching. I am still working on that skill, but practice makes perfect!



Another detail of the pretty fabric. It had been in my stash* for a while, because it was horribly off grain and I didn't quite know what to do about that. So I pulled and thugged and in the end I cheated and cut the pieces off-grain. I'll probably have to pay for that after a few washes, but it felt better than having the pattern at an angle. So, all in all, I'm really happy with how this top turned out. There will be more Daturas to come, but I really need a skirt to wear them with!


* Is about 10 lenghts of fabric a stash? hmmm, I guess it is... it does, however, feels like my closet in the morning. Full of stuff, but nothing interesting enough!

1 comment:

  1. Cute! I've yet to try this pattern, but I really like it and hope to soon!

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