My Burda Accidental 80s Top

Like so many other sewists, I have an inspirational stack of Burda magazines that I haven't made anything from yet, even though I have little sticky flags sticking out of all of them marking the numerous patterns I'd like to make! Well, a couple of months ago now I decided it was time to try one out, and traced off this blouse with a hem and sleeve flounce, with a black lace fabric in mind. It's style 123 from the 12/2017 issue.

However, I decided it was quite necessary to muslin this pattern beforehand, as I do often have to make multiple adjustments to Burda patterns. And it's a good thing I did because I did indeed have to narrow the front and back at the centre of the neckline, shorten the body and narrow the bottom flounce to suit a more petite figure; I also left the back neck opening out and sewed it straight up as it fit over my head just fine. I should have shortened and widened the sleeve at the bicep as well. I may still remove the sleeve and pull it up an inch to see if it fits better that way. You can see in this photo how the sleeve pulls slightly across the upper arm anytime my arm is not straight down.

When I finished this I wasn't too keen on it. The neck facing poked up weirdly, and I just felt like it didn't fit right. Left it in the magic closet for a while, and upon trying again, I realized I could remove the neck facing (done & replaced with a bias facing - a vintage cotton percale lightweight bias tape in white). And for some reason I now like the straight line shape of it. If I do end up making it in the original fabric I had in mind I might still shorten the body a bit more, especially in the back.

But I'm also really enjoying the 80s vibe of the fabric -- this is another piece of the vintage fabrics given to me by my friend's mom in her great stash clearing. I had *just* enough to get this pattern out of it, which why my sleeves don't match across the lines perfectly. I just had no more wiggle room. The colours of this are really fun, and it makes me think of birds on a wire.

It's a lightweight cotton and quite nice to wear. The bright stripes & abstract print really say 80s to me, but I was careful not to style it too heavily as an 80s combo -- just imagine it with some stirrup pants, jelly shoes, big hair in a scrunchie, and bright beads, and you'll be thinking of me in high school, haha. I do have some large, bright blue beads but resisted the lure... and went with a subtle pendant I picked up in Banff a few years ago instead.

Are you enjoying the 80s resurgence? I sure am! From movies (Stranger Things) to books (The Saturday Night Ghost Club) to fashion (especially Escada's latest!) I am all about the 80s. I know 'they' say that if you wore it the first time around, avoid it the second time -- but I am blithely disregarding that fashion advice and enjoying all the 80s inspired styles I can. Are you a fan? What 80s styles do you like - or dislike?

Margot Peplum top in purple polka dots

I tried out a new-to-me indie pattern company this month! For some reason, I recently got it into my head that I wanted to make a peplum knit shirt, and when looking around I found this design by Love Notions, a company I hadn't really paid much attention to before, thinking that it was a lot of children's patterns. I was wrong -- I found this lovely Margot Peplum top, at a time that there was a sale on. So I bought it, traced it off, and finally got around to making it this month.

I used a thrifted poly knit which is kind of heavy and less stretchy than is optimal. But I thought for a first try of this pattern, it would be sufficient, and besides, I loved the polka dot print.

There are a few options to combine in this pattern - this time, I chose to make the solid bodice, with elbow sleeves and the swing skirt. It all fit together beautifully. I fall smack in the middle of M & L in the sizing so cut about midway between those sizes. I used a narrow zigzag stitch on most of the construction and it seems to have done the trick -- this knit is not going to fray or ravel, or probably ever self-destruct in a million years.

I did extend the length of the peplum by an inch or so, as I like a bit more of a tunic-y length to my loose tops. And I finished the neckline with a bias facing. I really like the way it has turned out. I think this might be another reliable pattern that I will end up making more than once -- I'm even thinking of extending the peplum and making this into a dress, as I like the bodice fit a lot. Perhaps I'll even try the princess seam version sometime!

The only thing to note is the the peplum attaches to the bodice essentially at an empire line, so on a windy day like the one on which I took my photos, attention must be paid to gusts! At least it keeps you cool ;)

This pattern was a winner for me, and I look forward to trying another of Love Notions' designs. I've already downloaded her Laundry Tee, let's see how long it takes me to get around to making that one...