7.2.16

Top with Gathered Yoke

I am trying to devote one (school) day a week to my pattern drafting.  I am always surprised at how many other activities are competing for my attention on that day.  I thought this gathered top onto a yoke would be a quick draft, but it was a little trickier than I anticipated to get it "just right".

The fabric is a cotton voile from Tessuti.


 
(Do you love my necklace?  My daughter and I had a fimo day recently, so I have a few necklaces in these colours now)




The biggest issue was getting the position of the yoke line right.  I originally wanted it a bit higher, but that lined the yoke seam up with the flat part of the armhole curve, which I thought would be a bit messy, sewing  wise.  I could have gone higher, but that would have left me with quite a skinny yoke, and I wanted a substantial yoke in case I decided to feature a different fabric for the yoke.  So I moved the yoke line down, below the armhole, but not as low as the bust point.



Then I thought it would be good if it matched the back yoke, but I knew I definitely wanted the back gathers higher up than my baby doll, for ease of movement across the back.  I could have curved the back yoke seam up, but decided that I wanted a horizontal seam, in case I wanted to put a lace yoke or similar in the back.  The curved seam will have to wait for another draft.

Here is my final draft (though I may need to address some teensy front neck gaping).


 I have been attempting to declutter lately, but here is a good reason not to throw out my fabric scraps.  I felt like the yoke needed a little stabilising.  A lightweight white fabric seemed to make the yoke look different from the body of the blouse.  I did not have a suitable nude fabric.  In the end I used a silk cotton woven in a tropical print.  An inside view is shown blow.  It seemed to blend with the voile enough not to result in show through to the outside.  I treated it as an interlining, rather than as a lined yoke, and still finished the edges of the armhole and neck with binding.






4 comments:

Gail said...

Drafting is a great skill to master. I find I'm using my recent training to alter commercial patterns as well as 'from stratch'projects. I love the fabric you've used for the top.

Summer Flies said...

The fabric is really lovely and as I was reading I wondered if you had made your necklace and there it was answered immediately for me. Drafting is so clever and fun if you have time... well done to devoting specific time to it. Like all 'languages' you need to practice regularly to master and stay fluent.

Emma said...

Love the colours and design of the fabric - well done on the drafting too!

Maya said...

This pattern is calm and fresh at the same time. It gives the rest to eyes and relax mind. I like it a lot.