60’s Feel In Modern Times- Sorbetto Top

I’ve heard so much about this top from Colette Patterns that I had to give it a try. I’m talking about the Sorbetto top which is a loose fitting woven top. It can be made with a center front pleat or without. I made this in a couple of different fabrics and I want to share those results with you now.

The first one I made I considered a wearable muslin (just in case things didn’t work out-LOL).

This is made using a lightweight cotton. It’s actually the perfect type of fabric for this I think. It sews easily and still maintains the style of the top.

The description says the top is loose and swingy, which it is. I actually took in the sides a bit (I made an actual muslin first for fit). I also had to adjust the neck because it was too big.

I then tried this in a gauze. I haven’t used this material before, so I was unfamiliar with how to keep it from stretching out. I got a good tip on IG: use some interfacing on the seam lines to keep those from distorting. I’ll keep that in mind for the next time since I had finished the top. By the way, this only takes about 45 minutes to an hour to put together! There are only two pattern pieces.

This is what happens when you take your camera outside on a very humid day. The lens fogs up. But you get a nice haze effect…

Anyway, I had to make more adjustments on this one due to the nature of the fabric. The side seams were taken in again and the arm was raised. I also had to raise the shoulder on this one.

My personal favorite is the pink made from the lightweight cotton. It was much easier to sew and I think keeps the integrity of the design better without as much work. But they are certainly both wearable. If you are interested in making this top, I highly recommend making an actual muslin as I did. I had to make the neck narrower to eliminate a gap, which I did for both of these.

I’m also working on some Fall sewing plans which I hope to share with you soon. Fall is my favorite time of year so I’m trying to keep my plan reasonable but productive 🙂

Summertime Top with McCall’s 7360

I’ve been wardrobe building with tops recently, specifically woven tops. The latest is made with McCall’s 7360.

I used this using View A. It’s basically a Henley top made from woven fabric rather than knit. It’s got some nice variations as well so this could be used in most seasons.

The alterations for making this involved what has become a standard for me lately – the FBA. For this top I would recommend using a soft cotton or cotton blend. You definitely don’t want any fabric that’s too stiff since you want to garment to be comfortable and move with you. As I said above, this is basically a woven Henley top, so keep that in mind.

This is pretty straight-forward and easy to make. I’m wondering, and might try this another time, if this could be made from a stable (or mostly stable) knit. I have used other patterns that weren’t made for knit patterns and done that and actually liked the results better!

Top 3 – Classic Polka Dots

As you know, I spent the last two weeks of April making tops, specifically using woven (not knit) fabric. The last one that I made during that time period was using Simplicity 8602.

I made View A. Because the shirt is a little bit cropped in length, I added about 2″ to the length of the top. I also made this using a FBA (full bust adjustment). I have started doing these more often and I find that I’m getting a better fit. I had been just going up a pattern size but I was never very happy with the overall fit of the garment. So now, I’m back to using a smaller size, but including the FBA.

Simplicity 8602

I like this with the longer length and I LOVE the look of the polka dots, especially for summer. The jeans I’m wearing in the pictures are a previous make. These are the Closet Case Patterns “Morgan” boyfriend jeans ( that post is here).

The material used is rayon challis, which is perfect for something like this. It is lightweight but with enough body for the garment to flow. This particular one I bought from fabric.com. This is a quick and easy make with different sleeve options.