There has been a lot of chatter about Pattern Emporium patterns in my sewing circle, so I’ve been keen to try them out. When the Spill the Tea blouse was released, I loved the design and thought it would fit into my Spring Capsule Wardrobe. I’ve been thinking more about how to make my handmade wardrobe more cohesive, so I’ve been playing around with collages on Pinterest. I’ve picked some highlight colours that I’d like to feature in the capsule.
The Spill the Tea Top is a tie neck top with two back options, two sleeve options and two length options. I chose to make the gathered back with a yoke, the cap sleeves and tall length. I wanted the option of leaving the top out for a more casual look. It’s so impressive at the number of options available and best of all, printing it was made very logical and easy. I really liked that it wasn’t necessary to print every page, only the relevant ones which was a good paper saver.
The pattern is made for woven fabric and is quite versatile. I had a piece of georgette fabric in my stash that I bought a while ago but was a bit afraid of sewing. I thought it was a good match for the pattern because of the high drape. Excitingly, there was enough of it for the top which required about two meters. I was making the size 12 for my measurements of 38-inch bust, 33-inch waist and 40-inch hips. I love the fine quality of georgette fabric, but it does add some difficulty to sewing. I tested the fabric on the overlocker and decided to use French seams because the fabric frays very easily.
Apart from the seams, I had to solve the issue of the yoke and how to finish it. I decided it would be best to cut two so that the yoke could line itself. I’ve tried to describe what I did in the steps below because I deviated from the instructions.
I also finished the sleeve seams with French seams, but I think it would have been thick enough for the overlocker. French seams do give a satisfyingly neat finish. The other tips I learnt when sewing with georgette fabric is to reduce the stitch length and changed the needle to a 70/10 gage. It was also handy to use the rotator cutter for the curves.
The Pattern Emporium instructions were very detailed. It is made for reading on a screen because the illustrations are photos. The bonus is that everything is clear with contrast fabric. The instruction booklet was like a mini magazine, and I love the inclusion of all the different people modelling the blouse. I like printing my instructions but at 50 pages, I limited my printing to the sewing instructions only. I found myself deferring to the photographs when I came to the attachment of the ties. The construction was very enjoyable with the precise pattern pieces and instructions.
Overall, it was easy to see why my sewing friends fully endorse Pattern Emporium patterns. It’s been a fantastic sewing experience and a good one to get my sewjo going again. I’ll hope to share more soon about my sewing plans for my handmade Spring Capsule Wardrobe.
Thanks for reading and happy sewing!
X Em
Em Sew Happy Blog 