Slinky Snakeskin

This is Butterick 4789, the Maggy London Twist Top (size 14). It’s a great little shirt: a nice alternative to a plain t-shirt, but just as comfy.  The twist is flattering to the bust and the belly.

Why is it always so overcast in Michigan?

There are about a million reviews on Pattern Review about so I won’t go into a bunch of gory detail. A few notes are important in my mind:

• A full bust adjustment is probably not required, as there is plenty of width in the fabric to accommodate a variety of bust sizes. However, I added length so the empire seam didn’t cut across my bust. I merely offset the seams before sewing them together so the top piece had a 1/4″ seam allowance and the bottom piece had a regular 5/8″ seam allowance. Truly, I need a little dab more space, so if I decide to make it again, I will alter this pattern before I cut it.

Seamline rides up about 1.5", even after alteration.

• I narrowed the little hole where the twist is, because I saw a lot of people complaining about their goodies showing.
• The cut-on sleeve is not great-fitting. You can see a big wrinkle radiating from the bustpoint to the shoulder. This might be improved a little by adding length. I wear a lot of cardigans and jackets, so I’m not sure the shoulder fit matters so much.
• I had to remove a little space (about 1/2″) from center back, from the V, tapering to the original seamline about 3″ down.  It’s a nice fit without being overly tight and showing a lot of bulges. The print also helps with that.

 

My husband raised his eyebrows when I first wore this, and said, “Nice!” so I think we have a keeper. When I asked if a dress would work from this pattern, he said, “Definitely. But you should make it longer. That’s way too short for a dress.” Smart ass. I think I may have found my first Tried & True (TNT) pattern.

This fabric reminds me of snakeskin, though I don’t know if that’s what it’s actually meant to be. It’s ITY, which is very slippery and slinky. Last week when I started the draft of this post, I wrote, “I don’t love ITY, so I probably won’t sew with it again.” It has grown on me. Furthermore, I have at least one more piece of ITY in my stash to use up.