When I completed the Saraste shirt, I wasn’t totally ‘in-love’ with it. In fact, I immediately pushed it to the far right side of my closet, the place where the ‘never to be worn’s’ go. It’s a sad corner and it makes me feel a bit guilty. It’s all the me-mades that were fun to sew, yet, when all was said and done, I couldn’t imagine actually wearing it.
That was the sad story of this recent reject, but everything changed when Me-Made May rolled around. This year, my pledge was a bit different. Since I already wear me-mades every day, I pledged to wear the ones that I abandoned, and try to analyze why. This is one of those makes.
It might be the fabric that put me off. It’s a floral print and, when I purchased it, I thought it was a random print. When I laid it out on my cutting table, I discovered that there’s a strong repeat….pattern matching would be involved! Ugh. That discovery made me a bit cranky as I wasn’t sure I’d purchased enough fabric to make this work, but I managed to pull it off, carrying the pattern through on the sleeves and the back.
I do love the fit of this shirt! The Saraste shirt is a pattern from Named Clothing’s book, ‘Breaking the Pattern’.
I’ve made several of the patterns in this book now (here), and they’ve all been fabulous. The Saraste shirt is one of my favorites with many elements I love: princess seams down the front, a back yoke, optional sleeves and a small collar that fits my short neck. The surprise detail is small cut- outs at the shoulder, which I love.
They were a bit of a challenge though. My tip is to be sure to trace the pattern carefully, noting all of the markings accurately. I hadn’t done that and had to go back and add them in. Once I had that accomplished, it wasn’t too hard to make everything work. However, I’m a bit disappointed that the cut-outs don’t show that well in my print. I’m going to have to give this lovely pattern another try in a solid colored linen, so that those slits can shine!
My Me-made analysis – – I do love the print now, but at first glance, I wasn’t too excited about it in this shirt. However, I have worn it many times this month and have discovered that it goes with everything in my closet. The fit is perfect and the shirt is easy to wear. In fact, people compliment me when I wear it:)
Lesson learned…my first take on a make shouldn’t be my last. 
How are you doing with Me-Made May? Any new revelations?
Happy sewing and thanks for stopping by!
I find New Look patterns to be generously sized but on this one, I didn’t have any issues and I cut my usual size. I put the two pockets on, although they’re almost lost in the print of the linen. Linen (purchased at Joann’s) is the perfect fabric for this shirt because it has a bit of body. I can also imagine it from Rayon or silk, or cotton shirting. It’s a great shirt for summer, that I’ll wear a lot with shorts, my ruffled skirt and jeans.
What do you think of my new rule? Yes, it’s a bit hilarious given my interest in sewing without a plan. Time will tell if I can stick with it!!
I’ve been obsessed with shirt dresses this Spring because as dresses go, they have so many advantages! For one thing, the front opening makes them ideal to let in air on a hot day.
Also, they’re so versatile. You can add a pair of leggings /pants under them for a completely different look.
Last summer, I thought the cold-shoulder trend would be a one-season wonder. Boy was I wrong! It’s everywhere this Spring, and if the trend-predictors are correct, it will be around for some time to come. I’m glad to hear that because, honestly, I love wearing this look! To me, it makes a simple dress something special. That’s why I decided to try it for this casual, tee-shirt dress.
This dress is as comfortable as it looks, made from an Art Gallery cotton jersey I purchased from 
I love the neck-line options and the fact that you can use the pattern to create a number of looks, including a jumpsuit! I opted for the v-neck dress option but used the sleeves from option B. The neckline and sleeve openings are simply finished with a 5/8 inch hem. Usually, I prefer a binding or a facing finish at the neck, but with this knit, this method worked well. However, on a flimsier knit, it would be possible to stretch the knit too much during construction, resulting in a saggy neck or sleeve opening. This dress is an easy make, and from cut to finish it took me less than three hours.
I am going to love wearing this dress and am so glad I decided to add this to my cold shoulder wardrobe (
Do you ever get obsessed with a trend? I’ve been known to go overboard with a new look, and in my case, statement sleeves are my new ‘thing’. This Spring, it seems they are everywhere, and I am clearly jumping on the band wagon! Sure, I like the look (flow-y, care free, maybe even a bit boho), but I also like the challenge of a new sleeve shape. Each pattern is a new adventure in sleeve construction with new techniques to learn.
The pattern when together nicely. The v-neck, the front pleat, the bell sleeves were all explained well and fairly easy to execute. The challenge was in the fit (that is an understatement). I cut the smallest size, but the v-neck was still pretty large. I mean, we are talking cleavage exposure here folks, and that was just not where I wanted to go with this top (LOL). So, I did a bit of modifying. There is a back seam as you can see from the line art.
So, my strategy was to take that seam in by about an inch. I also eliminated the neckline opening in the back and just sewed the seam closed. That seemed to do the trick. The neck opening is large enough that the top just slips over my head!
To make my shirt into a dress, I just added seven inches to the length. Because the dress is very unstructured, I will wear it with a belt made from leftover pleather. I also added sleeve tabs so that I can roll up the sleeves when the weather is warm.
To make the top look less tailored and more relaxed, I eliminated the collar and cuffs, and added lace sleeves and trim. To add the lace to the bottom of the shirt, I cropped it at the waist, then added a swath of left over lace to the bottom, hemmed with a machine stitch.
