McCall's: 5522 (Misses shirts)  - Type:Tops  | | Viewed 363 times
| 30 more reviews | Review rated Very Helpful by 9 people | | Reviewed by: | RuthieK | 
 | About RuthieK | | UNITED KINGDOM | | Member since: 1/1/06 | | Reviews written: 106 | | Sewing skills:Advanced Beginner | | Favored by: 29 people | | patterns reviewed: 103 | | Bio: more... |
| | Posted on: | 8/4/09 4:18 PM | | Last Updated: | 8/4/09 4:22 PM | | Project Photo: |  | | Pattern Photo: | 
McCall's Pattern Info | | Pattern Rating: | Highly Recommend | | See other patterns in this category: Tops | Available for sale on PR: $15.95 (See envelope)  | | | | Fabric: | Cotton [See other projects in this fabric] | | Related Links | Click on  to add a link |
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Pattern Description:
Misses shirts with front gathers, princess seams, front band, collar and sleeve variations. I sewed view D the plain shirt with classic sleeves and cuffs.
Pattern Sizing:
12-14-16-18-20
We started with a size 16 A/B but altered form this point.
I have a 38B bust and this seemed a sensible place to start. However if you have narrower shoulder but a larger bust you would want to have one of the bigger cup sizes but maybe a smaller shoulder size. Its a great feature of the pattern for you larger busted girls.
I'm not full at the top, so we shortened the upper bodice but then added to the curve of the cup (not as much as going up a cup size).
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes I think so. I am pleased how the shirt looks when worn.
Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes I found them quite helpful. I did follow them step by step though I found the amount of hand sewing annoying. I wanted to make a nice job of the blouse though so I went with it as instructed this time.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
Lovely fitted blouse with lots of seams to allow adjustments to my figure.
Because we altered both the sleeve and the armhole, I was left with 3 inches to ease in. This resulted in a puckered first attempt. After a month I removed the sleeves and reinserted them (note at the bottom on the sleeves for those interested).
Fabric Used:
100% cotton, very wide so I think intended as sheeting!
Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:
I stuck to the classic design but made a muslin and with the assistance of Jenni (aka YorkshireLass) altered this extensively to fit me.
The alterations we did were
took a petite tuck out all the way across the back
moved the shoulder seam forward, recut the front neckline lower
added a centre back seam and tapered in for a forward neck, altered the collar pieces accordingly by removing a section from the centre back neck
removed 3/4 inch out of the front armhole.
Took in back lower panels to fit a sway back (this one was easy)
Let out lower front panels to hang smoothly over tummy.
Added a curve to the under bust seam to add the fullness back in at the right place.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Given the amount of effort we put into the muslin for this I plan to sew it many more times in many other colours.
Conclusion:
This is the first ever fitted blouse I have owned that actually fits me properly. I am not the same shape as store bought shirts - the arms are always too tight and there is excess fabric at the front neckline. With this custom shirt all that is gone. I am massively pleased with it and want to say a BIG THANK YOU to Jenni for her assistance altering the muslin for me.
Sleeve insertion:
This sleeve just had too much ease and the first time I put it in there were lots of puckers. (Due to the alterations the sleeves were 3 inches bigger than the armholes).
I decided to tackle the sleeves by doing a lot of small changes so none would be too obvious.
First up I took the sleeves out and pressed the body and sleeves. Then I trimmed down the sleeve cap very slightly. A little more at the top and tapering to nothing nearer the under arm.
I took the top of the sleeve seam in by 1/4"(under the arm) , let the top of the body out by 1/4 inch (also under the arm).
Next I clipped the armhole - existing clips slightly deeper and some extra ones as well.
On the sleeve I used a long stitch to machine tack on a piece of narrow bias binding - I stretched it as I sewed and then pulled the tacking up a bit as well.
Next I pinned the sleeve into the armhole, then sewed in short sections stopping whenever there was about to be a pucker. Once I'd put the sleeve in I checked for any bits which were not quite right, unpicked and resewed those until it was all smooth. Then I removed the bias binding and the tacking stitch and finally serged all the raw edges as the clipped part was fraying all over the place.
The end result however is a lovely sleeve with NO puckers, which I am very pleased about. | Buy this pattern for $15.95 Add to Bag  |
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Pattern with more than 5 reviews!
<< Previous Review Next Review >> | Reader Comments | | sewtime | 8/4/09 | Love your new blouse! Pretty color and great fit! | | * * * | | BJ1400 | 8/4/09 | Your blouse looks great! Love the color! | | * * * | | Rhonda in Montreal | 8/4/09 | Looks GREAT on, Ruthie!! WOW!! Lots of work, & now a TNT that you can "just whip up", eh!! ;) | | * * * | | FreyaStark | 8/4/09 | A nice shirt. Your effort has paid off. | | * * * | | Annette1 | 8/4/09 | I LOVE your blouse, Ruthie. Absolute PERFECTION -- and that COLOR ... :o) | | * * * | | yorkshire lass | 8/4/09 | Lovely shirt on you. I am so pleased we got it to fit the way you wanted. Now you have a TNT pattern I will look forward to seeing more versions. | | * * * | | CarolynGM | 8/4/09 | Very timely and helpful review for me! I just cut out and started this shirt today. | | * * * | | clin | 8/5/09 | Lovely looking blouse and isn't it nice to have one that fits you properly - great going!! | | * * * | | Geordie Girl | 8/5/09 | Lovely blouse Ruthie. It was worth all the time and effort put in. Yours looks much better than the pics on the envelope. | | * * * | | gatorgirl4325 | 8/5/09 | A PERFECT blouse, Ruthie! The color is fantastic. | | * * * |
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