Ottobre Woman Magazine: 02-2013-2 (Summer Basic Top) - Type:Tops  | | Viewed 305 times
| | Review rated Helpful by 1 people Very Helpful by 7 people | | Reviewed by: | westmoon | 
 | About westmoon | | UNITED KINGDOM | | Member since: 9/7/11 | | Reviews written: 20 | | Sewing skills:Advanced Beginner | | Favored by: 4 people | | patterns reviewed: 20 | | Bio: more... |
| | Posted on: | 3/15/13 8:44 AM | | Pattern Size: | Plus-Sized Regular | | Project Photo: |  | | Pattern Photo: | More Info provided by westmoon | | Pattern Rating: | Highly Recommend | | NEW! See reviews of patterns from this issue | | | | Fabric: | Cotton Jersey [See other projects in this fabric] | | Related Links | Click on  to add a link |
| Pattern Description: From the magazine: "The look of the cap-sleeve jersey top can be easily modified by he choice of colour, material and fabric pattern. The top is fairly loose around the waist but fits snugly at the hips." In addition to 02-2013-02, this t-shirt is also listed as 02-2013-16 in a colour blocked version with a small pocket.
Pattern Sizing: Sizes 34-52. Normally my Ottobre size is a 44 top with a large FBA tapering to a 46 waist and hips. As this is a kimono sleeved top and the shoulder position is less important, I decided to go with a cheater's approach. I used a size 48 through the shoulder and bust and tapered down to a 46 waist and hip. It's important to get the waist and hip right in you want the top to fit as the pattern is designed.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Apart from a small design change I made, yes, very like.
Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, they are brief but perfectly adequate. The top is so simple though there's hardly any need to read them if you've made at least one knit top before.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? What appealed to me about this top was principally the shaping of the pattern pieces, fitting through the upper body and loose over the midriff. I had no dislikes.
Fabric Used: A cotton jersey and a viscose jersey with lycra. The absolute best thing about this top is that you only need a little piece of 150cm wide fabric even if you're using the largest sizes of the pattern. I have a little pile of 1m cuts and they are absolutely ideal for this top -- you end up with just a few tiny scraps.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: The neckline of this pattern is wider than I like and risks being the sort of top where you spend the whole day pulling it back over your bra straps. I therefore redrew the neckline 4cm closer to the neck but kept the depth of the scoop intact. I made only one alteration for fit, increasing the armhole by 2.5cm in depth to accommodate my large upper arms. It's notable that I DIDN'T make my standard length adjustment to this top. Ordinarily I add 4-6cm in length to Ottobre patterns because I'm 5'8" and Ottobre's patterns are designed for a height of 5'6". In this case I didn't need to add any length at all even though the top naturally scrunches up around the hip. Shorter sewists might find that the length, unadjusted, produces a lot of fabric bunching around the waist and hip. The shape of the pattern pieces means it would be a bit awkward to take the top up at the hem if you dislike the length after you have cut the fabric, so worth considering this ahead of time. Here is a photo of the top "unscrunched" so that it's shown full length.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I'm absolutely in love with this pattern and how the finished garment looks on me and will probably end up making up dozens to this pattern.
Conclusion: For me, this is the ultimate potato chip pattern: you really can't just make one!
More photos and notes on my blog. |
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 Pattern with more than 5 reviews!
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8 Comments
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Thank you for the review. I am just about to trace this off and was wondering what it looked like in real life! I'm going to make the two-tone version first and have enough material to recut the bottom section if necessary. Your tops look great.
3/15/13 8:50 AM
Your tops look great. Thanks for the thorough review.
3/15/13 10:07 AM
Great looking tops!! Congrats...and thanx for the info on the neck width. I'm going to have to search out this pattern! Very usefull to have the "unscrunched" photo.
3/15/13 11:23 AM
Love your tops. I was thinking about making this up and love to see the finished tops and your pattern modifications
3/15/13 1:05 PM
Great top! I am currently tracing this too. Thanks for the short people tip! I am one.
3/15/13 6:22 PM
Great tops! Thanks for the timely and thorough review. I plan to trace this over the weekend and your tips will be helpful.
3/15/13 9:42 PM
Thank you for showing two different views. I had assumed the narrow bottom was narrow enough to not be pulled down. This top is on my to-make list.
3/16/13 12:50 PM
Great tops! I love your choice of fabrics.
3/16/13 3:49 PM