Monday, January 21, 2013

McCalls 6604

So far for Jungle January, I've sewn snakeprint and zebra, but to me, the quintessential animal print is leopard.
This fabric is a poly chiffon from FabricMart that I have had in the stash for a while. I don't love sewing chiffon, particularly poly chiffon, and it isn't a very practical fabric, but I just love this print, so its time had come.
The pattern I chose was McCalls 6604. I actually had this pattern in my to donate box, but it really was perfect for this so I rescued it. I wanted something with few seams (only 3 pattern pieces - check) and minimal details. Since chiffon makes me twitch, I simplified the sewing as much as possible.
Instead of a facing, I finished the back neckline with a self fabric bias strip. Spray starch tamed that beast.
I used a serger rolled hem on the sleeves and hemline. Wooly nylon thread in the looper makes the coverage nice and dense.
The cowl facing was skimpy, so I deepened it 2 inches, but with the floatyness of the chiffon, it was still flipping out all over the place, so I added a weight to keep it tamed. In this case, I used a nickel, sewn into a self fabric pouch and stitched onto the lowest part of the facing. It does a great job keeping the facing in place.
See how well it stays put?! I actually took this pic to show how deep the cowl actually is. Since this fabric is sheer, I will always wear it with a shirt or cami under, but without a cami, my bellybutton is clearly visible.
When I originally envisioned this top, I pictured it with skinny jeans or leggings, but when I got ready to take pictures, my skinnies just didn't look right with it, so I pulled out this brown skirt (Vogue 8603) which I seldom wear. I really like this skirt and it fits well, but all of the tops that look good with it look better with something else. I really like this pairing though, so hopefully this great skirt will see more life now that I have a great top to go with it.
As a parting shot...Rawwr!

And don't forget the giveaway for the Perfect Fit book, mint green linen and New Look pattern! Go and comment to enter if you haven't already! I'll be drawing a name tomorrow and posting the winner on Wednesday.

15 comments:

The Hojnackes said...

Oh, this is lovely! The skirt is perfect with it. (would it have been to cheesy to say purrrfect?) I love how you switched the facing to a bias strip. I have some flimsy chiffon fabrics I want to use and I'll have to remember that one for them!

Lori said...

This is so pretty, great use of a nickel! That is one thing about these drape tops, cami is required. Two more things, the top looks perfect with the skirt and love your boots.

Diana said...

I love this . Looks great. I know what you mean about poly/chiffon. Not fun to sew!

gMarie said...

Katie - that top is lovely! What a great outfit - and out in the snow. g

gwensews said...

That's very Grrrrr! Jungle January is sure bringing the animals out of our stash!

Rebecca said...

Very lovely shirt! I am so glad you mentioned how low the neckline falls when you bend over. I pulled this pattern out the other day thinking I wanted to find some fabric for it, so I will need to keep that neckline in mind. :]

Victoria said...

Cute top!!! And I love the boots as well!

carolinascallin said...

Such a great top - love your idea of sewing the nickel in to keep the cowl in place!

Looks great on you :)

Jane M said...

Love your top and your wonderful stylin for it. Clever nickel idea, too. This pattern intrigues me so thanks for showing it off in this "wild" print.

Cindy said...

The outfit is wonderful! The skirt goes perfectly with the new top.:)

Shannon said...

Love the whole outfit!!

Marjie said...

I hate sewing chiffon, too, but usually love the eventual result. You're really rocking the Jungle January theme!

Anonymous said...

Very cute!

Lynneb said...

Pretty! I love the serger rolled hem. What kind of serger do you have?

Jillybejoyful said...

SO cute on you! And you look like you're having so much fun wearing it! :)