Monday 3 August 2015

Burda 03/2013 #107, aka the Most Amazing pschedelic cardigan EVER!

I have had this pattern since last summer.  I think I originally wanted to use some Missoni fabric for it.  Thank god I came to my senses and made a Plaintain instead.  (That was hard enough!) After that I never found fabric I liked - something stretchy but fine knit.

Until a few weeks ago, that is.  I had been musing on cardigans as in the summer a small cardigan is perfect to carry around and throw over your tank top when it gets cool out.  This cardi pattern, chilling in my pattern bag under everything else (is it ghetto that I have one of those big shopping bags as my pattern collection?) was itching to be made *and* while I was in Bern it was the perfect time to splurge at my favourite fabric store, VeroStoffe.  The shop is privately owned and has a well-curated selection.  Unfortunately, not cheap.  I doubt anything is less than 30 franks per meter.

So this amazing cool drapey rayon jersey, at 32 franks a meter, seemed like a steal.  I was in love and didn't hesitate, and I took it home and made up this cardigan in like 2 days flat, brushing aside all the half done projects in the way.  I cut a 38 although I debated a 36 because the material was so stretchy, but the 38 was fine (there is quite a bit of fabric under the arms but not in a bothersome way.)





It is amazing!  I was terrified because of hating gathers but I survived them and although they hang a bit low, it's the pattern - the gathers are not to hold your boobs up, they are more to hide the stuff under your boobs.  I think this is actually a super fabulous pattern.

Ok then I did the stupid thing.  The denoument was waiting to happen, right?  I have this snap maker, and I have all these pretty snaps, and even dark blue ones!  So I spent an hour educating myself on plastic snaps and then filled up my great cardigan with snaps.  Which was perfect!  Until I had to take it off after trying it on!  The snaps are so much stronger than the fabric, even in two layers, which I did NOT ever think of interfacing, that they rip straight out of the fabric.

ooohhhh I hate learning by experience!  So I debated...cutting 20 little squares, interfacing them and zig zagging them on and then re-snapping.  And I put this in a corner to sulk.  And then I thought that is too much work and I am sooo lazy.  So if I just cut one long strip for front and back, interface then and zig zag them on and then re-apply all the snaps, it will be like a band feature.  What do you think?

In the end and with the help of some patternreview comments, I realised I was making things too complicated!!  I zigzagged the band shut, and sewed buttons over the holes (I just pulled out all the snaps.)  So I love my new shirt, even though it no longer opens up the front, it doesn't really need to.  I will interface the front band on my next version and I will use actual buttons.

Here are the after pictures.





 

2 comments:

  1. Keep them shut and wear it like a jumper!

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    1. That would have been smart but now enough of the buttons are kind of pulling out of the fabric...I think they won't last the first wash : (

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