Tuesday, August 15, 2017
Breton Sweatshirt
Breton Sweatshirt
Ok, so Ive figured out another way to insert some Breton vibes into my wardrobe: as a kind of sweatshirt. Ive used up my official photographers goodwill, so whilst that replenishes, youll have to see this garment on the stand. Goodness, I hope the goodwill is sufficiently restored before #mmmay16!
Fabric:
I want to talk about the fabric before the pattern in this post because that is where this project started. Back in August, I helped out at the Fabric Godmothers first open day. Josie was incredibly generous and let me pick a couple of lovely pieces of fabric as a thank you for my time. When I got home I kept thinking about this awesome paint-effect stripy french terry knit and was kicking myself for not having picked it at the time. I mentioned it whilst chatting with someone on twitter, and a short while later, two metres arrived in the post!!! Josie is the sweetest lady, let it be said!
The facing fabric was a scrap of curtaining left over from my nautical knot dress. I also used the same stuff to make a sample of the Sew Over It Tulip skirt when I used to work for them, which can be seen here. That skirt appeared in one of the sewing magazines a while back in case this nautical fabric is looking familiar and you cant figure out why!
Pattern:
This garment is my third that has been based in some way on the vintage pattern pictured below. Im still firmly in love with my 1960s Breton top so I imagine this wont be the last time I try and recreate a little of that magic by turning to this pattern. This time I decided to monkey around with the hem, probably inspired by something Id seen via Pinterest. I eye-balled the curved hem shape and made the corresponding facing pattern piece.
Because the french terry is so drapey, I probably should have omitted the bust darts (which I promise is more inline with my bust on my actual body; my stand is unrealistically pert!) but I wanted to get cracking so blazed ahead without doing so. I added a little patch pocket to break up the stripes a bit from the same fabric as the facings. The jury is still out on whether the fabrics go together, but I like that they both have a hand-painted effect to them.
Thoughts:
Until you see this modelled during #mmmay16, youll have to trust me when I tell you that this is a pretty good looking garment when worn. It is definitely more casual than the 1960s Breton version, which holds its shape very well, but thats fine as playgroup/ground-suitable wardrobe fodder is always welcome round these parts. Currently I have no cardigans that are suitable for layering over the top of this, so Ill have to wait until it is a lot warmer to bust it out properly.
Im not, however, entirely convinced yet that the hem facing is a win. It feels slightly more constricting round my hips than it would if Id just hemmed it, and Im a little concerned that the drapey french terry might sag a little around the topstitching that secures the hem facing in place. If that ends up happening, Ill probably rethink the curved hem and re-hem it straight after unpicking the facing.
Cost:
Fabric: £0 (it was a gift from Fabric Godmother and sadly, although unsurprisingly, its no longer on their website so I cant even tell you how much it would cost. The last time I was there though, there was a tiny bit left on a roll, so if youre interested it might be worth contacting them)
Lining fabric: £0 (a scrap of a charity-shopped curtain that my mum gave me)
Pattern: £0 (well, I probably bought it on eBay yonks ago but Ive long since forgotten about its source so am considering it free!)
Total: £0 (arguably)
Available link for download
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