Oh Butterick, why do you mislead me?!

I completed my first shirt Monday evening, and wore it last night for the photoshoot Daniel was doing (I was the dutiful assistant/packhorse/prop master)! It was wonderful, light, breezy, and very comfy...even though I have a decently sized bone to pick with Butterick.

This was a "Fast & Easy" pattern, and it lived up to it's name. The directions, however, left something to be desired. I know, I know, I'm supposed to be smarter than the directions, but let's face it...I can't always be perfect, right? My biggest frustration was something I should have caught if I had read ahead. When attaching the facing to the neckline, the directions had me trim away the seam allowance, then informed me that I was supposed to understitch the seam allowance to the facing. Interesting idea, Butterick. How exactly was I supposed to stitch 1/16" seam allowance to the facing??? I couldn't come up with a way to make that happen, so I edge stitched (1/16" from the seam) through the front, seams allowance, and facing...three times before I was satisfied with the outcome (that equals a LOT of seam ripping with a seriously dull seam ripper and a very unhappy me).

I'm new with the stretchy materials (this was a light weight matte jersey), and couldn't quite get the edge stitching through all those layers without stretching it (perhaps I need to learn more about this stretch stitch I've read about?), so the neck and facing still lay a little funny, but I think it would have been just fine if I could have under stitched the facing. My other big issue is that along a couple of the pleats' seams, the stitching is pulling through the fabric...not quite sure how.

Another thing I tried to figure out, with no success, was a way to put a tighter (not tight, just not draping) strip of fabric on the inside across the bust to keep the gathers from falling into the anti-cleavage area that some "well-endowed" women, such as myself, somehow have. I just wanted to attach a strip of fabric (about 4" wide) across the front, starting just below the arm holes on both sides, to act as a nice barrier so an undershirt wouldn't be necessary. Unfortunately, no matter how I tried it, that strip would pull the shirt and make the armholes pucker. So, I wore the undershirt. In the future, I'll know to under stitch before trimming, and I know that 100% against the narrow hem the pattern calls for. It would have looked light years better with a 1" hem or a nice band. I have fabric for another, and I think I'll try out a nice 3" band at the bottom.



I'm also contemplating making one for my sister's birthday to go with the skirt I made her. I made it out of a nice "linen look" blend that was light and soft, perfect for a long casual skirt in a Georgia summer! I wanted the skirt to be very finished looking, and I may have gone overboard with my French seams all around and a top stitched hem, but I like it. That particular fabric, however, informed me that I have a thing or two to learn about pressing, so I've been reading up. I did follow the directions in my Top Fashion book for the zipper (keyed it and everything) and am pretty happy with how it turned out. If I had the paper backed fusible webbing it called for, I think it might have been perfect! All I can say now is if she doesn't like it, I gladly accept returns.