I've always had a liking for "dancer" style clothing (wrap cardies, circle skirts, ballerina tops and of course batwing or Flash dance style tops or t-shirts). I've always been a dancer at heart so I blame 9 years of jazz dance training for this obsession with ballerina and dancer clothing. I was convinced for years that I couldn't wear the batwing style but as I'm trying to branch out in the styles I wear I thought it was time for another try.
And the great news? I LOVE IT!!!
This is Burda 7866 which I believe is out of print now. I have had my eye on it literally for years so when I saw it marked down on a recent trip to Ferriers Fashion Fabrics along side the perfect fabric to trial the design it seemed fabric fate had brought us together!
The fabric is a grey, self-pattern knit from Ferriers Fashion Fabrics - these guys have a seriously wonderful selection of fabrics and great service (I've already been back for more fabric to make 2 more versions of this top!). Although not always the cheapest, the quality is amazing. After making up 2 garments in fabric purchased here I can honestly say that slightly pricier fabric is worth it as everything is easier and looks 10 times better in a good fabric. Plus they did have a sale running so this knit wasn't all that expensive in the end. The pattern takes 1.6m for the size 10 I made and while you can squeeze this top out of 1.3m I think you would lose the shaping to the bottom band in the process. So for a whole 30cm of fabric and a nicer shaped top I think sticking with the 1.6m length is best.
Constructing this baby was easy - including tracing the pattern, cutting the fabric and unearthing the second overlocker needle this still only took 3 hours! I think the next one will probably be more like 2 hours (oh yes there will be more of these!!). Everything is cut on the fold where possible to save on seaming during construction. I chose to skip making the matching belt since it felt too fussy to add an unnecessary tie to a simple knit top. As you can see - after attaching the neckline bands this top only has 5 seams and 3 hems to complete. I followed the instructions for attaching interfacing and a neckband to the neckline which was similar to adding bias binding, technique-wise, and am actually really happy with the finish here. Normally I would just add viseoflix and turn the seam allowance but so many people have said how nice the neckline is finished I think I will continue using this method! I sewed all the seams on the 4 thread overlocker with wooly nylon on which definitely helped speed up the process :-)
I really like the simplicity of this top. In a lovely weight knit like this one it drapes and hangs beautifully and I like that the neckline, although high, is quite wide and flattering. I've been wanting to wear this constantly since I finished it and it's certainly going to become a TNT (Tried N True) pattern in the future! Now I just need to work on my pirouettes ;-)
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