Hammy Versus The Breton Top (Simply Sewing)

Greetings, salutations, hello, Yo, and so forth. A particular hello to anyone who has found my newly launched YouTube channel and decided to follow me here. Don't worry to anyone who has been following this blog, this blog will continue, the ethos will continue, the mangling of lexicon, syntax and puns will continue. It's just I wanted to create more work for myself, clearly.

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a modern women in possession of a good wardrobe, must be in want of a t-shirt for every occasion

I loooooove t-shirts. The right t-shirt, in the right fabric, in the right fit can be used for virtually every occasion. From walking the dog to casual drinks, peaking out of your casual-smart work wardrobe....crying into ice cream as you nurse period pain. It is a criminally undervalued workhorse. Dresses are nice and all but one can only battle tights for so many mornings a week. I need to check out Snag Tights ASAP but £6.99 for 1 pair when I can get M&S for £8.00 for 3 pairs... T Shirts also quick, satisfying and not too heavy on the fabric. It goes wrong, your PJ pile gets a little extra glamour.

However, my workhorse pattern (Threadcounts Ultimate T shirt), I came to the sad realisation, was a crappy pattern. Let's take a look at the horror. Before you scroll down, let it be known this is after vast adjustments already (6 inches at least taken out of the neck line through darts). At least 3 attempts (Drawing out from fresh each time) Grab a gin and tonic because this is a nasty one

.... seriously, grab that drink

....its not too late to turn back

....you asked for it

So I decided that it was time that I found some t shirt patterns and toile some solutions so I can up my T-shirt game. I wear them all the time but my t shirts are a bit crappy and want a more polished, curated wardrobe going forward. Thank nice pants, a fitted blazer and a peek of interesting t-shirt. A curated wardrobe means that I can just throw stuff on a go in a morning and as the end of lockdown approaches, that it becoming more important to me. Now, if I start talking about "Sparking Joy" please hose me down and bring me an ice-cold craft cider.

I have also discovered an habit-forming love of niiiiiiiice t shirt cotton jersey such as a John Lourden. At £15.00 a metre (yes, that horror above above was a expensive victim), it better make me feel like Mae West, but as these t-shirts are between 1-1.5m, it's a nice luxury item that I can treat myself too without it being a source of anxiety.

Now, I did mention this search on my channel and I got some nice suggestions. Tilly and the Buttons "Agnes", Seamwork "Orlando", KLP Tee Pattern were some of the suggestions that I try. This is wonderful. Thank you everyone who commented. These are patterns that I would not have considered otherwise. I looked and they are £8.99 to £14.00 each. For a pattern I am going planning to use again and again, thats nothing. So for the right pattern, I'll get my moth-eaten wallet out and pay. Some I liked, some i didn't, some I was horrified that someone could charge 14.00 for a grown on sleeve basic shirt. However, I had a suspicion that I could find a basic T-Shirt pattern that I loved for either free or cheaper than a £8.99 pricetag. So this is my starting point. At this point, I would be remiss if I did not mention Broad in the Seams (Jess, Co-owner/designer of Muna and Broad is the blog writer) listing of Free, plus-sized patterns, which was my first point of call. There is over a 100 patterns and if it doesn't have at least an 50 inch hip, it isn't listed. That blog is worth its weight in gold. I'll wait....go check it out. I'll do a series on free t-shirt patterns and work my way on paying for patterns... eventually. At the moment, I'm doing a lot of reorganising in my sewing room and my house in general and as I looked at all my patterns.... Imagine me as I stumbled, sweaty, slightly peckish, hair askew, on the Breton T Shirt pattern, which I completely forgot that I had. I whispered "holy shit" and fist pumped. It was similar to a Gertie pattern (Gertie Sews Modern Vintage) which I was planning to trace, being a boat neck, long sleeve variation top but the appeal of not having to trace overlaid pattern pieces was too much for me to resist. I did a little skip of joy at a little saving in work and no Pritt stick in sight. Hurrah.

I have also downloaded a couple of other patterns which I will review, once I have actually tried them out.

The pattern was slightly too small for my arse (as is standard) so I had to extend the hip line. I have actually filmed the process, so you can see this on the video when it gets uploaded, which might be this week or next week. The editing is going to be a nightmare on this one, so apologies in advance. However, the adjustment was pretty simple. I basically extended the hem out my 1.5 cm, found the biggest extrusion on the pattern and used my french curve to recreate the slight curvature from the hip to the hem and then from the hipline drew a gradient line to the arm hole line. Repeat on the back bodice. On the sleeve, kept the the sleeve head size 18 and graded out to a size 20.

This is a standard adjustment for me and something I automatically do now for any close fitting sleeve.

I used a £2 a metre fabric from my local market, as this is a toile. It reminded me of Kat Slater and for some reason made me smile and that was enough for me to hand over my £4.00. As an aside, it feels really nice and soft and there is an amount of recovery in the material.

The construction, as you would expect, is not particularly complex but I must admit I am rather proud of the neat finish of the neckband. The instructions on the neckband though were slightly confusing. Not the construction, that was pretty simple and the pictures on the pattern proved to be Hammy-proof. The pattern assumes that the stretch on the fabric is 30% and instructs the maker to pin the neckband around, ensuring a 1 cm seam allowance is accounted for and then take off 10%, adjusting the size of the band for other stretch percentage fabrics. Adjust to what....please don't make me to maths....please, I beg you

It was beautifully quick, blissfully easy, I managed to make this in about 2-3 hours. That is despite my walking foot breaking (sob...RIP, friend) and 3 twin needles (because I didn't notice the walking foot break) That is pretty much unheard of for me, particularly for a pattern I haven't made before. And....I didn't use the seam ripper once. That is as rare as Rocking Horse Shit.

So the reveal...what do you think. Is it an 80's throwback as my BF has branded it?? Separate to the fabric, what do you think of the fit?

If you love the pattern, check out Ebay, facebook, etc, I guarantee there will be one hanging around for £3-4. If you buy direct from simply sewing you are looking at £8.99....

As always, I love the comments, the interaction...thank you everyone and have a good week!