Continuing on with my Vogue Today’s Fit items, I recently completed two versions of Sandra’s twist front top.
When I was at the retreat, I asked for Sandra’s advice. I knew the top would be too low-cut for me in the bust area, based on experience with other patterns such as Burda. I am a little short between shoulder and underarm. I was glad that Sandra showed me where to shorten the pattern, as the front is oddly shaped. Below is a picture of the front pattern piece. Her suggestion was to write “side” and “shoulder” on the pattern piece. The arrow on the left (pointing up) is the side and the arrow on the right (pointing to the right) is the shoulder. The right side of the pattern piece with the gentle curve is the center front.
Next picture is a close-up of the shoulder. A tuck was taken in the pattern at 2 spots below the shoulder in order to shorten the neckline. Each tuck is about 1/2″ at the neck/center front edge and goes to nothing at the armhole (left side of the picture). Since I needed a 1″ reduction in the length of the front, Sandra removed 1/2″ from two places.
Here is a picture of the pattern piece on a dress form to better illustrate the tucks.
The first top was made from a rayon/spandex blend fabric from FabricMart. This is a wearable muslin. I wanted to be sure it would not be too low in front, and that it fit. It fits and is very wearable. (My hips are a bit larger than this form, so this fits me a little closer in the tummy area than it shows here).
The 2nd version is the one I really wanted; made from a poly knit purchased at Mulberry Silks during the retreat. This is red and black with the red being glittery. This fabric is a little thicker than the test fabric. It is less clingy and just skims my body. I like it very much and it washes like a dream. With the glitter aspect, this is good for evening, but can also be worn during the day with a jacket or vest.
A few tips:
- Read the directions carefully for the twist. It is a little confusing, but if you lay the front out as Sandra shows in the directions and follow her “twisting” method, you will get it right the first time.
- Some sewists have commented that the twist accentuates the bust. The more drapey fabric does do that, so I just wear a 3rd layer. I have a brown faux leather vest that looks great with the print top. The red/black top does not accentuate the bust because the fabric is not as thin.
- Sandra made the longer version and sewed up the slits on the sides to turn it into a dress. I don’t wear dresses often, but I think that would look good a bit shorter, with leggings. The sides hang slightly differently and it looks very nice.
spoolsandyards 