Concord tee with statement sleeves

Hi everyone! Can you believe I completely forgot to write a post about my most worn garment of late summer / early autumn? Like always, it started with the fabric.

I found this wonderful eyelet jersey during an early summer sale at the fabric market. At first I wanted to make a sleeveless top but quickly decided this fabric was too good to use for a garment I could only wear incidentally during our chilly summer.

I went through my sewing magazines and although I liked the look of all patterns with statement sleeves most of them had rather high necklines. That's when I brought out my favourite v-neck version of the Cashmerette Patterns Concord t-shirt. I measured the circumference of the sleeve hem and drafted a full circle extension.
Well, maybe it had to do with the white eyelet but everytime I looked down I felt I was wearing my grandmother's lampshades.
When I redrafted the flounce to a half circle the proportions were much better.

I opted for a catch stitched hem for the bodice and narrow hand-rolled hems for the sleeves.

Apparently a white top was just what was missing in my closet as I've been wearing it as often as I could!

During our holiday in Belgium.....(best hotel carpet ever!)

While at work, interviewing the owner of a shoe shop for the local newspaper......

Partying with Joliet Jake Blues....

Getting ready for a walk in the beautiful city of Leuven....

And after said walk. Happy smile caused by the contents of that bag next to me.
Y'all guessed right. Fabrics!

Happy weekend!

Concord tee goes Barcelona, part 2

You can take a girl out of her garden, but you can't take the gardener out of the girl.
Touch all the plants, sew all floral fabrics!

By now you'll all recognise this pattern, it's Concord tee #6. Thanks to mr Foxgloves I finally have a decent picture of the back.

The fabric is a dark blue cotton/rayon jersey,  a bit less stretchy than the fabric I used for my previous shirt. As a result the neckline ended up slightly higher. I opted for 7/8 length sleeves to balance the busy print.
You can spot some pooling at my back. I don't think this indicates the need for a sway back adjustment, my other Concords are perfectly fine. It's more likely caused by a less forgiving fabric or being (temporarily?) too tight at the high hip. Guess that's where all the tapas, sangria and palmera cookies went.

There's nothing to tell about fitting and construction that I didn't already mention here, here, here or here so I'll leave you with some Barcelona action pictures of my new shirt.

Outside Gaudi's Sagrada Familia:

Inside the breathtaking masterpiece:

In my natural habitat:

And drinking sangria at the beautiful Placa Reial:

When we returned to our hotel I found my Concord tee nightie stylishly draped on the bed. That night I dreamt about imaginary tiny waistlines ;)


Next: Barcelona fabric shopping adventures!

Concord tee goes Barcelona, part 1

¡Hola, I made another Cashmerette Concord tee! It's my fifth version of the pattern so I can't blame you if you're getting bored, but hey, there's sangria, music and pretty pictures of Barcelona too!

I used a viscose knit fabric, changed the sleeves to full length and hand stitched all hems. I don't like the look of twin needle or coverstitch finishes and although it takes a little longer I like the invisible hems on this shirt. I redid the neckband, as I initially thought it would be nice to have the white stripe on top. It just didn't look right, the rhythm of the stripes looked a bit off. Next time I'll check the look before stitching, ughh!

Using 4-way stretch fabric definitely influenced the fit at the shoulders. Or maybe it was the bag full of tourist essentials I was dragging along, but the left shoulder looks slightly dropped in the top picture.

Window shopping at the Passeig de Gracia. I guess you are all zooming in now to see that jacket behind me. I know I would!

Isn't it gorgeous? Sleeve perfection. Sigh.
But I digress, as we were heading towards the famous Casa Batllo.

Later that day, in the stunning surroundings of Museu Picasso, my stripes felt like an appropriate neutral amidst all vibrant colours. It was such an impressive visit!

Clingy fabric and horizontal stripes are not my best look, so I always envisioned this shirt as a layering piece. (I'm wearing it right now, with a black jacket and bright red shoes and accessories)
Luckily the temperatures in Barcelona were much higher than we expected so jackets and cardigans didn't get much wear. Oh well, who cares about clingy tees. Not me after some sangria!

White sangria with lemon and oranges, divine!

And of course 4-way stretch means plenty of room for tapas.

If you're ever in Barcelona and have the chance to go to a concert in Palau de la Musica Catalana, don't hesitate! It's a beautifully decorated concert hall, designed in Catalan modernism style and built between 1905 and 1908. 

The most beautiful venue for a concert of the Maestros de la Guitarra:

To be continued....