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Angel-Wing Chambray-and-Lace Top
A few months ago Mood Fabrics seduced me in that way they do. I had purchased some denim and they sent me one of those "you may also like..." emails. It featured this Denim and Ivory Novelty Cotton Lace, and I was smitten.
This fabric is a bit misnamed: it is not denim. It is a cotton chambray, but it is denim colored. :)
I purchased 2 yards. I rarely buy or wear lace, but I have been focusing on hot-weather clothing (for Florence and NYC this summer) and this was just.so.pretty!
I played with the fabric and quickly decided that I wanted to use the lace vertically, rather than horizontally. (I posted these pics to Instagram and Facebook and most people thought I should use the fabric horizontally, but I didn't like it as well when held up to my body.)
I quickly decided I wanted a simple angel-wing-style top. I didn't bother with a pattern, so I started with a tape measure. The fabric is 60" from selvedge to selvedge, or 58" if you ignore the lace peaks. I measured from wrist to wrist and my wingspan is 52".
What... you don't tape your tape measure to your body?
That means I needed to remove at least 6" from the width. I didn't want to cut the lace, or mess with the lace at all, so I had to remove the extra fabric from the section between the lace. That section is 16" wide. To complicate matters, I didn't want to remove width in the area where I would have a neck opening, and I needed about 10" for the neck hole, so I had to remove 3" on each side of the neck opening (or 6" total). I sewed the tucks so that they would end above the bust—they release above the bust, providing my full bust adjustment (FBA).
Sheesh, I didn't have a lot of room because, as it was, I had only 3" on each side of the neck opening. So I decided to take 1/2" tucks, directly on top of each other, at each side of the neck opening. This required careful marking, sewing, pressing, and topstitching.
Next, I drew a standard round neckline opening, but it was too small for my head. I added a slit. It now went over my head, but I didn't want a slit, so I turned the slit into a v-neck. (A boat neck would have been easier, but I avoid boat necks - I don't like them on my frame and, anyway, I didn't have enough width for a boat neck once the tucks were sewn in.)
I used a scrap of fabric to make a neckline facing.
I wanted to place the hem on a lace "valley". The valleys occur every 4-1/4", so I experimented pinning the hem at different lengths, but always landing on one of the valleys. I even tried a hi-low hem, but I ended up choosing a longer hem that was the same front and back. I thread basted the hem.
Thread basting
I hemmed the chambray portions by machine and the lace portions by hand
I finished the top by strategically tacking the front to the back at the side bust and side waist. I also tacked a pleat into the front, below the bust, to control the volume a bit.
Twirling
This top was made from a rectangle and has no shoulder or side seams. I used a 60" by 69" rectangle, plus some tucks and tacks for shaping and taming the fullness.
Do I like this top? I think so. I made it specifically for hot weather and wore it over a cream tank top for these pics at 7am this morning. I was freezing, so I take that as a good sign, as far as hot weather goes. I wore it over a sweater for a local arts festival today and it is fun to wear with those lacy wings. I can't wear a sweater or jacket over it, and I put my cross-body purse under it, which maybe wasn't the best look, but I didn't want to carry a satchel. I doubt I'll take it to Florence, because the cotton has a tendency to wrinkle, but I think it will be a cool and fun wear on a hot day!
Style '17 & Giveaway
Last year I blogged about Style '16. The Style show provides a great opportunity to buy gorgeous wearable art and jewelry directly from the artists. I love events like this! I made sure to get Style '17 on my calendar many months ago—April 29th and 30th. This year the event will be held at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View—walking distance from where I work one or two days each week.
Then, last week, one of the co-producers of Style '17 kindly reached out and offered me two free tickets. I bought my ticket months ago, so I asked if I could offer the tickets to my blog readers. She agreed, so, if you would like two free tickets to this fabulous event, please leave a comment indicating your interest! I will post the winner next weekend, so you have until Friday to enter.
For those who don't win, you can still save! They offered my blog readers 40% off the ticket price, so it will cost $6 instead of $10. (To be honest, I don't mind paying full price for this event because it benefits Art in Action, a national non-profit that provides visual arts curriculum to 75,000 students each year, including children in 185 Bay Area schools.)
To get the ticket discount, enter SHAMS40 on the last page of the checkout. If you do come and you see me, please say hi! In short... a fun day at the Computer Museum, great shopping, benefitting arts programs—it's a win-win-win!
(By the way, two of my artist-friends have booths at this event. Winnie of Eccentric Designs jewelry, and wearable artist Carol Lee Shanks, who sometimes teaches at Design Outside the Lines.)
Can you believe it's April already? My weekend calendar is becoming uncomfortably full. Things are heating in my History of Italian Fashion class. In fact, we are each giving a presentation while in Italy and I've selected my subject. I am giving a short preso on designer Antonio Marras. Mr Marras has been designing for Kenzo since 2005 and he also has his own line—his designs are quite compelling. I plan to visit his high-concept store while in Milan this summer. I hadn't heard his name before, but it was instant love when I googled his designs. You might check out his Fall 2017 line.
I've just washed the fabric for my next Britex project, and I've selected a pattern, so that's my activity for next weekend.
Please join me on Patti's Visible Monday. I hope you have a great week!