Study in Striped Knits

Coco Chanel (pic credit)

Knit striped shirts are really in a class of it's own. It's such a classic. It has stood the test of time and have become quite iconic when it comes to casual wear.  The cross over of the striped shirt aka Breton from utilitarian wear to fashion, from men to women's wear is attributed to Coco Chanel.

Jean Paul Gaultier (pic credit)

However, in recent modern times Jean Paul Gaultier has been associated with popularising this nautical casual white and blue striped shirt.  The Breton shirt is so ingrained in French society that it was one of the official garment for the French Navy.  There were specific attentions to details.  A Breton is 3/4 sleeve length and has 21 stripes to denote as many victories of Napoleon Bonaparte.  So much history.  Read more in WikiFashion.

And here's my humble interpretation.  Not to specifications of course.  Maybe one day I will endeavour to research even more and come up with a Breton that's historically correct.

I've wanted to sew this bateau neckline version for some time.  I saw a similar shirt at a store around Christmas time last year.  So I studied how it was constructed and it wasn't too difficult.  That's the good thing about sewing our own garments, we can replicate most designer looks or style lines without robbing a bank!  Not to say the top I saw was very pricey, it was more 'hey ... I can do that!'

This is my OCD playing up! LOL!!  I took insurance by pinning every stripe so as to match up the side seams.

And of course the result ALWAYS justifies the extra work put in :)

I find myself gravitating to stripes lately what with the pink Breton in my previous post over a week ago.  I've also bought some shirts from the store.  I know ... I broke the cardinal sewers' rule!  I assure you they were pretty reasonably priced and I've classified them under R&D.  All in the name of improving my sewing and learning certain details and style lines.  My threshold of workmanship and quality is very low with these store bought items as evident in this raglan sleeved shirt below :p

Pink The New Blue?

 

Seems like I'm having a pink phase at the moment.  I attribute this obsession temporary phenomenon to working on my Tilda House Tapestry blocks and those cutesy children's wear that I'm planning.  Not to worry ... boys will get that fair share in blues.  What can I say? ... I'm old fashioned.

Or maybe it's a stripe thing.  I don't know why but once in a while I like to kill myself matching striped side seams.  Therein lies the challenge.
 

Believe it or not, the pattern for this top is my all time favourite Scout Woven Tee.  A pattern that's meant for woven fabrics.  As I browse through the blogs I find there's been many successful versions of the Scout Tee sewn up in knit fabrics.  Needless to say I had to attempt it myself.  And I absolutely love it!

Ironically I did not need go down a size as the norm suggests when sewing with knit fabric using patterns meant for wovens.  That's a real bonus because I didn't need to trace up a smaller sized pattern.  I always cut and sew on separate days especially when cutting striped fabric and hoping to match them was rather tedious.

And here are some pink fabrics that I'll be working on for those Tilda blocks.  They sure look so pretty together.

So what's next on my sewing table?  Blues and whites ... do I hear a collective sigh of relief?!  LOL!!  I've got a Plaintain cut in a Breton like stripe and more thin striped knit in the horizon.
 

Alabama Chanin Inspired Garments

I've been thinking a lot about garments made in the Alabama Chanin method.  The simplicity and yet the amount of hand stitching that goes into each garment is really astounding.  There are so many variations of these simple hand stitching and each has a different outcome.

I have made 3 garments prior to this fitted top.  They were 2 basics i.e. not embellished and 1 lightly embellished. It's advisable to sew up a basic garment to check on fit and any alterations that you may have before spending many hours embellishing and finding the garment ill fitting.

This is my completed fitted top of which I have used the negative reverse applique method.  Running stitches with visible knots.  The template is Anna's Garden.  This top is sans stenciling.  What I did was copy the design with a water soluble pen and then stitched 1/8" within that line.  The neckline and arm holes were bound with herringbone stitch.  I should also mention that I only embellished the front.

The wrong side

The shoulder seams were reinforced with a strip of twill tape as how it's done in regular t-shirts

Texture of the front

I'm now currently working on another garment.  I've cut this T-shirt some time back.  I bought an XL T-Shirt from The Reject Shop and cut it up to make it smaller and re-stitched it by hand.  You can just about see the size printed on the back neckline.  It'll be covered with binding once I get to it.  I will add on some embellishments with maybe a single repeat as you see in the book's left most diagram.  Also I intend to add some chopped / bugle beads.

As for the thread, I am using Coats Dual Duty Plus (297M) compared to AC's recommended Button Craft thread.  Firstly I cannot get them here locally and I get more bang for the buck with the former.  And it works just as well.

Deer & Doe - Plaintain T-Shirt

Pattern: Deer & Doe - Plaintain T-Shirt
Size: 44
Fabric: 1.4M 60" Viscose Knit

Details:

• Cut the fabric on single layer of fabric, recommended when matching stripes and plaids.
• Sleeve was shortened by 3" from the full sleeve mark
• Length was shortened about 2"
• Used a facing for the neckline
• Altered the neckline to a bateau
• Made sure that the side seams matched

Burda - Lydia

Pattern: Burda - Lydia
Size: 38
Fabric: 1.25M 60" polyester micro-jersey (Harisons)
Details:

• Altered a couple to a bateau neckline
• Also a couple of 3/4 sleeves instead of full length

Deer & Doe - Plaintain T-Shirt

Pattern: Deer & Doe - Plaintain T-Shirt
Size: 44
Fabric: 1.5M 45" Polyester Knit (People Textile)
Details:

• Barely enough fabric for the t-shirt
• Cut the fabric on single layer of fabric, recomended when matching stripes and plaids.
• Sleeve was shortened by 3" from the 3/4 sleeve mark
• Length was shortened about 2"
• Used twin needle for hemming and neck band

 

Twin needle (2mm) hemming

Single layer cutting with rotary cutter and weighted pattern piece instead of pins

Wearable muslin Plaintain

Burda - Lydia

Pattern: Burda - Lydia
Size: 36
Fabric: 1.25M 60" Polyester Jersey (Kamdar)

Details:

• Altered the neckline to a scoop neck
• Added some gathers at the side seams towards the hem
• 3/4 sleeve 
• Lowered the back neckline by 1/2"

Grainline - Hemlock Tee

Pattern: Grainline - Hemlock Tee
Size: Free
Fabric: 1.25M 60" Cotton Knit (Gift from Jess W)
Details:

• Used mock serger stitch throughout
• Used twin needle for the collar
• Reduced the length by 2"
• The collar band is a little floppy but hopefully after a wash it will recover
• The length of the sleeves and wrist circumference is just nice but I need to increase the width of the upper arm about 1" in total to make it more roomy
• The hems are left unfinished

Looks a little like Breton shirts only the stripes are narrower.  I took a lot of time making sure the stripes matched at the side and shoulder seams.  It was really testing my patience.

 

Burda - Lydia

Pattern: Burda - Lydia
Size: 38
Fabric: 1.25M 60" Polyester Jersey (Kamdar)
Details:

• Altered the neckline to a bateau

 

Pattern: Burda - Lydia
Size: 36
Fabric: 1.25M 60" Polyester Jersey (Kamdar)

Details:

• Altered the neckline to a scoop neck
• Added some gathers at the side seams towards the hem
• 3/4 sleeve

Burda - Lydia

Pattern: Burda - Lydia
Size: 38
Fabric: 1.25M 60" Polyester Jersey (Kamdar)

Burda - Lydia

Pattern: Burda - Lydia
Size: 38
Fabric: 1M 60" Polyester Jersey (Osman)