I like the the tie, cap sleeves and tucks below the shoulder
Cynthia Steffe Tory Printed Silk Top from Neiman Marky for $195
Pattern Description
Misses' "Tuck-in blouse with collarless, high round neck-line and large tied bow or small flat collar. Tucks at shoulders. Cap sleeves." Original price 35 cents.
Size
Misses' Bust 34, hip 37. I was surprised that the bust area was not snug! I wonder if the pattern was referring to the high bust measurement.
Fabric
For my muslin version, I used Alexander Henry's "Shopping Spree" in woven cotton, purchased from Hancock's of Paducah. This blouse would be so fun to wear on a cruise. Due to some of the items printed on the fabric, I do not plan to wear it to work. On the other hand, I could be a walking billboard for what the girls should not wear to school which are violate the campus dress code. It's a paradox to see this seriously styled top paired with not-so-serious fabric.
Favorite Features
* The four tucks below the front shoulder
* Cap sleeves
* The front and back tucks below the waistline provide a flattering contour
* The front tie
Challenges
*Pattern pieces contain no printed information. They have perforations which are typical of vintage patterns from this era. The main pattern pieces have "punched" dots that spell out what they are(i.e. "front facing", "collar", "bow", "front", "back")
*The sleeve facings were missing
The Pattern Pieces
This is officially my first experience working with "unprinted" patterns. As I was inspecting the pattern pieces, I was initially very intimidated with what appeared as a random array of punched dots! On the direction sheet, there is a little glossary for what the punched markings symbolize. The row of dots designated the seam allowances, Columns of dots designated the location of the little darts or tucks. There are others (which I have not fully deciphered and probably never will) that that match and align with other pieces to be sewn together.
The pattern piece "punched" with the word "FRONT" and the other with the word "BACK" did not match those in the cutting layout! Then I realized that the entire front piece consisted of three sections: the front edge that looked identical to the one marked "FRONT FACING" , the one with the armscye, and the bottom portion. Just like a puzzle, I had to figure out which piece was front edge and which piece was the bottom portion of the front, but by looking at the the patterns of the holes! The front bottom portion had four columns of dots representing the 4 tucks and the bottom portion of the back had one column signifying the single dart on each back side. It was easier to figure out which was the center back by the curvature of the neckline before the shoulder seams.
Directions
The directions were overall fine, notably in clarifying the stitch width of the tucks (1/8" from the center). The illustrations were useful in clarifying things such as location of the darts/tucks.
I adjusted to the "courier" font, which I refer to as "typewriter-type" font. Because following the format was somewhat unfamiliar for me, I had a tendency to skip some information that seemed be hidden among the illustrations (i.e. "seam the shoulders"). There are are also some unfamiliar terminology that I figured out immediately by context.
There seemed to be another page missing that probably referred to last stage of construction (i.e. hemming, adding buttonholes/buttons)
Modifications
*Removed a pair of front tucks
*Decreased the back darts
*Omitted the shoulder pads
*I did not hem the ties as instructed because I did not like the strong chance of the wrong side of the fabric showing and exposing the hem. Since the bow width seemed unsually large, I folded each tie in half, right sides together and sewed a 3/8" seam along the edges and along the widest edge of the bow. I turned each tie, right sides out from the open or unstitched end.
* Instead of placing the pleated end (top part)of each tie at the marked point just below the neckline, I inserted each end between the front facing and front edge of the blouse, thus omitting the first button and buttonhole. I did not like starting edge of the ties visible from the outside.
Would you recommend this pattern?
I would recommend this pattern or something similar if you like vintage fashions and enjoy a new challenge of working with unprinted patterns.
Conclusion
Maybe due my first experience working with vintage "unprinted" patterns, this seemingly basic top look longer to sew than expected (4 hours). I was glad to use not-so-expensive fabric, especially with the changes I made along the way. If I make it again, I would use fabric with nice drape.
There might be current patterns with identical styling (cap sleeves, bow ties, etc) that I would like to try.
Since I have a little more confidence working with unprinted patterns, I plan to sew other vintage patterns (i.e. 40's "Hollywood" brand patterns with pictures of famous movie stars during that time frame) that have been sitting in my stash.
