Spring Forward Blouse

Pattern: McCall's Misses' Lined Dresses #M6319

Fabric: 1/2 yd Echino yellow polka dot + 1/3 yd Echino blue cotton linen blend

Cost: $9

This fabric jumped out at me from the remnant bin. Usually an expensive cotton linen that runs upwards of $17/yd, they were selling half a yard of Echino fabric for $5. This, of course, set me up for two challenges: how to make a modern-looking blouse out of a woven fabric, and how to do it on only half a yard. 

I chose the McCall's dress pattern, originally for stretch knit fabrics, for its simple yet modern flair.  It is slightly tapered at the waist without using the darts and seams of a fifties blouse. I tested it out first on computer software, which you can see here. Here are some of the cool details:

asymmetrical shoulder pleats

non-functional shoulder zipper

bottom detail

Unfortunately, the top as a whole was too short. I almost could have pulled it off as a crop top, but I'm not a huge fan of the crop tops and wanted to get a little more wear out of it. So, I added on a strip of blue that matches the bright blue bias binding and shoulder zipper. At first I made it elasticized, but ended up redoing it flat. 

It's still a bit chilly, but today is the first day of spring and the first time I can take pics on a workday because of the time change. Good things are ahead in this top...

You can read my review of this pattern at PatternReview.com.