Floral Boxy Top

this pic is the best to show the actual color/vibrancy of this top

Jocole! I just can't quit you!

But who would want to? Here's yet another sewn something using a Jocole pattern. This time a boxy top made from a modified Quick Dress pattern.

It was never my intention to make this blouse. The whole thing was an accident.

Our story begins while fabric shopping for my daughter. I wanted to make her a floral blouse in this print in the navy colorway. She's a redhead, as you know, and blues suit her better than blacks. Well I ordered the navy fabric from fabric.com and in my order I received the black colorway. I called them and they said I could keep the fabric sent and they sent out the correct fabric. Well I had only ordered a half yard because my daughter is 5 and that's enough to make a blouse. So now I had a generous half yard of this floral in the black colorway with no plan intended. I loved the fabric though. I held it up to my body and figured I could eek out a blouse for myself.

I knew I wanted a boxy blouse and I wanted to use every available inch of this fabric. Plus I like boxy tops lately with my fitted bottoms. I know there are tutorials out there for how to make one but I'm not really a tutorial person. I've had too many failures. So I knew I wanted to start with a pattern and one that I could pull over my head. Jocole's Quick Dress and Top would be just perfect. I cut the small in the neck/sleeve length and then barely curved down from the sleeve and then straigtened the side seam all the way to the bottom. Then I cut the bottom hem straight across a little above the tunic length. I didn't have enough fabric to cut a tunic length. Oh and I should mention that I cut my blouse across the grain to get as much length as I could going selvedge to selvedge. Since I was using a woven I figured that would be ok... don't do this if you're making something with a knit and your pattern has no ease.

I cut facings out of lining fabric I had on hand and then assembled the blouse. I sewed up the neck opening and shoulders and hemmed the sleeves. Then I serged the sides and bottom of the front/back blouse pieces. I did this because I stopped sewing the side seams four inches from the bottom so I could have side slits. I knew I was going to wear this dancing and wanted ease of movement.

Yes I wore this dancing. I made it the morning of girls night out. I used to go dancing all the time when I was single and usually went shopping for something new before I went out. So it was kind of like old times except now I sew. So I sewed something new. Also I wore this with coated/leather look leggings... because well I was going dancing!!!!! I was inspired by this image from pinterest. Honestly, that's how I style myself now. So many cool ideas out there that I can apply to me.

via pinterest

Honestly my outfit doesn't look anything like hers... but that's the beauty of being inspired and then working with what you have. I did feel like hot stuff that night and had so much fun even though we went to a club filled with geriatrics... it was good for us moms who just wanted to have a fun time.

please forgive my hair... bad post-faux-hawk/bed-head... pins needed!