A few months ago I was wandering through Britex. Frankly, their remnants are about the only things I can afford in that place, and I ended up coming across two beautiful pieces of silky rayon polyester, one a rich blue floral, and the other the black and white polka dotted print you see above. I knew sewing with silky rayons would probably make me want to tear out my hair, but I couldn’t resist them.

I decided to use Colette Pattern’s free Sorbetto pattern for the black and white. It seemed like a simple pattern that wouldn’t cause me too much grief, and it is totally my style: not too fitted, drapey, with a single interesting detail that makes it not just an ordinary top.

This was my first time putting together a garment pattern that I downloaded from the internet, and it wasn’t as daunting as I expected. After taping all the pieces together, I traced it off onto pattern paper, which was much easier to work with than printer paper.

The slippery rayon did prove crazy challenging in the cutting arena, and also when I first started sewing it. But I learned a few tricks that eventually made it easier, and finally accepted the fact that yes, I did need to buy a new needle and some special thread for sewing something so delicate and thin. Using a size 70 needle and some softer rayon thread made a huge difference. In the future, I’d also like to find some spray-on stabilizer, but I couldn’t find any this go around that wasn’t also adhesive. I’m not sure if spray starch would do the same thing.

I attempted to make bias tape out of the polka dotted fabric, because I really wanted the bias finish around the neckline and armholes to match the blouse. But with the slippery fabric, and it being my first attempt at making bias tape, that didn’t happen. I don’t LOVE the grey bias finish, but I don’t hate it, either, so I think it’s fine. The next time I make this top, though, I want matching bias tape.

Finally, I did have to make a minor pattern alteration: I graded the pattern out at the hem a bit to better fit my hips. I knew that if I left it as is, it would be constricted at my hips and wouldn’t hang as nicely. I’m really glad I did that, because the shirt fits very comfortably.

All in all, I ended up really liking this top. I have to wear a camisole under it, because the fabric is fairly sheer. But I wore it to work yesterday and received several compliments. I’m a little afraid of washing it, because I’m still not that great at finishing seams. But we shall see.

The Facts (I’m stealing this idea from The Sew Weekly for my sewing posts)

Fabric: Polka dotted rayon polyester from Britex ($15)
Pattern: Colette Pattern’s Sorbetto Top (free!)
Notions: Bias tape ($3), size 70 sewing machine needles ($5), rayon thread ($5)
Year: contemporary
Time to complete: Including a terrible errand running trip in the rain to buy bias tape, about 5 hours
First worn: Jan 9
Wear again: Definitely.
Total cost: $28, including notions that I will use again