Living for the EXTRA!

Reviewed by sewinglikethewolf on 24th October, 2019

As soon as I saw this pattern, I couldn’t resist! The design just looked so interesting and different… those dramatic long side panels are just so extra, I love it! Perfect for swooshing around.

On initial inspection, I thought that I would have to do a full bust adjustment (which is really not something I wanted to do on princess seams!) But due to the relaxed fit and the fact that the crepe I was using had a little stretch, I figured that I could get away without it. Having made it, I am happy with it, but next time I think that I would consider doing an FBA as it does gape a tad around the underarm.

The only adjustment I wanted was a bit more length on the front and back pieces as they were rather cropped – I prefer tops to be a little bit longer to have the option of tucking it in, and to avoid the risk of flashing my belly button!

I decided that 3 additional inches was the right amount, however to ensure that the notches lined up correctly, I also added the same 3 inches to the side pieces where indicated at the top. At this point I considered taking the 3 inches back out at the bottom of the side pieces, but I decided to rock the extra length for added drama.

By adding this additional length at the top, it subsequently moved the position of the waist ties too far down (which are sewn into the seam between the panels). So, I initially basted the pieces together and tried it on, making a mark with chalk where I wanted the ties to go. Easy!

The main body of the shirt came together very quickly; however, I did hit a few snags when I got to the collar part. The instructions were a little confusing in parts, and admittedly I went a bit rogue to my own detriment which ended up with having to cut out and finish the collar twice, then re-attaching (with difficulty) to the neckline that I had already notched.

Unfortunately, I did make the buttonholes a little too big and a couple of them keep popping open. Not sure how to solve this but I need to!