Orion Blouse – I Am Patterns

Orion blouse is a loose fitted boxy blouse with a Peter Pan collar. It has bust darts to create a bit of shape and a back button placket with a snap closure. The pattern also comes with the dress option but I didn’t try that out, yet.

The pattern is available both in a printed form as in a pdf file, which is the format I chose. The sizes go from 36 to 46, but since they are French sizes they are smaller than the standard European sizes. I again went for the size 38, which was perfect for me.

Some months ago I picked these dark blue and white pique-like fabrics that I knew would suit perfectly for this style. The fabrics are probably polyester and drape beautifully. I went for the practical dark blue for the blouse. However, I wanted to emphasise the collar and make it white but I had a problem: I was worried that the white collar would catch colour in wash and turn to dull light blue. I made a little wash test and still wasn’t convinced. So, I decided not to risk it and make a detachable collar instead.

The pattern comes with both French and English instructions. They have a lot of images to explain the different steps which is great. I did not really pay much attention to the instructions since this top was quite simple to construct and because I did the collar differently. However, I would recommend cutting about 3 mm away from the bottom collar pieces so that the peter pan collar turns nicely with the seams underneath the top collar pieces.

I really love this blouse. It feels super comfortable but is still chic. The darts give the loose fitted Orion a bit definition but the look is still modern and minimalistic. The Peter Pan collar adds a bit of vintage vibe without making the blouse costumey. The sleeves drape beautifully.

I can warmly recommend this pattern for everybody. It needs a bit of experience but is basically an easy project to make. More images and information on how I made the detachable collar can be found on my blog.