Muted Reds & Greens

I was never sure about the combination of this plaid print with the very bright red berries on my Christmas jumper.  In the end, I didn't want to pair the two items, so I ended up wearing them separately.  Which is fine.  I don't need much of an excuse to wear my quilted skirt, and this was an excellent one.

As for the blouse, I do think that it will make a nice addition to my wardrobe.  I have a jumper in a similar green hue that will work nicely with the plaid, as a matter of fact.  

I have also been reminded that I wanted to make myself another quilted skirt at some point.

Now that I have a walking foot in my arsenal, that project is sounding a whole lot more feasible and appealing.

But as for the blouse . . . sizing up worked fine, although if I make this up again, I would probably take out some of the excess fabric through the waistline.

And the dart placement on this particular design is really, really high.  I don't think it's all that noticeable in a somewhat busy print, but it was even out of place on my dress form, which has to be a first.  It was probably a drafting error, except that if I scrutinize the illustrations, it almost looks like that dart is pointing above the illustration's apex . . . or maybe I'm overthinking it.

I'm not completely sold on the raglan sleeve, but it's nice to change things up and I don't believe that I have a raglan style blouse in my closet.  Coats, yes . . . blouse, no.  

The short sleeved version might also be nice to try at some point.  But overall, I'm glad that this printed plaid finally f0und its place in my closet.

Blouse:  Made by me, Simplicity 9818
Skirt:  Made by me, Simplicity 8458
Shoes:  Memery "Everyday Pump"
Earrings:  Etsy

Raglan in Plaid

I was expecting to make a red knit top to wear with my Christmas jumper, but after the scarlet dye turned the fabric more maroon than red, I ditched that idea.  None of my stashed fabric prints worked all that well with the dress, but I did come across this plaid print which wanted to be made into a blouse.  Simplicity 9818 was slated to be made out of a couple of warm weather appropriate prints earlier in the year, but that fell through, and the 3/4 sleeved version seemed like a good choice for the red and gold plaid print, so I got started.

The pattern instructions call for worked or machine buttonholes, but I thought that bound buttonholes would be a better choice, so that was one of my first steps.

And somehow I didn't have any appropriate red buttons, so I just covered some with self-fabric.

After seeing the finished garment measurements, I decided to size up instead of doing a full bust adjustment because I am lazy.  As expected, the torso is slightly more blousy than I usually go for, but it definitely works.

I did manage to get the front plaid to match up, which is always nice.

The neck closes with a small button and thread loop, which leaves three visible buttons at center front.

And don't look too closely at center back because I somehow forgot to center the plaid.  Thankfully, I did realize my mistake before cutting out my collar pieces, so I did the same off center placement so it's (hopefully) not obvious while it's being worn!  I can't say it's the most exciting garment that I've ever made, but it will certainly have a place in my wardrobe.