Dawn jeans plus equinox plus my top 5 (or 6 fave tee patterns).

So I made these so long ago I’m struggling to remember details… September last year to be exact in our Lockdown Holiday 1.0 where we spent our holiday budget and annual leave on renovating our garden. Our child was thrilled. He cavorted barefoot in enormous piles of dirt for 2 weeks, his happiness progressing to the levels of ecstasy only a 2.5 year old can reach when my husband hired a little stand-on digger to move said dirt. I digress. My point being I had approximately 3-4 potential sewing hours a day for a full 2 weeks and I gotta say I liked it. It gave me the headspace to get stuck into a decent project and Dawn Jeans it was.

Being a pattern for non stretch denim I toiled the 14 in calico. They were too tight. So I cut the 14 in the waistband and 16 everywhere else but ended up taking the side seams in a little in the denim. Obviously I now realise denim gives a lot more than calico. So future versions I’ll likely make the 12 waist and 14 everywhere else as the waistband has already stretched out a bit.

The fabric is a lovely selvage denim purchased from The Drapery a few years ago. I was too scared to prewash it back then, as I’d had a few white mark issues with denim I’d washed. I’ve since read that a combination of powder laundry detergent and too aggressive spinning can do that. I always always wash my me-mades in cold water so to prewash this denim I simply filled my bath with the hottest tap water I could, gently laid it in until the water went cold, then gently spun it in the machine and it came out beautifully.

Obviously I made the wide leg view and I love them. I do remember enjoying the sewing process so much more than my Ginger Jeans, however I suspect this is more to do with little time pressure. I did prefer the method used in the Dawns for the fly insertion and the belt loops but I’m being nit picky. I’ve since made another pair of Gingers and enjoyed those thoroughly too.

To take pressure off myself I matched the topstitching thread to the denim. I’m pretty sure that I used 2 spools of thread and double threaded the needle when top stitching. I wish I’d done a little sway back adjustment - I did on my toile and forgot to transfer it to the pattern. Frustrating! Otherwise there’s not much more to say….. I used a scrap of gold washable paper for the label at the back and I love them longtime.

I wore them a heap in spring and early autumn, and cooler summer days. I struggle a little to style them in cold weather….

These photos were taken at Anna’s place last year soon after that particular lockdown ended and are styled with my first version of the Equinox Tshirt, from Pattern Fantastique. It’s my first PF pattern. I’m still on the hunt for my perfect tee pattern (actually I don’t think I’ll ever just have one. At the moment I really have a top 5. Do you want to know what they are? I’ll list them at the bottom)*. The pattern has very few instructions in the PDF, and instead one is directed to some basic tshirt construction tutorials on their website. The pattern is priced accordingly.

I went for the Equinox as it is drafted for a C cup and I really liked the shoulder line, snuggish bust and relaxed fit over the hips. The fit is pretty good - my standard forward shoulder adjustment worked well and I also made a small narrow shoulder adjustment on subsequent versions which is not uncommon for me on tops with a set in sleeve. The only fit issue I had was with the CB neckline which is weirdly puckered. Same thing happened on subsequent versions so I’m not sure what to do about that. I have tried removing a wedge of fabric from the back neckline of version 3 but that didn’t work that well as it simply pulled the top back on my shoulders resulting in a horrid chokey effect…. I also struggled with getting a nice neckband - there’s no piece drafted, but instructions on the website how to do it for each fabric you are using due to the different stretch contents in fabric. But I’ll keep working on it as it’s got great potential. I’m thinking of popping the Hemlock neckline onto it and seeing what happens. The fabric is from Doops Designs, an Australian clothing company that sells its cheerful fabrics too. It’s a pretty thin and crappy cotton knit that I didn’t enjoy sewing with, but has worn reasonably well and is one of those happy fabrics that gets me a lot of comments.

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*My top 5 tshirt patterns in no specific order. Each is ideal for its own purpose…. 

1 - the Grainline Hemlock. Pros - free, dropped shoulder, multiple lengths and sleeve options and very reliable neckband insertion provided the fabric of the neckband has a little lycra. I’ve recently improved my fit with this using a dartless FBA method so will post that eventually.

2 - the Liesl and Co Maritime tee - good for stable and stretchy knits. Neckline finished with a facing which is uncommon but I’ve seen in high end tees such as Gorman. Nice little split hem and perfect 3/4 length sleeve. This summer I’ll give the short sleeve version a go.

3 - the Secondo Piano Basic Instinct - another free pattern, with a set in sleeve and crew neck. Only made once and needs more fit tweaking but I wear it a heap nonetheless (right now in fact) and I am always eternally impressed that Sasha has instructions on optimising stripe maxing across the sleeves…..

4 - the Leisl and Co Bento - the perfect boxy dropped sleeve tee with beautifully engineered cuffs and another neckband that goes in without drama.

5 - at this stage the Equinox is a contender but no doubt will be a hybrid with something else just to sort out that neckline.

Honourable mention to the Plantain… can I have 6?