Ruffled Bodice Blouse

The blouse on the bottom was made by following Simplicity pattern 4484 almost exactly. After having it’s future owner model it, I wasn't very happy with how it had turned out. Rolling over the neckline to form the drawstring/elastic casing resulted in the garment not sewing well and it wasn't nearly as nice-looking as it could have been.

As I always end up doing with purchased patterns, I modified it quite heavily and the end result is what You see at the top of the picture. The goal was to eliminate and minimize the touch of as many seams as possible. To that end, the shoulder seams became what I call "interlocking" seams and I added a separate, curved piece of cloth around the entire neckline which, when folded to the outside and stitched, forms both the elastic casing and a scalloped trim. This also eliminates the bunching and binding of rolling the neckline over on itself and smoothes it out against the skin. Lastly, the side seams were eliminated in favor of a single seam in the front. In that way, the only seam around the torso is centered over the open space left by the cleavage so once again there's no seam touching the wearer.

The material used in both tops is 100% modal sateen which is incredibly soft and silky and more durable than cotton. The only way that I know of how to get such fabric is to visit Bed Bath & Beyond and cannibalize a set of their Pure Beech bed sheets. This raises the cost of making the top a good bit but its owner seemed to think it worth the cost.