Gertie's Sailor's blouse

Pattern: this is a variation on Gertie's Portrait Blouse (also found in Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing) which I learnt in a Creativebug workshop.

Size: size 4 with alterations.

Alterations: a 2,5cm FBA, 7,5cm of added length.

Fabric: I used a lovely lightweight cotton I found at my local market. It was perfect for this project! I suspect it might even be Liberty, but I'm just guessing.

What I liked: I love, love, love this blouse! I have wanted a sailor collar blouse forever and this is just perfect for me. I found out about Gertie's courses at Creativebug a while ago, and I took advantage of an offer in May to subscribe and take as many workshops as I could. The Sailor's Collar blouse was the one that I enjoyed the most, so I thought to share my thoughts on it.

This isn't the first class taught by Gertie that I followed: I took her Bombshell dress class and her Starlet Suit class (apparently, not available anymore?) on Craftsy and I loved them both to death, so I knew this wasn't going to disappoint me. Boy, I was right.
I will post a more detailed review of the workshop next week, though, so this post is not too long.

I will mention the construction of this blouse more in detail in that post, but if you're familiar with the Portrait blouse pattern, this is a simple variation to the neckline with the addition of a collar. The base pattern is a fairly simple one which has already been reviewed many times on the blogosphere, but if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

I've already worn this blouse quite a few times and I definitely prefer it tucked in a skirt (worn here with my denim Kelly skirt), but it also works nicely with pants. It's definitely a versatile piece.

As usual, I wanted to include a couple more detailed shots of the garment. Here you can see some of the features of the blouse: it has a lapped side zipper (which I was afraid could be uncomfortable but it's really not), waist tucks, and hand-sewn bias tape to finish the neckline (I didn't enjoy hand-sewing the bias tape at all).

What I didn't like: The only thing I don't like about this project is that I could have worked a bit harder on the fit. You can see there's some excess fabric between the armholes and the bust, but after sewing three muslins I decided I would make this work.
Truth to be told, I fitted the muslin wearing another bra, which is more of a push-up than the one I was wearing in these photos, and it looks much better. Undergarments really can make such a huge difference!

But anyway, I'm very pleased with this one, as you might have guessed. Yay for a new friend in my wardrobe!

I'm currently enjoying some time at the seaside, so have a great weekend and see you next week!

*Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. This means that if you purchase this workshop or subscribe to Creativebug I will earn a small commission (but you won't spend any extra).*