Monday, January 6, 2014

Deer&Doe Plantain t-shirt (free pattern)

Pattern: Plantain t-shirt by Deer and Doe
Size: size 38, graded up to a 40 at the waist
Alterations: for the striped version, the sleeve length is inbetween the short and the 3/4 length.

Fabric: a striped cotton jersey and an unidentified knit, both purchased locally.

Happy New Year, guys! I hope everyone is well and ready to resume regular life after the Holidays (I know I'm not).

Today I'm very happy to present to you Deer and Doe's latest fatigue: the Plantain t-shirt! Oh, and it's a free pattern, yay! I mean, who doesn't love a free pattern?

I love the story behind the creation of this pattern, simple but powerful: Eléonore "just" wanted to create the perfect t-shirt for her body shape, flattering but comfortable. You can read the whole thing here (yeah, the Deer and Doe blog is now in English too!).

I usually like my t-shirts a little more fitted at the waist, because I don't have a problem with my stomach area, but I must say this style feels a little more relaxed and forgiving, and I like it a lot.
The low neckline (but not too low) is extremely flattering on curvier ladies like myself.
For my first couple attempts at this pattern I went stash bustin'.
This striped cotton jersey was perfect for the job, but I had a very small piece of it, so my sleeves ended up mismatched. Did you notice before I told you? I don't mind the effect at all, in fact I think it's cute.

The only alteration I did was to lengthen the short sleeves (or shorten the 3/4 sleeves, as you prefer) to elbow length, which as I mentioned before, is the one I wear the most and find most flattering on me.
In this photo, it looks like I have a huge sway back adjustment to do, but it's really just a combination of the hem being caught in my jeans pockets and me standing more straight than usual for photos.

For my second attempt I used this mystery knit (I don't know the composition) which I'm not really sure why I bought. I was probably attracted by the bird print, but it's just too crazy for me. It will probably go to my mum or be worn as a pajama top.
Anyways, it served its purpose, which was to test the longer sleeves version... with elbow patches! Ah, those elbow patches... I want to add them to everything! I didn't follow the instructions and made them in a woven and it works fine. They're definitely easier to sew this way.

For construction, I used my serger and a twin needle, but this pattern is very beginner-friendly and includes tips for those who are unfamiliar with knits and might not have a serger.

I hope many of you are going to try this pattern, especially those who are still unfamiliar with Deer and Doe. I'm definitely going to sew many more of these and try a few variations as well!