Solee top
I’ve mentioned this before, but I love drafting patterns and a big goal in my sewing journey is to finish the blocks I’ve been working on for myself so that I can self-draft more items for my wardrobe. I can also use my blocks to check the fit on patterns I purchase, which is really cool too. There are tutorials online for learning how to draft a block, I also took a flat pattern drafting course at a local college in early 2020 and loved it. A great way to dip a toe in this process is to try a tutorial by some amazing sewists where they basically explain how to draft a garment for your own body without using a paper pattern. I always find these really fun and they are usually great for using leftover fabric. I’ve had my eye on the Solee top, you can find the tutorial by @Natalie_ebaugh on Instagram in her highlights, and decided to try it out.
The Solee top is basically a rectangle with elastic to create ruffles and some cute tie straps. It’s very easy and great for beginners. I was making a dress for one of my kids and I had just enough fabric left to make a top for myself. She really loves wearing matching outfits so I couldn’t resist. I used my full bust measurement for this top which is 36 inches. To determine the width of the top I used my full bust + 1/3 of my full bust, which put the top at 48 inches wide. I think it ended up a little too poufy, so I think I should have used my high bust measurement instead. I’m going to wear the top a bit though and see if I want to take it in at all. Since my fabric was only 44 inches wide, I cut two panels that were 24 inches X 18.5 inches and created two side seams. My straps were 3 inches by 21 inches. I used 1 inch width elastic and the top elastic was 33 inches and the bottom elastic was 30 inches. Then I just followed the tutorial for sewing it all together. Super simple process, but makes a super cute summer top!
This fabric is Liberty of London that I bought from a sewing store called Wee Scotty, on a recent trip to Flagstaff, AZ. The dress I made for Lou is the Mini Marcel Dress in the short length and I made her the size three based on her measurements. Sewing for kids can be kind of hard, since you don’t always know if something is going to be comfortable for them, but she really seems to love this dress. The Shorts I’m wearing are a washed linen and the pattern I used is the Elizabeth Suzann Florence pant in a size large, my hips are 41 inches.
I threw on my favorite lipstick and some shades to complete the look!
Here are some other self-drafted pattern tutorials to try:
Turning a tank top pattern into a dress
If you have any other tutorial recommendations leave them in the comments below!