The Cottage Shirt is one of the newer patterns from the Sewing Workshop. I'm such a Sewing Workshop groupie that, of course, I wanted to make it right away.
Honestly I was not that taken with it at first. It seemed so similar to their Trio vest. But once I got into the project, I fell in love. The deep hems and vents are my favorite design feature.
It is a fundamentally different cut than the Trio Vest. It has details from men's shirts but exaggerated and stylish. The yoke is a traditional double yoke installed with the burrito method. The overall silhouette is a wide rectangular shape. This creates soft side folds when worn so that the hemline is not one continuous horizontal line. The deep hems and vents add just the right detail to the overall look.
The shoulder extends into a cap sleeve and there are cuffs attached. That part reminds me of the Eureka top which I've made a number of times. The Eureka has deep enough armholes that the bra tends to show. The Cottage has smaller armholes and a different armscye curve, making it a better summer top for me.
The high for today was 92F (33C) so I'm happy to have a new summer top. I omitted the collar, keeping the collar stand. That is cooler in the summer and I like the look. But I've seen some online made with the collar and those are pretty too. I will need to make it again, I'm sure.
This light weight soft linen from Marcy Tilton was just right for this top, I think. Because of the print and the soft hand, it hardly needs ironing. I can probably wash with cold water, hang to dry, and wear it.
I have another new Sewing Workshop pattern ready to cut - the London shirt. I've traced the pattern pieces and now I have to check out deep stash to see if anything will work. I'm feeling a little uncertain about those dropped shoulders. It reminds me of the extremely popular Liberty shirt with exaggerated details. I'm not always in love with extremely dropped shoulder lines, especially if it creates a little bubble where the sleeve joins the shirt. But, then again, I was uncertain about the Cottage shirt and I love it.
So what do you think about the London shirt?
It looks a lot like the old Issey Miyake Vogue 1476, minus the cuffs and pockets.
ReplyDeleteI agree - I still wear a Vogue 1476 I made 20 years ago, but I like the London shirt's shorter wider sleeve.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI wonder if it was a matter of linking the two patterns....after all ' Liberty of London'?
ReplyDeleteLove that linen. It's a cute pattern but those cut on sleeves never seem to work for me.
ReplyDeleteI’m almost done with my Cottage Shirt, but I really struggled with the collar stand. Her directions to encase the front didn’t make sense to me. Other than the collar I’ve enjoyed the process. I share your same thoughts on the London shirt- I may try to adjust pattern to fit at shoulders vs. off shoulder.
ReplyDeleteCollar stands can certainly be tricky as it's the first thing you see on a shirt, isn't it? This was soft, easy-to-work-with linen and so simply finished the under side with an invisible handstitch. With other fabric my handstitch might not have been so invisible.
DeleteBoth of these patterns seem to call for an excessive amount of yardage and are very oversized. Did you use the Cottage size per your measurements or did you size or adjust to a less oversized fit?
ReplyDeleteI examined the finished measurement at the hip as that is my largest measurement. Based on that I think I chose size S. This usually works better for me than following their size suggestion. I'm sorry - I did not pay attention to the required yardage as I was using fabric from stash - 2 yards x 45 wide. HTH!
DeleteWhat level of sewing do you think this shirt requires? I am a beginner and am wondering if I would be able to sew it.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
As mentioned in one of the comments above, the collar stand can be a bit tricky. Otherwise it is a simple make and appropriate to a beginner. Hope you try it!
Delete