I have a little obsession with bees. Even though I’m the teensiest little bit allergic to them, I still think they are amazing creatures. I wish humans communicated directions with dancing.

So imagine my delight when I came across this bee fabric by Kaufman. Bees that aren’t cartoony! Yay! I decided to make something for myself with it, and I made a top as part of my blouse-making craze of late.

I used the Made by Rae Washi pattern. I’ve wanted to make something with this pattern for a while, but have been working on other projects (and just plain working at that job that pays the bills) so this was my first chance.

In the directions, she mentioned that you may not even need to do a full-bust adjustment (aka, FBA) because of the shirring in back. I wasn’t sure so I made a muslin (despite it being a pain) because I didn’t want to cut my beautiful bee fabric until I was certain. It was not terribly surprising that, yep, totally need to do an FBA, because I have to do an FBA for everything. So I fixed up my pattern and away we went!

All in all, I’m pretty happy with it, but for two issues. First, I did a great job of making the front bodice fit, but didn’t apply the same logic to the shirring in the back. Oops. Thus, the shirring is way too high in the back, and basically just pulls the material taut across my bust. Not ideal. This falls under the category of MOFF (my own *funny* fault).

 

Second issue is that, boy, it’s very tight right under the arms. I didn’t really test the muslin for that because it didn’t occur to me that it would be an issue. Granted, my arms are probably a little thicker than average, and my deltoids are probably larger than average (thanks, years of ballet as a kid!), but I think the armscye was cut to much too shallowly. This falls (mostly) under the category of TPF (the pattern’s fault). I hate gaping armholes more than anything, but I need more room to move than was allowed in the pattern.

Below is a picture that shows both of these issues.

Because of these two issues, this top isn’t the most comfortable to wear for long stretches, but I still really like it, because, you know, bees! However, I’m actually considering remaking it so that it’s more comfortable. Worth it?

Even though I had a couple of issues, I still LOVE the Washi pattern, but def. feel it needs a couple of modifications to fit a fuller figure. I’m going to make a Washi dress next (wait until you see the fabric for that! it is AWESOME!). I’ve already adjusted the armistice and shirring lines, and have done the FBA, so this pattern should now be ready to roll for me. Will post Washi dress photos as soon as I have finished it.

 

 

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