Sunday 6 September 2015

A Stripey Coco Top

My blogging mojo has been non existent over the winter. I find it hard to get good photos when the days are shorter and I seem to have gotten out of the habit of even trying. That doesn't mean that I haven't been sewing. I have lots of sewing to share with you and now that Spring has arrived, I can feel my blogging mojo returning.

Tilly and the Buttons Coco with contrast yoke.
To kick things off, I have made another Coco. It is no secret that I love this pattern, I have made several versions of this pattern already. This time I was using up some ponte left over from previous projects so I thought I would try a Coco with a contrast yoke and pocket. Tilly has a tutorial on how to do this here.


It really pays to take your time and plan your garment carefully when working with a striped fabric. Stripes that don't match at seam lines can look very amateurish and I am constantly amazed to see this in RTW clothing quite often.



I am glad that I spent the extra time matching my stripes at the side seams and on the sleeve seams. I also chose to join the contrasting yoke on the striped fabric so that the white stripe was a constant width.


The contrast yoke is also on the back. I made a straight size 5 as usual, with no changes to the pattern. The seam allowance between the yokes and front/back pieces were top stitched to keep them lying flat.


To avoid stretching out the neckline I sewed a line of stay stitching just inside the fold line. I then applied Vliesofix Bondaweb Tape, purchased from Knitwit, to the edge before folding over and stitching with a twin needle. This is the first time I have used this product and I couldn't be happier with the result.


The hems were secured with a twin needle too, which I continued up and around the side slits. You can still see the pink marking pencil dots I placed to indicate where to turn. It is a little tricky getting neat turns with a twin needle. I raise the needle, carefully turn the garment and then lower the needle so that it matches up with the previous stitching as close as possible. 


The pocket was a bit of an afterthought. I felt that the red needed to be repeated on the shirt to tie the yoke in and create a balanced garment. 


Love my new Coco top and it has been a very useful addition to my casual weekend wardrobe.


Happy sewing

24 comments:

  1. Pretty top! You did a great job on the stripes. Love the details of the hem and the slits :)

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  2. Very chic and easy to wear.

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    1. Thanks Manju. I think I will wear this top a lot.

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  3. Cute top! Impressive how you double needle stitched up and around the side slits. I have to remember that!
    :-) Chris

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    1. Thanks Chris. It's a bit fiddly but well worth the extra effort.

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  4. Ooh I love your new coco too. Very nautical! Welcome back from your blogging hiatus, I missed you. ��

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    1. Awwww thanks Sue. I toyed with the idea of adding some sort of nautical embellishment, like anchor shaped buttons, but I couldn't find anything suitable in the local sewing shop.

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  5. I love your Coco top. The navy and white with the touch of red is just perfect.

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  6. Such a great top - I'm always on the lookout for casual tops, and this is lovely. The red contrast along with the blue and white strip looks very 'classic' - looks lovely!

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  7. I love the contrast of red & stripes. It's really eye-catching and lovely -- and of course made so perfectly with tidy stitching and matched stripes! I also find it quite off-putting when RTW is not matched at the seams.

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    1. Thanks Melwyk. Sounds like we are on the same page re: the short comings of RTW.

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  8. Love this version of Coco, beautifully done with the stripes, colour blocking and pocket. Good to see you back in blogland.

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    1. Thanks Barbara. It's such a simple pattern but it works so well for me. Expect to see more.

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  9. I love this colour combination. So fresh and flattering. Beautiful sewing job too!

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  10. Yay Knitwit! Your sewing looks perfect.

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  11. Another great Coco and your colour blocking really make it special.

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    1. Thank you Sharon. I was quite pleased with the navy, white and red combination.

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