The Grail T-shirt…aka this one actually fits!

Helllooo dear reader!  February has been a busy month, hence the radio silence!  But I’m back and with a Finished Object to boot!
Do you recall this teaser:

This is The Grail T-shirt pattern from Vesta patterns and y’all this pattern is the JAM!  Namely because it comes in three different body types….I know this may come as a shock to some of you, but women aren’t all shaped (even remotely) the same!!  I went with the “S” body type which “has a full bust, defined waist, and full hips“…. it’s basically an hourglass.  [P.S. this line from their site made me crack up “Not quite an hourglass, but who wants the baggage of a cultural body ideal, anyway?” HA!]

Now, this pattern ain’t cheap, especially since I’m a paper pattern snob
I reached out to the awesome Lauren at  Lladybird, who at this point had mentioned the pattern, but not actually posted about it (she since has).  She confirmed it was indeed a good buy and gave me a few heads up about it.

I treated the red one as a wearable muslin…and it turned out actually wearable! Hooray 😀
I made the 3/4 length sleeve with the scoop neck.  I actually cut a straight size Large, which is technically one size smaller than what the envelope would have me do.  However, one of the heads up I got was there’s a lot of ease in this bad boy and since I like a more fitted tee I dropped down a size.

Another thing Lauren warned me about was the rather sparse directions… and boy howdy was she not kidding!  The entirety of the directions fit on a single page.  Had I taken her advice and actually consulted tutorials and books, instead of just blindly soldiering ahead, the first go around probably would have turned out better.  Spoiler: I finished the neck, sleeve and hem two different ways….neither of which were right!

However, despite the minor cosmetic issues with the finish (and one minor fit issue) this has actually become one of my most worn tops!

Which gave me courage to move ahead 🙂

This is technically my first finished garment of 2016! …Other than a quick pair of undies as a peace offering to my sewing machine after our falling out.

With the second go around I did the short-sleeve crew neck tee….Which is ironic since I went on and on in January about needing Winter weather clothes
I cut the same size, but graded down to a Medium at the shoulders.  I found my red shirt was too wide in the shoulders and kept exposing my bra straps (HORRORS I know!).

I also finally figured out how to do the binding finish right… or at the very least a prettier wrong way.  FYI: Stitch in the ditch with a small zig-zag such that it covers the seam line 😉

I am now declaring this my go to t-shirt pattern!  I already have the fabric and plans for two more (long sleeve this time- it’s still cold as shit out there), including a Grailed Renfrew!!

So, everyone should now go out and support Vesta Patterns, because they are the shit and I want them to stay in business!  Seriously guys- they have a new dress pattern!!