Butterick 5920 as a peplum top

This post might be a bit boring, because it is about yet another short-sleeved peplum top made of flowery fabric. In addition, it is based on the same pattern that I used for the dress I wrote about a couple of weeks ago: Butterick 5920. To make matters even worse I am blogging my creations in the wrong order, as today’s blouse was more or less intended to be a wearable muslin after I had made the first – and most important – changes to the pattern, i.e. a Full Bust Adjustment and adding side-darts.

Let’s take a closer look at that pretty fabric and the matching buttons I was lucky to find in my stash. They come from a bag of buttons I bought at the thrift store a long time ago and were already used at least once before, as the gold decorations on some of them has faded and some still had threads attached to them.

This is not to say that I don’t like the vintage cotton I used and think it is only muslin-worthy. On the contrary: I think the print is very cute and although I am not too fond of the blue and white background, I love the dark-red, orange, pink and green flowers and leaves placed against it. However, the fabric had been in my stash for ages and I simply had enough of just looking at it over and over again. It was high time to transform it into a wearable garment. My options were limited, though, as it was about 80cm wide and less than 2m long.

My favorite part of Butterick 5920: the notched neckline.

About the time I ordered the Butterick patterns, I also looked at vintage and retro patterns issued by other companies, including Simplicity’s peplum tops/tunics. I then came to the conclusion that I could use my flowery fabric to make a dramatically shortened version of Butterick 5920, which would then function as a peplum top. I still had to take out some width of the front skirt/peplum, as my piece of fabric was so small. Seriously, the peplum could not have been any wider or any longer. For the facings I used some scraps of plain black cotton, as it was the only neutral fabric I managed to locate at the time. In the end, I only had a couple of scraps of the flowery fabric left, just enough for either pockets (but not the pocket lining) or short sleeves.

I did not do any hand-sewing on this blouse. The peplum was hemmed by simply serging it, turning over the hem and then top-stitching it down. Not the prettiest way of finishing a hemline, but very fast. I was experimenting with the tension of my serger, so the stitches are a bit uneven and loose at times.

Initially, the top was sleeveless and I had finished the armscyes with bias-tape. After a while – and after finishing the dress – I realized that I probably was not going to wear it like that. Something was off; my upper body looked like a big rectangle. So I unpicked the bias-tape, took the last pieces of fabric and cut out two cap sleeves. Although I still look a bit top-heavy in it, I think the blouse looks more balanced now that it has sleeves. Unfortunately, I was too unpatient to make an effort to nicely finish the lower part of the armhole. Well, at least I cannot see it myself when I am wearing it, so I am fine with that.

Although I only tweaked the fit a bit after making this top – I lengthened the bodice and lowered the darts – I definitely think the fit of the dress is better. To be honest, if I had been bolder while making the first changes, I could have skipped this step. I sort of knew what needed to be done, but was wary of changing too much at once.I usually wear darker and warmer colours than the fabric I used for this blouse and I think the blue and white make me look even paler than I already am (the lighting in the pictures does not help either). Nevertheless, in spite of these issues, the top is currently in roulation, as it is perfect for the warm, but changeable summer weather we are having at the moment.

Materials
Fabric: vintage, from stash
Buttons: vintage, from stash