Vest dress or top
If the weather is warm (yes, please), you need something cool and carefree to wear, right? Well this vest is a great go-to, it’s loose fitting, comfortable and if you make it out of cotton knit (T-shirting), you’ll have a truly cool garment in your wardrobe that you might find becomes your most favorite thing.
For those with good legs, the vest can be lengthened slightly so that you can wear it as a dress. For those who prefer to be modest, you can wear it with almost anything, such as leggings, stretch bell pants or a straight skirt.
As to adjusting the pattern, you can change the neckline into a V or add a lace up inset - the item is simple and allows you to engage your imagination - there’s so much you can do with it.
This project is suitable for beginners, so if you’d like to learn to sew, this is an opportunity to start and end up with a professional looking garment in half an hour.
Cutting the Vest
Cut 1 back and one front. Place the pattern to the fold and draw it onto your fabric using tailor’s chalk or a sliver of bath soap (PS: bath soap makes a wonderful marker, it’s easy to use and glides over the fabric and it washes off in the first wash). If you’re going to bind the neck and arm edges, cut a binding in the correct width for
Sewing the top
If you’re adding binding -
Sew the top together, right sides together, at one shoulder.
Apply binding to neck and one arm’s edge
Sew the other shoulder together
Complete the binding
Sew the side seams and neaten the hem edge
Hem and press
If you’re hemming the top at neck and arms -
Sew the garment, right sides together, at shoulders and sides. Neaten all edges. Using a steam iron press a 1cm hem around the neck, arms and base. Hem using a stretch stitch on your machine( or a serger)
Find the PDF Pattern at the link below
Printing your pattern
Print it out as A4 sheets using Adobe Reader in poster print mode. Select cut marks and tiling on the poster setting in Adobe Reader. Print out the Vest Top in a variety of sizes (UK sizes 30-40 inches)
Stick the pattern pieces together at the cut marks using clear tape.
Notions
1m of stretch knit (jersey) fabric. Suitable fabrics are cotton knit, Bon Bon, Viscose Lycra
Sewing thread
Sewing needle for lightweight knit fabric
Ruler
Sewing machines, overlocker, cover stitch and plain machine
Pins or sewing pegs
Tailor’s chalk or magic pen
Printer
Scissors or rotary cutter
All images, drawings, videos and the PDF are mine.
The PDF sewing pattern is made using my software, which I am currently releasing for use on my website (should be ready for everyone to use in a week or so).