Green is my favourite colour

Green is my favourite colour

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I’m a visual person who is very attracted to colour, and green is my all time favourite.  I wonder if that is because I have green eyes?

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When the new seasonal liberty prints arrived in Australia late last year, the Oxford print in the green colourway when right to the top of my ‘must buy’ list.  At the time I remember thinking… Happy Christmas to me!

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For this simple woven long sleeve top I used the Painted Rose Top from Ottobre Design magazine.  My two previous versions of this pattern, with the ‘as drafted’ short sleeves, have been staples in my summer wardrobe.  I really love fit of this top (bust darts really do make a difference!) and it was therefore a no brainer to lengthen the sleeves and use this pattern again.

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In my opinion, sleeve length can often make or break a top.  I’m not sure I’ve got it right this time.  When I stand with my hands by my side (see photo above) the sleeve and hem length are basically the same.  Your input would be greatly appreciated.  For next time, should I:

  • shorten them slightly
  • lengthen them a little, or
  • tell me to get over myself as I’ll rarely be standing still with my hands by my side

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Pattern:  Painted Rose Top from Ottobre Design magazine Spring/Summer 2/2014
Size: 
38
Fabric: 
Liberty tana lawn purchased here.
Alterations: 
Sleeves lengthened utilising Grainline Stuido’s Long Sleeved Scout Variation Pattern Tutorial.  The top was shortened by 3 inches near the hem.
Accessories:   New-to-me antique necklace & shoes from Gorman.

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36 comments

  • Hehe, love your bursting out of the bushes pic, so fun as always! Green is my favourite too, although strangely it’s not a colour I sew with often.

    I know what you mean about sleeve length, proportions make all the difference don’t they? In this case I think you could probably go a smidge shorter, but if you hadn’t pointed it out I would have thought they were fine as is.

    • I seem to need to do something silly to relax in front of the camera. I thought posing for blog photos would get easier the more often I do it, but alas no! I’m on the smidge shorter team too.

  • This is so pretty! I love this color on you- good thing it’s your favorite!

  • As a fan of this Ottobre pattern and how well it fits compared to other similar woven tee patterns, I was delighted to see that you had self drafted a long sleeve. I like the length but I would suggest making it a little narrower at the hem. You could baste the sleeve on this gorgeous top to see if that helps,otherwise I agree with Jenny above, make the sleeves a smidge shorter. Recently I made Sewaholics Granville shirt which has very long sleeves and I have very long arms, but I still removed 2″ from the sleeve hem to suit the look I like in a sleeve. And yet, I have seen other Granvilles sewn and modeled without any alteration to the sleeve length and they look perfect. I wonder if our overall body shape determines the desired look for sleeve length? This is what sewing our own clothes throws at us and I guess we will always learning what works and what doesn’t. BTW, green looks perfect on you.

    • This is a really interesting point Marj and something that I had not considered, that our overall body shape determines a perfect sleeve length for us. I’m of the ‘short arm’ variety so a apparently a sleeve length that’s shorter lengthens my arms. Great in theory, but not terribly practical in winter!

  • Love this top and your first photo with a close up of the pretty fabric! Sleeve length is pretty tricky, I can never decide whether I should do wrist length or 3/4 sleeves. Then sometimes, I just push the long sleeves up to my elbow when I wear them 🙂

  • This is lovely (but then all your clothes are!). I like sleeves to finish just 2 inches before the hem (there’s a perfect example of a similar style top on the cover of ‘she wears the pants’ if you want a visual).

    That said, yours looks really pretty as is!

  • I love the green, it’s perfect for your colouring Anna, also the sleeve length looks right on you.
    I’m not a long sleeve person when it comes to summer clothes, so would have finished them just below the elbow, but that’s just a personal thing- yours are perfect 🙂

    I agree with marjtrundle’s comment above, sewing brings things to light that we didn’t know about ourselves – my stash is stacked by the colours and the green and blue piles are sky high, before starting sewing I would have said my favourite colours were oranges and browns!!

    • Thanks Janette. It’s good to both experiment and to reflect. The other thing to throw into the mix is that our style and preference can change over time too. This sewing caper definitely keeps us on our toes!

  • Hi Anna, I was able to order the copy of Ottobre. I finished the top today and then saw your post! You were right about the great fit and no need for a fba. I think your sleeves look terrific and your fabric choice is beautiful! I can’t wait to sew more…especially with the longer sleeves! Thanks for testing out patterns and reporting about them.

  • I laughed out loud when I read the option of you just getting over yourself! You know that is what I would have told you! If you want them a different length to the top I’d go an inch shorter. It’s a gorgeous top but more importantly, you clearly look and feel gorgeous in it!

  • Hullo, sailor! This is fantastic 😀 You’re on such a roll with epic makes lady- totally jealous 😉 I have to say slightly shorter sleeve but wouldn’t have noticed if you hadn’t said something!

    • Hello sailor right back at you awesome lady. I’m having a great time with my sewing at the moment. Fingers crossed the wheels don’t fall off anytime soon. Starting to think about what to make for Canberra Frocktails. Exciting!

  • These colours look fantastic on you. Great fabric choice.

  • Fan photos, and that fabric is to die for. Personally I have to say I love the sleeves as they are. Ii would go longer rather than shorter if you were to change it.

  • You look fabulous, especially that first shot! I adore this Liberty print and it looks wonderful on you. I adore blues, maybe there is something in the colour of our eyes… 😉

    • I think we are onto something with the whole eye colour thing. That first shot is my being silly so that I can try and relax in front of the camera (easier said than done!).

  • So pretty. the sleeves – IMO, either shorten them to a true bracelet length, or lengthen them to the first knuckle/beginning of your thumb. Either way, this is a beautiful top.

  • Beautiful top. I love the fabric. I think the sleeves are fine. You should always make your sleeves whatever length you, personally, are comfortable with whether or not that length is considered “standard”. Sleeves that are too long (i.e. standard long) bother me. I like 3/4 length but the weather is usually either too hot or two cold for them so my “long” sleeves usually end up being a weird length.

    • I agree that sleeve length is such a personal thing, and I hear you about the weather not being on our side when it comes to 3/4 sleeves. Thanks to taking the time to comment Lynn.

  • Pretty fabric! I must admit that your first photo is so professional. A great shot!

  • Well hello jungle woman. Love the make and the photos. Wish I had someone other than my temperamental remote to take my photos. Tried and failed today. My poor camera didn’t now what to focus on! I think the sleeves are fine – I am really all about having them sit where YOU feel comfy, not what is sometimes the right/prescribed length xx

  • Of course now I own this fabric! Great top and perfect for the pattern. I’ve loved reading through the comments on sleeve length. Will be storing them away for future reference!

  • Gorgeous colour- I’m a big fa of green too. I tend to make a lot of my tops with long sleeves, then wear them pushed up to 3/4 length [and I’ve got monkey arms], For that top, I think I’d shorten them a touch so they look intentionally shorter rather than accidentally lol The suggestion to narrow them a tad at the cuff is good too.

  • […] recently finished garment is another long sleeve version of the Painted Rose Top from Ottobre Design magazine.  This time I further lengthened the sleeves […]