Grainline by the train line

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My liberty fleece Linden Sweatshirt (or jumper as I prefer to call it) would be my most worn me-made garment ever.  So much so… that after four years of constant wear it’s falling apart.  I have some mending to do and a replacement already sewn!

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This fabric is fleece sweatshirting by Stof which I purchased from the The Cloth Shop.  You won’t be surprised to hear it didn’t even make it into stock or onto Instagram.  It sold out in a day while sitting on the counter waiting to be processed.  Wasn’t it lucky I dropped in that day?  Remember the good old days when you could visit a bricks and motar fabric store?  Melbourne is currently in stage 4 lockdown… only essential services are open and retail are operating behind closed doors.

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I’ve dabbled with different Linden sizes in the past, but regardless of my weight, I’ve settled on the size 8 with 2″ removed from the sleeve length.  If my fabric has low stretch, I also add a touch of length to the neckband, bottom hem bands and cuffs.

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I’ve started doing a forward shoulder adjustment on my raglan makes as I found that they were falling backwards on my shoulders which created a slight flare at the centre front hem.  When I started my research (books and online) I found information on forward shoulder adjustments for raglan sleeves with a shoulder dart (ie. Alexandra Morgan of Inhouse Patterns has a very clear video on this subject) but most of my raglan makes don’t have a shoulder dart. 

I spoke with a pattern maker friend and she put me on the right track.  Rather than altering the sleeves you add to the back armscye (pattern piece 2 above) and remove the same amount from the front armscye (pattern piece 1).   To ensure your underarm seams still match, it’s important exclude the seam allowances (as shown in diagrams above) when making your alterations. 

My standard forward shoulder alteration is 3/8″ (1cm).  “Fit For Real People” by Pati Palmer & Marta Alto suggest on page 163 that your shoulder seam (use a non raglan garment to determine this) should align with the back of your ear.  Another method (see Maria Denmark) to determine the amount of adjustment is to wear a top with a shoulder seam and look in the mirror.  Place your finger on your shoulder point and measure (you might need help with this part) the difference between the should seam on your top and your shoulder point.

Please note, I have no formal pattern making or fitting training.  I’m just sharing with you that method that I currently use.  I’m all ears if you have an alternative way for altering raglan patterns to accommodate a forward shoulder.  I love to learn new things.

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In m eyes, a Linden is such a wardrobe workhorse:

  • Worn with leggings… yoga outfit, lounging at home
  • Worn with track pants…. dog walking outfit, lounging at home
  • Worn with jeans… perfect for food shopping, errands, school pick-ups (in non-ISO times) or hanging off the Curdies River Railway Bridge at Timboon!

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It’s such a workhorse garment, I have two more planned and that’s no laughing matter!

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Pattern: Grainline’s Linden Sweatshirt
Size:
8
Fabric:
Stof sweatshirting from The Cloth Shop [sold out]
Alterations:
Shortened the sleeves by a total of 2″ (5cm). Added length to the neckband, cuffs and bottom band to account for the lack of stretch in my the fleece.  Completed a forward shoulder adjustment.
Outfit:  Mustard shoes from Manteau Noir, jeans from Witchery and Otto & Spike scarf borrow from Sharon
Location:  Curdies River Railway Bridge at Timboon

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