I finished a whole slew of my very favorite fall/winter tops just before taking a recent trip. These are polos (those of us in the USA would probably call them “turtlenecks”) from BurdaStyle’s 09/2010 issue, pattern number 121:
They’re all made in some variation of JoAnn’s silky polyester/rayon knit, which has the distinction of being the only fabric I’ve bought at JoAnn’s that hasn’t had some unfortunate issue. (The only issue with these cuts was the careless chopping done by the sales person at the cutting table, but that’s for another day.) These tops weigh nothing, and roll up so compactly that I could have packed ten of them if I’d wanted to! The colors are deep and rich, and the fabric’s very nice to wear — perfect for everyday or traveling, all-around.
I used my new serger to add stabilizing tape, about six inches of it, to each shoulder seam. There’s a slot in the presser foot that perfectly feeds 1/4 inch twill tape under the foot so that it’s sewed automatically into the seam. This process could not have been easier. Whoo-hoo!
Summerset Banks has a fantastic (and illustrated!) explanation of a great finish for this collar, and I used it on each of these shirts. Check it out if you’re making this pattern; you’ll be glad you did.
Summerset also suggests tagging the back of the shirt, which is good advice, since it’s almost impossible to tell the fronts from backs at first glance. She uses a little bit of folded ribbon, but I dislike tags, so I just added a short, white, line of zigzag stitches. I can spot these easily inside the tops.
This assembly line was also a chance to use one of my ancillary presser feet: Pfaff’s “seam guide foot with IDT”, which made short work of my hems. It’s got a small blade-like edge on one side, and seam allowance markings all along the very wide foot:
I wouldn’t call this exactly a necessary accessory, but it really is an incredibly efficient way to keep my hem stitches the same precise distance away from the edges. When whipping out multiple items as rapidly as possible, this is a great advantage. If things get too rote, my mind tends to go numb; this is an antidote to forgetting exactly where I should be stitching that hem.
Related: Burda “Polo” #121 09/2010
Thanks for the info. But of course, I got it wrong. The SKU will help but what I needed to know was what Jo-Ann calls the stuff, but the fiber content should get me there just the same. And yes, I save my receipts too! It definitely helps with the blog posts years later.
Oh. Love. I really like mine. I used the stiff interlock from Joann but you could sell me on this silkier stuff. I’ve gotten and obscene amount of wear out of my two turtlenecks!
I’m living in these, Cidell! They’re so easy to wear, and a dream to make . . .
Wait a minute! Those fabulous colors were found at Jo-Ann’s? Where? This year? If so, can you provide the sku from the receipt? This is exactly what I want to do, t-shirts and turtles, but I can’t find any great colors. Also, is this their interlock or their knit with lycra?
Yes, Lisa, this year! And, weirdly, since I never throw away an unimportant receipt, I’ve actually got an SKU for you — but it’s for the black: 400012854026. None of mine are their interlock, which I really don’t like. All of these are either polyester/spandex, rayon/spandex, or poly/rayon/spandex, BUT you will probably find them mixed in with the interlocks. I just started looking for the color, and then feeling the fabric and reading the bolt ends to dig these out.
Collecting these colors did take a number of trips — they seemed to sell out fast. (I wonder why!) I just snapped them up every time I saw a color I didn’t have.
Let me know if the black SKU doesn’t lead you to the other colors. I’m sure I’ve got another JoAnn’s receipt (or 6, or 12, or 20) laying around here somewhere.