Back in November, Drew and I went to California for his friend’s wedding. We bought one way tickets months before, but none back as we figured we would use this time for a vacation. We had no plans, no hotels, no plane home but we were up for an adventure.
We decided to do a small tour of California, starting where the wedding was in Santa Barbara and working our way towards LA, to LAX. At each stop, I had to look up fabric stores. That’s a given, right? Our second stop was in the beautiful town of Ojai where I found this amazing fabric store Cattywampus. I love finding smaller shops because they usually have fabrics you can’t find anywhere else, and they sell curated goods that are usually online only.
Cattywampus has a beautiful location and really fabulous finds. I’ve secretly always wanted a boutique, and over time have wanted a fabric/craft store that held classes (I even found the perfect location that was for sale a few years ago) and this shop is everything I would want.
Their fabric selection isn’t very large, which means they really care about each bolt that’s on the shelf. I had a hard time deciding what to get and walked away with two cuts. (I blame my carry-on suitcase and knowing we would be fabric shopping in LA). One is an adorable hedgehog print that I’m saving for a fun bag lining; the second was this stunning lightweight cotton. I was really drawn to the print and was told it was hand-printed in India- which just made me love it more.
I knew I wanted to make a top out of this print. Something simple, to let the print really shine. I had a few options in mind, including a Lou Box Top and Mandy Boat Tee. Ultimately I chose a new pattern: The Hemlock Tee from Grainline Studio. This is a free pattern that I’ve wanted to try for a while, and thought it would be a nice look for this fabric. (Just sign up for Grainline Studio’s Email List for the free pattern!)
The Hemlock Tee is one size, so I did some major alterations to make it fit petite. I didn’t like the neckline, as it was way too wide for my frame. I cut out 1/2″ from the CF on the pattern, meaning 1″ was taken out from the center in total. I probably could have done an extra 1/2″, but didn’t want to cut too far in. I also shortened the pattern 4″, and hemmed an extra 1″, since the pattern is very long. The last alteration was while sewing the sleeves. I only cut 4″ of the sleeve pattern, hemmed the raw edge and folded in until the bodice seam. I saw a few hemlock tee’s with the folded sleeve and loved the look so I had to try it out for myself!
After wearing my Hemlock and taking photos, I can definitely take it in a little bit. I can just hear my mom saying “this does nothing for you!” haha! But I absolutely love the boxy look. My daily uniform is slowly becoming skinny jeans, booties and boxy tops. As soon as I put this top on, I wanted to make a pair of black skinny jeans and a cute cardigan to finish off the look. There’s nothing quite like a motivating make!
My final thoughts on the Hemlock Tee: for a free pattern it’s a great base. I do love the look, and how many hacks there are in the sewing world for this pattern, but for petite figures, this was not a cut & sew. I am however, excited to have another pattern that is great for both knits and wovens and encourage you to check it out if you haven’t already!
trish stitched 
I too am petite. Your size actually, but I am old and a little more ‘plumper’ than I was when I was young. This type of pattern suits me so when you said you have another pattern that suits both woven and knit fabric I was excited but then you didn’t say anything more about how to find the pattern etc. You have me left hanging in anticipation. Will you be telling us this information in the future? I hope so. I would love to have a pattern like this suitable for both woven and knits and suitable for petites.
LikeLike
Hi Suzanne, the Hemlock Tee is the pattern I am referring to being great for both woven and knits. The link is in the post, or you can simply go to http://www.grainlinestudio.com to get the pattern (just sign up for their email!). I was saying this pattern, the Hemlock, is another great option because I had previously made the Lou Box Top, from Sew D.I.Y, which is also a pattern for both knits and wovens. Hope this helps!
LikeLike