Another Knit Top

Here's my second version of Simplicity 4076. This one has the same cut as my first top, in respect to the neckline and lengthened hem (see the details here), except this time around, I allowed a for bit more ease and tried a sleeve variation.





The fabric is a bright orange, cotton/lycra jersey knit from Fashion Fabrics Club. It actually has a bit more stretch than the material for the last top, and it's also "slinkier" than the other because it stretches in both lengthwise and crosswise directions. I pretreated it by machine washing and drying it twice to eliminate any significant shrinkage.

To construct the top, I followed the same basic steps as I did for the last one, but I wanted to have a little more wearing ease in the armhole and side seams, so I stitched using a 1/2" seam allowance instead of 5/8." Also, to stabilize the shoulder seams, I used clear elastic instead of seam binding.



When I altered the pattern for the sleeve, my original intent was to gather only the top part of the sleeve. I altered the pattern as pictured below:



My plans changed after I'd hemmed and set the sleeves; their fit was looser than I'd hoped, and they were a little droopy. :-( I decided to pick out the hem stitches and gather the lower edge to a band, similar to the finish of the neckline. In a way, I'm kind of glad it ended up happening as it did because I actually like the sleeve bands better.