I made a few tops while I was recovering hoping that warm weather would arrive!
This is a greyish/taupe linen/cotton blend with a very subtle pincord weave. The instructions on the bolt said to dry clean only.... so of course I brought it home, serged the raw edges, and threw it in the washed and dryer! It softened beautifully.
I cut bias strips and then sewed them into tubes. Next I pressed them and used them to embellish the collar and little cap sleeves on a summer top. I also made my old standby, piping to finish the collar. I had some beautiful tiny abalone buttons that I sewed at regular intervals to embellish the collar.
I made another top of the same style, but this time I cut a "frill" to finish the neck. For embellishment I used some wonderful orangey/red cotton twill tape that I bought at Britex
http://www.britexfabrics.com/ on a trip to San Fransisco a few years ago. I found a funky vintage button in my stash so I put that front and center.
This is a piece of iridescent silk jacquard that I bought at SR Harris
http://www.srharrisfabric.com/
As usual I "abused" the silk by sending it on a trip through the washer/dryer.
I am not a huge fan of ruffles, but I do like frills!
