A Pastel Pairing

 I just love having fabric leftovers - especially when I am making separates.

After finishing my skirt, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with the remaining yardage.  

So I pulled out McCalls 7929, which was actually living on my cutting table because I have wanted to try the pattern since I picked it up.  Somehow I always forget just how much fabric a peplum actually takes.  The peplum was a no-go, but I figured it was worth a try to make the top without it.

Since my skirt has bound buttonholes, I decided the top must also have them.

Which meant that I had to make a few changes to the construction of the top, since the machine buttonholes are created after the lining is in place and everything is finished.

My first step was to make the opening in the main fabric.

Next, I stitched most of the upper edge of the lining in place.

A slice was made in the lining fabric to allow my bound buttonhole windows to slip through.

The facing is cut in one with the back piece, so I had to make my lining windows through both the outer and lining layers.

The raw edge was finished with seam binding, and folded into place.

The other change I made was to add boning to the garment.  View B is a sleeveless option with the peplum added.  And yet I cannot find a single mention of boning in the instructions, or on the back of the envelope with the other notions needed.

I have no idea how the pattern drafter expected the strapless version to be wearable.  I ended up adding boning channels to the side seams as well as the back bodice, and the front bodice.

Elastic is not something I commonly use, and it seems like whenever I do, I have to fuss with the length of said elastic; the suggested lengths never seem to work for me.  Negative ease is something that I need to get more comfortable with.

But once that issue was resolved, it was smooth sailing.  I did have to stop and think about how those bound buttonholes were going to work, but I think it's always a good idea to step back from the given instructions and think about how best to move forward with each project.

And that is the story of this top.  The fabric may have humble beginnings (picked up from a fabric swap and first purposed for a mock-up) but I think it turned into a perfect pair of separates.  And I am so glad that I didn't waste it on something that I wasn't sure I would love.