Cowl Neck Top

It has been a while since I sewed anything non-Burda --- but I found this cute and easy Butterick pattern (#B4132) that I thought would be the perfect style to whittle down my stash of silk charmeuse remnants.



The top only has three pieces and no closures are required. The one caution is that the front and backs are cut on the bias, so I needed more fabric than I thought (probably would have been good to read the back of the envelope first). I made a test version using a silky from Joann's after first comparing the pattern pieces to the custom moulage and sloper that I made in my french pattern drafting class. It was pretty cool to take my plastic templates and lay them down on the pattern pieces to check the basics, such as length to waist, armhole length, width, etc. There were a couple of things I could have altered, specifically armhole length and width, but I decided to just test the pattern as-is and see where the alterations should be.



Here is the test top on my dress form. My form is a bit fuller in the bust than I am, so the top fits me a bit looser. Interestingly, the alterations needed are the ones I identified after comparing my moulage to the pattern! I need to raise the armholes by about 0.5 inches and decrease the width about 0.5 inches. Other than those fixes the top fit well. I like the drape of the cowl and the full facing for the neckline and armholes. It is a good basic top!