A Tetrad of Emeralds

Oh summer clothes.  So hard to be comfortable and not wilted-feeling.  I'm mostly into separates, and I have a few thrifted t-shirts that are fine, but almost all need to be tucked in to look good (wahh!)  Sometimes it is just too hot and humid for that mess.

So, I got a bit brave this spring and decided to experiment with a new-to-me silhouette: the boxy cropped top.  (No, not like that. More like this).  Last year, Rae made a few Emerald tops and I loved them so much that I saved my pattern just for that purpose, as the dress had been an epic fail for my figure.  I made a hasty toile to get the fit right, since the sizing chart was really off for me, and then didn't actually make a wearable top last year. 

Until now!  I revisited my toile and made the changes on my flat pattern and made sure it all worked, and also chopped off a bunch of length to get it to Ashton crop top length.  (For the record, I cut all these tops on the straight grain, eliminated the center seam, and took several inches out of the center front and back for a closer fit.  The hem is straight across, about 10" below the undearm, and I cut a 2"-ish facing for all the blouses.  The sleeve facings are brilliant, in my opinion, and the best part of the pattern). 

I wasn't sure I would like it, but I actually do!  It is breezy and cool, comfortable, and while perhaps not the most singularly flattering thing I wear, it does work for summer.  I made four and have worn three of them several times already. 

The first was a minty one, in Mosaic linen from fabrics-store.com.  It is probably my favorite, to be honest.  It's just so fresh.  I roller-skated in it while visiting my parents last week and it was delightful. 

The second was a butterfly lawn one, out of leftover fabric from a dress I've yet to show.  I received the bolt end from fabric.com, so I had a lot of extra to play with (I made a matching mask too--somebody stop me!)  

 

It is perhaps a little bit too much into scrubs territory, but I like it okay.  It goes with several of my skirts.

The third and fourth were eked out of the selvedges of my teal skirt, as I had cut it carefully to preserve yardage for future use.  I ended up getting a skirt and these two blouses plus a mask out of two yards!

I had the idea of using up the remnant of Rifle and Co. rayon from my Menagerie dress, and had enough for a contrast panel only, so I sketched out a few iterations and Boo helped me pick this one.  There are literally fumes of that fabric left.  (Ditto the linen, for that matter).

The rayon facings were a bit fussy to do in rayon (especially when combined with linen), but it is okay.  I decided to let the sleeve facings peek out a bit for some additional contrast on the sleeve edges.

The other blouse is just plain, and I like it quite a bit.  It goes with several skirts as well.  It was ridiculously hot that day, and while I wouldn't say I was cool, I was a lot more comfortable than I usually am in that kind of heat.