Sew I Am: Two Pink Shirts

So, last time I went to the craft thrift store, I grabbed a few yards of a bright pink knit, figuring I could make a few shirts from it. Fabric there is sold per pound, so it wasn't measured, and I could tell there was a lot there so I didn't unfold it, either. Cue the feeling of BETRAYAL when I got home and discovered it was not contiguous yardage, but, instead, five two-yard strips of roughly 10" wide each.

After accepting that what I had was what I had, I realized I could just...piece the fabric to make it wide enough for the front and back. I considered getting fancy--exposed seams, adding extra seams, more and more piecing, to make it look Designed. I realized, though, that there was still some resentment about the BETRAYAL, and that meant I didn't want to work with the fabric that much. Simple center seams it would be.

I used New Look 6068 with Kwik Sew 303's sleeves again. I finally traced 303's sleeve pattern, to keep with 6068, too. The "rough" part of "roughly 10" wide" meant there were areas wide enough to cut sleeves as one piece, in both long and short lengths. I also went with one scoop neck and one crew neck.

I want to take a moment to express my amazement that the dark pink ribbing in my stash, which was a gift given to me years ago, is a near perfect match for this pink knit of BETRAYAL

All construction seams were sewn on the serger, with the left needle added for four thread overlocking. I fiddled with the serger a few months ago, to try to get the needles to stop hitting things they shouldn't--I sill had to replace the left needle at one point, after it bent and stopped catching thread from the loopers. I'm honestly not sure if the needle once again hit the stationary needle guard, or if the weird tension issue I noticed in the thread after I put the replacement needle in was enough to bend the needle forward. I did reduce the tension on that thread...probably should floss the tensioner, too...

The 303 sleeve fits well into the 6068 armscye, even though 303, as an old KwikSew, expects only ¼" seam allowances, but I sewed everything with 5/8"

Well, 5/8"-ish. The serger is not really made for anything but ¼" seam allowances, so I eyeballed the amount cut off while sewing. Knits are forgiving.

I did the usual two lines of stitching at the cuffs and hem, to mimic the look of a cover stitch.

Well, the look of a cover stitch from the outside.

The back also has a center back seam, but that's a(n optional) part of the pattern, unlike the center front seams on these shirts.

I'm still not confident about sewing on the neckband ribbing with the serger, so those were pinned thoroughly and sewn with the lock stitch machine, then the seam allowances serged, then edge stitched through all layers.