Update on that Stretch Linen Top: It is Totally See-Through

Um, ok. I'm glad I got Scott to photograph me in the linen before I went out because the top is freakin' see-through. Like, not posting it online for eternity, see-through. (Gillian - I see what you mean?!) So here's my revised word on stretch linen (ignorantly extrapolating from this one sort, what all would be like):

• I'll wear this top to my local, or in my back yard, or as a beach cover up, but the fabric is only nominally fabric, as it happens.

• Furthermore, the boxiness of the drape (that's how it goes with linen) is not particularly flattering on my body. In truth, I could easily modify the fit of the finished garment (not that I can generally get it up to alter something after sewing it), but people - it's transparent. 

• Were I to use this fabric again, I'd underline it in the same fabric to improve its opacity. Of course, that might wreck the finished garment in other ways.

This project has still been a success. I've learned more about the Concord pattern, something about a new-to-me fiber, my stitch work is not embarrassing and this experience will provide me with new ways of thinking about linen, stretch or no, and what patterns it might work with in the future.

OK, update on the update: I couldn't stop myself. I just serged off about 1" from each side-seam at the hip, tapering to 1/2" at the waist, up to the armscye, to see how this would affect the fit . The shirt fits me more attractively this way. There's so much to learn about the properties of linen! Not sure if it'll box out again but this is an interesting experiment. Of course, the top's still see-through, but vaguely less so, now that it doesn't hang away from my body as much as it did. I also think I should have cut the bindings (arm, neck) on the grain of stretch. The arms and neck are too high in this version, I suspect because I used the linen on the non-stretch. God help me, I think I may actually make this one again just to see. Don't worry - I'll try not to write 3 posts about it.

Does This Photo Make My Dress Form Look Fat?*

I can't believe I forgot to mention one more "extreme" quality of linen: It sheds like a bitch. Little bobbles fall out of it, mysteriously, the minute you cut into the fiber. This thing is still leaving behind a dusty trail. I'm sure this is temporary - till all of the short fibers dislodge - but it makes an order-driven sewist insane.

So here's a shot of the linen Concord tank - more to show the see-throughness than anything else. It does not look like this on me or I can assure you, I'd throw it out:

I've decided that I like the fluttery quality at the hemline. It doesn't fit like a T shirt would, but it's whimsical.

Here's a great opp to talk about Why Bra Fit Matters:

The very lovely Empreinte Emily - which does fit me, if slightly snugly at the centre gore, does NOT fit my dress form. Its boobs are wider and shallower than mine and it's already wearing a batten stuffed bra (under the cotton sleeve) to approximate my boob shape (which pushes the Emily underwires down still further). It's under bust measurement is larger than mine. So the reason this bra appears to be too long at the under bust and a bit pancakey is that the band is pulling the wires out of shape (again, dress form = wide with no give like an actual rib cage) and the actual upper and centre cup fullness, which the bra mandates, is not happening. I should have taken a shot of the upper cup without the tank. This is what we call size AND shape-mismatch peeps and it's not doing my dress form any favours. This is the basis of my tongue-in-cheek post title.*

You know I talk to a lot of women about bra fit. They email me. I meet them at parties. I work with them. And the most frequent thing I hear, once they transition into a bra of the correct volume and band size (generally about 2-3 cup sizes larger and 2 band sizes smaller than they imagined they'd require), is that they feel thinner. Sure, they also say they feel more gorgeous (and not because they feel thinner) and graceful. But I suspect the reason that these peeps feel thinner is because their breasts aren't floating, unsupported under a boob-hat. Especially if one has projected breasts that are not self-supporting, the lift provided by a well-fitted bra accentuates a distinction between the full bust and the underbust / waist area. That almost always lengthens the silhouette.

This is a great teachable moment about how shape is as important as size in ensuring that you're wearing the correct bra fit. It can take dozens of tries before you find a bra that suits your breast shape, but when you do, you will feel gorgeous. And, once you understand what sort of bra shape actually works on you, you'll save a lot of time because you'll be able to avoid those shapes that are never going to suit.

At any rate, there is no bra that I own that is ever going to fit the form so I went ahead with this one.

About the See-Through: I think this shot overestimates the translucency of the top because the dressform is cotton-white. I'm going to wear this today and, if I can bring myself to, I'll get my friend to take a photo. I think this top deserves a bit more reality than is in evidence here, even if I am a wuss about the selfies.

I Am Talking 'Bout the Linen*

Where to begin?

I am still nowhere with the Appleton dress because a) it's too hot to tape things (not complaining!) and b) I got derailed by that piece of linen after reading about Gillian's experience.

Brief Sidebar: It's fucking gorgeous outside, given that it's hotter than hell, and I'm enjoying it tremendously, with a glass of (unfortuntately) chilled Tatone. That red is way to heavy to chill - or to drink today. Note: I'm not the one who put it in the fridge so I will complain - but I don't have the discipline to wait till it warms up. I've been sewing for a long time...

OK, back to the stretch linen. I have so many feelings about it:

• It's a weird little fiber. I think you have to view it like a plant, more than a textile. It's so natural and farm-y that it's hard to begrudge it.

• It takes everything personally, but it sews up beautifully. What I mean is, Lord, don't stretch this shit because post-stitch "recovery" is not in its skill set. In an unheard of move, I washed it again after sewing, so that I can see how the fabric is actually going to hang. Note: I did not machine dry it as that's not how I pre-treated it. I believe that linen should be air-dried. In truth, it only takes 10 minutes to go from soaking to wearable. Having said all this about the memory issues, it loves a serger, a machine, a coverstich. It's just happy to be there.

• It really is fucking see-through! I'm cool with that. When it's hot enough to wear, I'm not going to care. And my bras are so gorgeous, they deserve a bit of play. But I don't think I'll be wearing this to work...

• The stuff I bought is arguably of very high quality. There's no slub. The stretch-factor is about 40% (4 inches to 7 inches) on the cross grain. It does not stretch along the length. It doesn't get shiny with ironing. Alas, it's unfortunate that I neglected to lift my coverstitch needles adequately before yanking the yarn back to disengage the looper. But even that didn't ruin this fabric. It persevered. (A jersey would have been scratched into oblivion.)

And then there's how it sews up:

• I opted to make my 40 per cent stretch linen Concord in the same size as my others (which are 100 per cent stretch rayon jersey). My sense of linen is that it doesn't recover but it loves to stretch-stretch-stretch. Only wear will tell, but I think I made the right call. I did serge the side seams very close for a bit of extra roominess.

• Having said this, the Concord is drafted very amply in the hips so I think it might have been wise for me to have serged off more seam in that area.

• Furthermore, and I totally made this up on the fly, I opted to cut the binding (for neck and armscyes) on the length - so the only stretch achieved is from fabric ease (of which there is much). I didn't want these areas to bag out. I didn't know if this would work (so I pre-sewed and took quite a bit of time pinning etc.) but it was worth the effort. 

• I'm glad I opted to forego the sleeves. Linen and sleeves are a really weird combo that I've never been into.

• Peeps, my stitch work on this project is fine. I took 3 hours to sew a sleeveless T shirt which means I took my time and I love the end result. Of course, it's a fucking black fabric with black thread so no one will ever know!

I will post a photo of this Concord hack (prob on my dressform) once it dries, and I'm calling this project a success. Will I run out to buy 100 bucks worth of stretch linen any time soon? Um, no. Might I make up a Kielo maxi using it - next year, say? Perhaps. And I'm glad to learn more about a new fiber, even one that doesn't innately thrill me.  I actually think I'm more into linen yarn than linen fabric -and even that is something I've only forayed into once.

PS: I think I may actually have enough fabric to make one more of these...

*Unless you're Gen X or older, this will probably mean nothing to you, but there's a HIDEOUS song by England Dan & John Ford Coley (I actually had to look up who sings it), from the '70's, called I'd Really Love to See You Tonight. It's a scourge. At any rate, one of the lyrics in the chorus is: "I'm not talkin' 'bout movin' in" and it sounds EXACTLY like: "I'm not talkin' bout the linen". Once you've heard it, you'll never be able to unhear it. So proceed with caution. I guess I should try harder with my post title puns if they actually require a footnote explanation.