Finally! Vogue 8151 fits!
I wore this all day and never had to yank it forward on my neck even once and there was no pooling of material in the small of my back. (Both issues are pet peeves).
Besides changing the neckline design change to scoop style I made the following alterations:
- The back was cut in size D, morphing to an F below the waist
- The front was cut in size D, extending to F at the underarm and continuing in size F from that point down.
- Sloping shoulders 3/4"
- Bust dart lowered 1"
- 3/4" length added to bottom at the center back
- About 3/8" shaved off the sleeve head
This was made up in a cotton knit. I stabilized the neckline and shoulder seams with clear elastic applied with wash-away wondertape. The bottom and sleeve hems were stabilized the same way, then top-stiched with a 4mm double needle. This worked beautifully, with miminal 'tunneling' between the stitching lines.
Based on previous reviews (thank you to all who wrote them!) I did not do a full bust alteration and it wasn't needed, even though I'm an F cup. Usually an fba is a given but in this case, I think because my back is narrow and because it's a knit fabric, there was enough ease all around to accommodate my bust in the front.
Speaking of previous reviews, they also mentioned the more than ample sleeve head ease and they are right! Another thing--and I don't know if this is the pattern or if it's because of how I shaped the back side seams when morphing from size D to size F from the waist to the hip, but I had to ease the back side seams a bit into the front from the waist down. The result was that the back sides of the shirt were ever so slightly shaped to accommodate my hips. Lovely!
Tweaks for next time:
- Scoop out the armscye just above the bust 1/2"
- Forward shoulder alteration (1/2")
- Maybe extend the shoulder seam 1/4"
- Reduce the sleeve cap ease even further
Despite the above tweaks, this is now an official 'tried 'n true' pattern for a future SWAP. Finally!
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