New Look 6751 -- Tunic

(I neglected to get prior approval from my model, and she has requested I take the photo down. -- Let that be a lesson, Mom.  I will replace it when I get a better one.) [Ed. -- I FINALLY got some better pictures:)]

 This tunic is a dress pattern from New Look 6751,  just cut shorter.  This pattern is now out of print, but you can still find it on etsy or ebay.  I used a green jersey knit fabric chosen by my daughter.  While the fabric feels wonderful, this is the most difficult knit I have worked with so far.  It was extremely difficult to get that neckband on correctly.

The first time I tried it was impossible.  I like to keep the original patterns intact, especially since sometimes my daughter and I can use the same pattern just different sizes.  So I trace my pattern pieces onto a thin paper.  Tracing it also gives me a cleaner piece that I can alter and make notes on.  But you do need to be careful.  When I laid the traced neckband on top of the original pattern I realized I had been sloppy and it was off by around half an inch.  So.... I retraced the pattern piece, recut a neckband piece and tried again.  (This was AFTER I had sewn and unpicked the neckband, and unpicking the seams in knit fabrics is a PAIN).  LESSON:  Check your traced pieces against the originals BEFORE you cut your fabric out.

Two more issues here:  this pattern was not rated "easy" and it is a pattern suitable for wovens and some knits, but the directions are more suited for the wovens.  Also, because the bodice was not gathered into the neckband, it needed to fit exactly.  Easier said than done.  I never did get it exactly, but close enough. This was my first time using a solid knit, and I did find out that it is much harder to disguise mistakes on a solid than on a print.  Prints cover a multitude of sins, shall we say.

The neckband was really the only super difficult part, and I think it was exacerbated because for some reason I thought I had to use a straight stitch.  For the rest of the top I used a narrow zigzag (my normal setting for knits) and had no problems.  If I make it again, I will definitely use the zigzag on the neckband as well.

Also, if I make it again I will be sure to add a couple of inches to the sleeves.  My daughter is a little disappointed how short they came out.  I should know to do that automatically.  The first shirt I ever made -- in Home Ec class when I was a freshman in high school -- was a button-front woven shirt and the sleeves were way short on me.  Seldom does a RTW shirt have sleeves long enough for me, and my daughter's arms are even longer than mine.

However, keeping in mind MY goal (not necessarily my daughter's goal) for clothes-sewing success -- wearability, I deem this tunic wearable this winter -- sleeves can be pushed up;)