"Back to the 80s" Top

How is everyone keeping? Well, I hope. We are in one of the California counties that is "sheltering in place," meaning that we are to stay at home as much as possible. Since The Man and I are both seniors we've already been trying to do that for the last couple of weeks. I feel very grateful that I have enough of everything I need, including indoor hobbies that I enjoy and a stash sufficient to keep me busy for quite some time. Now to flex my creative muscles and figure out how to make the best use of both.

This top was made from a Stretch & Sew pattern copyrighted in 1988. My friend Jessica found it at a FabMo event and scooped it up for me. I was initially intimidated at the idea of 175 pieces, even if they are easy. On second reading I realized they meant wardrobe pieces, not pattern pieces - whew!

I've been wanting to migrate my wardrobe to styles with a looser fit and higher necklines, as behooves a woman of my years. This pattern fits the plan very nicely. This is an 80s pattern so I did some flat pattern measuring before picking my size. I ended up tracing the pieces for a 30 inch bust. I measure more like 35 inches (if I take a deep breath and stand tall) but the smallest size is plenty loose enough for my taste.

The fabric is an ITY knit that is probably polyester. It almost looks like it could be swimsuit fabric, but it's not quite that shiny. I bought it years and years ago at a great little shop called Backstitch in Nevada City. They've been closed for years now; I gaze wistfully at the building every time I pass through town.

Not sure why my posture is so horrible in these photos. I guess I was trying to correct for the dowager's hump and over did the arch in the lower back.

I've tried a few of these OOP Stretch & Sew patterns and I like them quite a lot. The others have all been for The Man (Oregon Rain Pullover and Raglan Tee). This is the first one I've tried for myself and I'm very happy with it. I think I'll try one or two of the other 174 easy pieces sometime soon!

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.