"Aye aye, Caftan!" - WITH POLL

Remember this fabric I bought on Monday with the intention of making Michael a shirt?

From Butterick 3625 - mens caftan

Well, after washing and ironing it, I realized it was too lightweight and transparent for a regular shirt, but would make a very nice caftan top.

Remember how yesterday I mentioned the vintage caftan pattern -- my very first vintage pattern in fact -- I'd bought last June and made into this shirt that I never wore out of the house (and that necklace is Michael's, btw; I do not wear shells, bones, etc.)?

From Butterick 3625 - mens caftan

Well I decided to have another go at it.  I really took pains this time, and with more advanced skills, I was able to do a better job.  There were two particular challenges: the fabric was plaid -- always complicated -- and it was a very loosely-woven cotton that tended to shift and whose stripes were easily pulled out of alignment. (I guess this is what you get for $2 a yard). 

What made things more challenging -- and ultimately frustrating -- was that I tried to incorporate my new Brother 1034D serger into the construction but my serger skills are not (yet) what they might be.

You see, I still haven't decided HOW best to use my serger:  1) to finish the seam allowances (instead of overcasting); or 2) to actually create the seam itself; or 3) baste with my Singer Spartan and go over it with the serger, so that it looks like #2.

I haven't developed good serger judgement yet and I ended up doing a little of both.

For example, I attached the sleeve without a problem on my Singer, but then when I went over it with the serger, I had a harder time controlling the fabric as it fed into the machine and in a few places it left puckers in the armscye where there hadn't been any before (sob).

You know how they say when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail?  Well I think that's kind of the situation I'm in with this serger.  I love it and I want to use it (bang bang).

But this caftan was a project that would have turned out better without it.  For example, if I hadn't had the serger, I would have used French seams on the sleeves and torso, which would have been prettier.  And I would never have ended up with puckers in my armscye using my trusty Singer Spartan. 

So here it is.

From Butterick 3625 - mens caftan

I'm OK with it and Michael seems to like it as well.  Some judicious steaming should erase most of the puckering, since the fabric is so loose and stretchy to begin with.  I'll probably hem the sleeves by turning up the serged edge (which I've left exposed here) and stitching on top to create a simulated overlock look.

I'm especially proud of the placket:

From Butterick 3625 - mens caftan

Nice, right?

But the caftan overall?  I'm a little "meh" about it.  Maybe it's the fabric, or that collar band, or the fact that we're in the midst of a MAJOR WINTER STORM WARNING and I'm sewing for Ipanema beach.

I think if you're going to wear a caftan, you should look like this.  Not just physically, but the whole scene.

Maybe I just need to take my pants off.

What do YOU think?



You can also read my pattern review here.