Kasey’s Capsule Wardrobe Part 3- The Floral Blouse

Prints are the glue that pulls together the solids in your wardrobe plan.  Kasey selected a beautiful floral print that fits her love of vintage!  Thanks, Kasey!

I got this very pretty rayon challis from Roz oh, a while back now. My original intention was for a dress, but a dress can be a bit of a production so I kept putting it off. After seeing Ann do a “dress” as a two-piece suit, I had a brain fart (can I type that in public?) and decided to do a two-piece suit as well (thanks Ann!) I don’t know why, but for me, rayons, especially in fun prints have a 40’s feel to them, so I decided to do a bit of a 40’s silhouette. I choose the Simplicity vintage reprint, 1460, a peplum blouse I had done once before. It’s got a fun neckline for view C, kimono sleeves, and comes together more easily than you’d think.

I pre-washed and dried (yes, in the dryer) the rayon and it was fine. It did shrink a bit lengthwise, so keep that in mind if you have this one in your stash. It steams really nicely too, so I thought it’d do well as part of my capsule wardrobe. I lined the facings with fusible tricot, did a bit of edge stitching around the neckline, used a narrow hem on the peplum and sleeves, and finished the inside with my serger.

There was a bit of a mishap with this blouse; I have a bust dart and two French darts (diagonal down from bust apex to hip) in my bodices, and I didn’t realize how heavy that was for this rayon.

After hanging on my dress form for a couple days waiting for buttons, I saw how saggy it was. What to do? I don’t know what the right thing was, but I raised the peplum seam so it was a little more horizontal. The sides are still a little saggy, but I think this is just the nature of the fabric in a kimono sleeve top. A snap on each end of the buttons to keep the shape of the neckline and peplum, and I’ve got a nice, casual-or-dressy blouse to go with a variety of skirts. Stay tuned for the matching skirt though in Part 4!