African Inspired Blouse

Here lately, the only tops I've been concerned with making are crop tops. Well that and bodysuits. Alabama summers are such that you don't want to be involved with clothing alone, much less anything complicated.  I've opted for simple designs that don't require fancy closures or much ado.  That led me to designing my latest blouse.

My local mom-and-pop sew/vac shop was having a sale on fabric, and I happened to wander into there in the final day of the sale.  I had purchased some African prints from the shop before and found they had even more and they were 50% off. I ended up purchasing a couple of yards of several prints.

 Of these beautiful prints, I found this magnificent batik print cotton. It was so thin and crisp and vibrant that I had to bring it home. Initially, I was only thinking of making an accessory with it. However the more I looked at it I realized that I had some burnt orange colored shorts that this would paired excellently with.

I also knew that I wanted to give this shirt a little more visual interest, so I decided to play up the sleeves, make a tassel for the zip closure, and make a decorative hem.

I drafted a simple boxy midriff top, experimented with sleeve draping, and came up with this geometric shape that can be worn in several different ways.  I added a scoop neckline, which is not something I typically wear.   I also added a zipper to the back. It wasn't necessary; however I wanted to add the tassel, and I hate the hassle of getting makeup on EVERY.SINGLE.THING that I wear.  So the zipper opening will help with ease of use. 

I bought a bunch of crochet spools awhile ago, though I don't crochet at all.  I forget my original intent, but the thread does wonderfully for all sorts of sewing needs.  I purchased several colors when Hobby Lobby had a sale on them. At any rate, I used it and a few jewelry findings and beads to fashion myself a tassel for the back.  I think it complements the look fairly well.

To tie it all together (no pun intended,) I used the same crochet thread in my overlocker/serger and finished the hems.  I've used crochet thread to finish this way for several garments, and it never disappoints me.  It gives a hand finished look without actually having to go through the trouble of spending hours looking up tutorials. I also feel that it enhances the print on the fabric as well.

Thank you for stopping by!