Making it in African Fabric.

I have a black top that I really like how it fits me. I like the open sides and that it is not too tight without also being oversized. But it is a 3/4 sleeve length and not practical for summer. I decided to try to copy this top onto African Fabric and continue my sewing journey with African cloth, and make it more appropriate for summer.

Because copying the curves had been challenging on my last project and I saw other videos using different techniques I decided to use this video by Mimi G Style to copy this top.

From the start I knew I wanted to change a couple of things, but my first goal was to just copy it as is on paper. I marked up the halfway points as shown in the video. Then I put the top on and measured where I wanted my neckline to open up to for a boat neck look and marked that on the top. I also marked where I wanted the sleeves to end.

The new technique that I got from Mimi G Style is to use a tracing wheel to trace the curves. The photo above is the fabric after tracing with the wheel.

Here you can see the dotted line left by the tracing wheel on the paper.

On the pattern below you can see in dark purple the original line of the top.

It is so evident that I still have so much to learn by how much I struggled with this sleeve. I knew I wanted to use a short dolman sleeve. That is when the sleeves are cut out already connected to the main panel. The last project I made (for my son), I attached the sleeves separately, and that look is ok, but I like this look of the continual fabric for myself, without that extra seam at the shoulder.

As you can see above, I tried various shapes for the sleeve (so many pencil marks erased before that point). But I was having a really hard time understanding and visualizing how it would look on me once actually sewn together. (Spoiler alert... I picked the wrong shape for the sleeve). I used this video from Sarah Naomi to help me because her finished result is a dolman sleeve. One of my problems was that I could not get the curve at the arm pit to look like the curve in the video. I tried various attempts, but it would not curve right. My other problem was that I had measured around my arms and had an idea of how much length I needed for the armhole, so I was keeping the line that connects the shoulder to the arm pit at least that measured length, but that was also changing the look of the sleeve. Where should I have put the extra length? The squarer look would not be wide enough. That is how I ended up with the point as shown on the yellow line which was what I decided to follow.

I also drew my new boat neckline onto the pattern.

I added the seam and hem allowance to what I thought at the time were the appropriate places, but it turns out I would also struggle with this when sewing the pieces together.

I had started watching tops being made by African women using African fabric, because I know this fabric is stiffer than most other cotton fabrics I have encountered for clothes. In the past when I have had clothes made for me using this fabric, I see that it reacts different because of the drape of this wax stamped cotton. So going in, I knew the top I was making could potentially not work out well because the original black top is a thicker jersey cotton with softer drape. Still, I wanted to try because it is the fabric that I have available and I love the bright colors. I used this video by TrendyEby for several things, but one tip from her was on making the facing. That is the small strip seen on the right of this photo.

I decided to draw the back and front on one paper pattern, cut out the back and then traced that to another paper after cutting out the front pattern. That way I would have two paper patterns, one for the front and one for the back.

I will create a separate post on how the actual sewing went... that's a story in and of itself!

But tell me, what have you done to help you make a pattern out of sleeves? Especially if you have experience with dolman sleeves because I really like the look. I will be trying this again.

-Frannia