The Saga of M5586

I don't know what it is about "easy" patterns, but I seem to run into some kind of problem every time I attempt to sew one of them. Give me something with lots of seams & pieces, maybe a nice set-in collar or cuffs, and I'm just fine. But just tell me that it's "easy", then sit back and watch how quickly I can complicate it.

This brings me to McCall's 5586, a very loose-fitting, sleeveless top. It has a simple faced yoke, a front, and a back. That's all. Nothing to it, right? Well, maybe.

I originally attempted this top in the v-neck version (View B) using a Mystery Fabric from my stash. All was going well, until I gathered the front and tried to sew it to the yoke. It was all downhill from there. No matter what I did, I simply couldn't get the thing to hang right. I decided that the fabric was a touch too heavy to gather and drape correctly around the v-neck, and promptly moved on. I wasn’t doing much sewing in the interim.

A year or two later, I decided to attempt this top again, in View A, with a different fabric. The construction was mostly uneventful, until the end when I had to finish the yoke. Something wasn’t quite right, so I took the whole thing apart, cut another one and tried again. The second time must be the charm, because this is what I ended up with...



The thing that really saved the day on this project was a ruffler foot. I hate doing gathers! They’re so simple, and yet I never seem to get them right. I think it’s because I fiddle with them too much, and the more I tinker, the worse they look. I never can seem to get them even, so I ordered a ruffler before completing this top. The gathers are a bit fuller than the pattern is designed for, even on the lowest setting, but it makes the job so much easier that I’m happy to adjust for that.

The ruffler is also going to salvage my original attempt at the v-neck version of this pattern. I gathered it this morning, and it looks great. :) All I need to do now is the hand-finishing (not really leaping forward to do that at the moment), and hem.