Bow-neck Top from Scrap Fabric DIY Tutorial

Reader Abby asked how I made this bow-neck top:

So I'm retroactively sharing a DIY tutorial for it.  Sorry in advance for my poor drawing skills, but hopefully you get the gist of it.  :)

What I Used:

• Irregularly-shaped scrap fabric from past project - roughly 3/4 yards
• A pattern (see tutorial here to make your own) OR use a store-bought one for a sleeveless v-neck top

What I Did:

1.) Take your fabric and fold just enough to cover the width of your front pattern piece. 

Approximate layout of pattern pieces (not drawn to scale)

2.) Always cut the piece that demands the most fabric first - in this case, the front.  I neglected to do that and wound up with a fishtail hem.  It turned out fine, but I didn't intend for it to be like that.

3.) To make the most of my scrap fabric, I went with a split back by cutting out each half of the back separately and then sewing it back up at the center.  I also made my back pattern slightly slimmer than the front to further accommodate my fabric.

An error with my illustration above - once you cut your front on fold, you can unfold the fabric and slide Back (2 of 2) to the unfolded edge.

4.) I like a big, floppy bow so I cut my tie neck pieces 5" wide and as long as I could make it (~30").

Sewing Steps:

5.) If applicable, serge your edges (bottom and sides).  Jean shared a nifty tip using a zig zag stitch on her regular machine for raw edges.

6.) Sew your back halves together at the center (wrong side facing out).

7.) Sew the shoulders of your back and front together and then the sides (wrong side facing out).  Note: Because I made my back pieces slimmer, I forked my hem at the sides to accommodate my belly.  Essentially, I sewed the sides and left ~3" at the bottom, then went back, folded each side of the fork inwards, and sewed to the bottom.

8.) Hem by folding the bottom inwards and stitching across.

9.) At this stage, you should have a v-neck top with raw armholes and neck.  Sew your 2 neck pieces together so you now have 1 long, continuous piece.

10.) Align the center seam of your neck piece to the center "V" of your back.  Pin at that junction and work from the center back towards the center front "V", pinning all the way.  Sew the pinned edge of the neck piece to your neckline (wrong side facing out).

11.) Now fold your neck piece in half length-wise over the edges of step 10. Sew.

12.) Finish your armholes with a bias strip in a similar neck manner where you sew one edge to the armhole, fold to cover sewn edges and sew.  I used pre-purchased, single fold strips in white.

Photo of the tie neck with serged edges

And you're done!

I hope this tutorial wasn't too daunting.  Text instructions always make everything seem more complicated than they are.  The top took about 1.5 hours to complete.

A Monogram & Gone Dotty Part 2

I had some leftover fabric from my Kate Spade inspired dress DIY here and pondered my options on what I could do with it.  I decided to go the Jean route and create a bow-neck top.  I love a good bow blouse!  I made 2 a couple of years ago (animal-esque print here and brushstrokes one here) that I still wear.  I think this polka dot version will prove quite versatile.

Banana Republic Blazer

DIY'ed Bow Neck Dotted Top

NY & Co Ankle Pants

Target Pumps

1.25" Monogram Necklace, bought here

"VEA" stands for my son, daughter, and husband <3

I love the way Blair of Atlantic-Pacific sports her monogram necklace so when I saw this on Etsy for only $36, I pounced on the deal.  I've had it for a couple of months now and can say it's held up pretty well.  I got the 22" length and added a jump ring at 18" so I can wear it higher or lower depending on the neckline I'm wearing.  It does tarnish, as can be expected of silver, but a good cleaning takes care of that easily.  

On a personal note, we're going house-hunting next week in SF!  We've been doing a lot of move prep mostly in the cleaning and organizing arena so I'm excited to do something more fun :)