The Gable Top is something I want to make 10,000 of.
Simple- practical- straight forward, what more can a seamstress ask for? When it comes to my workflow here at Vintage on Tap, I’m constantly working on projects that stretch my skills (and time, and patience, and funds, and brain cells…) Most of the time, it works out fine, but sometimes all I want is a feel-good pattern that I don’t have to fuss with and just fits.
I think I’ve found that pattern for me.
Jen from Jennifer Lauren Handmade reached out for me to give her Gable Top pattern a shot and not to gush, but I’m so happy with this pattern! It whips up quickly and without hiccup that I’m all ready planning on stitching up a few more Gables in black, black, black, and red. And yes, you read that correctly, in a lot of black jersey because this piece is a basic I can see being incorporated and used quite a lot.
From Jen’s website-
The idea for Gable has been floating around in my head for a long time. I love knit tops and since releasing Bronte all that time ago, I knew I needed to revisit the world of knits again. They’re so easy, so quick and so satisfying to make and wear. Gable is a true slash-neckline top, which basically means it sits at a 90-degree angle straight across the neckline from the inner shoulders.
The only change I made to the pattern as pictured is that I shortened the length by at least 1.5″. For future versions, it also needs about 3/4″ taken in on the shoulders to fit my frame a little bit more comfortably. I also sewed my neckline differently than the directions or Abi’s from The Crafty Pinup version. I did a simple fold over without a curved seam, to keep a straight stitch line between shoulder reinforcements and neckline.
Would I recommend this top? Absolutely! I think it’s super important to have a go-to jersey pattern that you know is flattering and no-fuss. My muslin of this top was made in 45 minutes (including cutting) and I wore it out right away to go have a beer as soon as it was off the sewing machine. This blue one took about an hour because I took extra care to make sure not to cut the fabric at an angle. To be honest, the hardest part was cutting everything on grain, but that’s not too bad.
Disclaimer: This post was made possible by Jennifer Lauren Handmade who kindly donated this pattern to review :)
PDF Pattern Companies to Try in 2021
How to Sew Underwear: The Seamwork Geneva pattern
The Billie Collection Skirt by The Fold Line
How to Sew Simplicity 1364, Video Tutorial!
The simplicity of this piece is spectacular. I definitely need to whip one up myself. You are looking incredibly elegant for your wine tasting. I image these pictures were shot at the beginning and not the end of the tasting. Tee hee.
Haha yes- the pictures were taken at the beginning of the wine tasting! And I def recommend the pattern; it whips up so fast that it’s a nice project to do while watching tv if you get the sewing-itch. I’m happy I didn’t have to do any pattern adjustments, either, and it was just… simple.