Kimono sleeveless top

This week I spent racing to create and finish a top for an event, as well as to enter in the Pattern review monthly pop-up sew-along (woven top). I was clearly not going to get very far along on the Liberty shirt, and I do like to participate, so had to change course.

 As these things do, it started out simple: I would use the remainder of the sage linen from the Gosling shirt and make a sleeveless top. Then I was inspired by the PR sewing bee, round two - a feature button-hole. So I wondered how I could incorporate a feature buttonhole (it was amazing what people did do with buttonholes!). I decided I could add an element at the front - a triangular 'band' reaching from one side to the other, which would button up on another tab. I would create a shaped, bound buttonhole. 

In the meantime I was poking around in boxes, and re-discovered two vintage kimonos. I had purchased them in a wonderful gallery in Yanagawa (a great tourist destination not far from Fukuoka) when we lived there. When live-at home daughter says, what is this from 1999? I realized, yes, indeed, it was purchased in about 1999! She also suddenly decided that she liked them and that I should not cut them. I went ahead with my plan, I started with the unstitching. I actually just wanted to get at a small piece I could cut off to do a burn test. Was it indeed silk? I can't quite get over how intricately put together kimonos are. It is fully lined, and all of those seams are so well hidden. But I eventually cut apart the sleeves on one kimono, and then cut off the top part, leaving the decorated part intact while I decied what to do with it.

The burn test confirmed that it is indeed silk. A quick internet search suggests that it is a silk crepe, and it is not soft to the touch, but it drapes really nicely. I have not yet done the burn test on the white lining, but my guess is NOT silk.

A bout of covid put a damper to my sewing plans over Ester week-end, too.

However, I decided to go ahead and make the top with the black silk from the kimono, so that I could wear a me-made top with my Marta skirt to Frocktails. How long could this take? Always longer than you plan, and I also had busy evenings and too much school prep to do. In the end I got home to finish the final touches and finished just before being picked up to go to Frocktails!

I used New Look (oop) 6526 as a basis for the top. It did not fit nicely, so I made some mods to the muslin, and ended up with an acceptable, if not brilliant fit. I narrowed the shoulders, I added countour to the side seams.

I had to do some piecing, as well, since the kimono width is pretty narrow. So I added a centre front seam, as well as a piece to lengthen the front. This would be hidden by the front 'waistband' I was adding (I really don't know what to call that piece). I did French seams on all the other seams (why not with those extra seams? Well, three or of four of the edges were already selvedges, so I just kept them.) I added self-made bias binding to the neck edge, the armole edges and the bottom seam. (In fact, if you look closely, which you can't because is is on the insde) you can see some of the original sachiko stitching on the bias binding.

For the feature buttonhole, I went with a shaped bound buttonhole. This ended up adding a lot of weight - with several layers, interfacing, and then the button itself, but it holds up nicely. I thought of doing gold top-stetching around the neck and armholes and buttonholes, then had the idea to just do some sachiko stitching around the buttonhole. Lucky me - I had the right colour of embroidery thread. I would have redone it to try to get a more even stitch, but this was a race against the clock.

Kimonos typically have a small icon - I think it might be the artist's signature stamp (hanko), and I incorporated these into the 'band' at the front, and centred two of them on the back. This provides that exit interest; it may seem like eyes on my back, or, as said someone who tried to peel it off, looks like a sticker got stuck to my back!

I am really happy with the finished product. I love the drape. Live-in daughter highly approved of the top when worn with black jeans and my me-made Channel-ispired bouclé jacket! (She is not a fan of the Marta skirt).

And I still have the entire bottom section with which to make something!

As for Frocktails - a shout-out to the Ottawa Garment Guild for hosting and organizing. We had lots of fun. How fun is it to play guess the pattern? and guess the fabric? ANd wow - YOU made that?! 

Some keepsake photos of the original kimonos. I LOVE the pattern on this one to the right, and need to think about how to best make use of it in a future project!  

This original plan was to create a bound buttonhole here, too, but I knew I would not have time. I made this loop. The button is a bit heavy for the fabric, so it pulls down a bit...

And here with the Marta skirt. I think it works. Live-in daughter is not of the same opinion! Reminder - she does not like this skirt at all!

sneak peak - original sachiko and French seam