Hi there! I’m back with my second failed project for Fail February 2017. This fail is simply a sizing problem- I love the style, colors, and pattern, but I messed up with that darn sizing!
It’s the Seamwork Aurora Tank and I’ve made one before which was a complete win! I wear my first Aurora all the time and it’s so comfortable and the fit is good. Since it worked out so well, I did the exact same measurements for my second rendition but it came out way too tight in the bust!
I know it looks OK in the photo above, but those gathers poke out all weird and it’s uncomfortably tight. Even my lovely assistant can’t escape from the poor fit:
Ugh, those BUBBLES!
And it doesn’t look quite right from the back, either…
See how that pleat is holding on for dear life? Yikes!
So how did this one turn out so differently than my first? It’s all chalked up to fabric! My first Aurora was made with a very stretchy ITY knit. So even though the size (XS from bust grading to M at waist) is a little off for me, the stretch of the fabric made up for it.
This Aurora is made with a vegan stretch leather for the yoke, which has less stretch than ITY, so it really hugs my shoulders and back tightly. The knit I used for the bottom (mystery fabric – some kind of poly/spandex blend, maybe?) is trying to keep it together but just gets stretched out like crazy.
The good news is I can remedy this fail. I just need to rip out the side seams and insert panels to give me more width. I think that will solve everything. Now it’s just a matter of when I feel like doing it!!
I find it interesting that my two fails for this year are both Seamwork patterns. But I don’t think it has anything to do with the drafting (except those Mojis aren’t made for big badunkadunks). They’re mostly a fail on my part because I suck at sizing!
Next time I’ll be back with your fails for this month! Don’t forget to tag your fails with #failfebruary on Instagram or link to my Fail February post if you blog about your fails!
Fail on, friends!
-RED
Sew RED-y 
Honestly sizing and adjusting to your size is the hardest part of sewing in my opinion. For a long time I preferred knits because there’s a bit of a margin with fit, especially as I like my clothes ‘form fitting’.
At least you can solve this fitting issue!
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So true! And you’d think by using a knit this time around, it would have worked out, LOL! But I should know better that I’m not an XS in any company. I got too many muscles for that 😉
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I hate it when you know you can fix something but you have to get round to doing it, mine usually sit on a like for a bit whilst I sulk before I get round to it!! 😁
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Agreed! We’ll see how long it takes me to fix this top… I’m not even counting on sometime this year, LOL!
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Such a shame it’s too tight as its a lovely top, I love the contrast and hope adding a panel will help. I’ve just had this with a shirt as I made it in a floatier viscose and it’s come out much bigger. Thanks for sharing, it’s nice to know I’m not alone 🙂
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Thanks! I think this will turn out just fine once I fix it. Sizing + fabric choice is so difficult! After about 6 years of sewing, I still feel like I don’t know what I’m doing. 🙂
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Fabric stretch can make such a huge difference in fit!! This is a perfect example!
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Absolutely! I think I learned my lesson for sure!
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You can save this top!! (Does my FEBRUARY FAIL that I saved count?)
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I can and I will, LOL! Yes, your saved fail counts, too! It’s great when a fail isn’t a complete fail and can be salvaged. 🙂
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😃 thank you!
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That’s a really cute ‘fail’. I’ve miss read the stretch of fabric a few times myself , so frustrating!
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Thanks! At least it’s somewhat wearable but I won’t wear it as is, so that still counts as a fail in my opinion. One day we both shall be fabric masters and never have problems like these again! (Fingers crossed)
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Really, i have seen worse. And sewn worse!
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LOL yeah it could have been much worse! I’ve had some worse fails in the past but unfortunately I got rid of those long before I thought about modeling and posting for Fail February. 🙂
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…and…I have been failing on ONE PATTERN for most of February. If I could plagiarize your signature title line, I would be writing about “the grey dementor capes (yep, plural…) of gloom.” I am in the final throes of trying to save what I can.
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That has to be frustrating! Dementor capes sound amazing, though, as I love Harry Potter. I guess “gloom” fits well with that theme, though LOL!
Good luck!
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I blogged them, linking to your Fail February post.
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Ugh the lack of stretch! That’s the toughest thing about knits. ITY is insanely stretchy! I remember once I cut out more stretch than I needed to to account for the ITY stretch and ended up (not surprisingly) with a dress that was shorter in every direction and strangely tight in odd ways. Hey, go big or go home though.
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Ahh that stinks! And stretchy fabrics are supposed to help with fitting issues (normally). Sigh, some things are just not meant to be. 😉
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