I'm loving my new Astoria sweater!! It might be one of my favorite things I've made. The fabric is just lovely (I used a pretty cotton novelty knit from Mood), and although the cut is very simple the cropped aspect makes it really special. I cut the waistband fabric in the opposite direction, for a fun touch!
This time I made it a size and a half larger than my first version and it fits great! For my practice version, I traced the XS for the top and graded up to a S in the waist. This version I didn't grade up for the waist, I just traced in between the S and M sizes for all the pieces.
Lately I've been dreaming about getting a serger, it would be sooo much more convenient when finishing the seams on all these knits. For my practice version I didn't really finish my seams, but this cotton fabric had a lot of cottony pieces that kept flaking off the unfinished seams, so I decided to bind my seams with stretchy lace. I definitely recommend binding your seams, if you don't have a serger to finish them. It works especially well for the neckline and waistline seams. As you can see below, I finished my seams before sewing the neckline/waistline to the bodice. It works perfectly, because when you sew the seam allowance down it covers up the unfinished seam (the seam from the bodice pieces). The bound seams are also going to make this sweater last longer!
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| Binding my seams |
So all in all, I'm lovin' my new Astoria. I think I'll get a lot of use out of this gal :)
