african wax-print #3: the peacock oxford shirt

Finally! At long last, coming far far behind the heels of
african wax-print #1
african wax-print #2

I have made time to use the african wax-print cloth that Ari brought home for me from Rwanda. The women in the village agreed that this was "the most beautiful" of the local patterns, and I have to agree that it's gorgeous (plus, I love green). I almost went for black buttons, but somehow, at the fabric store, they looked too dark, too shocking. Though everyone disagreed with my choice of these navy buttons (except Cass), I don't think they're "too bright" at all; I mean, c'mon, it's ankara cloth - bright is part of the appeal, right?

To make this blouse, I used Vogue pattern V8598. I used the sleeve in view D (featured below) as a model, but cut it short to make a half-sleeve. Instead of adding the continuous lap, pleats, and cuff, I left a slit open at the back of each of my sleeves (finishing the hem with a shirttail hem, basically), and made the tabs from leftover fabric. To make a band collar instead of a foldover collar, I just cut the collar band piece from the pattern and not the collar itself. I skipped adding the collar piece in when I sewed the band together and voila! Continue like normal. =)

I think it's going to be a great piece for fall, especially with all the peacock-motifs out there this year. The only thing is that the green and blue dyes bleed, and even though I've washed this twice, I still ended up with a greeny-navy blush on my fingertips after sewing all night. I think a few more washes are in order before I actually wear it; just to try and keep that dye off the rest of my clothes and skin.

But it is nice. Though you can't really tell on the hanger, the princess shaping is good, and the top is fitted (but not tight) rather than boxy. Whew! Finally, back to crossing things off that summer to-do list! I've got another blouse cut already; hopefully I'll be able to show it to you in a couple days!