Free Pattern Friday: Onil Square Neck Blouse for Adults

Welcome to my monthly 'Free Pattern Friday' feature, where I road test a free sewing pattern or tutorial: sometimes a children's one, sometimes an adult's one. I try to publish these posts every first Friday of the month, timed to provide inspiration for those who plan to get their sew on over the weekend. I firmly believe that, if you pick your projects carefully, sewing doesn't have to be a crazy-expensive way to clothe yourself and your family. Thanks to all the amazing pattern designers who have offered up their hard work for us to enjoy for free.

You might have noticed that I've been reviewing a ton of underwear patterns lately, which is a reflection of my current sewing interests and wardrobe needs. But I know that won't be the same for everyone, so this month I've picked a non-underwear pattern to road test. In fact, it's what I would consider a 'proper pattern': not a quick basic that pattern companies often put out to gain interest but doesn't require them putting in a ton of development time. This pattern would be a great, fairly quick win for a confident sewer, and likely a satisfying challenge for a more beginner maker. 

Huge thanks to designer Pauline Alice for sharing the Onil Blouse pattern for free, which is easily accessible by adding it to the cart on their website. There are also some excellent blog posts on hacking this pattern to create different looks including an asymmetric button front, a dress with gathered skirt, lengthening the sleeves and an A-line dress with shorter sleeves. That is a lot of potential bang for your (zero) buck. It's also translated into Spanish, French and English. How cool is that?!

(image source: Pauline Alice)

Pattern type:

The Onil blouse pattern has a square neckline with elasticated sleeves above the elbow, and a curved hem. There are also bust darts for subtle shaping, which can, of course be adjusted if necessary to accommodate different bust sizes. As mentioned above, there are also tutorials on the blog to use this pattern to create different styles of garment. 

Sizing info:

This pattern, by current sewing pattern standards, is somewhat size inclusive but not quite as inclusive as many designers strive to be these days. It has been graded for busts measuring 31.5" - 47" (approx. EU 34 - 52). Helpfully, finished garment measurements are listed to guide you when selecting your size/s. My body measurements put me as a size 38 for my bust, and size 40 for my waist and hips. However, having checked the finished garment measurements, I decided not to grade out and make a straight size 38. More on how I found that below. 

Fabric info:

It is suggested that you use light to medium weight fabrics, such as cotton poplin, linen, viscose, chambray. I used a embroidered cotton voile from Fabric Godmother. They no longer have the white but it is available still in other colours, the closest being ecru. Because of the bulky embroidery, I used a scrap of white cotton lawn for the facing. 

As you can see, I decided to add some broderie anglais trim that my mum recently donated me, having had it her stash for probably around forty years! 

Findings:

As I say, this is a 'proper' pattern: well drafted and professional with good instructions. However, there was a couple of parts in the instructions that I felt could have been described in more detail to make this project more beginner friendly, particularly around the trimming of the neckline and facing. 

Because my fabric was pretty special, I decided to make a toile to check the sizing and fit before cutting into it. I found that the fit across the bust was fine, but the shape was way too dramatically A-line for my liking. I ended up removing 10cm in total from the width of the hem. I might have decided not to do that if my fabric was very drapey. I'd definitely recommend making a toile in a fabric with a similar behaviour to your final fabric choice as I don't think the line drawing on the website is very representative of the actual, finished garment. I also decided the finished length was a bit short, another reason to add the trim at the hem, to gain a tiny bit of extra length. 

Would I make this again?

Possibly, if the right piece of fabric came along. Speaking of fabric, in the size I made at least, I found I didn't need as much as was stated. Anyway, I'd definitely consider making a buttoned version of this blouse, and lengthen it so I can tuck it into trousers, jeans or skirts. 

Romero Trousers: Work in Progress

May I present to you the March project from my #2020makenine sewing plans?! Like last year, at the beginning of 2020, I chose nine pieces of fabric in my stash and promised to sew them up throughout the course of the year. Having just realised that I never shared my 2020 plans here on my blog, check it out below:

Fabric:

The piece of fabric in the middle of my 2020 selection is some AMAZING, mid-blue denim that I bought from Merchant & Mills in Rye last year. It's broken twill weave (my fave!), medium weight and just the nicest quality ever. I bought it without a precise project in mind. I have a self-imposed rule of only buying fabric if I can envision what I'll make from it, however I'm so glad that I ignore that rule this time. The medium weight lends itself well to a spring/autumn weight garment. The buttons I used were also from Merchant & Mills, from a separate trip. I was running low on blue thread and determined not to buy another reel, so I stitched them on with contrasting red thread. 

Pattern:

I'm very rarely an early adopter when it comes to sewing patterns. Sewing pattern styles usually have to grow on me, and I like to see other people's versions pop up on the interwebs before I, myself, commit. This pattern was somewhere in between for me though. It's not a newly released one (so I had the joy of exploring the hashtag), however I knew I wanted it as soon as I saw it. I felt my beautiful, medium-weight denim would work well for the cropped/'trans-season' style. I don't have any cropped trousers in my wardrobe currently, but I chose to keep the length as per the pattern (rather than follow my instinct to lengthen the pattern pieces to ankle length) so that this garment would fulfil a different function to my broken twill Lander pants. 

(image source: Pauline Alice)

I am a ginormous fan of sailor style trousers. I even made a pair almost exactly ten years ago! I wore those a lot, until the cheap, nasty fabric I used shrunk and faded. That was at the beginning of my Rockabilly phase, and even though I'm out the other side of that now, I still love that nautical-style button detail. 

Once I'd bought the PDF pattern, I took the rare (for me) step of getting the A0 file printed out in large format using the Fabric Godmother printing service. I usually print out the A4 file at home and spend an evening sticking all those sheets together, but this felt like a special occasion! Before cutting out my pattern, I laid my Lander pants pattern pieces over the top to compare them. I could see that I would need to alter the crotch curve of the Romeros a bit, and I preemptively curved the back waistband so it would sit nicely against my lower back. 

I haven't used a Pauline Alice pattern before, and it was fun to try out a new-to-me company. I believe her patterns are available in English, French and possibly also Spanish, which is awesome. The instructions were fairly clear, although the pocket/button stand construction was pretty complicated, and I had to wing it at a couple of points. 

(image source: Pauline Alice)

Thoughts:

Now that we're in lockdown in the UK, I'm rarely out of leggings and joggers at the moment. However, I made myself wear these on a recent trip to the shops so I could analyse the fit. Generally, they were great and I was super happy with them. However, there was one thing that was bothering me. Because of the construction of the pockets and fastening method, the side seam at the pocket mouth isn't straight, and the pocket facing won't sit very flat. You can even see this happening on the sample pair on the Pauline Alice website (pictured above), as well as in my pair (below). As much as I like having the pockets, I've decided to try to remedy this by stitching through the pocket and button stand, which will seal the pockets shut but should help that whole area sit more neatly. 

Another issue that I think I can improve on, is the rise. I didn't notice until I was going through these pictures, but the back rise is too high. I didn't even want to share that picture here because the look is a bit embarrassing if I'm honest. I'm going to scoop the crotch away a bit to give my bum some more space, which should fix this issue. I love these trousers and the fabric so much that I really want to go the extra mile and finesse them as much as I can. 

There's also something a bit weird going on with the fabric around the front crotch area. It's particularly noticeable in the image above. I'm not sure if it's a tightness caused by not enough space in the front rise (some kind of rounded pubis (!) situation?) or a pooling of fabric due to some other factor. If you have any ideas, please leave a comment! I may not try and address this last issue in this particular pair, but I'd like to learn from them for future versions.

It may not surprise you to learn that I plan to use this pattern again, with tweaks. Or I may frankenstein the fastening pieces onto the Lander pattern, seeing as I achieved a better fit generally with that pattern. I'd love to make some shorts next, perhaps in red twill or linen. It seems that my renewed sailor pants obsession is here to stay for a while...