January 2014: Top alteration.

Next up is another challenge from Kristina. I meet up with her to discuss what she wants. Kristina has a top she’d like me to alter, wants it a bit longer to wear on the beach when she’s on holiday. Kristina is very patient and kind and always believes I can do something when I’m convinced I can’t. She produces a pretty white top that is perfect but just too short for what she wanted it for. She also gives me a white T shirt that I can cut up and use as the extra fabric. I tell her might not be able to do it and she says ” darling you can do it, but if its not possible then its not a problem”. So there’s really no pressure other than what I put on myself!

I take the top home and have a look at it, I look at the T shirt and the top and try to work out how on earth I’ll put them together. I must sit there for at least half an hour and then think, “nope can’t be done”. I go down stairs and talk to my Husband about it, he says he has an idea of how it could be done. So we both go upstairs and look at it. He starts telling me what he thinks should be done and I start saying “no it can’t be done, it won’t work”. And bless him, he perseveres, and after establishing that it doesn’t matter if we cut up the t shirt as its an old one, so it won’t hurt to try, I finally give in and listen to what he has to say.

Now for the life of me I can’t fully remember what we did, but it did work. It wasn’t perfect but it was perfect enough for the beach. I felt a real sense of achievement when I finished, and was really quite happy with it. This was also my first time working with jersey fabric, and it won’t be my last!

I added the bottom layer.

I added the bottom layer.

Close up of bottom front.

Close up of bottom front.

Bottom back. Not perfect but it will do for the beach.

Bottom back. Not perfect but it will do for the beach.