Finished: Liberty Wiksten Tova

The thought of sewing with a precious fabric like Liberty can be a daunting one, and it feels important to try and select just the right pattern to use. This is the third time I've made this pattern (Wiksten Tova - buying the pdf direct from the Wiksten site is the cheapest way) so it felt like a safe bet in terms of fit and finished item. This time around I went for the tunic length rather than the top length.

 (Unintentional catalogue pose)

I bought this fabric a couple of years ago, without a plan, and only recently decided how I'd like to use it. You may remember that I used a bit of it on my Liberty At Last Dress. I can't remember how much yardage I had but it was way less than the recommended amount for the tunic length. I did some rule-breaking pattern piece placement, putting the front piece on the fabric edge instead of a fold, meaning that there is a seam up the font, below the bib piece.

I cut this pattern out some weeks before I sewed it up and when putting it together I couldn't remember having made the decision to have a seam at the front instead of up the back, which would be more normal. I can only think that I must have thought that the seam would be lost in the gathers below the bib, which it is, so all is well.

Due to the busy fabric print, I wanted to make the features of the top stand out so I opted to use red piping around the bib and cuffs. I intended to use flat piping without a cord but I found the piping without a cord much harder to manipulate around the corners of the bib so decided to put the cord in instead. Even with the addition of the piping to the bib seam, I think this is the best job I've made of sewing this area together in the three tops I've made.

I added as much length to the pattern as my fabric allowed, as my plan was to wear it as a dress with leggings. I'm undecided as to whether it would be more useful with some length lopped off so that I could wear it with jeans. I only wear leggings in the warm weather so I suspect that I'd get more wear out of it as a top.

I thought I'd prefer it with a belt as I usually prefer a belted silhouette but actually I don't think it's very flattering and looks like a sack of potatoes with a rope tied around it since the tunic isn't super-shaped like a dress. But unbelted it feels a bit like wearing a nightie. What do you think?

With the bottom folded up to the same length as previous top version:

I'm still not sure what I make of the length and might see how much it gets worn this way and maybe cut a bit off later on. We shall see.

It was a nice experience sewing with Liberty though, it feels lovely and is soft but presses crisply. This style was also good for Tana lawn weight, which this fabric is. I'd like to make a Liberty dress but think it would probably need to be lined, which is a bit of a pain.

What's your experience of sewing with Liberty?

K x