I’m making you suffer with my photo of my pattern envelope because I don’t want to risk having this image disappear….I want this to live forever. Here’s the link to the Vogue Patterns for as long as they have it listed…
I bought this pattern mostly for the pants pattern, like so many, but I was in need of a basic wrap shirt pattern as well. The pants pattern does look really cool, and if you look for reviews on this pattern, you will find plenty of people happy with the pants.
This isn’t about the pants. I haven’t made the pants yet. I’m not sure I will at this point….that is how messed up the shirt is.
First off – they sort of warn you…the photo on the pattern envelope of the shirt shows the back is kinda wonky. That’s cool…I can deal with a bit of wonky. I HAD NO IDEA.
Let’s go through the pattern first, shall we?
The pattern pieces were clearly printed backwards.
If you put your pattern pieces on your fabric like a NORMAL SANE person, these pieces are going the opposite direction. I did see AFTER cutting my fabric, that they do have a layout for the right side of fabric – who the fuck does that??? Oh, someone who screws up, then mickey-mouses it afterwards instead of REALLY fixing it, THAT’S WHO.
Ok, then let’s look at the 3 DIFFERENT edge finishing directions. 3. that don’t match up. I was still following the directions at this point, thinking this has GOT TO come together at some point, right? RIGHT??
WRONG. Even in their diagrams, this CLEARLY does not match up. At all.
Whatever, right? I mean, who’s going to know but me, and next time around, I can just do it the way I want to, right? HAHAHAHAHA ha ha ha. Hm.
Oh, let’s move on to the magical hem, shall we? We have in step 14, it is not hemmed….we have in step 15, it is hemmed….wait…this basting instruction was for…the sides, right? Says nothing about the hem…but…uh…
This is where I through the directions out the window and just figured out the rest myself…and never hemmed the damn thing anyway.
Here at step 19, the last step before it just goes to the pants, there’s something about topstitching…wait, no, it’s capped, TOPSTITCH the basting….but WTF…are you talking about the sleeves? This is the section on the sleeves…or the hem…or…WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY TO ME, VOGUE?? Oh, just forget it….
But wait….lol. there’s MORE.
I used a nice cotton hatchi sweater knit with really great stretch and recovery. Really, it has NO sag. I wish I remember where I got it, because I feel I threw it away on this POS pattern.
It looks kinda normal, if I’ve adjusted it with a mirror and carefully only face forward.
I mean, it’s not doing my figure any favors, but it’s comfy…enough….and I attribute that to the fabric ONLY.
The back weirdness could be blamed on the user, right? I mean, conceivable I could suck enough to make something ugly back there on my own…and that would be believable except generally I don’t suck that bad, and the rest of the evidence.
Here…just…look. Somehow, Vogue has made me into a marsupial. I feel like this would be great if I was breastfeeding….with one breast only…yeah.
Can you believe that mess? See how the inside piece is nice and flat…it would be so much better with two of those pieces….but no, I’ve got some kind of shoplifting, baby smuggling sweater. WTF?
Now, the fun part…trying to put it back together all smooth-like without a mirror….
LOL. Not really doing my 40-year-old, mommy body any favors, is it?
I broke down and just bought the Papercut Patterns Coppélia pattern anyway, like I should have in the beginning. Sure, I could try and futz with the Vogue Pattern and make it work, but the Indies out there are doing such higher quality work, I’m just going to file it ‘maybe someday’ and let it go. I will chop that kangaroo pouch off, however, and resew that, and hem it or tack it together. It’s a bitch trying to figure out how to put it on the way it is…
So, yeah. This is the WORST pattern I’ve ever come across…and I’ve put together some weird Burda and Ottobre stuff, and even pattern tested with partial instructions. If you’re buying it for the wrap sweater, just pass. In fact, there are a billion other places to get wrap shirt and legging patterns, I’d just skip this one all together.