Finished top

I finished this top last week. It wasn't planned to be part of my Paris wardrobe, but it will still work if the weather is warm.

The pattern is Butterick 4986. Here is my review:

Pattern Description:
Overshirt with a twist. This short-sleeved blouse has a twist in the front and is open below the twist. There are options for collars. The pattern is suitable for wovens or knits.

Pattern Sizing:
BB(8-10-12-14), FF(16-18-20-22). I cut a 16 and tapered to a 20 at the waist and hips.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?

Yes, but I added contrasting trim to mine.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

Yes and no. If you read them they are easy to follow. If you think you know what you're doing and don't bother with them you may make errors. Guess what I did? Rip, rip, rip.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

I like the twist and I like the slightly puffed sleeves.

Fabric Used:

A lightweight knit mesh obtained at a fabric swap with my local sewing friends. The binding was a lightweight knit from fabric.com

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:

Since I was using a knit, I applied fusible stay tape to the shoulders. This pattern has the back pieces cut on the bias but I could have and probably should have cut them on the straight of grain since the pattern on my fabric wasn't obvious and I was using a knit. The mesh knit was a little bit unruly in my serger so I stabilized the hems, front edge, and some of the bias-cut seams with fusible tape.

I thought this top needed a little something more design-wise so instead of just turning under the hems, I bound them with another knit fabric. To do this I cut strips about 2 inches wide and stitched them to the edge of the blouse (right sides together). Then I trimmed the seam to 1/4", turned the strip over to the wrong side, stitched in the ditch on the top and trimmed the excess using applique scissors.

Stitching in the ditch

Applique scissors (also called Duckbill) are great for close trimming!

One mistake I made was to stitch the binding at the 5/8" seam allowance so by turning the binding over the 1/4" trimmed seam I ended up adding 1/4" to the edges. I should have stitched at 7/8" to make the bound edge the same as it would be had I hemmed it, but the extra 1/4" didn't cause any problem. I continued this "mistake" on all the hems so that everything would be consistent.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

I already have fabric picked out to sew it again. It's also a knit so I think I will cut it out on the straight of grain.

Conclusion

A nice lightweight top that was easy to sew.