Like the rest of the blogging world, I jumped on the new Deer&Doe Plantain t-shirt pattern the moment it was released! Not only is it FREE, but it’s also a great, simple pattern that takes almost no time to make! Win-win, yes? (I know I don’t look too thrilled in the above photo, but the early morning sun was very, very bright).
So the pattern itself is very easy to make – I probably took longer taping the pattern together than I did actually sewing it! I used some fawn fabric I got from Girl Charlee a while back – I’m actually pretty disappointed in it, since it’s not very soft (despite being described as such on their website) and also, not very stretchy! In fact, I spent a good ten minutes crouched over the fabric, pulling it this way and that to try and work out which way had the most stretch – I honestly couldn’t tell, since neither direction seemed to stretch much at all! I even got Luke involved, but he was just as clueless as I was. As a result of this, my Plantain is a little more snug than I would like, especially around my upper arms. I cut out a 46, which is the largest size the pattern offers, and I’m happy with the fit everywhere except the bust and upper arms. I do need to do a small narrow shoulder adjustment for the next one, and I have a couple more stretchier fabrics I plan to make this up in next, and I expect the fit then will be just perfect!
I was worried this top wouldn’t be flattering on me, given the flared design, but actually, I really like it! You may notice I omitted the elbow patches – they’re just not my style, I don’t think, and I really want to focus on making things I’ll actually wear this year. I don’t have a serger, so I sewed this up with a narrow zig zag, and used a twin needle to hem the bottom and sleeves. I’m super happy with how my neckband turned out – this fabric curled like a bitch when I tried to stretch it out to sew it, and I thought it was going to be a disaster, but I went slowly and thankfully the end result looks pretty sweet.
So in short, love this pattern, love Deer&Doe (as always) and I’ve got some fabric sitting in the laundry basket ready to be prewashed for another Plantain this weekend!
KJ Sews 
Awwww, you've got wittle fawns awl ovah it! I love your Plantain, great fabric choice! I have mine cut out but not sewn it yet. STILL waiting on my overlocker to get fixed. They are now simply not calling me back. Grrrrr. I raised the neckline on mine about 4 cm before cutting, it seemed REALLY low, but I'm also short-waisted so could be why because it does not look low on you at all, but very flattering depth.
I'm really happy with the neckline on mine, I was worried when I cut it out that it would be too low! I hope you get your overlocker back soon – having one must make sewing your knits so much more professional!
What a pretty pattern, love the little fawns! And the shirt looks very nice on you, too. I am totally afraid of sewing with stretchy fabrics and knits so I would probably have appreciated it's lack of stretchieness 🙂 You're really brave to do this without a serger!
Thank you! Sewing with knits isn't as hard as I thought it would be, but a serger would definitely improve things, I think 🙂