Sewing the Rhapsody Blouse

Hello everyone!

Today I encourage you to come along as I sew up the Rhapsody Blouse from Love Notions.  I first saw amazing versions of this pattern on the Tomkat Stitchery channel on YT.  I have sewn the Love Notion's Canyon cardigan in the past with ok results, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to give them a try again. When I saw Whitney's versions, and found out that the Rhapsody blouse was re-released (at that time with a discount), I decided to give it a shot.    

As you can see, I added an inch to the length, and used a lovely rayon challis I had in my stash. I decided on a size S, and created the double fold bias for the neckline. My plan was to leave off the ties.  

So far, this is my favorite Love Notions pattern!  I love the instructions, and the simplicity of the construction methods.  It was pretty smooth sailing for me with only one minor hiccup that I will address later.  However, I was impressed with some of the techniques for this blouse.

One of my favorite methods is the way they construct the back pleat on this blouse:

I know my fabric is a little distracting and some of the details are hard to see, but I tried my best to capture some things as I sewed.  

Continuing with the back construction...

For this part you sandwich the back yoke and yoke lining around the back.

When you press the yokes up, and remove the pleat basting stitches, you already have the back complete!

On the front, you can easily sew your gathering stitches, then align the main yoke RST.  Pull up the basting stitches and match the width of the yoke shoulders. Baste again.

Now comes the FUN part: Roll up the front and back to the inside to keep them out of the way.  Take the yoke lining around the rolled up portion to the back.  Connect the shoulders right sides of the yoke to the wrong side of the front (a little hard to see here). Stitch.

Once you pull everything out, it looks so lovely! 

For the sleeves, I always like to serge the bottom edge first.  Then I assemble them, and prepare to attach them to the garment.  In this case, I put in the gathering stitches, then eased them in the round of the armhole.

Now onto the neckline...

For the bias bound neckline, you start by finishing the "V"neck portion first.  Then the rest of the neckline is done.  It lays beautifully when you are done, though it took a little time fiddling with this to get it right.

I finished the hem for the sleeves and bottom hem the same--serged the edges, folded up 1/2" and stitched.  You can also narrow hem or coverstitch them.

And for the FINAL result:

Overall, I absolutely LOVE this blouse!  As you can see, the construction was all very simple, and I am such a fan of the gathers on the front bodice.  I think an advanced beginner can pull this off for sure. My only speedbump was the neckline.  I think it will go easier on my next version.  But for now, this will be my entry into #fayestopsthatpop.  Once I take some photos in it, I will post them to the blog.  For those of you who stated that you had this pattern, I hope this rundown gives you an idea of what to expect.  I highly recommend it, and think the silhouette is so lovely when you wear it.

For my next top pattern, I will be sewing up the Seamwork Willis:

I still need to choose a fabric and get my pattern cut out, but I do have the pattern pieces ready.  I am thinking of stripes for this top, and I just love variations of a button front shirt.  I will be getting started soon so I have a chance at meeting the June 15th deadline for the challenge.  

Stay sew-filled!