Awwww...shucks you guys, I'm so excited to be part of the Sailor Top Pattern Tour for Fancy Tiger Crafts today!

You know that excitement you get when someone emails you and you do a little squeal of excitement? Well for years I've been a fan of the shop Fancy Tiger Crafts. I'm dying to find a reason to go to Denver, CO so I can visit the shop for real. I read the blog, drool over their projects/patterns and dream of walking with my own 2 feet into their seriously amazing shop. The kind of shop that I just want to sink into and never leave. I mean how can you go wrong with a place filled with all your favorite things that is "rainbowized" (not kidding - it is!)! I love it! Jaime and Amber have curated a feast for the soul, heart and eyes. And now they have an online shop too! Watch out Santa...momma wants it all for xmas...lol.

When they wrote to me asking to join in on the blog tour for their new sewing pattern - the Sailor Top, I was so excited. I honestly have been a lurker of theirs and was just so darn thrilled they even knew who the heck I was! Icing on the cake is that the pattern is seriously adorable. Such a fun, quick and addicting sew, I've got another one ready to cut out asap!

Now, it just so happens I've been looking for a top just like this for months. Really. No joke. One that covered all my rolly bits but didn't make me look 9mths preggers. One I could wear with leggings and jeans. I wanted a quick sew and not something that required serious amounts of fabric or brain power. Enter the Sailor Top. That yoke - I love it. Serious. I'm a dork for finishing inside of garments and this top made me so darn happy. The neck and sleeves have facing. Yes, I love facing. I get sick of bias tape sometimes. I admit it drives me bonkers and I've never gotten along with it. Facing - now me and facing are great friends. Pretty inside = pretty outside. The thick hem on the bottom of the top balances out the sleeve and yoke just perfectly.


This was again - my wearable muslin. I've gotten into a bad habit of doing this folks. I keep starting with a muslin but then loving it so much I photograph it and never get the other one done in time. Bad Shannon. Anyhoo, this one was made from a print I have had in my stash for about 2 + years from the back dusty dank corner of Fabricland that was comprised of an end of bolt that was 2yds and 1yd cut apart. I still bought it. And it's sat in my stash for eons and for some reason it just screamed Sailor Top to me.


In hindsight it is a bit thick for the kind of drape I would normally like but with the weather outside I'm darn happy to have a bit more warmth to it. I've had it on 2 days in a row now with leggings, my new babies (aka my Blundstones), a cute grey lace tank and a cardi. It's my new staple. Which is why I need to make about 3 more. I need one in rayon, one in voile and I'm dying to try one in a knit too! See.....it's addicting! I made my whole Sailor top on my serger (Babylock Imagine) except for the finishing details. Made it a super fast project! One afternoon including pattern taping and cutting!

And the Sailor Top is also good for beginners looking to jump into their first top! The pattern is very clearly written, labelled and the diagrams are super easy to follow. You'll learn some new techniques, finishing and the fit is great! Only change I have to tweak on my next one is taking my yoke in just a tad due to my sloped shoulders. I have a tad bit of sag in the center front neck. I think 1/4" on each side of the yoke would do it. I love how the gathers are across the entire neckline too! It's carried throughout the whole raglan! And yes - I said raglan. Oh my knitter heart just loves me a raglan. So flattering and comfy to wear. And I love how it goes with so many pants and styles. This can easily be taken from super casual to work wear in a second!

Please forgive my messy hair and hat in these pics. It has been raining for what seems like weeks here and I have already forgotten the sunshine from last weekend. Thus the hat. My hair does not respond well to rain. Nope. Goes bonkers. So most of the time if the weather is misty or raining I wear hats. I love me a good hat. So now that it's colder out I've gotten the Keaton out of my stash to wear again. So you're getting the "real me" in these shots. Not a lot of makeup, no fancy hair do, in between kid school pickups and lunch making, and in the other corner of this shot is all the parts and tools that we're using to keep on decorating the house etc. I literally swept it to one side so as not to scare you. And don't worry. I'm not keeping my walls brown and beige with these grey curtains. The drapes are new, the paint colors are going :) I'm just preemptively decorating :) When you live far away from an Ikea and you get a chance to shop there you take it and stock up. Which is exactly what I did last week.



All in all I give the Sailor Top pattern two enthusiastic thumbs up! Wish I could wear one into Fancy Tiger Crafts right now to show it off! Someday right?

PATTERN: Sailor Top by Fancy Tiger Crafts
FABRIC: From stash
SIZE MADE: XL Bust graded out to XXL in hips
MODIFICATIONS: None
OUTFIT: Jeans (American Eagle), Hat (KEATON by me), Boots (Bludstones)

Would you like to make a Sailor Top? Read below on how you can win a copy!


/// THE PRIZE
One lucky winner will receive a copy of the Sailor Top by Fancy Tiger Crafts. Yay!

/// HOW TO ENTER
Simply leave me a comment with what fabric you would make your Sailor Top in.

/// RULES
Giveaway is open until Wednesday, November 5th, midnight, PST.

But wait - that's not all!!!!!!

Creativebug, a website full of DIY video classes, is giving Very Shannon readers a free two week membership! With your membership, you can take the Sailor Top class and learn how to make the Sailor Top right along with Jamie and Amber from Fancy Tiger! For more info & to find out how, click here!



For more Sailor Top inspiration and more chances to win a copy of the pattern, check out the rest of the Sailor Top blog tour: