I love a raglan top because you can use up those odd cuts you have hanging around for a fun and colorful shirt or you can make it solid for a cute basic tee! The problem I have with them is that I have tried out so many and none were perfect. They were always too relaxed, not relaxed enough, the neckline was too wide, too high, too low, the hem wasn’t to my liking, the length wasn’t right, the sleeves were too tight…and the list goes on and on! So when I tested the Rio raglan from So Sew English, I was fully prepared to make adjustments after my first tester version. But to my surprise, the only adjustment I had to do was grading out one size for my hips (which I always have to do anyway, no matter the pattern)!!! This pattern has all the options you would need~ crop, tee and tunic length~ v neck or crewneck~ short, 3/4 and long sleeves
For the pattern test I was assigned tunic length, short sleeve, crew neck version. I made a size xl graded to 1x hips but no other adjustments whatsoever, not even for height. I used a gray and white striped french terry for the bodice and raided my scrap bin for the sleeves!!! I didn’t think I would like the tunic length and planned to cut it down to tee length after testing…but I kind of love it and am going to keep it long!
My second one was tee length, crew neck with 3/4 sleeves made in the buffalo plaid dbp for the bodice and black/white stripe dbp sleeves…I am in love with this one and have had several people try to steal it already!!!!
And my newest one was supposed to have different options BUT I loved the plaid one so much that I wanted more with those same options! So I pulled out the coral striped dbp for the bodice and sewing machine dbp for the sleeves…I am in love with this one too!
Raglans truly are about the easiest thing you can make, so they are perfect for beginners…and those of us that just don’t have much time but we want to make something! LOL You can grab your copy of Rio here : https://sosewenglishfabrics.com/products/rio-raglan?_pos=1&_sid=732747f7f&_ss=r
Thank you for being here and if you have anything you would like me to talk about in a future post, send me an email or leave a comment!
Stitches By Christy 