Arara! Arara! ~ McCall’s 7472

Arara! Arara! That is of course what parrots say in Portuguese! First up from my Sudoku Wardrobe is M7472, my bird top.

The snow has mostly melted but it was still quite blustery and cold outside. Nevertheless, I braved the chill to get some pictures of my new favorite top.

I love all the details of this project. The pattern was great, easy to stitch up and the details really finish it off. The button band and stand collar finish it off nicely and the curved hem is so cute! The fabric is also fabulous for this top and the drape of it make this so comfy and it will be perfect when the weather warms up.

Pattern Review – M7472

Pattern Description: Loose-fitting button front shirt an tunics have raglan sleeve, hem, and collar variations. I made view B which has short sleeves and is about low hip length.

Pattern Sizing: 6-22. I made size 14. There is quite a bit of ease built into the pattern and in the future I may even play around with going down one more size and doing an FBA.

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

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes! I did the sleeve a bit differently than recommended. The instructions call for you to stitch the sleeves to the fronts and back and then hem it. I chose to hem the sleeves first and then attach to the fronts and back.

Another thing I did is finish the side seams with the serger first and then sewed them. I used the serger as a help to create the narrow hem so I just serged the edge then folded it over 2x to get a 1/4″ hem.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked everything!

Fabric Used: Nicole Miller Parrot fabric from JoAnn’s. Its 90% Polyester and 10% spandex so it has great drape and a tiny bit of stretch. It is not quite opaque so I’ll be wearing a tank underneath.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: Besides the slight construction changes I mentioned above, I sewed the side seam closed a bit longer (by about 2″ from what was marked). I wanted the bit of more coverage on the side.

Also, I didn’t want to mess with the great drape of the fabric but knew I needed to interface the button band and collar. So, I just cut a 1″ strip of very light fusible interfacing and attached it to what would end up being the back half of the band. This added the support the bands needed and also had the added benefit of making it super easy to fold and press the band which can be tricky with drapey fabric like this. When it’s time to fold and press just follow the line of the interfacing!

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes, Yes, Yes! I’ll probably make a long sleeve version out of some flannel next time.

Conclusion: Love it, recommend it, and will definitely be wearing it often!