From K: A Second Kaftan

Last week while showing you my travelling handmade goodness, I broke the news that I was headed south for some much needed R&R. The hubs and I hopped a cruise in the Caribbean and before we left I made sure to add a few new handmade shirts to my wardrobe.

After loving my last Shearwater Kaftan so much, I took the plunge and ordered some stunning Nani Iro from Japan to whip up another. I used my amended pattern templates from my first take of this top, and I'm thrilled with how it turned out a second time.

While it was a wonderful escape for the past 10 days, it really does feel great to be back at home. I have a few more reveals from my travels coming up, and some big quilting plans in the works. After having a bit of a break, I'm really feeling motivated to hit my Janome again!

From K: Shearwater Kaftan

Amanda mentioned on Monday that I was out east to visit her last week. It was a very short trip, and honestly most of our time was spent watching netflix, shopping, eating great Torontonian cuisine, and hitting up local fabric/yarn stores, but I did manage to fit in a bit of sewing.

Before heading east, I bought Make It Perfect's Shearwater Kaftan pattern, and stumbled upon some $8/m cotton at my local Fabricland that I figured would work well for my first try at a new pattern.

I found this pattern to be quite simple and quick to sew up. Since my fabric was so affordable, I took my chances and made a few alterations to the pattern. I'm by no means a trained tailor, and really just guessed my adjustments according to my desired fit, but I'm very happy with the results.

In the end I lengthened the arms by nearly 2 inches, and narrowed them about 3 inches (but was sure to leave the arm hole size as is). I also shortened the body by an inch and took 2 inches off each side of the flare.

I love the finished product, especially the cuff detailing at the elbow. I know that I will definitely get a lot of use from this shirt and have already started planning to sew up a second one! I foresee a few more spring time wearables in my future.