I find that one of the hardest things about blogging is finding a title, so I thought I would exercise my creativity by attaching each title of my next 26 blogs to an alphabetical letter; hence, “A is for amend” (a bit Sue Grafton, I know, but I thought I would amuse myself anyway).

I have a massive bag full of things to be “amended” and quite a large number of those things are jeans. I decided to start with a pair of Mark’s Levis on the grounds that they are relatively big and I might be able to do something interesting. I laid so many patterns on those jeans, and I Googled a truckload of refashions, but in the end, I modified a pattern I have made before.

So (drum roll)… from this (semi-unpicked because I got carried away before taking a photo):

to this octopus like garment:

this is all that is left.

and this is what I made:

It is the 1936 Lutterloh pattern previously blogged here, and I think the woven fabric works much better than the knit. However, unlike the previous quite loose version, it is a tad tight (it’s easier to step into it than haul it over my head) so I had to put an invisible zip in the back and I heavily modified the sleeves. The original pattern has dropped sleeves and I felt that the denim was too thick for this look, so I hacked out an armscye and modified sleeves from another pattern. I had to take about two inches off the sleeve head, but they sit pretty well now.

The pattern has slight gathers at the waist. I knew I couldn’t gather this thick denim, although I did valiantly try to shirr it! In the end I stitched three pieces of elastic where the gathers were to be and this worked a treat.

My biggest issue is that I hadn’t realised that these had been Mark’s camping jeans and I keep finding brown marks where he has rolled in mud or something. Most of them are at the bottom of the legs on the bit that I cut off, but if they show up too much I will attempt to dye the top.

How do I feel about this top? Hmm, as always, I’m a bit ambivalent. I knew that the denim might be a bit thick, but I thought it would be an interesting challenge. I also really struggled with that neckline – notice this time that I have a little standup collar? My last effort had a completely flat neckline and I have no idea what I did differently, but hey, happy to have it!

I am also a tad worried about the gaping at the neck. I will have to sit up straight all day with hand clutched to bosom so that I don’t give some poor unsuspecting person an inadvertent eyeful!

Instead of using a button to finish off the top I decided to use a belt buckle (I think from the ’60s or ’70s) and I am pleased with the result although I’m not sure I have the placement perfect – yet.

The details:

Lutterloh 1936 top 

Fabric reclaimed from a pair of Mark’s jeans

Clasp on the top is a belt buckle I bought at Buttonmania in Melbourne. I think it might be on its way to vintage!

Now, what will B be for??