Simple Sew, Classic Sweatshirt Hack

I had some leftover fleece from my Simple Sew Cocoon Jacket thanks to the fab Remnant Kings. I had enjoyed working with fleece on my Cocoon Jacket- it has a forgiving amount of stretch but is also very well behaved. It is easy to cut, doesn't make loads of mess like some fibery fabrics and doesn't need to be overlocked! Also did I mention it is SO warm and snug, perfect now winter is here. Oh, and I used a ballpoint needle to sew the fleece together as it is a bit stretchy (Thanks Google for the advice).


I have made the Classic Sweatshirt before, this time I wanted to make a couple of changes. Firstly I wanted to have a go at adding a raised neckband for extra snugness. This was very much a process of trial and error. As fleece is not as stretchy as the jersey the pattern was designed for, I cut the neckband longer than the pattern piece. I was initially unsure how wide I wanted the band to be too, so I exaggerated the height of the pattern piece, bearing in mind that this piece would be folded in half lengthways before being attached to the neck opening.

I also decided I didn't want to add cuffs or waistband to the jumper this time and opted for a simple hem. I wanted to try and avoid making the jumper look too sporty, as I thought the high neck added a kind of classy 60s vibe.


With it in mind that I wasn't adding cuffs, I added 2cm to the sleeve length for the hem. As I had shortened the length of my first classic sweatshirt before adding the bottom band, I played around in my head with the length this jumper should be. I didn't want it to be cropped but I didn't want it super long either. In the end I made it 9cm shorter than the original pattern piece, allowing again for a 2cm hem.

I made no changes to the raglan sleeves or the shape of the actual body of the jumper.

To determine the length and width of the neckband I folded it in half and pinned to the raw edge of the neckline, matching front, back and shoulder mid points of the band to the opening, stretching out the neckband as you go (this needs to be shorter than the head hole). Trying on is a bit tricky, you have to be really careful not to impale yourself in the neck with pins, or scratch yourself in the face when putting it on!


The aim is for the neckline not to pucker but the neckband not to look too baggy. I kept reducing the width until it felt comfortable (in the end the band sits 4cm above the seamine, so both sides plus seam allowance on both raw edges means the piece was about 11cm high when flat). To get the length right I kept pinning a little more out of the centre back and restretching it round the neckline for the perfect fit.


I then overlocked all the raw edges together, adding tension to the band so that the centre front/ centre back and shoulder points all matched those of the neckline.

To finish I used a stretch stitch on my machine (for the first time!!!) and hemmed the sleeves and bottom. I love the finish this adds to the jumper!

I'm excited to have a play around with different necklines and different fabrics. How about s drapey cowl neck and maybe some oversized wrist cuffs? Or a cropped sporty sweater with baseball top style sleeves and neckband? I hear the fabric shop calling...


x

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