Jalie 3245 - Raglan and Racer Back Tank Top

I've been really giddy to work on the Jalie Racerback Tank and Raglan Top. 

First, I made up the raglan in a knit that I discovered did NOT have such great recovery. As you can see, the neckline stretched out and it looks kinda bad. There are some wrinkles in the back and the front needs a wedge dart taken out that is widest at the hem and narrows to nothing at the underbust. Oh well, I got a feel for it and I got the fabric super cheap. Besides, I can tell that this is NOT a good print / color scheme on me. Bleah! Good to know!

From the same pattern is a racer back tank. With some more cheap knits (one that tends to cling to the body so I would not choose to wear this in public), I made up a muslin of the tank. I figure, worst case, I can wear this to sleep in. 

Notice it too needs a wedge dart in the CF. Odd because there are draglines from the hip to the bust just below the bust points. With that much room at the hip, you'd think this would not have such large draglines. Hmm... what to do? How to alter?

It has some of the same drag lines in the back as the raglan did, though notice how using a knit with GREAT recovery that the fit is much better and the fabric doesn't hover at the swayback area?  That odd line from the side seam toward CB is following my racer back sports bra. Never seen that kind of dragline before! Maybe the top is too high? Maybe my bra is too low cut? Maybe the side seams are TOO tight? Any thoughts? 

I felt really pretty good about the tank overall. It's a pretty damn good fit despite all the draglines. I will DEFINITELY be making more. You know by now how much I love Jalie patterns. 

So, with that in mind, I tackled an oversized T-shirt of mine. 

Here we are, traced fronts and backs. 

I cut it out and stitched it up, BUT..............................................

I forgot that this knit is even less forgiving and has an even lower recovery than the orange knit I used to make the raglan. So my bust is squished in this - have to wear a sports bra with no support or wear it as jammies or ... give it away. Or, add a piece into the side seam to give myself some room to breathe!

All in all, I'm very happy with the Tank the most. I will definitely make the raglan soon. I love this pattern and have learned a lot about what types of knits work best with it. I definitely need a few tank tops for summer. So I'll be back with more soon.

What are you working on?