The Lark Tee Giveaway – Tee Number Three

I’m back with more reasons why Grainline Studio’s Lark Tee is the best t-shirt pattern ever! And, there’s a PDF Pattern giveaway you can enter. Just comment on this post, on Instagram and Facebook before Noon PT on 5/4/18. More info at the end!!

Luxurious Octopi

My third Lark Tee make for my Sewing With Knits class was from another Cotton + Steel knit. Honestly, this Cotton/Spandex jersey knit just feels like such luxury!! I chose these whimsical Octopuses and I am having so much fun wearing this tee!

Unfortunately, I can no longer find these octopi online anywhere. Seriously, nowhere at all! But, you may still find it at a locally-owned fabric store. Tell them you’re looking for Cotton + Steel knit in Mystery Food Smoke.

Since Octopuses spend their lives in the sea, I thought that Lark’s boatneck was appropriate for this fine fabric. Yes, I’m that fond of puns. Sea, boats . . .  see what I did there?!

The Lark shoulders fit very nicely on me in the Size 18 and I’m super thrilled with that on the boatneck. I’ve avoided this neckline style in the past, because they tend to slip and crawl and show my bra straps. And, that drives me crazy! The last thing I want to do is fuss with my clothing while I’m wearing it. Sooooo, this is another example of the great drafting that Jen did on the Lark – there’s no strap sideshow!

I do find that my boatneck wants to ripple a bit in the front and I’m still analyzing that. It may be that the neck is a bit wide for me there, so I’ll check on that for the next one. There will definitely be a NEXT one! Or it may be that I stretched the neck a bit when I top-stitched it. I’ll see what happens when it’s washed. It may just pop back in and my boatneck neck will lose it’s ripple. I’m sure it’s solvable!

The pattern does not call for a trim at the neckline and it worked fine to just fold it under and stitch as Jen suggests. But, I’m kind of a trim girl. I just love the look. So, I’m thinking about Fold-Over Elastic (FOE) trim for the next boatneck I make. I’ve got another knit or three lined up for more Larks!

Smoothly Hemmed

So, now about that top-stitching and the hems. I used a 2.5mm Schmetz Stretch Twin Needle and Coats Eloflex Stretch Thread in black for all my sewing machine finishing. The assembly portion of my Lark Tee was done on the serger as were all of my Lark Tees. Quick, I LOVE quick!!

There’s a cool trick for Struggle-Free Knit Hems right here in this previous post. It’s what I did for all my Lark hems and top-stitching and you’ll love it!

The Perfect Length

Let’s talk about the length of the Lark Tees. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Lark finishes a bit  below my hip. For me, it’s a very comfortable, flattering length and I usually have to add to get that on my top patterns. But, Lark comes with that length. Like Jen read my mind!

But what if you need a different length? Simple! Do this . . .

1. Measure yourself and determine the finished length that you would like. Make a note of it for future makes, too.
   Pro Tip: Always measure yourself for the finished length you want on your tee or top. The last thing you need is a top that’s too short when it’s done!
2. When measuring yourself, start from that little bump at the base of your back neck. Or start from the bottom of the dip at the base of the front of your neck.
3. Check your pattern back cover or the instructions to see if they give a “finished back length” or a “finished front length”. Compare it to the measurement you took on yourself to see if you need to shorten or lengthen the body pattern.
4. If the pattern doesn’t give the finished length measurement, then measure the pattern. Be sure to subtract the neck seam allowance and the hem width when you measure the pattern.
   Pro Tip: Write the length on the pattern piece. You’ll need it next time, too!
5. If you do shorten or lengthen, use the shorten/lengthen line on the pattern piece. That keeps the style lines of the top the same as designed. Just adding at the hemline may distort the styling.

A Flock of Larks

This is Lark Tee Number Three! If you haven’t read about the other two, you’ll find more tips in those posts, too. Click here for Tee Number Two, a V-Neck  with hints about sleeves. Click here for Tee Number One, a Crew Neck with hints about neck trim. Lark Tee Number Four, a Scoop Neck with Cap Sleeves, will be up in a few more days! Pro Tip: You can comment on each post and it counts as another giveaway entry!

Enter the PDF Pattern Giveaway!! 

Jen from Grainline Studio has generously offered to sponsor a giveaway here on The Sewful Life and one of you will win a PDF download pattern of the Lark Tee! Sew exciting!!  The winner will be chosen in a random drawing at Noon Pacific Time on Friday, May 4, 2018. You can enter more than once in several different ways.

• Leave a comment on this blog post and all of the Lark Tee posts on The Sewful Life blog.
• Watch for my Lark Tee Giveaway posts on Instagram and comment on each oen to enter.
• Watch for Lark Tee Giveaway posts on The Sewful Life Facebook page and comment on those posts for more entries. 

Swimming in the Lark Tee Sea

My Octopi Lark Tee has been a total success and it really ticks all my tee boxes. I used the long sleeve option so I could have a little fun in the Fall and Winter. We enjoy a LOT of rain in the Pacific Northwest and I always love having something sparky, yet warm to wear. And – this is HUGE – I get loads of compliments on this tee! From people much younger than me. I do love that! They all want to know where I bought it and when I tell them I made it, they all want to sew. I totally love that!!

Thanks for dropping by and enjoying my Grainline Studio Lark Tee voyage! I hope you win! I hope you sew! And, I hope you love the Lark Tee as much as I do!

Moment of Further Truth:
The Lark Tee pattern and Octopus Knit fabric were provided to me by Pacific Fabrics, sponsor of my Sewing Expo class. I am not being paid to promote the Lark Tee. I just LOVE it! This post includes affiliate links and I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase using that link. Thank you if you do – it helps to keep The Sewful Life stitching along and I sincerely appreciate your support. All opinions are solely and truly mine and I only gush about things I love!