Vanguard! For a Biking Shirt!

Pattern - Love Notions Vanguard Kit long sleeve tee
Skill Level - confident beginner
Fabric - Discovery Fabrics Polartec Delta
Skills - Colour blocking

My grandson is turning 9 in a few weeks.   For part of his present, he said he wanted a biking shirt with padded elbows.  I knew that I couldn't possibly make something that would give him proper protection, but my son assured me that what he really wanted was a shirt with a moto look.

- like the Moto Maxx pants I'd made him the previous year.  Okay - that I can do! (Click on any picture to see it in more detail.)

The Fabric

I had the perfect fabric on hand.  He loves athletic fabrics and Discovery Fabrics specializes in athletic fabrics.  I had 3 colours of Polartec Delta sitting on the shelves - marine blue, apple green and grey - and decided to use them all.

Polartec Delta is a wonderful fabric and I had previously used it to make competition shirts for my son and his training partner.

It's highly breathable, has superior wicking properties, regulated drying, reduced clinging, odor control and is highly durable.  You can see from the picture above that it's also constructed to pull moisture away from your body. Just what my hot-bodied grandson needs.

The Pattern

The Vanguard Kit is one of my most-used patterns.

There are all kinds of options built right in - even colour blocking.  But the colour blocking I had in mind, I was going to have to figure out myself.

Colour Blocking

I drew up and coloured a design of what I had in mind and then printed off and cut out the plain fronted shirt with long sleeves.

Then I drew lines on the pattern pieces and wrote the colour on each section also making a note of where I would have to add 3/8" for seam allowance.  I cut double the middle grey sleeve sections, because it was going to have moto stitching on it.  That was going to be the padded portion.

After cutting the colour block sections, I placed each colour with its fabric.  I was ready to cut out.

I didn't add a seam allowance as all my lines were going to be straight.  I used my ruler as the guide to add the seam allowance.

You can see on this piece that the seam allowances are all there.

Sewing

I worked on the front first.

I laid all the pieces out in order and working from the bottom up, pressing the seam allowance up (and I used a pressing cloth so the fabric wasn't damaged) and topstitched as I went.  The diagonal blue section was added last and topstitched.

Then on to the sleeves.

I laid them out just as I did with the front with the grey section being two layers, pressing the seams up and topstitching.

For the moto stitching, I drew lines with tailor's chalk.

I stitched the lines on my coverstitch machine.  I could have used my regular sewing machine, but I wanted this section of the sleeve to have lots of stretch.  I used a notch on my foot as my guide in stitching.

So here is what the sleeve looks like front and back.

Now with all the piecing done, all I had to do was sew up the pieces, put on the neckband and hem.  Sounds like a lot of work, but it only took me a morning.  I know my grandson will love his new biking shirt.  He loves this fabric and he'll appreciate all the amazing properties which will keep him cool and dry while he's out on the mountain biking trails.  If you don't already have this pattern, you can get it from my affiliate link below.  And do check out Discovery Fabrics for all the amazing products they carry.

Love Notions Vanguard Kit
Discovery Fabrics

Forte and Chitosante for summer comfort

Pattern - Love Notions Forte Top & Dress
Skill Level - Confident Beginner
Fabric - Discovery Fabrics' Chitosante Interlock
Skills - personal adjustments, markings, finishing seams when not hemming

Now that the warmth of summer is approaching, I needed a top that would provide coverage from the sun as well as keeping me cool - it's a tall order!  But with the right pattern and the right fabric I knew I could do it. (To see a picture in more detail, simply click on it.)

First of all, the fabric.  I had 2 metres of an amazing fabric from Discovery Fabrics called Chitosante Interlock.  You may not have heard of this before, but the properties are mind-blowing!  It's a polyester fabric made with chitosan, which is biomass from crab or shrimp shells combined with textile fibres.  It's antibacterial, odor-resisting, moisture-wicking, breathable, fast-drying, pill resistant and as if that wasn't enough, has UPF 50.  I'm not sure you could ask for anything more in a fabric!  It's also light as air and doesn't curl (psst - no hemming needed!)

And as for the pattern, I'd already made a few Love Notions' Forte Tops - view B - which is fitted on the bust, but loose and airy below.  And it's a sure sign that you love a pattern when you already have several hanging in the closet and are prepared to make more!  It's one of my favourite patterns.

I also knew that there would need to be a few adjustments made to the pattern to fit my unique body.  I am 5'8" tall and usually have to add to allow for my height. 

I have to put some of that addition above the bustline so that my full bustline matches the pattern's.  This is especially important for the Forte View B so that the seamline is below the fullness of the bust.  The last thing I want at my age is to look pregnant!  So I add 1.5" above the bustline.

I also need another inch for my height, so I add that to the skirt part.

Having added 2.5" to the front, I now needed to add the same amount to the back and I distributed it in 2 spots, just as I did for the front.

This taken care of, I now had to decide on the sleeve.  I love the bell sleeve - it's so classy looking - but for everyday wear, I needed something a little shorter.  I decided to make the bell 8.5" long, but I would need more flare.

I slashed into the shortened bell 3 times, spread the pieces 1" apart at the ends and taped them in place.  I would add this to the sleeve cut on the bell line so that the end of the sleeve would fall below my elbow.

Pattern adjustments made, I was ready to cut and sew!  But I always have to throw in a few tips, don't I!

Marking

Transferring pattern marks is so important!  I use multi-coloured quilting pins and designate a certain colour for each marking to make sure I'm putting the pattern together correctly.

For sleeves, I use yellow for the shoulder seam, white for the front marking and the green pin goes right between the 2 marks for the back.  I use those same coloured pins for the armscye of the bodice.  I used orange pins for the skirt and bodice marks and made a mental note which side of the skirt was the side seam - so easy to get mixed up if you don't take care!

When Not Hemming

My Chitosante Interlock doesn't have a curl and because it's so light, I decided not to hem the sleeves or bottom.  I needed, however, to make sure that the ends of the seam were secure.

Both seams were serged, so I threaded the serger tail back through the seam and finished it off with a dab of Fray Stop.

I love my new Forte made with Chitosante Interlock - it's like wearing thistledown!  I know that I'll be comfortable and protected through whatever summer decides to throw at me.  If you'd like to check out this amazing fabric and the wonderful pattern I made it in, there are affiliate links below.

Discovery Fabrics - Specializing in technical and performance fabrics for outdoor and activewear.

Love Notions Forte Top and Dress - XS - 5XL