We arrive at month 7 of my yearlong challenge to riff on a single pattern, and I’m still in a practical frame of mind. The Copycat Cardi from last month got me thinking about other workhorse types of garments. It’s fun to get carried away with special event garments and flights of fancy, like my Birthday Dress from month 5. But those don’t get you dressed on an average Tuesday morning. Seeing as I am in the heart of summer (writing this July 7), I did a quick inventory of my summer tank tops and realized that most of them should have been retired about the same time as I retired—2016.

Tank tops, for me, are all about coolness—temperature, that is. I like scooped or V-necklines and sleeveless styles. I’ve noticed, too, that this season is all about the cropped length. I gathered my Tabula Rasa Jacket (TRJ) pattern from Fit for Art Patterns and my drafting tools and headed to my studio.

A gray tank top with style

I started with the pattern I had adjusted for my Mary Tyler Moore top several months ago. It was drafted to be made in woven fabric, so I would need to make changes to accommodate the cotton jersey I had in mind for my new tank. I also played around with different necklines and landed on a crossover front that created a nice V-neck. It added a bit of design detail to the front panel.

I also cropped the length while adding a waistband to keep the hem from flipping up (age inappropriateness alert), and tapered the side back seams to create a closer fit through the torso.

 

 

This was one of the quickest garments I have put together in a long time. I cut it out…