Florence by Merchant & Mills in Vertical Jersey

As you have probably seen on my Instagram page and stories, i am a huge fan on Florence pattern by Merchant & Mills.  Florence is a top and a dress pattern, with a soft high and low gathers. 

Prior even opening Good Fabric store, I made 2 of these tops and have been wearing them non stop. The version on the left is done in Ecovero Viscose Urban Leo in Sorbet by Mind the Maker. The version on the right is in Light Diamond Tencel by Meet Milk. We currently stock this tencel is 4 colours. 

 For my next project i wanted to test my new overlocker so decided to make my favorite pattern in jersey. I love autumnal colours, so I was very excited to use organic vertical stripes cotton jersey in pumpkin by Tygdrommar. 

Pattern:

Darts:

I am not the most experienced of sewers, so I decided to follow the pattern instructions and did back darts on the shoulder seams. Have to say, not sure what they added to the shape, so next time I will just omit them altogether. 

Button holes:

In hindsight, there was no need for buttons at all, as the jersey is stretchy, it went over my head without any issues so if I do make another Florence in jersey, I will skip this step all together. 

Bias Binding

I used double folded viscose binding in 2cm width in tangerine colourway.

Finishing neckline

I recently bought twin needles so it was perfect opportunity to use them. My needle broke after 10 stitches, so I just used normal stitch to finish the neckline. But it would have been lovely to have the double row of stitching. 

Gathering

I know that overlocker can gather fabric, but honestly I am still scared of my overlocker so I did 2 rows of long stitches and pulled bobbin thread to fit the front and back panels of the body. The jersey I used is quite thin, so it worked without any issues. 

The top is probably one of the  most comfortable items I own, I absolutely love it and really want to make a long sleeve version in jersey for winter. Depending on your fabric choice this can be your staple basic or a statement piece. 

Happy Sewing!