I am going to be quite sad when my daughters no longer fit into Oliver + S patterns.  Clare is almost out of them now, and Stella is wearing size 8.  I have liked every single one of them I’ve sewn (although sometimes my daughters haven’t been quite as enthusiastic) and this top is no exception.

The pattern is the Oliver + S Butterfly Blouse. I have also made a coordinating skirt from the same pattern, but Stella hasn’t chosen to wear the skirt at all yet. She is however reaching for the blouse on a regular basis to pair it with shorts.

As with all Oliver + S patterns, the instructions are excellent. I bought the pdf version of this pattern, which is something that I often do with children’s patterns as it makes it easy to reprint when I want to remake it in a different size. I’m not a tracer of paper patterns – I just cut into them – so a pdf works quite well for potential repeats in different sizes.

Oliver + S describe this pattern as follows: Sew this blouse with either a ruffled sleeve or a cap sleeve. The blouse features a back keyhole opening with button closure and a subtle peplum with gathers at the front. The skirt is a simple pull-on A-line skirt with front pleats and an elasticized back waist.  Stella preferred the ruffled sleeve to the cap.  I chose to make the back button loop from a matching hair elastic, and Stella chose the vintage button closure from stash.  The fabric is a Spotlight lawn that came to my stash from Anna’s.  Thanks Anna!

There is a sweet gathered detail in the centre front, while the back stays flat.  I sewed straight size 8.  Although Stella’s chest size indicated a smaller size, her height did not.  It’s a bit of a juggle choosing the most appropriate size sometimes, and how to best blend them!  I vacillate between cutting the smaller size and adding length, versus cutting the larger size but making it smaller through the circumference.  It also depends on the style ease of the pattern.  This one has worked well.

She wore this outfit Christmas day, and it’s been worn a bit since then. That makes it a success! Fabric choice is always key for Stella, particularly the feel of the fabric. She is quite tactile, and particularly likes soft, smooth fabrics like this one. Nothing scratchy for her!