A few years ago I sewed Clare a loose tee in a neutral striped viscose knit.  She wore it over and over and over – so much that it’s actually completely worn out (let alone grown out).  She’s been asking for something similar to replace it – something neutral that would go with lots of clothes, a bit boxy with a sleeve, and in a comfortable viscose knit.

I chanced upon this fabric on the remnants table in Tessuti back on AFL grand final day, and was certain that it would tick the appropriate boxes. Unsurprisingly, the tee pattern that came to mine was the Aeolian tee, by Pattern Fantastique. I have sewed this tee many times for myself (always in knits, although Anna tends to sew hers in wovens) and thought that it would work well for Clare too. But, Clare is rather small. Her shoulders/chest/bust are really a women’s size 6. Size Small in the Aeolian was likely to be too big for her. What to do?

Another light bulb moment! Print the pattern at 90%! That would make it a bit smaller all over (Clare is about 160cm tall – yes, a couple of centimetres taller than me) and hopefully give her the boxy but not way oversized fit that she was after. And as you can see, it worked perfectly. This is the size Small, but printed at 90% of actual size.

I really do love the deep sleeve and body hems of the Aeolian. They give it structure and support. Very nice. There is also a facing like piece on the back body that gives a nice topstitched detail. If you look closely you can see the twin needle topstitching.

It’s not possibly to stripe match across both the front and back raglan sleeves. I’ve stripe matched the side seams and almost the back raglan sleeves (not perfect, but adequate). I cut the pieces so that the finished edges would have a fine black stripe running along them, and highlighted some of the seamlines and the neckband with twin needle stitching.

Pattern Fantastique says: The Aeolian is the perfect boxy cotton tee, as tall as it is wide. It has a square shaped sleeve, strategically inserted to the armhole for maximum 3D body. Sized down, it makes a perfect sheath. Neat, but not tight. Excellent in a glamour knit for a super clean, mini, cocktail dress. Sized up it responds with mega drapes and kaftan-esque volume.

I have a very strong feeling that I’ll be sewing this pattern for years and years to come, both for me and for my daughters.