Kwik Sew 3032 skirt and top cranberry slinky

12/19/02 5:39 PM Last Updated: 2/23/04 0:01 AM Pattern Size: Regular Project Photo: Pattern Photo: Kwik Sew Pattern Information Pattern Information provided by Ann Smith Pattern Rating: I Highly recommend this pattern See other patterns in this category: Top Formalwear Suits / Separates Skirt Available for sale on PR: Yes Update 2/22/04 I made this top again, this time in an onionskin knit. This was cut from remnants from another top I just made (Simplicity 5255). This top is easy to squeeze out of a small amount of fabric because it has seams down center front and back. Because of this you can cut it from very narrow pieces left over from other projects. Original Review: This is a very popular pattern, reviewed many times. I choose to make it from a cranberry slinky I had in my stash. I approached this with great trepidation as my only previous attempt at sewing slinky was a disaster. But I read up on how to handle the difficulties and started at it. Then I felt very insecure about sizing. I had read advice on sewing slinky here at PatternReview which suggested going down a size because of the large amount of stretch and drapey quality. I had only sewn one Kwik Sew pattern before which fit well but seemed to be cut quite a bit larger than this top. So I feared going down a size. But the light bulb went on in my head reminding me that I own a purchased slinky top and skirt that fit correctly. Then it was a simple thing to lay each out on the pattern and compare sizing. The top I already owned was almost identical to the small size as was the skirt also. Once the sizing decision was made, this was a quick and easy project. I used the serger with differential feed on all possible places which eliminated the stretching problem. I stabilized the hems, neckline and armholes with fusible bias tape. I sewed the skirt hem with a stretch double needle and wooly nylon. This still resulted in a raised ridge but looks fine for the fuller hemline. I didn't want this for the top's hem resting at the hip so I just topstitched it with a long stitch with a loosened pressure foot. Here is the skirt I'm very happy with the results and now feel I can sew slinky whenever I want to! I even made the other top from this pattern and a pair of pull-on pants with the leftover fabric. All 4 pieces only took about 5 hours to create. Update: I forgot to mention one detail in construction that I wanted to share. When I made the first top I used the fusible tape but when I tried the garment on, it needed to be taken in quite a bit at the armholes. I thought it was the sizing. But when I made the second top, I cut the fusible tape from the pattern (not the cut fabric) and eased the fabric to fit the tape. The slinky stretches so much just lying there. This resulted in a perfect fit at the armhole. Also another tip: on the second top with gathering at the bust view here I needed to stitch seam tape (not the bias type) to control the gathers before sewing the seam together. The slinky slithers all around so this was necessary to secure the gathering.