I made my first Bonn Dress last May, and when I tried it on, I knew I had to make the shirt version too. The v-neck mandarin collar is so classic, and the fit is seriously perfect. For any beginner shirt sewists out there, this is a really good pattern to start with. The pattern designer made sure to add every detail, and the instructions are very clear and organized. The sizing is so specific, and it even includes cup sizes!
If you have been following along with me for a little while now, you know I loooove a good Pinterest re-creation, and I’ve done a few so far. One of my Instagram sewing friends, Heidi from Handmade Frenzy is also love doing them! (She recently did a Madewell re-creation, and it is amazing! Go check it out!) So we decided it would be fun to come up with a hashtag for us and others in the sewing community to use when they create something inspired by a ready-to-wear (RTW) garment that they’ve seen in person or online.
With the help of our Instagram Story watchers, we decided on the hashtag #sewrtwstyle (aka: sew ready-to-wear style). We feel like it encompasses everything that we are all doing – sewing RTW style. So if you want to, follow the hashtag on Instagram! And please add it to any projects you make that are inspired by RTW clothing!
Okay, back to this top! Since I previously made the dress version, and it fit really well, I decided to just use the pattern pieces that I traced before and cut the hem to the shirt version. The sewing tall adjustments I made previously to the pattern were to lengthen/lower the bust darts by 1.25″, and lengthen 1″ at the waist. When I was retracing the hem, I decided I wanted to make the front and back an inch longer so that the curve was a little more drastic (like my inspiration photo from Anthropologie), so I also made that adjustment and used my styling design curve to redraw the hem line.
I used fabric that I bought at an overstock fabric store in San Francisco, so it’s not available anywhere. I think it’s a poly crepe because it took some extra patience to sew and iron. The one upside about this fabric is that it’s impossible to wrinkle. I could have it in a pile on the floor for a week and it wouldn’t wrinkle!
I did work really hard to make the collar the best that I could, and it turned out better than any I have done before! Too bad you can hardly see the stitching on that black fabric! 🙁 The trick to making it better this time was to use smaller stitch lengths around the curves when I was sewing the right sides of the collar and the collar facing together, and to use Wonder Tape to stick the collar exactly where I wanted it before top stitching. I tried a glue stick for a second, but I quickly reached for my Wonder Tape instead because glue is just not sticky enough, and it is SO messy! I could buy Wonder Tape by the BUCKETS.
I bought these square buttons from Benno’s Buttons last year, and I was SO excited to pair them with this fabric. It’s the perfect pairing, right?! I have loved all of my buttons from Benno’s. They have been great quality and they have really good basic buttons, which is what I wanted. If you are unsure about button size, I have found that size 18L/11mm/7/16″ is the perfect size for shirts. Anything 1/2″ or bigger is a little too big for my preference when it comes to shirts. Here is a button size chart for reference!
I am really happy with how my Bonn Shirt turned out, and this is a pattern I plan on using for years to come! Remember to check out #sewrtwstyle, tell your friends, and use it when you sew RTW style!
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