Victorian style - the Bloomsbury Blouse

I realised recently that I haven't made any smarter tops to wear with jeans for ages (partly because my jeans were pretty tight post-Christmas....).  Thankfully, I've lost most of the mince pie weight, so I decided to tackle the second of my 'Make Nine challenge projects. I bought the Bloomsbury Blouse pattern from Nina Lee's stall at GBSB Live and also bought some beautiful cotton lawn from Doughty's to make it. I had planned to make it back in the Autumn but ran out of time. Once I decided to get on and make this, I went to Abakhan to get some buttons and cut out the fabric that night. 

I decided to make the version with the narrower ruffles, and I had been tempted to leave out the neck ruffles completely, but decided to keep them after seeing So Zo's version. There are a lot of pattern pieces because of the yoke and the ruffles themselves. It was nice to tackle a project which felt like a bit of a challenge again. The majority of this project was straightforward, but making, pinning and sewing the ruffles took a long time. I made it in a size 10, but took a smaller seam allowance as I didn't want it to be too tight. I wish I'd kept to the correct seam allowance because it is a bit loose. My Mum had recently made a version of this blouse and advised me to cut the yoke smaller because I am quite narrow across the shoulders. Foolishly, I ignored this advice (I'm sure there's a lesson in this), and the edge of the ruffle sits a bit lower than my shoulders. 

Despite these minor issues, I am really pleased with the blouse. It's on-trend, but really wearable. I have worn it with jeans, but it would also look good worn with a pencil skirt for work. I will definitely be making another version, maybe a sleeveless one for Summer, but will alter the width of the yoke and take the correct seam allowance. This was the first Nina Lee pattern I've made, and I really enjoyed making it. I've got my eye on the Southbank Sweater Dress next.