Good to know
Fabric choice/yardage
Fabric choice: lightweight but opaque fabrics: cotton lawn (liberty…), shirting, viscose or polyester or silk crepe, twill, challis… don’t try to add a lining, that would make a super puffy/balloony top.
Length: with 60’’ (150cm) wide fabrics, you will need 2 yards (or 2 meters). with 44’’ – 45’’ (115cm) fabrics, you will need 2.5 yards (or 2.5 meters).
You will need
2 to 3 yards (3m) of 0.5cm wide elastic, matching thread for your fabric, scissors, pins, a marking pen, a machine needle that fits your fabric type, a small safety pin.
Formats
The French Poetry Polaris top pattern is sold in PDF and can be downloaded right after purchase in US letter or A4 (print at home) or A0 (copy shop). Number of pages: 2 in A0, 40 in A4, 45 in US letter.
Illustrated sewing instructions are also provided in PDF and video (see below in this page) to guide you in tiling the A4 PDF pieces, cutting the fabric and sewing the pattern. This pattern and its instructions are in English.
Sizing
This pattern is offered in sizes 2 to 16 according to the body measurements below. Take your measurements at the widest part of bust and hips and the narrowest point of the waist, then compare these measurements to this table. Choose your size as per the measurements below if you want a lot of gathers, or size down if you want your top to be closer to the body. I advise to size down if the drape of your fabric is quite stiff or «puffy». You can judge by the pictures here: I made the cream top in my regular size, and the blue striped top is 2 sizes smaller. Size range: 2 to 16 – tested up to size 14.
| Size | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 |
| Bust | 31.5 | 33 | 34.7 | 36 | 37.8 | 39 | 41 | 42.5 |
| Waist | 23.6 | 25 | 26.8 | 28 | 30 | 31 | 33 | 34.6 |
| Hips | 34 | 35.4 | 37 | 38.6 | 40 | 41.7 | 43.3 | 44.9 |
| Length of finished garment | 22 | 22.4 | 22.8 | 23.2 | 23.6 | 24 | 24.4 | 24.8 |
Sizing
This pattern is offered in sizes 2 to 16 according to the body measurements below. Take your measurements at the widest part of bust and hips and the narrowest point of the waist, then compare these measurements to this table. Choose your size as per the measurements below if you want a lot of gathers, or size down if you want your top to be closer to the body. I advise to size down if the drape of your fabric is quite stiff or «puffy». You can judge by the pictures here: I made the cream top in my regular size, and the blue striped top is 2 sizes smaller. Size range: 2 to 16 – tested up to size 14.
| Size | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| Bust | 31.5 | 33 | 34.7 | 36 |
| Waist | 23.6 | 25 | 26.8 | 28 |
| Hips | 34 | 35.4 | 37 | 38.6 |
| Length of finished garment | 22 | 22.4 | 22.8 | 23.2 |
| Size | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 |
| Bust | 37.8 | 39 | 41 | 42.5 |
| Waist | 30 | 31 | 33 | 34.6 |
| Hips | 40 | 41.7 | 43.3 | 44.9 |
| Length of finished garment | 23.6 | 24 | 24.4 | 24.8 |
Sewing instructions
You will find here a video tutorial made by Colleen Wisniewski to guide you through all the steps in making this dress (hit play then click on the symbol in the bottom right corner to display the video in full screen). A booklet is included as welll with your purchase. A 5/8” (1.5cm) seam allowance is included.
Need more explanations on how to gather fabric, insert a zipper? Many other video tutorials are available on my tutorials page.