Today's top is the 5 out of 4 Knot Top. While I do a LOT of work for 5 out of 4, I actually purchased this pattern quite some time ago. But I was afraid to sew it up. Foolishness. As always, all opinions remain my own. Read on to see how it went.

Today's knot top is the top that almost was not! I know, the alliteration kills me too, but I could not not say it. Get it, knot, not, not, not. Someone put a fork in me, I'm done.

So how did today's post almost not happen. Our story begins a long long....

Ok, no, I won't go there, LOL. But i will give you the quick run down. We moved to New Jersey just a little over a year and a half ago. Before we moved, I said, "I should get my machine tuned up before we go." But I was worried it wouldn't be ready in time and I didn't want to make a 6 hour round trip to go pick it up from the shop. So I figured I'd take care of it when we moved here. Well, that didn't happen. Fast forward 1 1/2 years and last night my machine had had enough. It started eating my fabric. That was bad, VERY bad.

I was in the middle of this exact top! I tried cleaning out the bobbin case. No good. I changed the thread, the bobbin and the needle twice. GAH! Why wasn't it sewing! PANIC! MORE PANIC! Throw machine out window... No wait, don't throw machine out window. Whew, that was close.

So, I took a deep breath and snuck into my daughter's bedroom. She was asleep of course. I took her Electronic Janome Hello Kitty Machine off of her desk and took it down to my sewing area. I've never been more thankful to have a back up machine! So don't be like me, get your machine serviced. Treat it kindly and it will love you back. Abuse it and it will eat your fabric.

So on to the actual pattern review!

The Knot Dress is a stylish pattern that would be great for casual or semi formal wear. I could see it as a fabulous semi formal gown in a shimmery ITY or Poly Rayon spandex. Or a great every day top in a comfy cotton spandex.

I of course picked my favorite black cotton/spandex from Purpleseamstress. I believe the rainbow chevron is also from Purpleseamstress but it is definitely NOT from this year. It is actually reclaimed from a dress I made last year, which means the fabric may be as many as 3 years old.

For this version, I used the size Small shoulder and bust with the XS waist and hips. I did NOT do a full bust adjustment as it wasn't necessary to fit into the size. I also shortened the entire bodice by 1.5". I have also modified the dress portion by 1.5", but haven't tested the dress length yet. I also cheated and didn't hem this. I'm a bit obsessed with hem bands right now, so I think I'll be adding one to this soon.

I originally muslined with the DD cup cutting line. I bumped it down to the C cup for this version and I think I can go down even further. I think that because I now actually fit into the size (because of my larger shoulders), that I really just need to sew this pattern as if I was a b-cup for these patterns. I used the regular length sleeve line, and ended up with longer than usual sleeves. The pattern even includes an extra long length! I can't even imagine. I could have probably added a thumb hole in my sleeve. I don't think I'll be shortening the sleeves though. I like longer sleeves (or maybe I'm just used to being forced to wear sleeves that are too long?). I did find the pattern runs just a tiny bit wide in the shoulders. I could size down to the XS in the shoulder, but then I'd need to do a FBA on the front pattern piece and I don't wanna...

I REALLY wish I hadn't been so afraid of this pattern! I was SO afraid that the knot in the front would be too hard and that I'd struggle. Guess what, that knot is SO easy. The instructions are perfect and you really aren't going to screw it up. And for breastfeeding mamas, you need this pattern. I've spent over 7 1/2 years of my life breastfeeding. This pattern would have made it so much easier AND I wouldn't have felt i had to look frumpy. Look marvelous and feed those babies!

My overall thoughts on this pattern is that I need to find some fabric to make a dress. The deep neckline helps minimize my bust and hides my wide shoulders. It will make a great top, tunic (when I modify it) and dress too. And I think I can mod it into a bikini which will be super awesome. The option of full bust coverage with a good supportive band (or full tankini by adding the bodice bottom). Yup this is a good purchase and worth your time muslining. Just be sure to check those arm lengths!

For anyone wondering, the pants are the Winter Wear Designs Aviator Pants in fabulous Stretch French Terry from Nature's Fabrics. You can find the pant's full review here.