Its our Raglan Thursday Round Up Day and I'm feeling a little bit sad. I'm going to miss Raglan Thursday. :*(

BUT, starting next week, I'll be starting a new series, Diving Into Dolmans, and that means we'll have Dolman Thursday instead. That promises to be bigger and better than Raglan Thursday, so don't miss out!

But back to our final Raglan Thursday. Today we round things up. And as part of that, I'm giving you, my readers, a chance to link up with your women's raglans. So read through the post and then link your raglans too. I want to see all the raglans on all different body types, so share share share. Of course I have included all of my raglans from this series already.

I hope its been fun for you all to see so many raglans. It was quite an experience sewing each one and considering the advantages and disadvantages for each one. Please note that I can only rate and compare the raglans I've sewn. It wouldn't be fair for me to try to make judgments for patterns that I haven't completed. Now on to the awards!


Best Value: Duck Butt Designs RAWR. The Duck Butt Designs RAWR includes 2 fits (slim and loose), 3 hems, 3 sleeve lengths, hood, cowl, v-neck regular and maternity, all for one price. That is a LOT of versatility for one pattern.

Best Fit for a Large Bust: Kitschy Coo Trifecta. Kitschy Coo drafts for a D cup bust. That saves me an entire step of doing a full bust adjustment. That's a real win in my book!

Sexiest Fit: Wild Blume Romance Raglan. I never expected a raglan to be this sexy, but this one wins HANDS DOWN.

Best Drape: Jamie Christina Hi-Lo Raglan. This pattern is MEANT to be drapey and beautiful and it delivers.

Most Unique Feature: The Liola Zoe. This pattern has an amazing pleat feature on the sleeve that no one else has. Actually, I've never seen it anywhere outside of a runway. Its fun, unique and would look great on anyone NOT trying to hide their wide shoulders.

Most Basic: Named Geneva. Now you're probably thinking, why would anyone want a basic pattern? Because basic patterns are easier to hack. You get your fit down and then you can start fiddling and playing. Bring the neckline down, create a v-neck, make a raglan wrap top, extend the bodice and make a dress, those are all easier when you don't have to deal with as many pattern pieces. Plus, this pattern is just pretty to look at.

Comfiest: Patterns for Pirates Raglan. The Patterns for Pirates Raglan definitely has a loose comfy shape, where as all these others were either fitted or drapey. This is meant to be sort of boxy and like a big comfy sweatshirt. Plus, when you include the add on pack, you've got all the makings of a sweatshirt (hood, cowl, kangaroo pocket, etc). Mix it up with the slim fit raglan and you've got everything you need to make any style raglan you want.

Now of course Kyema over at The Art Of Oh, sewed up some great raglans too. If I could, I'd just steal some of hers, because she used some awesome fabric. If I had to choose just one of hers to try out though, I think it would be the new Hey June Lane Raglan with the new Full Bust Pattern Piece. I'd love to see how that one compares to the Kitschy Coo as far as fit goes.

And of course it wouldn't be a great Pattern Tour without some give aways, so be sure to check back with The Art Of Oh Tomorrow (Friday) because she has fabric and pattern giveaways planned as part of her final round up post. Too bad I can't enter. ;)

Did you miss any part of the huge raglan tour? Fear not, click around below to read the full reviews for any of the raglans on our tour.


Do you have a favorite Raglan? Please, share a link below so we can see what you've made. And don't forget to head over to The Art Of Oh because she has got an amazing give away for knit fabrics to make your own Raglans!

So before I even started sewing the Name Geneva I knew this was not going to be an ideal look for me. The neckline is REALLY high and there is a dart in the shoulder. So I hacked as best I could to make it a little better, but it still isn't ideal. That said, all in all, it turned out pretty ok.

So I started out with the size 40 (which is the best match for my over bust measurement. Unfortunately, the size 40 is stacked with the size 42. For my hip I needed somewhere between a 36 and 38. Since learning how to adjust length for my body shape, I knew the first step was to adjust the lengths in the pattern. Thanks to Becca over at Free Notion, I knew that Named Drafts for someone that is 5'8". That means there is 7" extra height in the patterns compared to my body. I normally use designers that draft for 5'5" so I knew that is 3 extra inches in the entire pattern. I took a wild guess here and cut the extra 3" in half (so it would be taken half out of my top half and the other half out of the bottom). So I removed my usual 1 1/2" from the pattern, then took out 1 1/2" more. o.O That is 3 total inches! Meep... I took 1" out of the high bust and 2" out of the waist. I checked it against one of my other patterns and the waist seemed to be lining up properly. Whew. Scary time though. I took that 1" out of the "armscye" and had to chop up the sleeve pattern piece too. While it felt scary, it wasn't any worse than adjusting the sleeve cap on any other pattern. (I'll be sharing with you how to make that adjustment tomorrow, so be sure to come back. :) )

Now that all my length adjustments were done, I basically took the pattern straight down from the waist measurement. This pattern is meant to hit just past the high hip and I know my high hip and waist are pretty much the same size. Because the pattern already included a finished measurement chart, it was really easy to see that there was a fair amount of ease in the waist (finished measurement was 33") so I knew my hips wouldn't be a problem.
Assembly was super fast just like all the other raglans. The dart in the shoulder was an extra step but no big deal. The end of the dart "should" hit at the end of my shoulder. Mine doesn't. Instead it created this strange little lump toward the end of my shoulder. That says i should have sized down compared to my usual measurement. So when between sizes, size DOWN. I also skipped out on the full bust adjustment and got a tiny wrinkle. Blah. If I size down, I'll definitely need a FBA.

Now the pattern does NOT include a short sleeve option. I just cut the pattern at about 2" beyond the armscye and then hemmed it up 1". That makes a nice little cap sleeve. I should have taken it up maybe another 1/2" as the cut makes me look a tiny bit wide. I also did not add in the neckband. I knew that would make my neckline so many ways too high. Instead I turned the neckline down 1/2". That isn't even close to my usual neckline. If i was going to make this again, I'd probably cut 1" off the entire neckline and then turn it under another 1/2". I actually ended up liking the way this looks on me, even if it isn't perfect. The dart in the shoulder makes for a really nice smooth shape.

Who will love this pattern? Tall people. I took 3 full inches out of the pattern to get it to hit exactly where it was intended. If you're 5'8" tall or taller, you'll find the proportions on this one spot on. Pear shapes will also love this pattern. The pattern only has a shirt length, so you won't have to mess with adjusting the pattern to fit over your hips. The shoulder darts could make for a very nice feature, rather than just a fitting element. You're probably thinking, "but this pattern doesn't have all the features the others do." That's true. But this pattern is so finely drafted, it is like a work of art. It includes cutting and seam allowance lines (in case you want to draw in your own seam allowance. The "basic instructions and vocabulary" is like a little mini class on how to sew. After seeing this one, I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Named pattern. It just isn't the right style for my body shape.

AND, of course I've got a coupon code for you! Use code: GENEVARAGLAN to save 15% off the Geneva Pattern through Saturday March 19. 

So there you have it. The final official review For Raglan Thursday. I have to admit I don't need any more raglans in my wardrobe. Possibly, for forever, LOL. Next week I'll have a final round up post. I'll compare all the patterns I've reviewed. I'll do a mini round up of the raglans that have been released since we finalized our calendar for the series and The Art Of Oh will have a rafflecopter for a huge fabric giveaway. And don't miss out your chance to link up your raglans because there'll be a nice linky party at the end too!

The Jamie Christina Hi-lo Raglan is nothing like my previous reviews. This is a big, drapey, comfy raglan. Unlike my other raglans, this is sewn up in a fabulous purple rayon lycra that I got from Cali Fabrics. I have to admit I LOVE how I look in purple and this is no exception. This pattern is a serious fabric hog. Those big drape sleeves take up a lot of width of fabric, but they're so worth it.

This pattern is best in fabrics with fabulous drape, so sweater knits, ity or rayon lycra are perfect choices here. One thing that isn't mentioned in the pattern but that would be REALLY helpful to know is to use knit seam tape OR some sort of stabilizer in the seams, else your garment is going to stretch out pretty badly. This was actually my first time using knit seam tape and I have to admit, I'm now in love. It made working with this super soft rayon lycra super easy. I used it on every seam and to stabilize the neck and hem before I top stitched with my cover stitch machine.

My measurements fell solidly in the size small without needing a full bust adjustment. I think this is one pattern where you could fudge the numbers a little and still fit just fine, so I wouldn't worry as much about doing a full bust adjustment. I did shorten the bodice 1 1/2" at the waist (there is no included lengthen/shorten line) so that the front scoop would hit right below the waist as indicated by the modeled photos in the pattern. I will say that I wish there was an additional scoop neckline on the pattern as that is a more flattering neckline for me.

I really Really REALLY love leggings, but I fall into the leggings are not pants category, so this pattern without modifications doesn't cut it for me. BUT, I think my next time I will just mash the back scoop hem onto the front pattern piece and have a fabulous tunic length that I could wear with leggings.

Who needs this pattern? Truth be told, this pattern got rid of most of my inverted triangle-ness. It softened a lot of the lines and makes me look more rectangle, leaning toward hourglass. That's a serious trick of the eye! I really like it and LOVE that it'd be great on those days when you feel bloated and yucky. It skims over all the lumps and bumps and has enough soft drape that it doesn't really catch on anything. And the butt coverage is awesome. I'm no expert on body shapes, but I feel like any body shape could rock this.

Best part of the reviews of course is coupon codes, and Jamie Christina didn't disappoint! Use code pdf20 to save 20% off ALL Jamie Christina Patterns for the entire month of March!

What fabric would you use for your Hi-lo raglan?