Spring Gingham Peplum-ed Blouse

I am participating in the Starting at the Top 2012 challenge and my brain is swarming with ideas and well..... the desire to make this and that top, lots and lots of them - in other words, I am finding it difficult to decide. :)

I also do not have a TNT (tried and true) pattern yet, other than the Sorbetto, so instead of cranking up sewing one after another, I had to also use the challenge time to make adjustments to my patterns of choice (starting today......).

My very first top for the challenge is a refashion project from a thrifted man's checked/gingham shirt to a blouse with what I intend to be peplum:



The blouse has a princess seam on the front, darts on the back, and short sleeves. I binded the neck and the sleeves with white fabric which is remnant from a previous project (also thrifted fabric). I used the button parts on the back (changed the original buttons to lovely thrifted pearl buttons) and left the pocket as it is instead of ripping it out so that I won't have tiny holes there.

This top is based on the pattern McCall's M6518 that I made previously for Valentine's.
I left out the midriff portion and fashioned the bottom part of the original shirt into a peplum for my new blouse. I shouldn't have left out the midriff band I think :) With the midriff band I think the blouse would've look more like the peplum blouse in my head.

I do love this new blouse though. I think it's cute, it's spring-summer appropriate, but I think I can still work on the design part to make it a better peplum blouse.... Maybe the next one will be in eyelet cotton fabric I thrifted, or fabric with prints. Or both? :)

For full disclosure let me tell you that I initially made this top too small (because I wanted to start on this top ASAP and forgot my notes on the adjustments I made to the red dress, so I just directly cut the pattern to a 14...).

Seems like my shoulder is smaller like a 12, my bust & back will be 16 and my waist is a whole another matter! Not that I know this as a fact, this is more of a guestimate. Hell, that's how I always end up needing to make adjustments :)

Starting at the top challenge 2012 - Top #1