The Pink Ethical Tova | A Finish {Dressmaking}

Saturday 1 November 2014


I finished the pink Tova more than a month ago - but I was waiting for the pictures from our family photoshoot to arrive to share the result with you. There are a few more pictures in this post than the usual but if you have a very talented photographer taking pics - you want to make the most of it. 

You may notice that this Tova is pink - and I hate wearing pink. I am going to put it down to being pregnant and wanted something new. The (very loose) inspiration for this top is this shirt pinned on my style board on Pinterest


The Tova pattern is a great maternity wear pattern if you modify it slightly. All the modifications were explained here; I added another couple of inches at the bottom for more comfort (I was 7 months + pregnant at the time of the pictures).  


The embroidery pattern was larger to start with - but when I started cross-stitching it looked really weird, so I halved my pattern. I have it down somewhere if anyone is interested. It is not that complicated - except that I was for the whole time worried the two sides would not match. 



Of course I used the waste canvas method - I did say yesterday that I was cross-stitching everything! 


The fabric is my first purchase from the Offset Warehouse - an online fabric shop that stocks a wide range of ethical fabrics, trims, haberdashery and paints - and is based in the UK. 

I wanted a lightweight fabric and found this pink handwoven chambray (at £7/m it is quite good value as well). It was great to work with, and it is lovely to wear. The only thing is that I tend to wear this Tova a lot - and because it is hand woven, the weave is not as tight as for other fabrics - and it shows at the underarm seams. But it is not major. 



If you would like to buy ethical fabrics in the UK - this is a great place to start - for dressmaking of course.. 


I am so please with both the shirt and the pictures! My friend Debs Ivelja is a great photographer (worth checking out her website/facebook page). And you get a little snippet of where we live too! 

Also did you read Mr X Stitch post on Le Challenge this month - and his views on arts vs craft, even if you don't want to join Le Challenge it is worth a read. The theme this month is x and the winner will win a $25 gift certificate to the Fat Quarter Shop and your choice of 25 close ended zips from Rickety Rose Crafts! 

PS: I love Baby MiH top, it is ethically made by Tootsa McGinty

12 comments:

  1. I love it. I confess I have been tempted by that pattern but thought the pattern price was quite high. I love the cross stitch detail you have done.

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  2. Love this version of Tova! The cross stitch detail is my favourite part.

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  3. What a talented photographer Debs is - your family is captured so beautifully here!
    xox,
    Cee

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  4. beautiful photos and I love that colour pink - your top looks gorgeous :-)

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  5. What a great colour and it looks lovely on. Did you know that you can get dissolvable cross stitch fabric now...it just washes away?

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  6. that top looks amazing! the embroidery looks really good, but I hate freestyling cross stitch, I find it hard to keep the proportions straight, but your looks amazing- very even! And such great family shots. :)

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  7. Oh my goodness I LOVE the pink and the cross-stitching! Absolutely gorgeous shots too. Gosh - I want a cross-stitched Tova really badly now ...

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  8. You're all gorgeous! The top looks really fantastic. I never wear pink either, but I must admit to having a large number of pink fabrics in my stash. So, maybe someday I'll get over it and sew something up! The color looks beautiful on you and the embroidery is a really nice detail to elevate this blouse!

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  9. That looks like such a comfy top to keep you cool from the pregnancy hormones and give your baby bump breathable room.

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  10. Wow this is really really well done Nat, between the embroidery and the sewing, everything is just so well done. It really looks professional. Oh and for what it's worth I think the pink looks really really good on you! It really compliments your skin tone.

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  11. Beautiful! I love this on you!

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  12. Beautiful everything! I love cross stitch too but for some reason never thought about doing it on a garment. Gorgeous family photos.

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