A Foxglove Tank in Indonesia

Sewing time has been at an absolute premium lately. We’re getting used to some big work and family changes at home, all positive and exciting, but it has meant that the sewing machine has not been getting much love 😦 Having said that, nothing was going to get in the way of me sewing up a Foxglove tank to wear on our recent family holiday.

The Foxglove Tank is the latest pattern release from Lauren of Selvage Designs. I’ve previously sewn her Soleil Dress pattern for my daughter and was super happy to hear she has started designing for women too – hurrah!!

The Foxglove is a super quick and fun project. I whipped this tank up the night before we flew to Indonesia, when I should have been packing. I trusted that the pattern would live up to my previous experience of sewing one of Lauren’s patterns, and I’m happy to report that it has. Her attention to detail is excellent and the instructions will walk you through the pattern step by step. Lauren advises that the pattern is designed for a 5’6″ woman and gives clear lengthening/shortening lines on the pattern to take the guesswork out of making these changes. As I’m closer to 5’10”, I added approx. 5cms to the length of the front pattern piece. The tank has a hi-low hem, so the hem on mine has a much more subtle change in length than the original pattern (because I didn’t add length to the back). Adding length is the only change I made to the pattern.

The fabric is a super thin mystery knit with not much stretch. It wasn’t too difficult to sew with, except for the hem. The print on the knit kept causing the sewing machine to eat the fabric and so due to my time constraints, I decided to leave the hem raw.

This was my first attempt at the Foxglove and even thought the fit feels great, I can see some creasing at the bust in these pics. So I think I’ll add a little width next time. I’m loving that this pattern can be used for both knit and woven fabrics and Lauren gives 8 different options for ways to make up the pattern including different seam finishes. Given the number of options included and how comfortable this tank is to wear, I can see this tank becoming a wardrobe staple come summer.

You can find Lauren’s pattern shop here and if you’re interesting in seeing some more Foxgloves, I’m really loving these versions from Monica, Heidi and Teresa.

And now we’re home, the Foxglove will be back in the closet for the next few months. Back to some cooler weather sewing!