A tank top fit for a Tomb Raider

Rewatching the film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider recently, I found myself pondering Lara’s wardrobe. I guess the film must be a movie costume lover’s nightmare (especially when we get a glimpse of Lara’s closet and it contains several hundred identical tank tops and T-shirts) but I found myself pondering the beautiful simplicity of Lara’s tank tops. They look so perfect. Easy to move in, don’t gape, ride up, etc etc.

Now I have one absolutely favourite tank top in my wardrobe that I’ve had for five years and have pretty much worn to death. After trying on and rejecting loads of shop ones – they always come up too short- it occurred to me that I could try and make one, and instead of buying and adjusting a commercial pattern, I should just use my old favourite as the pattern.

My old favourite tank is made of modal. (I wonder if Lara’s are?) I’d been on the lookout for black four way stretch modal for a while, and then when I saw Emma Onesock had some in (update- black is now sold out, but there’s still some lilac), I hit that “Add to your shopping cart button” quicker than Lara could mow down a horde of relic-stealing bad guys. I love modal- it’s fabulously stretchy, soft and comfortable, and doesn’t harden up the way cotton does after you’ve worn it and washed it a lot. This modal is a great weight, substantial, but not too thick.

Cutting to the chase, here is my new finished top:

I am not a great technical sewer, and this project was a means of really getting to grips with sewing with four way stretch knits (which I don’t have much experience with). I don’t have a serger, and I work on an old 1970s Singer. (I presume it’s 1970s as all the models on the cover of the manual are wearing flares.) But here is how I made this tank. Excuse the commanding didactic tone- it’s just easier. Feel free to do things your way, and feel free to share any advice in the comments. :)

You’ll need:

• A sewing machine that can do basic straight stitch, zigzag, and use a twin needle.
• Machine needles specially for sewing stretch fabrics. (Normal ones could break the fibres of your fabric.)
• Four way stretch fabric. Note that the fabric of your original top should be of the same stretchiness as the new fabric.
• Your old favourite tank top. This method also assumes that the front and back of your original top are the same width, so it can lie flat.
• Thread. I prefer polyester for working with knits as I find it stronger.
• A large sheet of paper and a couple of different coloured pencils.
• Scissors, pins, iron, etc.

Making the pattern:
Take your favourite tank top, and a large piece of paper that’s bigger than the top.
Lay your tank top flat on the paper, without stretching it. Using a pencil, draw round the side of the top that is the biggest (this will probably be the back piece).

Take a different colour pencil, and on top of your original, draw the front view. You will have to do this a bit freehand, using the tank top as a guide. Remove the top and neaten up your lines. Balance your armholes (the back armhole should be half an inch deeper than the front to stop your top riding to the back and make any other refinements (there is fantastic article on this that first appeared in Threads magazine here.)

You can add seam allowance now (I actually added the seam allowance on as I cut the fabric, rather than on the pieces.) Leave a generous inch seam allowance at the sides to adjust to fit and 1.5cm on the shoulder seam. Do not leave any seam allowance at the neck edge and arm edges, as these will be bound.

Now, cut your pattern in half exactly down the centre of symmetry of your drawing. On one half, cut out round the back lines. Now place this piece on top of the other uncut half, and line up the straight edges of the paper, and, as far as you can, the pencil lines for your front piece. Draw round your cut back piece onto the front piece. True up any lines on the front piece so they correspond to your newly cut back piece. Now, cut out the front piece along the lines. You’ll now have two pattern pieces as follows:

Assembling the top:
Cut your front and back pieces out of the fabric by placing the straight pattern edge on the fold. (the grain should run parallel to the fold).

Using a stretch needle, and the smallest zigzag stitch you can do, sew the front and back together right side to right side at one shoulder seam (it does not matter which). A zigzag seam will allow your seam to stretch and stop the stitches breaking. To finish and stabilise this seam, I used a piece of very thin rubber elastic which I simply unpicked from an old top., but you can buy this from a sewing supplies shop. Using a zizag wide enough to go over the elastic and not through it, carefully zigzag over the elastic as close to your seam line as you can. Trim as close to this second lot of zigzagging as possible.
What you will get is this:

Applying the binding:
Now it’s time for fun with bias binding! Cut a 1.5 inch wide strip of fabric a little longer than you’ll need to go round your neck. I cut exactly widthwise across the grain for max stretch. Pin the binding to the right side of the neck edge leaving 0.5 inch seams allowance. Stretch the binding a little (you’ll want to experiment with scraps and sewing before) but don’t stretch the actual neck. This is so that the binding will pull in the neck (and arms) so it does not gape. Stitch using the smallest zigzag. Trim the binding part of the seam allowance close to the seam, leaving the neck seam allowance well alone:

Press both seam allowances and binding away from neck. Wrap the binding back over the seam allowance to the wrong side evenly. Make sure the raw edge of the seam allowance extends at least over the ditch of your original seam on the wrong side. Press gently and pin in place:

Using a twin needle set on a normal straight stitch. stitch on the right side of the binding, so that one needle is in the ditch, and one on the binding.
This is what the right side will look like:

On the wrong side, the resulting zigzag will finish the binding raw edge. Trim any excess close to the zigzag. You will end up with this:

Now, stitch your other shoulder seam and finish it with elastic as before. You will find it easier to start at the edge with the binding on. If you attempt to finish at this edge, you’ll find that the edges may stretch out of alignment by the time you reach the binding.

Bind each armhole edge in the same way as the neck.
Pin your side seams, and try the top on. Stitch side seams with small zizag, and finish seams with larger zigzag close to your original seams, trimming the seam allowance close to stitching.

Turn up hem allowance to whatever length suits.. Instead of lining up your seams on the hem and allowance, offset them, otherwise you’ll find there is too much bulk when you sew over them and the hem will bulge at the side seams. Using your twin needle, stitch the hem in place. Trim close to any excess on the reverse.
Try on your finished top. Admire yourself in the mirror. (Guns and assorted weaponry are optional.)

Here is the finished top again, a front and back view: