I have been intrigued by the construction of the Jane blouse by Ready_to_sew for a while, so I decided to make it!

Jane is a wrap top with a boyish flare. With a boxy fit, slightly dropped sleeve and a round neckline, Jane has the perfect mix of masculine and feminine styles. The bust is made up of only one piece of fabric without side seams. The unique pattern and beautiful draping paired with the need to only undo four buttons make Jane the perfect top for breastfeeding! Its versatility means that it can be worn tucked into high-waisted jeans or left out for a more relaxed look. Jane can be made with ¾ length puffy sleeves, straight long sleeves with a boxed pleat at the wrist or short sleeves.

This pattern requires a reversible fabric or if you are feeling inspired, you could try something with a different print on the reverse side of the fabric. I chose a sand-washed viscose.

The main body of the top is cut as one whole piece, which makes for a lovely drapey front blouse. I found the top quite billowy and only like wearing it tucked into pants. The top is meant to have a few buttons up to the collar. I decided to keep the design minimal and sewed the wrap fronts together on the underside of the plackets instead.

Overall I’m not in love with the pattern. The sleeve design shape was unusual, and the sleeves I cut out originally were unwearable. I recut the sleeves from my favourite Archer shirt pattern, which are designed to have more ease. The drop sleeves aren’t perfect, but at least the top is more wearable. Previously I couldn’t lift my arms up! The top pulls badly across the back, which seems to be a common complaint with this pattern. Click here to see a video showing the movement on the finished top.

It was fun to try a new pattern, but I won’t make this one again! Would love to hear if others have had these issue with the pattern and how they were resolved.