Pattern: Flutter Buttshirt by Jessie Maed Designs
Yarn: TFA Red Label Cashmere/Silk Singles in Retro.
Ravelry Project page here.
Mods: I opted to omit the hem ruffle and lengthened the body by 3” to compensate. I wanted the hem to just meet the top of my high waisted jeans and it does!
Good golly this top is CUTE! Jessie Maed Designs is making a career for herself designing very cute knit intimates. She’s got plenty of beautiful non-intimate designs as well, and many of her loungewear inspired designs can be worn as outerwear (like the Flutter Buttshirt) but I think it’s safe to say that her collection of almost lingerie inspired knitwear design is so unique and innovative that it deserves a gold star and a mention. This top is part of a set that includes, naturally, the Flutter Buttshorts, which are absolutely adorable if you’re in the market for a knit short. I initially fell for this design based exclusively on the name. Buttshirt. I am very mature. I knit my version in our luxe merino/cashmere/silk single ply yarn in one of my all time favourite colourways, Retro. This top is knit at a loose gauge and I really wanted that beautiful drape so the sleeves fluttered and weren’t too stiff. The super soft and drapey fabric created by this yarn at this gauge is perfect.
A few years ago I started embracing summer knits and I haven’t looked back since. For me it required a bit of a shift in mindset. I would see people knitting tees in wool and think “that’s way too hot for a Montreal summer!” and decide that summer knits weren’t for me. I know that I’m not the only one who thought/thinks that way because I get so many comments from people concerned about the fiber content in my Rock It Tee pattern (merino + mohair) and I GET IT! Here’s the thing: you don’t wear these knits to the beach! You don’t wear them to play tennis. You don’t wear them on the hottest, stickiest, most humid days of peak summer. You wear them in the spring and fall, on cool summer evenings, on days when you’ll be in air conditioned spaces all day… I live in Montreal where summer temperatures are over 30°C with 100% humidity and I still manage to find plenty of opportunity to wear my summer knits.
And of course, there’s always the option to work your summer knits in something other than wool! We’re gearing up to have our linen/silk Willow base back in stock by the end of the month and there are lots of non-wool summer yarns out there. If you still don’t like the thought of a wooly summer knit, don’t let that stop you from knitting a summer wardrobe, explore new fibers!
Here’s my biggest tip for comfortable summer knits: breezy pits! Yup. That’s the secret. Pick a garment style and a size that has some built in ease so you don’t get any bunching in the armpits. The Flutter Buttshirt has a fairly open armhole, though the ruffle keeps it from gaping, it’s super comfortable and easy breezy and goes a long way towards making this top totally wearable even on warmer days. It doesn’t cling to the body, the fabric flutters around your torso. The neckline is quite open. It’s light and airy and delightful!
I think that this is my first crop top and it’s a conservative crop at that. I’m 37 tomorrow and not particularly interested in flaunting my midriff at this point in my life. This top is kinda pushing it for me but it’s just long enough that it meets the very top of my high waisted jeans and doesn’t rise up too high if I raise my arms. I wanted to experiment with the copped look, but if I didn’t I would have just added a few more inches to the body and done a front tuck instead. Don’t let the crop scare you! This would be super cute as a longer top with a statement sleeve. It could also be layered over a tucked in tank to still be cropped and swingy but with a bit of extra coverage and security from the tank.
I’ve previously knit the Ripple Bralette by Jessie Maed and am thinking of casting on the Outlined Tank next. Hooray for summer knits!