Creative articles about sewing

The Nikko Top sewalong

Nikko Top pattern from True Bias

Roll neck tops for me are an essential go to winter item, they can be sewn using virtually any knitted fabric. They keep you warm, perfect for layering under big cozy knits or simply worn on their own.

The Nikko top dress pattern is a mock-neck knit pattern with four views. Views A and B are tops with a fitted silhouette that is perfect paired with high waisted pants and skirts. Views B and C are ankle length dresses with a straighter fit through the waist and hips and side slits from the hem to the knee.

“It’s a delicious fast and easy sew, especially when you use a serger like me.”

With lots of coverage but a slimmer fit, it is the perfect garment to wear under chunky cardigans and vests or tighter fitting jackets. View A is sleeveless. The cut is similar to a racerback. This view is especially great for transitional weather. View B is a long sleeved mock turtleneck. This is probably my most worn of all of my Nikko. A simple black or striped long sleeved Nikko is perfect for almost any occasion. I love it with jeans for everyday, or tucked into a fitted short skirt with thick tights for something a bit more dressed up.

An  advanced beginner pattern

The Nikko is an advanced beginner pattern. It’s super quick to make (think a T-shirt without the difficult neckline) with the hardest part being hemming the knits. I suggest using some kind of knit hem tape such as HeatnBond soft stretch to make it easier. Fabrics for this pattern are knits with about 75% stretch. If you use fabric with less stretch than this you will have a hard time getting it over your head (I know from experience). I have found that my favourite fabric to use for the top is a rib knit. 

Pattern alterations

I will be sewing view B, I have altered the pattern slightly, adding to the neck depth, arm length ( I love long sleeves! ) and the top length. 

To sew my top, I am going to be using my Bernina L850

Fabric

As seen all over the high street shops at the moment, lots and lots of ribbing fabric tops! so being partial to following a trend, I found this cute, light pink Rib from der Buntstpecht Shop

Ribbed jersey in a light baby pink

Cutting the pattern out…

Lay your fabric along the grain line, and cut out all pieces.

Be carful to lay pattern pieces along the grain of the fabric

Seam allowance is included in the fabric. As you can see from my image below I have cut the neck pattern piece into 2 pieces ( in half ) and added 15cm in-between, therefore giving me a fuller neck funnel. Ive also added 10 cm to the length of the top and 10 cm to the sleeve length ( seems a little extreme! but I have sewn many and this fits me perfectly) 

Neck funnel, pattern cut in half, and an extra 15cm added to increase the depth

Sewing instructions for the Nikko Top 

Sewing the shoulders together

My first job is to sew the shoulder seams. I laid my front and back pieces right sides together, ( The next step is optional) I wanted to add a seam tape along the shoulder to prevent over stretching of the seam, Unfortunately I didn’t have seam tape to hand so I used a strip of self fabric 

Self fabric tape for the shoulders

Pin shoulder tape into place

Sew with a 1cm seam allowance

Re-enforced shoulder seam

Sewing the sleeves to the sleeve head

I then pinned and sewed my sleeve heads, with right sides touching I  pinned the sleeves to the coordinating armhole edge of the garment matching the notches and sewed them, following the curve using my overlock,

Remember to match the notches( 1 snip mark is the front, 2 snip marks are the back of the top

Pin the sleeve heads in place and sew

Closing the arm and side seam

With right sides of the top touching I pinned the sleeves, underarm and bodice together on both sides of the top and sewed the seams together.

First pin in place, aligning the under arm seam

Sew from sleeve cuff, to the hem in one continuous sewing line

Creating the neck funnel

With right sides touching I pinned and sewed the short ends of the neckband together along the centre back seam. With wrong sides touching I then folded the neckband in half, aligning the raw edges and matching up the centre back seam.

First pin

Sew and roll in half

 

Attaching the neck funnel to the top

Firstly I turned the top to the correct side and marked the centre back and centre front of the neck line with pins.

The centre back of the funnel is the seam, fold this in half and mark the centre front. when pinning the funnel to the top neckline, align the pins so the neck is positioned evenly. I then sewed in one continuous loop around the neck. ( you have to stretch the fabric slightly)

Marking the CF and CB with pins

Slightly stretch fabric and pin the funnel to the top

Hemming the cuffs and main body

I think you either love or hate hemming! since discovering the twin needle, I am actually  a new fan! Unfortunately I dont have a cover stitch machine, so a twin needle on my sewing machine works best. I always try my clothes on, work out what depth i need to sew the Hem of the sleeves and the top, pin, set the stitch length to around 3,8 -4 and sew around.

 

Finished!

Nikko Top sew along

I hope you have enjoyed my latest tutorial, and enjoy sewing the Nikko Top pattern… Its an absolute winter staple in my wardrobe!

for more sewing inspiration please head over to my Instagram page:
Eversewme

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