The Sitka Sweatshirt-Three Ways

I’ve had a handful of posts that are outside my regular content of pattern reviews/sewing shares and more of the same in queue so I thought I’d better insert one of my more standard posts into the line up. I made a new pattern, the Sitka Sweatshirt, and I’ve loved it so much, I’ve already made three versions of it!

A few years ago, I made a couple of sweatshirts by slightly altering the Union St. Tee pattern. The sweatshirts turned out okay but they haven’t been my very favorite things to wear. This year, I picked up a couple of fabrics that I thought would make great sweatshirts but I really wanted a great pattern to go along with it. Trying to hack my way to success didn’t prove fruitful in the past, so I figured I ought to let myself buy an actual pattern this time around.

Finding a basic sweatshirt pattern is surprisingly difficult to do. I just wanted something basic that can be worn every day. Spoiler alert here is that those are the patterns that turn into my Tried and Trues, which definitely says something about me BUT ANYWAY. After a few failed searches I had the thought to look up designers I already like. My first thought was Hey June Handmade because, while my altered Union sweaters didn’t really work out, I use my Union pattern all the time. And wouldn’t you know it, they had exactly what I needed!

The sweatshirt is meant to be mildly cropped and to fit closer to the body but not be tight. My only hesitation was the drop sleeve. I had been wanting a pattern with set in sleeves but at that point I was ready to start sewing and I felt pretty good about using a Hey June pattern. Plus the pattern comes with some cool views (including a version I’ve had pinned to my Pinterest board for some years! When I get around to making it, I’ll share it with you!), so I was sold!

My first version of this sweatshirt was made with the rose clay fabric you see above, which I got from ISee Fabric. I tossed it into my cart to use up the last of my gift card and I’m so glad I did. The fabric is gorgeous! It’s a cotton spandex French terry and it is everything I’ve ever wanted in a sweatshirt fabric. It has a good amount of stretch, great recovery, it’s lofty and smooth. It’s worn really well so far! No pilling!

And look! One of my favorite features! I can push up the sleeves and they stay up! Lots of long sleeves I own don’t have the elasticity to stay up after that first time, unless I push the sleeve up past my elbows. Cotton spandex French terry for the win. I’ve kept an eye on ISee’s French terry since buying this and it seems like they only stock a couple of colors at a time. They rotate colors with the season, so if you don’t find a color you like, you can check again in a few months!

See how lovely those loops are? So tiny and smooth. There are French terries I’ve used in the past that have had greater stretch going up and down than they did side to side (and I’ve made the mistake of not noticing that until after the garment was sewn), so I make a point to find the direction of greatest stretch and not assume that it’s along the grainline. Here, the stretch was slightly greater up and down, but not by a ton. I made the choice to cut everything on grain as normal except for the neckband, cuffs and waistband. Those I cut cross grain, to ensure I was getting the most stretch out of them, but it probably wasn’t strictly necessary.

My next version was made with this gorgeous waffle knit that I picked up from Harmony Provo. Again, the buying in person really sold me on this fabric. I was surprised that it felt different than I expected it to feel.

Not the best picture, but gives a better idea of the texture of the fabric. It looks plusher than it is. It’s thinner and more drapey, but it still has good amount of squishiness. Do you guys love all the non-word descriptors I use for fabric? Ha! Sorry. If only I could attach a swatch to the post!

A nice plus to buying this fabric was that the yardage was at least 60 inches wide. I got away with only buying a yard and a quarter.

I wanted to make this right after I made my Sitka #1, but I knew the top would look best if I got a matching rib knit to go with it. I had a gray rib knit in my stash but it was too light and a trip to my local fabric stores didn’t have what I wanted. Thankfully, I was able to go back to Harmony around Thanksgiving and they had just what I needed!

I’m glad I waited for a matching ribbing!

Each time I’ve sewn the pattern, I’ve made just two adjustments: first, I did my standard forward shoulder adjustment of 3/8ths inch. I know it’s bold of me to just assume without a muslin, but I haven’t regretted it so far. The second adjustment I’ve made is to only do a 1/4 inch seam allowance on the neckline. Usually, I will take whatever neck space I’m given and then some, but here the neckline is more generous than your standard crew. It comes down to me preferring the look of a mildly wider neckband, so that’s what I did.

I didn’t adjust for length and I’m very happy with how it fits. I will say that I’ve noticed Hey June’s sleeves are drafted to be much longer than my (apparently) t-rex arms need, and I’ve been known to shorten to the tune of 2 inches in the past with their patterns. In this pattern it specifically says the sleeves are meant to hit at the wrist bone, so I opted not to shorten…but…yep, my sleeves are about 2 inches (maybe 3) past my wrist bone. Ha! It’s exaggerated by the drape of the gray stripe fabric, but I think I can officially say that Hey June’s sleeves are drafted longer than my arms need.

By this point, the pattern had proven itself to be quite successful (longer sleeves and all), so I decided to use it for making Christmas pajamas, not just for myself but for Ben too! I used ISee’s waffle knit-which is so plush-along with their matching rib knit.

To adjust the Sitka for my husband, I raised the neckline just a bit as well as lengthened the bodice 2 inches. I’d say it worked out pretty well. In the future, I’ll raise the neckline a touch more and lengthen the bodice another 1-2 inches.

Sorry (well, sorrynotsorry is probably more accurate) to sneak a Christmas picture in here, but it’s the only one I have of Ben’s Sitka. But see? The pattern is pretty unisex in my opinion.

Anyway, the Sitka! I don’t believe I’ve had a pattern move from new to tried and true as quickly as this one did! The pattern has been fantastic for me. That said, I think the stars here are the fabrics. After my first version (the one in rose clay French terry), I started mentally writing a post in my head where I said I was done sewing, because I’d never sew anything so completely comfortable and wearable as that. Thankfully, I kept going and got two more great versions of the same pattern!

Pattern: The Sitka Sweatshirt by Hey June Handmade
Size: 8
Adjustments: 3/8ths inch FSA; 1/4 inch seam allowance on neck
Fabric/Cost: cotton spandex French terry from Isee in Rose Clay (free, thanks to a gift card); gray and white striped waffle knit and gray rib knit from Harmony Provo ($22); and waffle knit and rib knit from Isee Fabric in Northwood ($20); Sitka PDF pattern ($12)
Would I make this pattern again?: Definitely!