Bryn Walker Linen Tunic: Before & After

(I put the brand in the title because it turns out there are lots of fans, and I figure they may get an idea for something they've gotten tired of. I've gotten a couple of notes, "Oh, I *love* Bryn Walker!"))

So last week I showed you the linen tunic I got at the new-to-me consignment shop, right? Just in case:

I liked it, but what you can't see in this photo is that it was a kind of pale mango-ish color. Peach-ish, maybe (here it looks fab because the sun is shining through it). Plus I HATED the neckline. I had to tug it to get it over my head, and it was just an unflattering thing. I don't like stuff up around my throat, anyway.

So Sundays are my days to make stuff all day and start new projects. I can tackle any project I want, or I can try to clear away the piddly stuff to make room for The Next Big Project. Yesterday I did the latter--I altered a bunch of stuff, ripping off collars and removing sleeves--that kind of thing.

It took me a while to suck it up and cut off the neckline, and then it took another long while to figure out what to do. Everything I've ever seen from Bryn Walker is either $98 or $189. I'm guessing this was the former. I do not know How To Sew The Real Way, so basically this was me pinning a scrap of dyed linen in place, sort of trimming it, stitching it, trimming it some more, and figuring out how to finish all the raw edges. Here's the iPhone process photo--sorry for the lousy quality, but there are few things I hate more than stopping what I'm doing to take photos. I've done that for too many how-to pieces, and it alwaysalwaysalways seems like work for which I'm somehow not getting paid.

Here's the finished piece. I overdyed it a golden yellow (before I started altering it), so now it's a lovely rich melon color. I tried to get the yellow to show just a tiny bit all the way around the neckline. I'm wearing it with one of my tanks, of which I have dozens (51--I just counted) (some bought on sale, some dyed, some from who-knows-where) in every shade of all my favorite colors. For this, I picked one that's in between the melon and the golden yellow.

 Little pockets high up on the waist.

Believe it or not, this is a size small. This stuff is oversized, and I love that. Lots of room for layering.

It was a lot of work, but it was satisfying: I set myself a problem = how to remove the neckband, lower the neckline, and finish the edge with a contrasting band. This was nothing I'd ever attempted before, and I had to figure out how to do it on my own. No googling allowed!

Next up, I'm going to show you the way-cool thing I bought at the antique store~~lots and lots of work ahead of me on this baby. XO