Completed: The Rambo Project
As much as I like to make garments that I know will get lots of use and wear and fulfill a gap in my wardrobe, sometimes you just gotta switch it up and make something completely ridiculous just for the fun of it.
Which is where this particular make comes into play today.
A couple months ago, Seamstress Erin hollered at me and a mess of other ladies and asked if we’d be interested in participating in a group project that involved a very unlikely fabric source. See, this particular fabric actually came straight off the set of Rambo III. You can read the whole saga here, but basically, what we have here is a piece of famous fabric.
While I am trying to really limit the group projects I sign up for (my time management is so seriously out of whack right now, y’all have no idea), how could I say no to that?? Never mind that I’ve never actually seen Rambo III (or I, or II, for that matter) – never mind that when I tried to read the movie plot, the overuse of the word “explosion” about made my eyes roll back in my head (also, I still have no idea what that movie is about) – never mind that I actually don’t like action movies one bit… we are talking about a piece of fabric that Sylvester Stallone might have potentially touched, holy shit. You bet your ASS I signed up for that shit!
And this is what ended up in my mailbox a few days later. It’s not really the most amazing piece of fabric – and, to be fair, Erin fully disclosed in her initial email that it was a strange scarf size, had a weird bit of stretch to it, and also was a little stained – so it’s not like I was going to make some heirloom-quality piece out of it. For a project like this, naw, I decided to make something SLUTTY!
Ok, in all seriousness, I’m really sorry that y’all have to keep looking at my freakin stomach. I swear I don’t normally traipse around the city dressed like this, but something about this project just screamed boobie top. While I did initally plan on wearing this with something high-waisted, when I tried it on with my jorts, it just looked way white trash in the best way, and I decided it was meant to be.
Oh, and also, I figured y’all might want to know that I got my Jorts situation under control. No, I did not make these. I bought them from Goodwill and cut the legs off.
This little bralette top is made using Simplicity 1426, which is a vintage reissue. I was initially drawn to the cover art – the model on the front is freaking gorgeous – and figured it would be a good pattern for making comfy loungewear bralettes. You know, just stuff to hang around the house in when I don’t feel like rocking something with underwire (and, despite what these photos would tell you, I’ll probably wear them underneath a shirt, ha). Thanks to Rambo, I had the perfect opportunity to test out the pattern in a wearable muslin.
Using the finished measurements to determine my size, I cut the size 6. It fits pretty nicely straight out of the package, although I did have to pull in the back slightly tighter so it would fit my ribcage (again, I’m about 28″ at the ribcage, so most stuff tends to be too big right there!). The instructions were easy to follow, although I never did see how to finish the end of the back band? I just serged the raw edges and folded them down. Nothing fancy here! I did change up the back closure – the pattern calls for buttons, and while I reeeeally wanted to do pearl snaps (because, god, that would be amazing), my fabric was just too thick to even try to hammer those suckers in. I instead opted for flat hooks and eyes – the kind you put on a waistband.
The cups do have a tendency to gape open if you don’t pull the neck straps tight enough (and once you do that, you run the risk of giving yourself a headache!). One thing I would do differently is ease the edge of the cups with a piece of twill tape, similar to how I constructed the bodice of my Flora dress. This would help the cups hug the contours of my body and thus lay more flat along the edge. Something to keep in mind if you plan on making this!
Overall, though, it’s a pretty cute top. Personally, I’m just tickled that I was able to take a rather classy looking pattern and turn it into something that looks this trashy. I am awesome.
The top is lined (I used self-lining in this case) and the edges are bound (again, I used self-fabric), which makes for a very clean inside. I found the binding was super easy to apply in this case, due to the slight stretch of the fabric.
Obviously, this wouldn’t be a true Rambo tribute without the addition of some sort of weapon. I don’t personally own any weapons (can you believe that? Not even a giant stick that I can use to ward off intruders… seriously, Lauren), but I did find this pocket knife on Landon’s dresser. Shhh, don’t tell him!
Check out The Rambo Project to see what happened to the rest of the turbans! Big thank you to Erin, for letting me participate in the ridiculousness that is The Rambo Project!
