McCall’s 7969 Liberty Hack

That’s right, I made another McCall’s 7969 hack! And this one is perfect for Winter because I used a Liberty brushed twill fabric for extra cosy vibes.

This is the print Alison Lewis in colourway C on a twill base, which I picked up in London at Shaukat at the start of the year. To be totally honest it’s not as soft and luxurious as I’d have expected from Liberty. It’s a bit rough and scratchy on the skin so I need to wash the fabric again with a little more fabric softener I think. It won’t stop me wearing it but I like to tell the truth when fabric is this expensive!

For my hack I used a round neck version of the pattern – In brief: Copy the outer edges of the front bodice and extend the centre front line upwards to your desired height, rounding off the neckline in a nice curve. Draft a small keyhole facing by tracing the bodice pattern and mark the stitching and cutting line. Cut out the facing and overlock the outer edges.

Then place the facing and bodice right sides together matching the centre front and sew around the stitching line. Snip down the centre front cutting line close to but not through your stitches. When turned through the facing aligns at the neckline edge and the raw edge is caught in the bias tape neckline finish.

I used the existing bias tape neckline pattern piece and extended this into a neckline tie. And added a second bow at the base of the keyhole. Those who follow on Instagram might remember I tested this hack with just the neckline bow earlier in the year, made in a cherry print viscose. It turned out great, so I jumped at the chance to make this second version and know it won’t be the last time I play with this hack.

I used the View B skirt from the pattern which has a nice ruffled hem. And added a row of elastic to the centre back seam allowance to gather it a little closer to the body. It’s sewn behind the folded edge of the allowance so pretty invisible on the inside of the garment unless you want to find it.

A reminder of my other choices: As before this is a size M with no other size alterations. I used the View B sleeves but for the elastic cuffs I made a small single folded hem which was stitched 80% of the way around with a gap left to feed my elastic into place to gather into a narrow cuff. And I stitch my bias tape on by machine instead of slipstitched like the pattern suggests.

Don’t forget to check out my other versions of M7969 (original and hacked)!