Sew Liberated Nest Sweatshirt

When the Sew Liberated Nest Sweatshirt came out, I scooped it up super fast. Of course, actual sewing didn’t happen on super fast timelines. That Chronic Illness Life definitely slows down wants. I had two dresses from my pile of clothes to remake using the fabric that I thought were perfect for this pattern. The pattern is perfect for stashbusting in either view. I chose to make view B. I decided not to use the quilt block on my first version to make sure the fit was good first. I didn’t have to be concerned at all about that, though!

The only thing I noticed in the fit is the length of the sleeves are too long. However, if you have picked up on my sleeve length preferences over the years, you 100% know that I will not be changing that aspect of the pattern. I love long sleeves that I can tuck my hands into. Raynaud’s Syndrome is what I suspect I have since it is an EDS comorbidity. The marks of the syndrome are having improper temperature regulation, fingers and toes and sometimes lips turning white or blue from cold and then red as they warm up, due to poor blood circulation. This can be very painful and difficult to deal with. I often need to take emergency hot showers or sit on a heating pad to remedy it when it gets really bad. Circulation issues can also be even worse with comorbities like POTS. Often I need a quick solution to warm up my hands to keep them from turning white or blue because I can’t regulate my own temperature. My hands and feet are literally always freezing cold. Sleeve length on long sleeve tops will always be much longer for me than what “fits” my body due to those needs. And yes, I do wear gloves and half gloves often, but this can be a problem for me even on the hottest day in summer and having a long sleeve to tuck my hands into for that quick warmup without having to carry a million disability aids with me makes a huge difference to my quality of life.

I really love the fit and length of View B with the hem band.

Aside: Check out that right shoulder slope difference in the back view. It’s so funny to me how my shoulder slopes more on the right side due to handedness (although technically I am ambidextrous or rather have cross-dominance which is where certain tasks are performed by certain hands, I use my right for the mouse and writing and eating but my left hand is used for lifting things, drinking hot drinks, and much more – I can also write and use a mouse in the left hand). That’s quite a significant drop in my shoulder and also quite a bit more pronounced that it was in the past. I guess that makes sense for the increased dislocations in that shoulder and collar bone. Oh EDS, you rascal!

I made a size 24 to accommodate my bust and waist. My hips are more in the size 22 range, but the fit is good there, too. I made no alterations to the pattern and don’t intend to make any for future versions. The only change you will notice the two colour sleeve. Because raglan sleeves tend to be a lot larger, I was unable to cut them out fully with my fabric leftover in the dress’s skirt. I also had to avoid some stains (there is a faint one on the upper right sleeve but it’s not really visible… I know it’s there, though. lmao!). I had some bamboo french terry for another Nest sweatshirt and used a bit to make up for the bottom of the sleeve.

I will definitely be using that pink french terry fabric in the next version of it with the quilt block.

I don’t have many words of criticism for this pattern. The minor bit is there are no printouts for the quilt block, just measurements. I probably would have dived right into the next version but I need to make templates for that. It’s likely quite easy for people who can use a rotary cutter with a ruler, but since I can’t due to my disability, I need to create the templates. It’s not a huge thing in the grand scheme of things, but definitely an accessibility issue for me. I haven’t sewn a quilt because most quilt patterns are like that as well. It means extra work for me. It would definitely be awesome if pattern makers would include those templates.

In the past, I would put in a little review section for new patterns. However, I haven’t felt like that section is useful at all lately. It’s not technically a review, but how I feel about the pattern. And I love this top. So there.

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