that time I tried to make a sports bra

Hey! I'm pulling something out of my drafts today as I haven't been able to get photos of Patrick's shirt yet. In my spring plans last year I said I was going to try and make a sports bra, and nothing more was said on the matter. But I DID make the sports bra, and just never posted about it because I couldn't figure out what to say. Now that some time has passed I've been able to reflect on things, and I'm going to try and formulate some thoughts. Bring on the year-old pictures!

I couldn't find much in the way of sports bra patterns, so I went for the one that seemed to be most popular. This is the Greenstyle Creations Power sports bra, which has tons of style options and cup sizes and reviews saying it's amazing for all sizes of bust. I wasn't so sure about that, but was eventually won over by the prospect of getting to make cool strappy things. I NEVER get to make cool strappy things. 

Look! I was such a dork about getting to sew and wear these. The trials of the big-boobed. 

Short review: I really like the shape of this bra, but in this form it does not function as a sports bra. It didn't pass the standard jump test, I didn't dare subject it to the "jump while holding 30kg overhead" test. There are probably things I could do to make it more supportive (power mesh etc., which I fully intended to use for this one but the thing I ordered claiming to be power mesh was literally just a piece of net), but I really do doubt it could ever be enough to see me through a weightlifting session. It's fine for a medium-paced walk, however. 

The pattern, as I said, comes with a ton of options: two different strappy backs, a racerback with or without a keyhole and with or without a pocket, adjustable straps, nursing straps, all sorts of things. It also has a huge range of band sizes and cup sizes A-H. I'm in a 34G, same as my regular bra size, and it's pretty much perfect fit-wise. The fabric is from the activewear fabric bin at Abakhan. 

I really like the straps for this one (they have clear elastic in them and they were really fun to make), but I'm not such a fan of the band. It's a piece of 2-inch wide elastic sewn together, so the whole thing pulls over the head. I don't like this at all and ultimately it's this that will stop me making this pattern again. It's a shame, because I really do like the shape and the straps, and I think it looks really good. When I first made this I was fully gung-ho to experiment with foam cups and power mesh and whatever else to make this work. But after a few attempts at wearing it, I just can't. It's so unwieldy, and every time I put it on or took it off I was terrified it was just going to break. 

What's particularly annoying is that I thought I'd found a use for it. My summer plans last year included the Jalie Gigi bikini, which I never finished as the top just did not work for me in any possible way. Somehow my boobs managed to sag more in that than they do with nothing on at all. But being me, I'd been working very close to the time I was actually going to need it, and with three days to go before holiday I had nothing to wear on the beach. Until I remembered I had this! I whipped up a pair of bikini bottoms (I used the Gigi pattern and they were fine) from the leftovers of this purple, and it was actually really cute. I liked it as a set and was happy to wear it on the beach. If I didn't hate the process of getting it on and off so much this would just be my swimsuit now and I wouldn't have it on this year's to-do list at all. I'm not really sure if there's any way to modify this to include a proper closure, and that is deeply frustrating to me. 

I really don't know whether I can recommend this pattern or not. The shape is nice, the options are nice, it fits well, and when standing still or walking gently it does actually keep everything where it's supposed to be. I imagine that with proper internal support it probably could be a decent sports bra, and it's certainly a nice swimsuit top as is. But the band thing is a dealbreaker for me. I suspect that's a personal thing, and I absolutely wouldn't question all the people saying this works well for them. If I could work out a way to maintain the support from the elastic but not have to awkwardly stretch it over my head, I would make two swimsuits out of it and then embark on a rigorous testing process to get the right amount of support for an actual sports bra. 

I'm going to have another go at getting shirt pictures this weekend, and hopefully that will be up on Monday. If not, I'm certain I have other things in the archives I can post about! My silk dress is in progress but going very slowly as I'm pretty new to working with the fabric. I'm considering throwing in a palate cleanser before I start on the Leather Jacket of Doom, Part Four. 

Mental health wise I had a pretty horrendous start to the week, so yesterday I started prepping a bunch of learning resources that I can do when I'm not feeling able to move off the sofa. I don't necessarily recommend that anyone else start four things at once, but I get really stressed out when I have One Thing To Do and tend to be much more productive when I feel like I've chosen to do something. On Monday I said I was planning for coding, wire wrapping and basic Welsh, and I've bought a class for all of them (I mean, technically "bought a Welsh class" translates to "planning to steal Patrick's Rosetta Stone app", but the end result is the same). I've also done my first online drawing class, which is something I've been thinking about for years. I've always been utterly useless at drawing, to the point that my art teachers literally stopped bothering to teach me anything, and I've always wondered if it was possible to learn to get better at it. So far I've drawn an eye, and it's not terrible! The first class is literally "I'm going to draw an eye and explain what I'm doing, and you're going to copy me" and while my eye looks nothing like his eye, it does look like an eye, so I'm encouraged to keep going. 

Hope everybody is safe and holding together. The offer to hit me up for a chat remains open! 

Power sports bra

Fabric: 0.5m of unspecified activewear fabric from the by-the-kilo bins in Abakhan

Cost: I paid about £12 for just under 2m

Pattern details: Pullover sports bra with multiple back/strap options, mix-and-match sizing 28-46 band and A - H cup sizes

Size: 34G

Alterations: None
Would make again/would recommend: No/Maybe?