Sewing Tutorial: The Volata Blouse in Lace

The Volata blouse: a sewing favourite!

There’s poetry in the air… Meet VOLATA, your favourite from the new Avventura collection. An approachable sewing pattern with just a few pieces, the Volata blouse reinvents itself depending on the fabric you choose. Its clean lines make it wonderfully versatile, while signature details give it unmistakable character:

• An original swallow-wing neckline at the front and back, the defining feature of this design

• A soft silhouette shaped with bust darts for easy adjustment

• An everyday cut that transforms into an elegant evening piece with the right fabric

Scroll down for all the product links and sewing tips!

Do I need to line my lace garments? How do I line them?

During the launch of the new collection, we showcased the Volata blouse in two of the latest Daphné lace shades: the ultra-chic Plum and the rich, deep Scarab Green.

Openwork or delicately embroidered fabrics bring handmade garments an extra layer of sophistication and an undeniable wow factor. But working with these fabrics often raises a few questions:

• Should I line my garment?

 

It all depends on how open the weave is - and how comfortable you are with a touch of transparency. At Maison Fauve, we offer several lace designs. Botanica lace and Coquillage lace have a subtle openwork, so lining your blouse isn’t always necessary. Alhambra lace and Daphné lace are more open. While we don’t always line the garments sewn in these fabrics, you may prefer to add a lining for blouses or dresses if you’re not a fan of transparency.

To make things easier, we offer cotton voiles in coordinated shades to pair with all our lace colours.

• Is the fabric difficult to sew?

Not at all! All our laces are woven from a cotton/polyamide base. They are non-stretch, don’t warp, and behave beautifully under the needle. That makes them surprisingly easy to sew. We also stock handy haberdashery tools on our website - like heat-erasable pens and chalk pencils - to help with fabric marking. Use the same thread as you would for our other fabrics, and choose fine universal needles (size 70 or 80) for best results.

• What’s the best way to handle finishes as you sew?

 

Lace sometimes calls for small adaptations in your sewing process. For example, we don’t recommend using iron-on interfacing, as it can show through the fabric. Instead, you can either skip fusing your pieces, or create a lightweight interlining to reinforce areas like cuffs or collars. (This is the case for the Cicadella blouse cuff, and we show you how to do this in the dedicated tutorial.)

To finish the seams of the Volata blouse, you have the choice of overlocking the seam allowances - our go-to method, durable and easy, with no impact on garment longevity. Using bias binding to enclose the seams or even making French seams for an elegant, clean finish. (If you choose this option, remember to adjust your seam allowances to 1.5 cm if the pattern doesn’t already provide for it.)

Some Maison Fauve patterns already include sewing instructions tailored to delicate fabrics like lace. These include the Cicadella blouse, the Belle Épine top, the Daïquiri blouse/dress, and the Spritz tank duo - each comes with assembly guides designed for these types of fabrics.

How doto line the Volata blouse?

It's a simple adaptation to make, especially since we only lined the bust of the Volata blouse:

• Take the main pattern pieces (front 1 and back 2), but do not use the front and back neckline pieces (3 and 4). No need to cut iron-on.

• Cut pieces 1 and 2 from your lining fabric: a fine cotton voile, a light poplin or a fluid viscose lining will be perfectly suited (on our versions these are cotton sails). Find the cutting edge of the lining below. 

• To prepare the front lining, start by sewing the bust darts as you did for the main fabric, then overcast the centre front and back edges of both the lining and main pieces. Join the lining and main fabric together at the neckline, following the same step as for the neckline edge.

  Next, place the right and left front bust pieces edge to edge right sides together, keeping the lining unfolded, and pin from the bottom of the lining up to the lowest neckline stitch before continuing down the centre front to the hem. Sew 1 cm from the edge, taking care not to form a crease where the lining meets the bust.

Press the seam allowances open, then fold the lining to the wrong side of the bust and press firmly in place. For a clean finish, we chose not to topstitch around the neckline, so there is no need to stabilize the lining with additional stitching.

 

 

• Assembly of the front and back busts:

  Lay the front and back linings flat at the shoulders. Align the front and back bust pieces along the shoulder edges right sides together, matching the lining shoulders to the main fabric shoulders. Pin in place, then sew 1 cm from the edge, taking care not to form a crease as you move from the lining to the main fabric.

• Side closure:

Unfold the lining and pin the front and back bust pieces together along the side seams right sides together. Repeat the same step for the lining pieces. Stitch 1 cm from the edge, sewing from the armhole down to the hem, and do the same for the lining. Overcast the seam allowances and press them toward the back. Next, place the lining against the wrong side of the bust and press thoroughly. Secure the armholes by stitching the main fabric and lining together 0.5 cm from the edge. From this point on, continue the assembly steps by treating your bust (main + lining) as a single piece.

• Bottom hem:

Leave the lining free at the hem so it moves naturally with the blouse without adding weight. Finish the hem of the blouse and the lining separately for a light, fluid result.

These sewing steps are to be followed alongside the instructions in the brochure and the video sewing tutorial.

A very Fauve-style Volata

For this special version of the Volata blouse, I chose our new Daphné lace. The fabric is truly exceptional - the delicate embroidered floral motifs are simply sublime, bringing even more poetry to the graceful lines of Volata.

With its wide palette of colours, Daphné lets you create a blouse that pairs effortlessly with the rest of your wardrobe, especially when combined with other Maison Fauve fabrics. Available in Plum, Scarab Green, Moss Green, White, and Lemonade Yellow, this lace offers excellent structure, so there’s no need for iron-on interfacing - and your garment’s quality remains uncompromised.

We look forward to seeing your versions of Volata!