All Buttoned Up Vest Top – Crochet Pattern Review

This is a crochet pattern review of the All Buttoned Up Vest Top designed by Fiona for Cosy Rosie UK. Review done by Kami Jones for Cre8tion Crochet.

Find the crochet pattern review below, or click here for the free pattern from Cosy Rosie UK website!

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Early this year I had the opportunity to test the All Buttoned Up Dress by Cosy Rosie UK. This amazing design was shown on the runway in February at Crochet Fashion Week in Atlanta. I knew that Fiona had previously released the All Buttoned Up Vest Top that is basically the top part of the dress version, and I had been looking for the opportunity to make it. The lace pattern that she used for these patterns is so fun to make, and it works up so quickly!!

I found this Turquoise yarn when shopping at Hobbii and decided that even though it wasn’t an exact match for the yarn used in this pattern that it would be perfect for my project. I wanted to make mine more cropped and with less ease than the designer wrote the pattern for. Switching yarn weights is one way to change size without having to change the stitch counts, but when doing it with wearables it is extremely important that you measure your piece frequently to make sure that you’re getting a proper fit.

This is a great transition piece as we move into fall weather as it is perfect for layering on top of a plain shirt. We have it modeled over a tee but a collared shirt would look amazing as well. It would also work great as a first layer under a cardigan or a blazer. Plus if you’re still experiencing warmer weather it can just be worn on its own as a tank top.

What Materials Do You Need to Crochet a Vest Top?

• 350 Yards of Fingering Weight Yarn – I used Hobbii Twister Solid in Turquoise (124)
• G6/4mm Crochet Hook
• (5) 3/4″ buttons – I used these from Walmart
• Tapestry Needle
• Scissors
• Tape Measure
• All Buttoned Up Vest Top free crochet pattern by Cosy Rosie UK

Material Notes:

The designer for this pattern used a 100% cotton dk (3 weight) yarn, but I chose to make mine in a sport (2 weight) cotton/acrylic blend. This along with making the smallest size helped me achieve the size that I was looking for. For my dress version I used a cotton/rayon blend dk (3 weight), it was slightly too big on the top portion. Although I’m not completely sure I think it was because of the yarn blend that I had chosen, so I wanted to use a different fiber for my vest top.

The pattern also used 1″ buttons, mine are 3/4″ (for my dress I used 1 1/2″ buttons). It is pretty easy to change the button size since it is all laid out in the instructions for adding the buttons. It also explains how you can add a more or fewer buttons, and even has a small photo tutorial.

How Long Does it Take to Crochet a Vest Top?

I didn’t keep a good record of the time that I spent on this project. I am estimating that it only took me approximately 5 hours to make.

Measurements:

My top measures 8.5″ long x 29.5″ wide (flat, unbuttoned). My straps are 12″ long.

Gauge:

3.75 repeats (about 22 stitches) x 10 rows = 4″ x 4″ square

Pattern Notes:

Full disclosure, I did not gauge for this pattern. Because I had already made the dress version and I have tested for Fiona several times I know that my gauge is very similar to hers. I did however measure my piece after a few rows to make sure that it would come out the desired size. Although I typically make a small for my daughter I opted to use the extra small instructions for this project since I wanted to eliminate the extra ease. I also only added 20 rows instead of the 26 recommended in the pattern to make mine more cropped (the pattern also includes a fuller length 18″).

I also shortened the straps to 12″ because when I did the dress version my straps were to long and I ended up crossing them to make it fit better. With my dress I had issues with the buttons staying fastened, I think again that it was just because of the stretchiness of the fiber that I chose. I ended up just sewing the button panel closed so that the buttons wouldn’t be popping open. With my vest top the buttons worked out perfectly.

I did make a few other slight changes to the pattern. I opted to make the last row for my button panels as slip stitch instead of single crochet. I feel like it has a more finished look and it helps prevent stretching in this area. I also replaced the single crochet around the straps with slip stitches. Additionally on the straps I crocheted mine directly on to my top using 7 single crochet. This made it so my straps were a similar size since the slip stitches don’t add much to the width compared to the single crochet. I connected the straps to the back when I did the slip stitch edging.

What is Ease?

I just wanted to give a quick explanation of ease since I mentioned it in my pattern review. Ease affects the way that a garment fits your body. The greater the amount of ease the baggier it is on your body. For instance this pattern was designed to have up to four inches of ease, this allows it to have extra room for layering over the top of other clothing and still have a baggier fit. In my version I eliminated the ease making it zero ease so that it hugs the body with a tighter fit. It doesn’t really have to be stretched to fit and instead just sits right on the body. Sometimes patterns are designed with negative ease, this makes it so they have to stretch to fit. You will commonly see negative ease in socks, hats and ear warmers or headbands since we like these items to fit securely. Good patterns will tell you how much ease they have, or they will have measurements that give you an idea how much ease there is. By paying attention to ease and measurements you can always make garments to your perfect fit.

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