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for the time being i will keep my old posts here at blogger, but i have imported all content to wordpress. please don't abandon me! to stay updated, head on over to my new space and follow me there. thanks!

—lisa g.

Monday, March 11, 2013

moss mini AND dolman tee

so i made a green corduroy skirt eons ago and never really liked it all that much. (i hesitate to link to it, but here you go) i think i wore it once, altered it a bit, then chucked it into the closet never to be seen again. until recently... i unearthed it from the bottom of a pile of sweaters and thought maybe i should do something with it. there was a decent amount of fabric and the moss mini from grainline studio came to mind. i bought the pattern and lo and behold, it just fit! the original skirt had buttons down the front so i decided to keep them and not mess with a zipper.


i didn't bother to muslin this, i figured if it didn't fit i can call this my muslin and still be okay with that. happily it does fit well enough to be worn. yay! i measured a size 8 so that's what i cut. it still seems a little snug in the hips, but it is a mini skirt, so i think it's okay. the waist was a little gaping in the back so i took in the back yoke by a small amount to curve around le boo-tay.


as you all know, this skirt lives up to it's name as a mini skirt. i cut the skirt to the longest length then made a faced hem with bias tape i reclaimed from the original skirt. also—polka dot pocket lining! 



the only other fitting tweak i need to work out is that space below the waist but above my hips. i'm not sure if i have proportionally low hips or what, but that area above the pocket is just kind of floating out there. i've had this problem before, so i guess i need to pay more attention to it. since i was using an existing button down skirt i couldn't sew the pocket lining into the fly as the pattern instructs and i think that would have helped to pull that part in closer to the body. no worries, there will be a next time with this pattern.


i had to piece the waistband because it was a hair too short... we'll just call it a design featureoh, and i added back pockets and belt loops because i thought it needed them.


fortunately the small fit issues i have don't render the skirt useless. i had some purple cotton lycra knit so i decided to make cation designs dolman tee. i've seen these pop up over the past months and while i liked it, i wasn't sure if it was the right style for my figure. i always feel like my shoulders stick out funny and the lack of shoulder seam can exaggerate it. however, i am happy to say i think this top is not only supremely comfortable, but also flattering! 


when i printed the pattern the scale was off (i got 3.5" for the 4" square) so i took an existing knit tee pattern and picked my size based off that. it all worked out and i think this is my new favorite tee! it was wicked fast to sew and would have been even faster to cut, however i had less than a yard of fabric so i had to do some fancy maneuvering. i cut the hem band in two pieces and had to cut the sleeve bands with the grain. i had plenty of stretch going both directions so it worked out fine. also i did a neck binding instead of band. i like the wide neck slouchy look for this.


so look at that, a whole outfit in one weekend! both projects were super fast and i love how they go together. can't wait to try more grainline patterns, i just bought fabric for an archer blouse. so excited for that one!!!

—lisa g.

12 comments:

  1. I've just made a bright green mini skirt (even brighter than your one) so we must be starting a new trend.

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  2. I'm in love with this outfit! Excellent save on the green corduroy - this style really suits you. And I never met a Cation dolman top I didn't like ;-)

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    1. thanks! i can vouch that both patterns are fantastic!

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  3. Your skirt looks awesome with buttons! Good save!

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  4. Lovely outfit! That skirt in particular is ACE! x

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  5. Love the two pieces together. Great colors!

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  6. cute! and I LOVE the polka dot lining!

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  7. Great look! Awesome that you were able to refashion the skirt (love the buttons). I think of the dresses and skirts that I donated pre-sewing and what I could have done with them... I downloaded the cation dolman tee a while ago. I really need to make it up - it looks perfect for spring. You've done such an amazing job on shirts for your husband so I can't wait to see your version of the archer!

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  8. Both are super cute! I love the bright green big time.

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i appreciate all the feedback, but will no longer be responding to comments left here. i have moved all my content to wordpress (see link at the top of the page!) and will now be posting there. all my posts can be found in my wordpress archive. thanks for reading and please visit my new page!