Friday, March 1, 2013

Black and Plum = Yum

Finally, a photo opportunity - when husband was available and light was bright. I modeled this top and vest, made in December and January:


Let's begin with the top. Both fabrics are from Marcy Tilton, and have been  marinating in my collection for a while. They were separate purchases, but when I saw them together I knew they would be perfect in one garment.


I love the idea of combining mesh and opaque fabrics, but as a plus size gal, there's little of my body I want to expose through mesh. I pondered the challenge for a while and came up with the idea of a cowl and scrunchy cuffs.


I love the sheerness and gathers of the mesh against the tiny polka dotted rayon. The mesh is very light and easily collapses into a frothy ring around my neck. Fun!

I used a TNT pattern for this, and simply cut the cowl to fit the neck opening. It is quite high; if I pull it up it entirely covers my head. The mesh and jersey were a really easy sew, and the top is a delight to wear. (Of course it is. It's purple!)

The vest was made using an out of print pattern from Diane Ericson:

The teatowel vest is certainly outdated now (was it ever exactly fashionable?) but I think I can get a lot of mileage out of the other two designs. I used view A.

I started with a gorgeous wool crepe from Sawyer Brook. Wanting to take advantage of several textural black fabrics in my remnant collection, I decided to design pieced lapels. The pattern includes only a long, straight lapel piece. Here is the pattern mock up as I designed it:

And here are the lapels I spent hours designing, cutting out and sewing together, only to decide I didn't like the look:

If you click on the photo to enlarge it, you'll be able to see the textures a bit better. The reason I nixed these lapels is they were just too much. I didn't like the choppiness of the edges, even though I had staggered them. In a nutshell, it just seemed too crafty. So, I backed off and went for the streamlined look of the original pattern piece, and chose one of the textured fabrics. 


The vest has a fun construction detail. Except for the shoulder seams, all seams are overlapped and topstitched. To do this, the entire vest is lined to the edge and turned inside out. Then the back pieces are overlapped and stitched, and the sides follow suit. This means lots of pin fitting, and making sure of where the seam lines will be before attaching the lining. The overlapping leaves little vents at the lower back and side seams.


I like the asymmetrical back and the button detail. The seam gives a nice vertical element to the back, too. Always a benefit for a plus size!

The hemline is angled from high in the front to low in the back. My full midriff tends to pull hems up in front, so I added about an inch in length to the center front. I love how this vest falls over my curves. Both the ambiance rayon lining (which feels scrumptious!) and lines of the pattern allow for this.


The vest is a valuable addition to my winter wardrobe, as it layers easily over almost any top I've made. It's the perfect layer for keeping a touch warmer when the temperatures are cold. It can also be dressed up or down, depending on the occasion. I'm loving it!

26 comments:

  1. Love how you used the two purple fabrics together! Outfit looks great.

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    1. Thank you, Linda. The fabrics seemed to be made for each other!

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  2. Dixie, both pieces are beautiful, and your vest will be so versatile. Love the back seaming and button on the vest. Using mesh for the cuffs and cowls is a great idea, one that just may need to be copied, lol!

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    1. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Copy on!

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  3. What a stunning look on you! Absolutely love it! The colors, the lines, everything.

    I actually like the choppy vest edges, but then, I do realize that I sometimes go a bit over the top, and am learning to reign my crazy embellishments in a bit ;-D And your cleaner lines definitely look good! I just scored this pattern from a giveaway box, so it's really nice to see it made up so beautifully :)

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    1. Hi Jilly! Purple is definitely my friend. Glad you have the pattern. I've played with it before, but this was the first finished piece. I love Diane's patterns because of all of the design ideas she gives!

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  4. You've done a great job and ghose colours and textures are used well.

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    1. Thank you, velosewer. Color and texture are my number one design features in my sewing, for sure.

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  5. OOH! I like this- I'm not a huge vest gal, but this is so neat and interesting- you may be changing my mind.

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    1. Thank you! I started wearing vests a couple of years ago and found I really like them. They add a touch of warmth or additional layer without being too much.

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  6. Fabulous! You always put such outstanding details on your garments. Very nice.

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    1. Thank you, Gwen. In my opinion, details make the garment!

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  7. Those 2 purple fabrics look so much like a designer feature...like going into a posh boutique and seeing them and saying...Wow I would have never thought to put them together but they are perfect! Sheerness at the neck and wrists adds such interest and lightness. The vest is divine and the label just gives you such a beautiful vertical line and the back as well and it makes you want to see the front so don't be surprised if strangers spin you around in the grocery store or church just to see your front. Your smile says it all!

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    1. Thanks for your comments. Vertical lines are some of my best friends. I do feel good in the outfit!

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  8. WoW! you did a stunning job on both those pieces. I probably would have stayed with the pieced lapels... you had some really nice fabrics on them! However, your finished piece certainly looks lovely on you and isn't it nice when a garment (or garments) make us so very happy? I am enjoying your blog very much.

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  9. Hi Kathie! Thank you for visiting my blog, and for your comments. I loved those pieced lapels the day I made them, but when I saw them the next day they just didn't speak to me. That's when I knew it was time to change tracks. Designing goes that way sometimes.

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  10. This was such an interesting post to study. Your creativity was in overdrive on these pieces. Thanks for sharing your work. I especially like the use of the mesh on the cuffs.

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  11. Yum is right!! These garments are gorgeous on you. Beautiful use of these fabrics.

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    1. Thanks, Shelley. I always feel good in plum.

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  12. I too liked the pieced lapels but then if it didn't please you, the designer, then off with it! The frothy cowl and cuffs are just the perfect way to use that special fabric. The results both look perfect on you, Dixie!

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  13. Thes are two gorgeous pieces! it's a pity you didn't like the pieced lapels since I thought they looked pretty funky, but the plainer lapel looks very smart too. I LOVE the mesh cuffs and the scrunchy cowl neckline looks really cool :)

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  14. I love the look of the textured mesh as the collar and cuffs on the knit top. So pretty and unique. The vest looks great too.

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  15. Love, love, love the details of the vest! And I might steal your mesh idea because it's so well! Great outfit!

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  16. Ooh, love the two fabrics on the top. I never would have thought of the cuffs like that!

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