Made by a Fabricista: Spring has Sprung - Floral Romper

I loved McCalls 7577 from the very first moment I saw it in the Spring pattern release!!! So I knew I wanted to sew it up for this month's post which will go live just after the start of spring.

I was drawn to this Jean Blue Floral Challis because I loved the denim look and I felt the floral print added the soft feminine touch that I love in the pattern photo. This challis is soft, light and fluid (as the denim is only a print). Thankfully it didn't unravel like crazy or shift too much while sewing which made it great to sew. Unfortunately this print is sold out but take a look at some of the other amazing challis prints and solids here. These solid or striped linen knits or floral crepes would work beautifully as well due their light weight and drape.

Although this is one of those patterns where I like every view, I knew I wanted to make one of the shorts versions first.  Initially I couldn't decide if I liked the contrast lace back of view A or the shorts of view B better. Having never worked with lace I was a tad concerned, but decided to go ahead and give it a go. So here you have the bodice of View A and the bottoms of View B. I selected this white stretch lace because the rose pattern mimicked the floral pattern on the challis. Another choice I debated was whether or not to add the lace trim detail as shown on View A. Ultimately I left it off, but now that I'm done I'm considering adding it to the sleeve and shorts hem. What do you think?

On to the actually sewing! This pattern sews up fairly simply and the instructions are clear. I don't think that the instructions included notes about top stitching. This isn't necessary (especially not for views B, C and D) but I didn't want to see the serged edge of my seam through the lace back so I pressed my seam allowance towards the main fabric at the shoulders and where the back yoke meets the back and topstitched so that it could not be seen. The armsyce didn't get this treatment, but I believe it should have. I may go back and stitch the seam allowance to the sleeve. Thankfully it turns out that I was worried for nothing when it came to the lace. I really didn't have any issues sewing with it.

My decision to go with the straight legs of View B instead of the flounce leg of View A, was mainly due to my hate of gathering. One day I will remake this with the ruffle, as I plan to make each view. I added 1" of length to the shorts because they looked quite short in the pattern envelope. However this was not necessary because and I ended up folding over a 1" hem twice to achieve the pictured length.

A small deviation I took from the pattern instructions was adding bias tape to the sleeve hems. The wrong side shows in these wide bell sleeves so I used bias tape to achieve a clean inside on the sleeve. I also added pockets, because well...pockets! They simply make (almost) every garment better. I keep a copy of a side pocket pattern piece on my cutting table for times such as this. The shorts are full enough that I knew the pocket wouldn't affect the styling. I added them to the side seam 1.5 inches down from the top of the leg pieces because there is a 1" casing allowance to attach to bottoms to the bodice. The placement works well for me!

That's it! I really love this jumper. I do wish I had sewn a size 14 instead of a 16, as I feel like the shoulders are wide. As I was photographing this romper I had to pull at the shoulders to keep them from sliding off. I plan to add a snap to keep the surplice top shut and maybe that will help!

If you like this outfit check out my other creations on my blog and follow me on Instagram @TipStitched