Made by a Fabricista: Color Blocked Linen

One technique that I love to see in clothing, but rarely use in my own sewing, is color blocking.  Why?  Well, it can be tricky to mix fabrics of different weights or compositions.  I recently ordered two pieces of linen, and when I opened up the box, I thought- "Ooh, these look pretty good together!  The weights are pretty similar.  Let's do some color blocking!".

I had 2-1/2 yards each of both the blue and this fawn color, and was able to squeeze out 3 garments. The blue color is sold out, but Fabric Mart has lots of other linen in stock.   The first was a dress from a 2012 issue of Burda magazine.  It was so memorable, that it was always in the back of my mind for when I found the right fabric.  Here is their version:

And here is mine:

This was a technically challenging dress because I had to do a full bust adjustment, which with that wacky front was a real headscratcher.  I had to do two muslins to get it right, and then sewing those curves- aaaacckk!  But I do think it turned out pretty cool.  Yes, it is wrinkly.  Linen is just that way.  I don't mind it because it is just so comfortable!  I love wearing linen so much that I can live with the wrinkles.  Ponte would be a great choice for those who hate wrinkles but want to try color blocking.

I lowered the neckline 2" and eliminated the zipper because I could pull it over my head.  I also used bias binding instead of facings on the neckline.  The dress has pockets, but they are placed abnormally low- probably because when they designed it with the zipper, the pockets would have needed to be below the end of the zipper.   I would definitely move them up if I make it again.

Because it's fall, and you never know what the temperature is going to be, I also wanted to make a jacket.  I wanted something flowy and organic in shape to go with the dress design.  I decided on this kimono style jacket, Simplicity 8172.  This is a fabulous jacket, and super easy to sew, which was a blessing after sewing the dress!

Here it is from the back:

I looked in my closet for some other things to wear this jacket with, and lo and behold, the thing that it looked best with was the Scout Tee that I had made back in 2014 for Fabric Mart's Fashion Challenge! This was a top that I made from second hand sari pieces.

I was thrilled with how well these two pieces work together!  I accented the waist seam with a piece of gold sequinned trim.

I had enough fabric to make one more top.  I decided on a tunic with the majority being the blue linen, and using the fawn as the contrast.

For this one, I used Vogue 8533.  This is an older pattern, but there are tons of similar tunic top patterns out there. 

I used another beaded trim to highlight the seam line.  My neighbor, who was following my progress, said that the trim was like icing on a cake- the tunic by itself was good, like plain chocolate cake, but with the trim, it was like chocolate frosting on it- making it great.  I love that analogy!

These pants are made from ITY knit and an elastic waist pants pattern.  I made them several years ago, and loved them, but, honestly, they languished in the closet for lack of the right top to wear with them.  I think I've found it now!!!  I really like this combo.  And it's perfect for the transitional weather that we have in October.

So, this was a fun exercise in creativity as well as sharpening up my technical skills!  Have you ever tried color blocking?  Do you ever use beaded trims?

Happy Sewing!  

Ann

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