Made by a Fabricista: Summer Dreaming

Summer Dreaming | A Tropical Faux Jumpsuit and Sheer Ruffled Duster

I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of spring with its promise of warmer temps and lots of sunshine. Anyone else? With that in mind, I choose to showcase two of the fabulous shirting fabrics offered by Fabric Mart Fabrics.

The combination of the semi-sheer shirting with the tropical print shirting has me dreaming of walking along a beach with the waves gently lapping against the shoreline and the sun shining brightly down on me.

The coral shirting is a beautiful piece of fabric with its hint of shimmer and tiny stripes alternating between opaque and sheer. I choose to sew a tiered maxi-length button front dress using Simplicity 9114. Because of the semi-sheer nature of the fabric, I will wear this as a duster.

If you’ve shied away from sewing sheers for fear of the difficulties you may face, this type of fabric is the perfect way to start! Because it is a cotton/nylon blend it was easier to sew than a silky chiffon.

I appreciate that Fabric Mart Fabrics offers the option to order matching thread. I ended up using almost two spools on the dress.

Because of the nylon content I needed to use the low heat setting on my iron as the cotton setting would have melted the fabric.

I finished most of them with a French seams because the fabric raveled slightly and because of the sheerness. This is a great option when sewing with sheer fabrics as it encloses the seam allowance on the inside of the garment leaving no raw edges visible. Because of the bulk of the ruffled tiers on the body of the shirt, I finished those seam edges with my serger.

I eliminated all interfacing as I didn’t want it to show through the fabric. Because of that I added stabilizer to the back side when stitching my buttonholes.

There is a lot of width to this shirt! There is some serious twirl factor going on as the bottom edge measures about 145”!

That width provides a lot of movement, but it also means the dress could become heavy. That’s why this lightweight shirting fabric worked so well.

Just because a fabric is labeled shirting doesn’t mean you have to make a shirt!

I used the tropical print shirting to sew a sleeveless top and wide leg pants, as I wanted the look of a jumpsuit with the wearing ease of pants. That also means I now have separates to mix and match throughout the summer.

The top is sewn with Butterick 6100, a pullover top pattern from 2014. I think everyone should have a basic woven top pattern that they can use over and over. For this version, I lowered the neckline by about 4”, narrowed the shoulder by 3/4”, and eliminated the neck and armhole facings. Instead, I finished those edges with narrow self-fabric bias bindings. That’s the beauty of sewing; you can change patterns to suit what works for you.

The pants are McCall’s 7786, one of my favorite wide-leg pants patterns. They are pull-on pants, but with a flat waistband in front and elastic in the back there isn’t a lot of extra bulk added.

And of course, I love a pocket!

The fabric is a designer cotton/lycra poplin shirting. The cotton makes it easy to cut and sew, and the lycra gives it a bit of stretch making it comfortable to wear. It would have been beautiful in a button-down shirt, but it worked well for this look also.

Although one might think orange and black should be saved for Halloween, you can see all three pieces work together beautifully.

And if I do make it to the beach, my dress will double as a beach cover up!

Until next time, Happy Sewing!

SHARON | @thesharonsews

Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following category SHIRTING.

Made By A Fabricista: Sewing Summery ITY

Hi sewing friends! I’m dropping in to share a few makes sewn with ITY fabrics and inspire you to try out this slinky, cool-to-the-touch fabric for hot weather if you haven’t yet, or to recommend some patterns that work fabulously if you already love it. This is by far my favorite knit to wear in summer. Since it moves easily there’s lots of airflow, and it just skims the body. More often than not, it has a four-way stretch that doesn’t grow when worn, so it works great for loads of styles. ITY stands for Interlock Twist Yarn and the knit gives it some wonderful drape and stretch. There are lots of different weights and even some differing textures. Because it’s so fluid, the fabric really resists most wrinkling. I’ve sewn three different weights and prints here to show off just what ITY can do! This white floral is a lighter weight and features a slightly crepe-textured finish, and I think that combined with the large and spread-out floral makes it quite elegant and eye-cat...

Made By A Fabricista: Effortless ITY

Clothing made from ITY (Interlock Twist Yarn) fabric is effortless, almost like wearing secret pajamas. It is silky and cool to the touch, with a beautiful drape and amazing stretch. ITY fabric is incredibly versatile, and some of the best dresses, skirts, and athletic wear I’ve owned are made from it. Thanks to Fabric Mart’s recent influx of unique ITY fabrics, I was inspired to add some additional ITY items to my wardrobe. I found two beautiful ITY fabrics on the Fabric Mart site that stopped me in my tracks. The first fabric I loved was a funky off-white and multi-color flora and fauna print from a New York Designer. I ordered two yards of this print with a top in mind. Next, I saw a beautiful ITY fabric panel featuring off-white and blue floral print. I’m usually hesitant to buy fabric panels without a plan of how to use them, but I threw caution to the wind this time. I ordered 5 panels, hoping that would give me more than enough fabric to showcase the...

Made By A Fabricista: Basics vs Fun Clothes

Every summer I make flowy, pretty dresses because they are so fun for me to make, wear, and they keep me cool as temperatures rise. But when the days get shorter and autumn rolls around, I’m not always confident on how best to transition my summery dresses into garments that will allow for the seasonal changes. In an effort to be more intentional about maximizing the use of my clothing, I thought long and hard about what I wanted to make for August. It’s been a hot summer in New Jersey. From what I can see, it’s been a hot summer across the US. Looking for clothing that will keep me cool, perhaps hide some sweat stains, and allow me to transition between seasons, I decided to make separates that would pair well with each other and allow me to mix and match with the rest of my wardrobe. For the top, I wanted a basic tank top, something I could layer later on. For the bottoms, I wanted flowy, summery pants that can last into brisker weather or become phenomenally cozy in front of my wint...

Fabric Mart Fabricistas

Search This Blog