Skip to main content

Made By A Fabricista: Two pieces and three days in Vegas

This time around, I realized that half of all of my Fabricista post included linen makes–which did not stop me from selecting another linen! I had never sewed with linen before this partnership, and am really glad that Fabric Mart has such a variety of colors, weights, and sometimes prints to choose from. For this make, I went back to the same yarn-dyed chambray that I used as one side of my last post–the quilted reversible coat–but this time chose a different color. Unlike my last pick, where the yarns were purple and white, this one was the mandarin orange and purple. And let me tell you, this combination is stunning in real life!

You can really see the different colors in the yarns after I washed and before I sewed it all up. The color is predominantly orange, but the hint of purple gives the linen such great depth and it looks different from every angle and in every different light.

I happened to have a three-day weekend trip to Las Vegas planned not long after I received this fabric and I decided to put it to work for my trip. I wanted to make a two piece matching set that I could use all three days by pairing it with other items in my wardrobe, and the results did not disappoint.

In honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month this May in the U.S., I selected patterns from two designers who are of Asian descent. The bottoms are the Soline Culottes (max waist 54”, 64” hip) from Stay Stitch Patterns and one of their duo of designers, Candice, is a woman of Asian descent. The top is the bodice of the Lena Horne dress (max chest 51”, waist 46”) from Tabitha Sewer, a designer of Black and Filipino descent. While I like to support Asian businesses year-round (and small businesses on the whole), I wanted to highlight these two to my Fabric Mart friends in honor of APAHM. Also, because it’s Vegas and just for fun, I decided to wear my Philippine sun crown all day because where else could I wear this type of headgear and it not be unusual?!

I sewed a size 16 in the Soline Culottes, but plan to size down for the next time. I also removed the paper bag waist by reducing the height of the waistband to two inches and skipped the drawstring tie. I will likely do this for future modifications as I did not want to add anymore height for the already high-waisted bottoms. I made the size 16 in the Lena Horne as well and was able to figure out how to hem the bodice into a top instead of attaching a gathered skirt. I would love to make this again as a top, since gathered skirts are not my style, but I would lengthen it a smidge for more coverage. Somewhere along the line, I did something so my side seams didn’t line up at the zipper, but I am not too fussed about that imperfection. Vegas was hot so this was perfect. Both were simple makes that I could replicate over and over again.

The linen itself was so lovely to work with. It sewed and pressed like a dream. As is my practice now, I did serge the edges after prewashing to prevent fraying while I was sewing, and it worked great. I do think that the chambray is probably best for dresses or tops, because it is lighter weight, but these flowy culottes are holding up just fine. The color is just so lovely. I fell in love this this fabric first when I saw it on the website, but then it’s extraordinary hue encouraged me to look into what would be complementary to it, and sure enough, purple was encouraged!

I wanted to pack very light for my short trip so I just brought this two piece set, and another pair of shorts, and did some mixing and matching! My friends and I also decided to get matching shirts while in Las Vegas and I daresay the blues and purples on the shirt go great with the orange. I loved being able to make these two pieces and mixing it with other pieces to create unique looks. I am definitely going to travel with two piece sets more in the future!



Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics in the following category EXCLUSIVE CHAMBRAY LINEN.

💡 Did you know? 💡

A good portion of Fabric Mart's linens are reorderable!

This means that even if the color you're looking for is currently unavailable, it should come back in stock soon!

Comments

Popular Posts You Might Like

Made By A Fabricista: Workwear Ready

I'm excited for my first post in 2023! At the beginning of the year, I recently went back to working in person so now I am looking to make and wear pieces that I can wear to work.  The goal is to be functional but also very fashionable since I am a fashion design professor. I saw this blue denim fabric and knew I wanted to make some pants; I just wasn’t sure what kind.  I decided to make Mimi G x Simplicity S8985 View B pants.  I liked the oversized flare look, I just made one slight modification to them by adding a pintuck along the front.  This was easy to add since the waistline was called to be slightly gathered to fit.  The fabric had a hand closer to linen and was very lightweight which was great and very satisfying to sew.  I lengthened the pants by 3” and finished with a 2” hem. The top I used Simplicity S9707.  It’s an oversized partial button down top.  I decided to create a high low hem by combining two different views.   I loved the print of the fabric but honestly as s

Made By A Fabricista: Spring into 2023 with Liberty of London!

Hi Fabricista Fans! I'm excited to be back with my first FabricMart project of 2023 and my second with Liberty of London Tana Lawn ! This fabric is so luxurious and wonderful to work with, I just can't pass it up whenever I see it come on sale! With such a high thread count, Liberty of London doesn't easily crush, and although it's 100% cotton, it's so flowy that it's perfect for billowy dresses, blouses, and skirts. With my $50 budget this month, I purchased 2 yards of Tana Lawn and made a Peony Patterns Rosemary Dress with inseam pockets for my youngest daughter. This is a gorgeous button down dress with long and short puff sleeve options. After cutting it out, I realized I had plenty leftover for a skirt for my eldest, so I whipped up the FREE Peony Patterns Apple Berry Skirt for her. Since she needed a top to go with it, I raided my stash for some additional fabric, and found a lovely eggshell Fabric Mart Rayon Lycra hidden away. (Don't worry, I still ha

Made By A Fabricista: A Denim Set for Spring

Happy Friday All! I am ecstatic to share my latest make that I had on my to make list for a while.  My goal for the month of February was to sew a mini vacation capsule for a trip, but unfortunately I did not get a chance to. I was able to make 3 of the 6 pieces including this denim set. When this beautiful denim fabric arrived, I knew exactly what I wanted to make. I have been wanting to recreate a linen look I made a few years ago using the Montoya coat pattern with a few adjustments.  I created VIEW A without the peplum and lengthened it by 6 inches. Instead of sewing the tie inside the seam of the top like I did here, I wanted to make it separate so that it looks like a jumpsuit. (Read the blogpost here ). Moreover, my body has changed and I needed to cut a size larger so that I can rock it as an open vest or a top tucked in. I love the way it turned out but wish I had extended it by 8 inches instead of 6. For the pants, I went to my tried and true simplicity 8605 pants pattern and