Sewing a swimsuit is an easy and quick project that can be done in just a few hours. Seriously they are pretty quick to make! If you can sew a zigzag or a straight stitch you can sew a swimsuit. Fabric Mart had an amazing collection of swim and I was so thrilled to get my hands on some. Today I will be reviewing two swim patterns I used.
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The first one I made was from Megan Nielsen Patterns, the Cottesloe swimsuit pattern. I mostly stick with one piece swim patterns but support is important to me. This one has a shelf bra and tie back that helps with some support in the front. The pattern itself is pretty straight forward.
There is an option to sew in a lining as well. I did not sew in a lining and I do regret that! The stitches and elastic can get irritating in the gusset area, I think that having a lining MIGHT help to prevent that. If your elastic is at all showing, meaning the fabric doesn’t completely cover the elastic when its folded over, there will probably be irritating rubbing against the skin. So with the second swimsuit I made, I used caution when sewing in the rubber elastic. There is one thing I would adjust for this suit and that is the placement of the back tie. For me they are too low even though it is right in line with the shelf bra. I still feel like the straps on my shoulders might fall down. So I will either adjust the placement or add a second tie; the larger your bust are the more support in the back you will need. If I do that I would make the strap with a loop and hook to secure it. There weren’t any adjustments I had to make in the size either and the length of the suit was good for me, I am about 5’5 in height. There are two views, a one piece and a two piece with either a low or high waist bottom! This pattern is beginner friendly for sure!
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Next up is the brand new Closet Core Patterns Faye Swimsuit. It came out right while I was in the middle of making my other swimsuit. The timing was perfect. This swimsuit is hands down my favorite. It is comfortable and the straps hit in the right places. I don’t feel like anything is going to slide or fall down (like straps). The elastic on the butt part does tend to flip out. I messaged Closet Core on Instagram and they said they would be writing a blog post about that and how to work with keeping the elastic from flipping to the outside of the suit. This suit is fully lined and I really do recommend lining it. It keeps the elastic off your skin, that is until you get to the leg openings. There is a way to make this suit reversible and that would keep all the elastic inclosed inside the suit. I will be doing that on the next one. You can find that on the Closet Core blog for instructions on how to make it reversible. The straps have elastic in them to help with support as well. This pattern is also size inclusive and goes from size 0-32! There are 3 views, a one piece, two piece with a higher waist bottom and two piece with a low waist bottom. There is also a variation for the back view on the bra top version. For comfort this will be my go to pattern for swim this year!
With a little bit of swim fabric, a little bit of elastic and a really good pattern you can be sewing swimwear too! Check out my personal blog at ModistraSews.com for more swimsuit reviews and how to’s on sewing swim!
HANNAH | @modistra.sews
Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following category SWIMWEAR FABRIC.
You can also shop our selection of Megan Nielsen Patterns HERE & Closet Core Patterns HERE.
Great swimsuits
ReplyDeleteBoth look very nice and well fitted.
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