Crafting A Rainbow

Right after making a rayon challis version of the Cielo top, I jumped into making a Cielo dress and Pietra Shorts! (Yes, I do have an entire dress wedged down these shorts – care to see it?)

Voila! It’s sewn crossgrain in a rayon crepe fabric that was $3/m and interesting enough to try. (This is my problem with wovens – I tend to buy cheap things that are OK because I can’t find prints I really love!) As before, I sewed a size 16 shoulder/size 20 waist/hips with the D-cup. My hips are about 3″ larger than the size 20 measurements, so I added a generous 4″ total around the hips. I don’t know if it’s my loose weave fabric or the D-cup pieces, but it turned out super boxy, and I ended up taking all of that additional width out.

So far, my favourite aspect of this shirt is the set-in sleeves and the angled seams at the back shoulders. I have a handful of boxy tops with cut-on sleeves, but this is nice for a more defined shoulder. I’d like to try the front-seam pockets in a knit version for winter, maybe with stripes? In a woven, I think I prefer the top to the dress.

Now lets talk about the Pietra shorts! I ignore the instructions and made them in a Cone Mills denim. I figured I have enough experience making elastic waist pants that I could wing it… but it may have contributed to some small fit issues! Oh well!

Here’s a closer look, lightened so you can see more. Basically, there is a deep facing on the front which means it’s a very high waist with a clean finish. Then in the back, there is elastic! I sewed a straight size 20 in the hips without added width, but after asking all my Sewcialists editors to read the wrinkles on my shorts, we’ agree that I needed more width to let the back sit an inch lower. The odd thing about wearing these shorts is that they are actually loose at the waist if they ride up even the slightest amount.

My first though when I tried them on was, “I’ve got legs for days!” I’m actually long in the torso and short in the leg, so it’s a nice illusion. They are comfortable in a stretch denim, and have excellent deep pockets. I’ve got fabric set aside for a pair of drapey cropped pants, but part of me wonders if I’d rather make the quick-and-easy Jenny pants hack that I was wearing in my last post. What do you think?

Between these three versions of the Rome pattern and my tester and final version of the Ashton top, I’ve now sewn 5 wovens in quick succession. It was so nice to tear into a few knit projects right after! I find sewing wovens a bit of a hassle, and which everything I made is super comfy to wear, the shapes and fabric don’t feel quite ME. On the other hand, they were perfect through our recent heat wave.

What are you sewing these days? I’m going to be hosting a Sewcialists Mini Challenge on Instagram from Wednesday to Sunday, so come join us if you need a quick bit of inspiration!