A simple white staple and a super leather skirt

It might seem like I've been churning out a tonne of clothes in the last few months. I sew a little each night and it's been good to restock my wardrobe. I arrived in Kansas nearly six months ago with one small suitcase of clothes, culled down to the bare minimum. It was seriously all the clothes I owned. But before you feel sorry for me, there were at least another 2-3 suitcases filled to the brim with fabric and patterns that I chose to bring with me in the place of clothes. It's been great to have the need to sew anything and everything, rather than just wait to replenish staples.

 

But amidst my wardrobe restocking, I've somehow missed out on some staples, meaning long sleeved cotton tops and T's, the boring stuff. So I decided to sew one. That's right, one will do me. I'll stick to frosting any day. It took me a good two weeks to choose the pattern and decide how to modify it. And then it took me another week to actually sew it. It was like somebody pressed my slow-motion button. I can frenzy up a full outfit in 3-4 days if I'm excited enough. Yes, it cuts into my sleep a little, but to me it's worth it.

I used Vogue 8952 for this top. I've used the pattern before, here and here. I made the raglan style this time, but modified it a little:

• the sizing is roomy so I sewed down a size but widened the back by 5/8" (my normal broad back adjustment)
• I widened the sleeves
• narrowed the waist
• Increased the hem allowance but kept it straight and simple. I'm most likely to wear this top tucked in.

I'm pretty happy with the fit and the shape of this top. It is exactly what I was after and I know I will get a lot of wear out of it. So was it worthwhile sewing this 'staple'? It was actually. I was able to refine the shape of a simple top to exactly what I wanted. The fabric also makes a difference for me. As boring as it may seem, this basic cotton knit from Tessuti Fabrics is actually a really beautiful fabric. It's quite stable, but still stretchy, with a lovely firm weight and feel. It is pure cotton, not poly, so I also know it will last well without pilling.

 

And now that we've gotten the boring old staple out of the way, what do you think of my new skirt?! It's a pretty simple, self-drafted circle skirt, fully lined in silk habutai from Mood. The leather is a Minelli cowhide from Tandy. It is a fair bit heavier than what I've used before and probably more suited to a jacket. I much prefer lambskin, but I compromised on weight to get this colour. I love the colour. It is exactly what I was dreaming of.  

The weight of the cowhide made sewing a bit difficult at times, and I know I could have finished the back waistband better where it fastens. I ended up putting a button on the inside, attached with a leather loop. I couldn't stitch through the leather neatly enough so I sewed some interfaced fabric on the inside and attached the button to this. It's worked out ok in the end. I'm going to call that outside stitching a design feature, and cross my fingers that the button holds up to the weight of the skirt.