I'm having an absolute blast with my new relationship with Zelouf Fabrics! I love having the opportunity to work with fabrics I've never seen before and being able to stretch my creativity. 

This fabric is Lexi Lurex Mesh Bonded Knit. I used the Champagne color. That particular color only has a few yards left, but there are other wonderful colors to choose from. 

When I ordered this fabric, I knew I wanted to make a suit... it just screamed suit to me. Vogue 1716 was my original choice. But I wasn't sure how well this fabric would tailor and that jacket has welt pockets with flaps.

I reached way back in my stash and pulled Butterick 5428 (it's long out of print). I've been wanting to make that jacket for years. 

I lengthened this jacket by 7" at the waist and just added width to the bottom. I hated where the jacket would've hit had I not made that alteration.

Longer jackets just look better on me instead of one that sits right on top of the hips.

I interfaced the under collar and the facings. Normally, I would interface the entire body of a jacket with a lightweight interfacing. But I wanted this jacket to feel more drapey and I really wanted to play off of the beautiful pleated detail.

I love a jacket that has back princess seams. Makes altering so easy. I made my usual swayback adjustment. The only thing I wish I had done was create a back vent. I didn't think about until I was actually at a point of trying it on.

I used extra large coat hook and eyes for my closure. On the pattern, it instructed for a bow to be made and handstitched onto the right side of the jacket at the waist. I tried it that way and it looked pretty silly. It would never hang straight and stay that way. So, I just took that piece and cut it in half and sewed it to each side of the front to just make a tie.

I wanted a plain pair of wide legged pants, because the jacket is clearly the star of this show. 

I used McCall's 7443 (currently out of print). The pants are plain front with back darts and a side zipper. I was surprised at how short they're drafted. I had to add 6" of length and I should've gone longer than that. The pattern is drafted with a 2" hem allowance. I could only do a 5/8" so that they would be long enough to wear with heels.

I think a natural reaction to a fabric like this is to make a dress or a skirt. I've been trying to be more proactive in thinking outside of my sewing box. And I'm glad I did, because I love the way this turned out.

This was such a fun dress to sew. It's one of those pieces that you can't wait to be done with because you know it's going to be so fabulous. 

The pattern is Simplicity 9114 and my fabric is Aisha All Over Sequin Floral Embroidery Mesh.

This was dress was fits somewhat oversized. It was designed to be worn as duster or dress, so it has a little more ease than a normal shirt dress would. I didn't make any fit adjustments. This one worked for me straight out of the envelope.

This wasn't necessarily a difficult sew, but it was tedious because I had to take my time sewing it. It's not a zip through project. I cut everything out on a single layer. I used my walking foot and size 100/16 ball point needle. 

I didn't interface the collar or the front bands. And I left the cuffs off. I lengthened the sleeves by 4 inches and added 1/2" elastic. The worst part of sewing this was gathering the tiers. I used the yarn method for that. But it felt like it took forever.

I didn't do any seam finishing. I just trimmed the seams down and I left the hem raw.

Can I just say how much I love this shade of green! It's amazing and I need more of it. The fabric is a poly crepe from Joann that I've had for so many months, that I can't remember when I bought it. I think it was back during the summer. Whenever I see poly crepes like this, I grab them up. They're good stand-ins for heavy weight crepe de chines.

This pattern is McCall's 8141, view C. 

I cut the size 16 in the bodice and graded to the 18 in the skirt, because this fabric has zero give and this pattern is drafted true to size with very little ease. I did stabilize the arm opening to prevent it from stretching out and gaping.

I made my normal sway back adjustment of one inch. But it's still a little bit of extra fabric and not laying as flat as I would like. But again, being that this fabric has no give, that may be some necessary ease. I haven't worn this for an extended period of time yet. And doing things like sitting for long periods of time and entering and exiting a car is always the real test.

I typically have zero desire to sew something more than once, but I really want to make this one again. Next time, I'll probably use something like a lightweight scuba knit with some stretch. 

In my past life, I never made anything for Valentine's Day. I was simply never moved to do so. But this year, so much in my life has changed -- for the better, that I decided, what the hell! Treat Yo Self, girl!

My love of white dresses is endless. And don't you love a good dress that you can't stand still in and you have to swoosh about? That's exactly how this one makes me feel. 

I'd saved this Mara Hoffman dress in my inspiration file last year. I knew I was going to eventually make it. I'd thought about hacking the True Bias Nikko Dress. It would've taken some work, but I could see the possibility. But I was in Joann flipping through the Simplicity catalog and discovered Simplicity 9176. It was as close to perfect as I was going to get.

The style lines were already there... the sleeveless turtleneck, waist seam, and a-line midi length. My fabric is Stretch Crepe Knit I found at Joann.

I just needed to make a few easy modifications to achieve my dress.

I made my usually bodice adjustment. I lengthened the front by one inch, and I made a one inch full bust adjust which created waist seam. I always need shaping right there.

I made a one inch sway back adjustment to the bodice. I made a 2 inch full seat adjustment to the skirt and added 3 inches to the length.

I added a center front seam to the skirt in order to create the front slit opening.

I added pockets and made a belt. You can find my How to Sew a DIY Belt Tutorial here.