In my last post Sew a Classic Summer Wardrobe -Part 1, I talked about how a button up shirt, and a white jean are the first 2 of 5 essential pieces to a classic summer wardrobe. Today I want to show you some examples of the flowy trouser, the knit tank dress, and the shirt dress.
3. The flowy trouser
Okay confession. I am addicted to making trousers. I have a ridiculous amount of them! Here I am just sharing my favorite pairs for when it is essential to feel some flowyness.
SwimStyle Patterns, an Australian small business, has great swimsuit patterns, but you really should check out their clothing line as well. The tan V-neck tee shirt I am wearing here with the cream-colored version is one of theirs too.
Of course I love the very popular Pomona Pants pattern from Anna Allen with its elastic waistband and wide legs. Lastly, I made two of the Style Arc Clare pants which as you see can be office chic or casual everyday, depending on which fabric you use.
4. The Tank dress
Now if you are not into dresses, as I never was before moving to Texas, you might be thinking no way! However, a great way to get used to wearing a dress (really essential for hot, hot weather) is to start with a shape you are used to, like a tank top. I found a great pattern for that called the Go To Fit and Flare Dress by Pattern Emporium.
When you buy a Pattern Emporium pattern you always get like three different looks. Soo nice. I chose the wide band tank top and dropped the waist about 8 inches so that the skirt sits lower on my hip. That gives it some swing. I like the swing!
5. A Shirtdress
You can’t go wrong with a shirtdress, and they are fun to sew as well. So easy to just extend your favorite shirt sewing pattern, but I wanted to try a big 4 pattern so I used McCalls 8031 for a traditional dress with a camp collar. I purchased this amazing cotton from Lyrical Fabrics and have been a fan ever since. Their fabrics are just Extra. This cotton is like a linen, with a little slub, and a slight sheen. Yummy!
Sew.LaLa Patterns released this Alea dress this past summer and you will love the options on this one too. The pattern comes with some not so traditional pockets, but I like a little quirk to my classic style so I stuck to the theme in this photo. However, you could add normal pockets or no pockets at all to make it even more of a classic. I actually removed the pockets later as I just didn’t feel I was pulling off the “quirk” aspect. Ha! Ha!
Well that’s my take on a classic summer wardrobe you can sew. I hope you found the examples and links helpful. Now go out there and sew yourself some. You can do it!
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