A Soft Purple Wardrobe

In fall of 2022 we welcomed a new friend, Sue,  to our Sew Successfully Retreat.  She brought along a luscious pile of dusty purple stash fabrics and immediately got started making fitting mock-ups of our Core Wardrobe Patterns.  Later in the weekend we sat with her and helped in planning how the stash fabrics would become a little capsule wardrobe for her new life as a retired physician. 

She returned in the spring of 2023 for another 3 days of retreat stitching and was wearing many of the clothes we will share with you.  As we thought about showing you some fun casual garments for a holiday wardrobe, we thought of Sue and asked her to share photos and observations with all of us.  Now we turn the conversation over to Sue.

Sue’s Wardrobe Pieces

Here’s the boucle jacket with pintuck pockets. The fabric is a stable knit made with the Tabula Rasa Jacket pattern.

The floral top is a Shirt Variation of the TRJ in a lightweight cotton: the contrast fabric is a Nani Iro cotton sateen remnant that just happened to be on my cutting table when I brought out the floral and it worked! Love that. 

The jeans (Eureka! Pants that Fit with Sporty Details) are a lightweight black denim that reads charcoal rather than black in my opinion. 

The other pant is made from a stretch woven suiting with great drape. A poly/rayon/spandex blend that made up the Eureka! Pants with the Glamour Details perfectly.

The Tabula Rasa Knit Tee is a bamboo knit.

Sue’s Reflections on the Fabrics and the Process

I had these fabrics in my stash.  When I buy fabric, I try to choose coordinating pieces with something in mind ( like pants or a shirt) but not usually a specific sewing pattern. I bought the floral and the denim from a small fabric shop while on holidays in Prince Edward Island, and the boucle, stretch woven, and knit for the tee online from Alberta. The linen for the duster came from a sale at a gorgeous shop in Ottawa years ago, and had been waiting for just the right pattern and guidance from you! I got the silk twill for the binding at Metro Textiles in NYC.

All of these fabrics were brought to the first retreat, and I am grateful for your consultation on planning a little wardrobe. I think it was the best part of the retreat for me.  Getting the fittings done for the jacket, pants, and most of the dress on the first retreat laid the groundwork for me to go home with your ideas and sew a successful capsule of garments. Of course, I had to go back to a second retreat a few months later wearing them, and to work on the duster and finish the dress fitting. 

I wear the tee the most but my favorite thing to make was the linen duster. I think it’s such a wearable garment, and I loved making it tidy on the inside with French seams and gorgeous on the outside with all that bias binding! Now if I could just decide to add the buttons or not.   What do you think?

Sue’s Future Sewing Plans

For future makes Sue has plans for another tee in a solid mauve bamboo knit. She is also mulling over making a dressy top using a shibori dyed silk scarf that is a bit shiny with the silk twill for the sides. Maybe for Christmas?

We hope you have been inspired by this very wearable and simply luxurious group of Fit for Art makes.  We know that you could make them in your favorite colorway too.  If you picked up patterns at last week’s sale, begin as Sue did, mocking them up to test the fit.  Then find some stash fabrics to sew up a wearable garment then wear it around to check the fit.  Consider signing up for our Spring Sew Successfully Retreat to get hands on fitting and design assistance, or arrange a virtual consultation to work on fit and style with Rae.

Happy Wardrobe Sewing, Rae and Carrie