Summer 2019 shall henceforth be known (by me anyway) as the summer of jumpsuit smugness. I’m sure smug is not good but I am so pleased with myself and what I achieved in my sewing in 2019. Yet another post generated by my #Sewtogetherforsummer19 exploits, this is all about maybe my favourite (…oh, you’re all my favourites…) garment of that summer. This throwback post never got published somehow, but I need this right now as it’s nearly summer again (OK it’s only just into spring) and I sooo need a jumpsuit kind of vibe i.e. filled with fun!

I’ve been wanting to draft my own patterns for a long time now, back to before I put my sewing down in the 90s, in fact. A year or so ago I decided that I needed to focus on this more intentionally and I investigated a few methods to find a fit for me. This is an ongoing process of growth and this project was a combination of organic and more formal development. I noticed that quite a few of the jumpsuit styles I had seen incorporate some form of wrap top and I liked that look. In 2018 I dabbled with draping to make a wrap dress and I also signed up as a tester with Ralph Pink’s PatternlabLdn. I paired the wrap top I draped with a trouser block from Patternlab to make my own jumpsuit pattern.

I simplified it by omitting the band and the cuffs, but in a future version I may work those into the garment. I was able to make some of the improvements I had highlighted for my wrap top, most useful being correcting the sizing which was enabled by my #memade dress form. In addition, I modified the trouser block to accommodate my usual adjustments for short front rise/long back rise.

It’s a pull on/off design so I made the bodice fairly loose and I wanted to avoid the need for fastenings, so I put tucks rather than darts in the bodice. This had the added bonus of making it not too close fitting on the bust.

The trousers have slanted pockets and I love the way these are constructed. The trouser front has a wedge cut away for the pocket, The back of the pocket retains that wedge to form the side of the trouser front. In between there is a facing which forms the front of the pocket bag.

I then changed the leg shape to give a peg leg look and I adjusted the crotch length. Adding a 10 cm deep waistband brought top and bottom together nicely. This jumpsuit was put into service straight away as a neutral for work but I knew I was not finished with it. I wanted something summery too.

Enter this scuba beauty. This believe it or not has been in the stash at least 2 or maybe 3 years waiting for its pattern to arrive. The OH actually chose this for me when I remarked on a dress I wanted to emulate with a green woodland theme. I hadn’t found the right pattern for it and kind of forgot what I originally intended for it. The peacock jungle theme seemed so apt for my summer jumpsuit.

I completed the same process as above but this time I adjusted the front pieces and shortened the crotch front and back.

While there are still tweaks which can be made to this pattern I am so pleased with the finished results in fact … I. Am. Buzzin’. This has had lots of wear both at home and abroad.

My computer made this for me so I’m sharing it with you – sound on for jolly music!

The summer of jumpsuits, I’m ready for round two!

Thanks for dropping by!