Welcome to part two of the Soft Suit Combo. When I started this project, I knew it would have to be more than one blog. After all, there are three garments here, it would be an extremely long read to put them all in a single instalment. So, one blog for each item? That seemed reasonable, but then I thought that might lead to a lot of repetition when covering materials etc. So here is an overview of the preparation, which covers all three garments.

At first, it was the shacket that was on my mind but as I browsed Pinterest and other style sites, I started to see this trend of waistcoats and trousers. Thus, one garment became three.

The first thing I had to prepare was the fabric. I’ve been mulling over making some linen clothing for a few years now and I’d taken the step of buying a bolt of linen from Fabrics-store.com a US supplier that sells all sorts of linen. I chose their IL019 Signature finish, which is their basic middle-weight linen. I bought enough for multiple projects with the intention of dyeing fabric for each item.

I had fallen for the avocado colour in one of the Pinterest pins I had saved and decided to dye my linen that colour. I used a Teinture Textile multi-purpose dye sachet in the washing machine with the hottest setting. Machine dyeing is always a bit of a gamble as you’re never quite sure what the result will be, but this came almost exactly the shade I imagined. The finished dye was not as deep as the shade on the packet, so I think if I wanted it exactly that colour I would have to use an additional sachet.

I’m using two patterns: Vogue 1437 is one of my old favourites from designer Tamotsu. This is a great pattern as it contains a whole wardrobe. I was a great lover of the “power suit” for work in the eighties and nineties and I adored this softened ensemble from 1994 when the move away from giant shoulders and BIG silhouettes had begun. My small budget loved these “career wardrobe” sets as you got five garments in this one packet. I’ll be using two of those for this project, both the trousers and waistcoat are perfect for my inspiration look.

This pattern is from 1990, I think and it was published under the Vogue Attitudes banner. This series showcased upcoming designers of the time and I have quite a few In my collection. I love this pattern and I have made the shirt three times. I thought the oversized silhouette would be perfect for a shacket.

Notions required are buttons for the shacket and waistcoat, zip for the trousers and some lining. All but the zip and buttons will be from my stash.

As these are relatively straightforward garments I’m hoping that I’ll be able to put them together in good time for wherever my summer travel takes me.

Do you plan your sewing around outfits? Do come back and see how this turns out.

Thanks for dropping by,