Refashioned jeans to Simplicity 1787

Hi fellow stitchers! I have wanted a colour blocked denim tunic for ages, and now I have one. And I love it!

I started out with a pinterest board, pinning lots of gorgeous denim tunics; you can view my board here if you are so inclined.

Then, I started to see other bloggers creating beautiful denim shifts (I love Su's newlook tunic from "Butterflies and Lemondrops", and "Justsewtheraputic's" denim Laurel). Suitably inspired, I began.

 

My first decision was to recycle some old jeans for colour blocking; I then decided upon a pattern. I went for a dress pattern I had made before and love wearing: Simplicity 1787.

 

 

The shape of the pattern pieces immediately lends itself to colour blocking. The dark blue is from my old (non-fitting since having baby No. 3) jeans, and the light blue was gifted to me by a friend. The level of stretch was very similar, so they worked well together.

 



 



The pockets are the best feature of this pattern. Useful, but stylish too. I lined them with scraps of floral fabric so they are pretty on the inside too.

I love the Sixties vibe this dress gives off, it almost feels like it should be on Star Trek! But it is still modern enough to get compliments. I need to get brave enough to say "I made it" in reply, I usually just say thank you! 

 

For the back, I was determined to have an exposed zip, as I felt that aesthetic would suit the denim. I lost count of how many overly complicated youtube tutorials I watched on how to do it!  In the end, it was relatively easy to attach the zip. Though having said that, I did break THREE needles putting this in! My machine just did not like going through the double thickness denim, facings and zip tape! But it was worth it.

 

 

 



I did originally play around with the idea of sleeves, which do look nice. But in the end sleeveless won out.

 

 

 

It is just what I wanted and planned; this is why I love sewing - it is truly a very addictive hobby.



Simplicity 1787

Thank you sewing bloggers for advice regarding cutting jersey on the crossgrain. I had a big piece of doubleknit jersey with a lovely patterned border along the selvedge, and I wanted to make the most of the great motif. Originally I had in mind to use the pattern as a hem, but upon hearing that it would stretch out of shape, I decided to play safe and use the grainline of the fabric.  Here is what I came up with:

This is Simplicity 1787 Girls. I was a bit worried as it is a child's pattern, but I fall well within the measurements, so I thought I'd go for it. And actually it fits me perfectly.

It comes with a sheet to design your fashion elements! You can add faux piping, metal chain, rosettes, etc. I added none of these as they seemed a little naff on an adult.

I'm rather pleased with this make, I think it is the trickiest I have done to date (sadly that's not boasting much as it is defined as an easy make!). The pockets are fabulous and I adore them.

I feel that the princess seams are rather flattering for me. I'd always thought you needed to be busty to look good with this shape, so I am surprised and very pleased.

The suggested fabrics are wovens but after seeing Thornberry's version that she made for her daughter, I decided to give it a go in jersey. It is so comfy, I have loved wearing it. Honestly, I am ridiculously happy about this dress, comfy and stylish, a win-win

The pattern demands a zip closure, but in jersey you do not need it. I hope to make another version one day in needlecord, and for that I would use the suggested zip. It is loose fitting, so if I curved the side seams in a little on the next version, it would be more shapely and womanly; that would obviously be a plus, but the flip side would be losing the comfiness.  One to ponder...

The yoke was a beggar to sew.  I must have read and reread those instructions twenty times!  I got there eventually, but not without a considerable amount of unpicking and some choice language! It was worth it though, the neckline looks great.

And I also have enough fabric left over for a matching Coco, which was the pattern I had in mind when I bought the fabric.