My favorite time of year is upon us: fall! I love decorating my house head to toe in burlap, planning my annual Halloween party, walking out of my front door without sweat dripping down my back, and catching back up with my television shows that took long breaks over the summer. I mean come on, will Emily Thorne finally get her revenge on the Grayson family? The first week of September is always my favorite week too because its Mercedes-Benz Fashion week in NYC, so I get to spend countless hours watching live-stream runway shows from all the big designers. Lots of inspiration right there for me and lots of torture for Will. Also the first week of September is resturant week here in Charleston which is a great excuse to get dressed up and go out for a meal. But this year, thanks to the amazing team over at Indiesew, I am loving September even more! Last week, Indiesew.com launched a collection of six indie sewing patterns that all mix and match to create a fall wardrobe. I have teamed up with Indiesew for this week’s blog hop and was given the opportunity to pick three patterns from the collection to create and style for the fall. Of course I couldn’t stop at just one of each and instead I have created 5 different pieces that I am excited to share with you today. All five of these pieces are from patterns within Indiesew’s Fall collection and can be purchased individually or as a bundle. For those of you who don’t know about Indiesew, let me give you the low down. So many great sewing patterns for sale, all made by indie designers, and all located in one spot. My favorite part about Indiesew is how other seamsters can upload their finished creations so you can see how the pattern looks in person. How would it look in a size small? Or with a print fabric? Or with a longer bodice? And so on and so on. This if their first time selling a collection as a bundle. As for the fall collection, let’s see what I did:
Outfit 1 – Sunday funday brunch with my main squeeze wearing The Natalie Top and Sew Simple Leggings
The Natalie Top is a long-sleeved top with a pleated front detail and rolled up sleeves with button tab. For my first look I went with my favorite color combination: chambray and black. The chambray is from Robert Kaufman. The top took me three evenings to complete. The leggings took maybe an hour and a half. They really are “sew simple,” pun intended. For the Natalie Top, I followed the pattern without making any adjustments including leaving the length as is. I know there are a lot of haters out there who say one should never wear leggings as pants without a long tunic or dress to cover your rump. But I have never followed that rule. I like to live dangerously. Now do I think tights should be worn as pants? No. But can leggings? Sure. But only if done correctly. For these Sew Simple Leggings, I used a very nice black jersey knit fabric that was pretty thick. Plus paired with the high boots and the looseness of the Natalie top, I think the leggings work in this situation. What do you all think?
Outfit 1 details
Top: The Natalie Top by Liola Patterns – Pants: Sew Simple Leggings by So Sew Easy – Boots: Mossimo (similar ones here) – Bag: American Eagle (similar one here)
Outfit 2 – Dinner with the girls wearing a Natalie Top and a Commuter Cowl
For my second outfit I decided I wanted to try the Natalie Top in a shorter sleeve. Here in Charleston it doesn’t get that hot in the fall, so sometimes just a thicker short sleeve shirt will do the trick. I found this cobalt blue fabric that is part poplin and part stretch knit. Not sure the exact material but it has a nice stretch to it, which worked out so well for this top since I went down a size to make it more form fitting. In addition to this Natalie Top I added a black with gold polka dot scarf using the Commuter Cowl pattern, also part of the Indiesew collection. The fabric is from Camelot fabrics. I have made several infinity scarfs out of stretch knit before, but this was great to find such a well designed scarf pattern that calls for using cotton. I am not a quilter so I always have lots of large sized scraps of cotton fabric. Perfect for the commuter cowl. And I love how this pattern is so much more than an infinity scarf. At first glance, the twists and knots might seem overwhelming but the instructions and photos along the way made this pattern a breeze to finish in just one short evening.
Outfit 2 details
Top: The Natalie Top by Liola Patterns – Scarf: The Commuter Cowl by Very Shannon – Pants: Joe’s Jeans – Pumps: Nine West – Clutch: Hobo
Outfit 3 – A trip to yoga class wearing the Sew Simple Leggings
At first glance you might think that this last outfit was an afterthought but actually these pants were the first piece that I made for the fall collection. In my yoga classes lately, solid tops and loud bold print pants/shorts seem to be the go-to outfit for all my fellow yogis. And when I saw this fabric, I couldn’t resist. Sometimes I try to start trends…other times I just follow the pack, what can I say? What is so great about the Sew Simple Leggings pattern is you really can dress them up with a tunic or dress, or do as I have done here and where them as active wear to your yoga or pilates class. Or even as lounging around with a hot pumpkin spice latte if that’s your jam. That is the wonders of the fall season. You don’t have to exercise if you don’t want to. You have about 8 months until bathing suit season comes around again. Embrace it. Eat a few donuts. Put on your new leggings and have an Orange is the New Black marathon. Do your thing. For these leggings, I used a ponte de roma knit. So even though they are not as stretchy as the black jersey knit that I used in my first outfit, they still have a good stretch to them as I move. And with the elastic waist band, it fits nice and snug on my waist as I moved and stretched. Again this project took me maybe an hour from start to finish. People are always asking me what would be a good first time project for new sewers. Well I think I found it. For all you newbies, Deby from So Sew Easy has also made a video tutorial with step by step instructions on how and where to measure yourself to get the perfect leggings. Pick up the pattern from Indiesew.com and then head over to the video tutorial if you need an extra hand. You won’t fail. I promise.
Outfit Number 3 details
Pants: Sew Simple Leggings – Shoes: Nike (similar ones on sale here) – Bag: Jo’s Totes – Work out top: Target
If you haven’t stopped reading my blog by this point and rushed over to Indiesew.com then I highly recommend doing so now! You can buy any of the three pattens seen above individually or you can buy the entire Fall Collection Bundle and save 10%!
Thanks for stopping by! xxxoo Priscilla
Disclaimer:
All fabric was purchased by me from a local fabric store, Five Eighth Seams in Charleston South Carolina.
All three patterns were provided to me by Indie Sew as part of the Indiesew Fall Collection blog hop. But as always, all opinions expressed in this post are my own.
