Suun Blouse and Wrap Skirt

So, I thought I would start us off on two things I made a while ago. When I first started dressmaking, my goal was to be able to make work wear that would be comfortable as well as a little more stylish than my usual jeans and a t-shirt/sweater.

Don’t get me wrong, I love that my workplace is casual enough for me to wear that combo most of the time. However, I do enjoy dressing up and I felt like I was lacking clothes that sat somewhere in between the super casual and the pant suit.

In come these two lovely patterns. The Suun Blouse by PM Patterns actually was a pretty straightforward sew. I cut a size 44, which fit well. However, next time I might do a full biceps adjustment (something I have to do quite often), since the arms are a bit snug.

For a beginner sewist, the v-neck might be challenging (it was for me), though proper marking makes a world of a difference here! If I make this again, I will extend the facing by a couple of centimeters, just to have a bit more room to play.

I love the shoulder details and wanted to accentuate it like the pattern suggested. So, I decided to challenge myself by sewing piping for the first time. I think, I would have achieved a neater finish if I had used a zipper foot to attach it, but for a first try – not so bad!

Can we also talk about this lovely viscose dobby, called Posie Blue, from Atelier Brunette? I love the texture of it. It is delicate, though. So I would use a fine needle and take extra care when washing and ironing (if you are so inclined…).

To go with the blouse (and a lot of other things in my wardrobe), I sewed up a Seamwork wrap skirt. It’s a reversible pattern and has some great seamlines that would make it well suited to use different fabrics.

However, I decided I needed something more ‘basic’, so stuck with a deep green linen from a local fabric discounter (I think they sell mostly deadstock) and a rosewood viscose (?) from my mum’s stash. To finish it off, I found these wooden – looking buttons at this lovely shop in the 2nd district, here in Vienna, called Stoffkeller. They have a full wall of buttons!

I love the shape of the skirt! The darts make it nip in nicely at the waist and it has the perfect balance between straight and A-line. I made a size 14 (according to the size chart, I’m in between a 12 and a 14), but ended up moving the buttons, so the front part overlaps a little bit more and the skirt sits up higher – closer to my natural waist than the hips.

I am very happy with both these makes, they slot into my wardrobe nicely and I am glad I can up my work wear game with these!

*Blog post edited March 20, 2021, to delete the appropriative name of the skirt pattern. Will update again if/when seamwork have updated the pattern.