Made by a Fabricista: Color Blocked Linen

One technique that I love to see in clothing, but rarely use in my own sewing, is color blocking. Why? Well, it can be tricky to mix fabrics of different weights or compositions. I recently ordered two pieces of linen, and when I opened up the box, I thought- "Ooh, these look pretty good together! The weights are pretty similar. Let's do some color blocking!".

I had 2-1/2 yards each of both the blue and this fawn color, and was able to squeeze out 3 garments. The blue color is sold out, but Fabric Mart has lots of other linen in stock. The first was a dress from a 2012 issue of Burda magazine. It was so memorable, that it was always in the back of my mind for when I found the right fabric. Here is their version:


And here is mine:


This was a technically challenging dress because I had to do a full bust adjustment, which with that wacky front was a real headscratcher. I had to do two muslins to get it right, and then sewing those curves- aaaacckk! But I do think it turned out pretty cool. Yes, it is wrinkly. Linen is just that way. I don't mind it because it is just so comfortable! I love wearing linen so much that I can live with the wrinkles. Ponte would be a great choice for those who hate wrinkles but want to try color blocking.

I lowered the neckline 2" and eliminated the zipper because I could pull it over my head. I also used bias binding instead of facings on the neckline. The dress has pockets, but they are placed abnormally low- probably because when they designed it with the zipper, the pockets would have needed to be below the end of the zipper. I would definitely move them up if I make it again.



Because it's fall, and you never know what the temperature is going to be, I also wanted to make a jacket. I wanted something flowy and organic in shape to go with the dress design. I decided on this kimono style jacket, Simplicity 8172. This is a fabulous jacket, and super easy to sew, which was a blessing after sewing the dress!

Here it is from the back:



I looked in my closet for some other things to wear this jacket with, and lo and behold, the thing that it looked best with was the Scout Tee that I had made back in 2014 for Fabric Mart's Fashion Challenge! This was a top that I made from second hand sari pieces.


I was thrilled with how well these two pieces work together! I accented the waist seam with a piece of gold sequinned trim.


I had enough fabric to make one more top. I decided on a tunic with the majority being the blue linen, and using the fawn as the contrast.


For this one, I used Vogue 8533. This is an older pattern, but there are tons of similar tunic top patterns out there.




I used another beaded trim to highlight the seam line. My neighbor, who was following my progress, said that the trim was like icing on a cake- the tunic by itself was good, like plain chocolate cake, but with the trim, it was like chocolate frosting on it- making it great. I love that analogy!



These pants are made from ITY knit and an elastic waist pants pattern. I made them several years ago, and loved them, but, honestly, they languished in the closet for lack of the right top to wear with them. I think I've found it now!!! I really like this combo. And it's perfect for the transitional weather that we have in October.


So, this was a fun exercise in creativity as well as sharpening up my technical skills! Have you ever tried color blocking? Do you ever use beaded trims?