Made by a Fabricista: Living in Linen

As the warmer weather approaches linen is probably one of my favorite fabrics that I feel often gets overlooked. It drapes well, it’s cool and comfortable and you can make almost anything out of it.

For this feature I used 4 yards of designer linen to create a vintage inspired look. I had an image of a vintage Butterick pattern from the 60’s that I had saved on my Pinterest board. I love the versatility and easiness of the style. Since I did not have access to the pattern, I used similar patterns from my stash along with my own pattern drafting to replicate the style. In the end I created 4 pieces total allowing for interchangeable looks.

To create the skirt I used McCall’s pattern 7981 which is almost I identical to the on featured on the vintage pattern. The shorts pattern was McCall’s 7962. They are perfect to wear underneath the skirt for a layered look or by themselves.

The bralette was self-drafted, I took my basic bodice sloper and moved the dart to create a center front dart as it was in the initial inspiration. I shirred the center back panel to make it easier to take on and off without having a closure. I also thought about possibly adding buttons to the side as a closure option since I had buttons featured on the other pieces. To make it easier for adjustment I created straps to tie into a bow which also gave it a nice touch.

The final piece which could be worn as either a light cropped jacket or top was self-drafted as well from my basic sloper. I blended the sleeves to the bodice and cropped it using the vintage pattern as a reference. I ended up cutting it out twice because with the first one I realized that I wanted the sleeves to be deeper. I made a facing to clean finish the neckline and added 3 buttons for the closure.

I love my modern update to a vintage pattern, reminds me of summer and is perfect of a stroll at the beach or a walk in the park! Like with most linen I kept me cool and was comfortable to wear.