As I promised in the previous post, here is my outfit for my friend Cristina’s wedding also. For the occasion I sewed up a completely DIY outfit: top, skirt and pochette.
Generally I always wear dresses for weddings, this is the first time I opt for an unmatched skirt and top. The idea came to mind after I bought a cotton voile remnant with a beautiful coloured flowered pattern. Given the size (95 cm), I could only make one skirt. However this remnant was so beautiful that it was worth using it for a special occasion. Hence the idea to make a skirt and a matching top to wear at this wedding came up. I looked through my little fabric stash for a piece of fabric that matched the skirt’s fabric and the choice fell upon this beautiful light grey crepon.
Here are some details:
6968 Burda Style Vintage – Halter neck top
I’d been looking for a pattern of a halter neck top for a while and I chose the 6968 Burda Style Vintage one in the end, that I thought it was perfect for the occasion. I found it on tessuti.com.
I sewed the version A up with France Duval-Stalla’s beautiful light grey crepon that I bought on supercut.it last autumn.
After having sewed a trial top up, I chose to shorten the top in the upper part by 1,2 cm (you can shorten it in three points, above the bust, on the bust line and below the waist) and I cut 5 mm off the side next to the armholes. I eliminate the zipper on the back also, because the top was quite loose and it was not necessary (I suggest you to always sewed a muslin up before deciding to eliminate the zipper).
I even decided to modify the collar because the stand one provided the version A’s of this top was suffocating me for the heat of the last months (we have had a 35/40 constant temperature every day since June)…I think it is the same feeling men have when they wear a tie over summer! And as I would already have had to suffer wearing high-heels, I decided to do away with this torture at least. I used the band provided for the version B, on which I transferred pattern markings included in version A, and I made a soft tie collar with a bow on the left.
Frankly I prefer this version to the original both for a practical reason (no choking) and from an aesthetic and stylistic point of view.
Self-drafted A-line skirt
The fabric of this skirt was the starting point on which I built my outfit up. It’s a Made in Italy cotton voile I came by at Beviltex Tessuti in Verano Brianza (a town near Monza). It was a 95 cm long remnant, black in the middle with a beautiful flowered pattern that spread down to the selvedges, perfect to make a skirt.
I was very undecided about what kind of model to sew. First I thought of an A-line skirt in order to show the flowered pattern off, but after I sewed the top up, I decided to create a gathered skirt with a high waistband.
I sewed the gathered skirt with a 5 cm high waistband and a lining (notwithstanding the voile is black, it’s quite see-through). When there was only the waistband to go I tried it on but I really didn’t like the final effect of the skirt and the top together…it was all too puffed-out. I looked like a balloon!
Maybe all I have to do was reduce the gathering or not gather the lining also, but I was in a hurry and very tired too (it was almost midnight), so I made a drastic choice…I went back to the first idea of an A-line skirt. So I unsewed everything, self-designed the pattern of the skirt, cut the fabric and the lining and sewed everything back up. All in all, I like the final result and it highlights the flowered pattern of the fabric.
Self-drafted pochette
Finally I sewed up a pochette with a remnant of a handcrafted screen-printed cotton by DRAGA OBRADOVIC and her Atelier’s. This fabric is a scrap from the artistic production of unique furniture collections.
It’s a simple 13×24 cm pochette, padded in order to give it a structure and lined with a black cotton fabric. I used two hidden magnets for the clasp.
Here I’m ready to go for the wedding and for the after party!
14 comments
Great outfit! It looks georgous! I can’t even tell if I like the blouse or the skirt better.
Thank you so much Miriam!! 🙂 Actually my favourite is the blouse 😉 I really love it…I’m going to wear it a lot over this summer. See you soon!
I’ve been thinking about getting this pattern…. you might just have convinced me to add this to the collection 🙂
Very pretty outfit, you look lovely!
Thank you so much, Ju 🙂 This top is very simple to make and I love its shape, perfect for summer. I have a lot of halter neck top in my closet. I’m going to make it again next summer 😉
Oh they both look great, the fabric of the halter neck top looks so comfortable and great for warm weather. I didn’t see the gathered skirt but I really like the A line skirt, it shows off the flowers just right. Jealous of your self-drafting! That would all probably take me ages.
Thank you Jen! 🙂 I attended basic dressmaking evening classes last autumn and I learned to draft skirts and pants. I think that you could learn to draft a skirt also by yourself with a good patternmaking book…you could start with simple models as a panelled skirt, a circle or half-circle skirt, a pencil skirt or a A-line skirt…it’s worth trying it 😉
Great outfit! Especially love how the halter top looks on you.
I’ve been considering something like this for a piece of fabric my Mom gave me, but am unsure if the fabric has the right drape or if the style will suit my more mature figure. So this ideas has been on the back burner for a while. Your picture has been duely pinned as inspiration. Will have to come back & study your make in details when I get around to planning this project properly!
Thank you so much Pia! I think this top will be perfect on you! I saw some picture of you wearing a halter neck top on your blog and you look great. You could give it a try 😉 The original version has a collar instead of a bow, but I find the bow more practical…Let me know if you decide to make it, I’m curious.
Very pretty.
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Love this! I really want to make a similar top, but its so difficult to find the right pattern in South Africa!
I’m making this top as part of my romper outfit. I’m also going to be using pattern A for the shirt, but with the neck tie vs button.
Do you by chance remember if you used the pattern cut out for the B neck tie and added the width plus used the instructions for the pattern A with the interfacing? The necktie in your pictures seem like it is much wider than the Pattern B would be if it were folded in half lengthwise.
Nevermind. I read the pattern wrong. I was thinking the B neckband was #8 in the pattern.
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