It’s September! Now I’m a firm believer that it is still summer all the way up to September 22nd! However I can’t deny feeling a certain crispness in the morning air and that change in the air. Though it’s not quite autumn yet, summer has definitely begun making her exit. But before she goes, I’m excited to share the items I’ve sewn up this summer.

Back in July I was reorganizing my fabric stash and, as if by magic, plans for a capsule wardrobe appeared. In the past, I haven’t been one to plan in collections or capsules, but I might just be a convert. I’m not sure if this one counts as a true capsule wardrobe since I only made one bottom garment, but either way I’m okay with it. I knew I was overly ambitious planning 8 projects. I managed to make 5 garments and used 6 of my planned fabrics. I love what I was able to make this summer and I love how it all goes together. Without further ado, here’s what I made!

Reversible Ogden Cami

This True Bias Ogden Cami was the biggest upset from my plans. It wasn’t even part of my plans! Initially it was just going to replace the Hana Tank on my list, but then I ran out of fabric for the facing and decided to use the fabric I’d planned for the Lola blouse to make my first ever reversible garment!

Growing up in the 2000’s has given me a weird fascination with reversible clothes. Ever since I started sewing I’ve wanted to make something reversible and pretend that it’s still all the rage like when I was 11. Finally, I’ve made my two-tone- obsessed preteen self proud.

It was really simple to hack, but tedious to execute. I just halved the strap and added seam allowance to one side and fully lined it. Easy, right? Well…getting everything to press evenly required a lot of patience. My fabrics definitely didn’t help. The heather viscose was slippery and wouldn’t hold pins. The linen-look viscose stretched like crazy. I really love how it turned out but next time I’ll size down as the armholes are a bit revealing and it’s swingier at the sides than I’d like.

Block Tee

Of the three tops I made for this collection, the Block Tee by Paper Theory is definitely my favorite. It’s exactly what I wanted from this fabric. I bought this cherry blossom viscose crepe at the Lapjesmarkt last year and have been hoarding it ever since. I’m so glad I was able to squeeze this top out of 1.3 meters, leaving me enough to make the Victory Patterns Nicola Dress that I’ve been dreaming about for ages.

This was also my quickest sew of the collection. I love how cleverly the Kabuki comes together, though I need a bit more practice sewing right angles. I did double rows of topstitching for the hems. I initially did it to secure the deep 4cm hem on my very slippy fabric, but I ended up loving the look. Next time, I’ll size down again (I made an 18 even though my measurements put me at a size 20) since I have a lot of excess where it’s too long in the chest. I’m excited to whip up a couple more to wear with jeans this fall!

Iris Pleated Tee

I’m not really a t-shirt girl except when the t-shirt has adorable puff sleeves and the color matches everything in my closet! I fell in love with his design the second I saw it. It’s a little embarrassing how often I checked Forget-Me-Not’s Instagram waiting for this pattern to be released. The Iris Pleated Tee is such a beautifully elevated wardrobe basic.

I love the design of this tee, but despite being a quick sew, it wasn’t a fun sew. Mostly my beef is with the 6 mm seam allowance, which my machine doesn’t like. It’s so small because it’s meant to be sewn up on the overlocker, but I prefer my lightening stitch especially for jerseys like this one. It’s a thick cotton jersey with 8% elastane. Most t-shirt jerseys are only 5% elastic, but that little extra makes it a bit spongier so I like to sew it on my machine first.

I did a quick-and-dirty FBA by grading from a 44 to a 46 on the bust, but the fit is still not quite right. It’s too big around the neckline, shoulders and hips, but there’s still not quite enough room in the bust. I’m not usaully nitpicky about jersey tops, but I love the design so much I want to get it right.

Safiya Shorts

Have you ever taken a really simple pattern, but made it a thousand times harder for yourself? That’s exactly the story of these Tilly and the Buttons Safiya Shorts. I desperately wanted to save this lovely linen from a dress I made earlier this summer, but instead of just making it into a easy skirt, I decided to try to refashion it into shorts. I even went through the effort of preserving the inseam pockets. Don’t get me wrong, I like the shorts, but the whole process was way fussier than it needed to be.

The pattern has several variations, but they’re not as easy to combine as I’d like. To get the leg opening of the shorts, I traced the legs of the playsuit since that’s the only shorts version. Then to get the waistband right, I traced the hips and waist of the regular trousers and blended them together. When I sewed them up the legs were comically wide at the hem. The angle was so dramatic. I felt like an army clown.

To fix this I took some inspiration from my two year old’s wardrobe and decided to make these crazy clown shorts into bloomers! I pleated 2 inches out of each hem and then rolled up the hem 2 times at 3cm and topstitches them down. I really love how they turned out stylistically. I think it’s a little fun and different, plus it helps fill out my bottom proportions, making me feel a little more balanced. Like almost everything in this collection, these shorts came out too big. I think there might be a lesson on here that if I’m between sizes I should size down not up.

Heidi Dress

I saved the best for last! I love, love, love my linen Heidi dress. I’ve made four versions of the free Wearable Studio Heidi Dress and this is by far my favorite one. It might even be my favorite garment in my closet. I can’t explain it, but I feel more myself when I wear this dress. Is that what it’s all about? It’s such a wonderful feeling.

This is the best linen I’ve sewn with so far. It’s everything I ever wanted in a fabric. It’s soft. It’s drapey. It presses well. I’m in love with the color. I couldn’t ask for a better summer fabric.

The pattern is really straight forward and since this was my third one, I was able to whip it up pretty quickly. I did a couple of tiny alterations. I contoured the tips of the darts which I do on most patterns. I moved the waist ties up by 2 cm so the higher on my waist. I also shortened the straps by 2cm each. These three little changes make such a big difference. I love this dress so much!

What I Didn’t Make

I planned 8 projects with 8 different fabrics and I ended up producing 5 garments and using 6 fabrics. I knew I was biting off more than I could chew, but I love planning projects so I don’t care anymore!

The fabrics I’d planned for a Hana Tank and a Lola Blouse were used to make the reversible Ogden Cami. I don’t think I’ll need another Hana Tank going into fall and I used up all the heather viscose. But! I may still make a Lola Blouse from a different fabric. And I have definite plans to use this pink textured viscose to make a Designer Stitch KeeLin Blouse.

I had planned to make the Allegro Shorts with this purple linen cotton. Heading into fall, I still want to have this fabric in my wardrobe and luckily I have enough for a pair of pants. I think the fabric is a bit too stiff for a full length version of Allegro Pants so I’m looking around for another pants pattern. I’m considering the Free Range Slacks by Sew House Seven or the Closet Core Pietras.

I’m pretty bummed I didn’t get around to making up this fabric. I’ve had it for ages, but back into the stash it goes til next summer. However, I will be including the Elma Dress in my fall plans paired with another fabric that is a little more suited for year round wear.

Up Next

I had so much fun with this collection. I’m really excited to do another one for fall. First I’m excited to make a birthday dress from some thrifted bug crepe! I’m also hoping to put a couple blog posts together about a few refashions I’ve made over the last couple months and one showing off my collection of Heidi dresses. Thanks for reading and happy sewing!