If The Shoe Fits

Thank goodness for amnesty day!! 
Back in October my bestie gave me a couple of pairs of shoes.  We were back at her house after a session in the gym so I tried the first pair on with my gym gear and we fell about laughing……

 

The second pair I took a little bit more seriously.  They were amazing – huge heals and a platform, suede with a zip back closure, open toe, and the most gorgeous shade of burgundy/plummy sort of colour you’ve ever seen in a shoe.

I knew exactly what I had in my stash that would go with them and which pattern I would use………

 

The colour of the shoes matched exactly with the colour of some of the ovals on the fabric.  I had bought this gorgeous satin in Abakhan in Chester when I met up with a  “virtual buddy” and fellow sewing blogger who was visiting all the way from New York!

I could get carried away and tell you all about that, but that’s another story!

So back to the shoes and the Holly Jumpsuit.

I had made the Jumpsuit once before.  Back then,  after making 2 muslins the top of the jumpsuit draped a little too low so I made a modesty panel. Since then I’d lost a few pounds and it draped even lower,  so a few minor adjustments to the pattern were needed.

As you can see, not a good look!

 

 

 

I estimated I needed to loose 4 inches from the drape at the front.

It’s a bit tricky putting into words what I did to the front bodice piece. Do the photos make sense?

I basically removed the shaded wedge from the top  (this was 2 inches) which then created a side dart by cutting into the pattern and making a hinge.  I’m not sure if bias cut tops should really have a side dart, but I could live with bending the rules a little if it meant my modesty would be preserved!

I also reduced the crotch depth by 1 inch.  Strangely enough there were no shorten/lenthgen marks on the trousers so I just did it where I thought and it worked out fine.  I think next time though i’ll add 1/4 inch back as the crotch depth is a tiny bit too short now.

Once I’d made the adjustments, the pattern was cut out and sewn up relatively quickly.  A quick try on to check the fit and a huge sigh of relief!

For my first Holly I made the straps as per the instructions but always found them a bit delicate looking for my shoulders.  So this time I made the straps  3/4 inch wide, which were much more my style.

And here it is finished……………oops, where’s the shoes!?

And do I love it?  I sure do!!

I’ve worn it to the Golf Club Presentation night when I collected a trophy! (sorry this was at the end of the night just as I was leaving but you can make out the shoes!)

I also wore it to a black tie do at the Great Yorkshire Show Ground, with my Butterick 6390.  And with THE shoes of course!

And I wore it to a few more dinners and to my works Christmas do!

And of course to our local for the karaoke night!

 

So in case you’re still wondering if you need a jumpsuit in your life the answer from me would be a HUGE BIG YES!!

They’re so easy to wear, more flattering than you would imagine and versatile too!

No I’m not on commision, but I do love them.  I’ll have to have a rummage in my friend’s shoe collection to see which take my fancy next!