Do you ever see a photo of an outfit and just think to yourself I MUST HAVE IT?

I do. A lot! That probably comes from spending way too much time on Instagram and Pinterest…

Most recently it happened with this outfit which I saw on both outlets.

I loved the casual but cool vibes coming from it. I liked that it would be quite covered up top and showed a little leg on the bottom – it’s well balanced!

So I thought of ways to make my own version since I’m currently on a self imposed RTW shopping ban…

And I came up with this – a t-shirt minidress with a separate wrap skirt over the top. I planned to make it all in the same fabric so that together it would look like a maxi dress but it would also be able to be worn as separates too. The ultimate in versatility!

The t-shirt dress I loosely based on the Charlotte Kan Tie Dress pattern that I already owned.  I quite liked the shape of the dress and knew it would fit already!

The skirt I drafted from my skirt block, keeping it a simple straight skirt with 2 darts in the back and created an angled front with 2 pleats. The waistband is just a (very) long narrow rectangle.

I already had the fabric for this outfit – not bought on purpose but I have a thing about preemptively buying grey jersey in bulk – which I got in Paris. It’s a thin single knit solid grey jersey with a lot of drape. I knew it would be perfect for this dress/ skirt.

It was super fast to make this once I’d gotten my ideas settled and drafted it. 

The dress itself is simple. It has no darts as it’s meant to hang away from the body. The only slightly tricky bit was getting the neckband in which required a bit of stretching and pressing to get it to sit right. I really should have cut a longer band if I’m being honest!

The skirt took a little more time as I decided at the last minute to interface the waistband (which was a very good idea) and I also chose to hand stitch the facing on it too!

I finished all the hems with my overlocker and twin needle except the sleeve which I left raw and just folded it back and tacked it down.

It turned out pretty much how I imagined it would! I do think the fabric colour is a little bit flat and I think a marl jersey would have given more depth to the outfit. 

I like it though and I’ve already worn it out! Look at me here at the V&A museum striking a fashion blogger pose… 😂