I know not all of us who sew are necessarily into “fashion” as such. I think sewing can be great for self expression and all that and more importantly about making clothes that fit well! And that’s definitely a good thing. 

Buuuuuut I am someone who still loves flipping through fashion magazines and watching the runway shows every fashion week. Being inspired by these amazing designers is definitely something that drives me to be more creative with my own sewing. 

So I’ve decided to start a new series called Replicating the Runway! 

I’m picking out one outfit from each season i.e. one from spring/ summer and one from autumn/ winter each year, and I’m going to try to make my own version of it! It’s jut for a bit of fun and I’m hoping that it’ll help me think a bit more about pattern cutting and design i.e. what pattern shapes are need to create a certain silhouette etc.

I’m a bit late in the season for it but I thought I’d start with spring/ summer 2017!

My pick for this season is this outfit from Christian Dior. 

I loved the mix of fabric and styles – the very basic tee with a flouncy tulle skirt. It showed a fun and wearable outfit mixing masculine and feminine aspects.

Something about it really appealed to me!

So I got started on my own version…

I’m dreaming of the day that I own my own Cricut machine to cut my own vinyl lettering for some awesome slogan tees but alas that day hasn’t come yet!

So for the t-shirt I’ve made the Briar t-shirt from Megan Nielsen in a plain white jersey and decorated it with some vinyl iron on lemons and some hand embroidery. 

The skirt presented a different problem. Mostly because it is surprisingly hard to come by fabric with that lightness and drape. In the end I found a black polka dotted soft tulle from the Stitch Fabrics warehouse. It’s not as delicate as I would’ve liked but it has quite a soft drape to it rather than the stiff stuff that’s used for tutus. A chiffon might’ve been a wiser choice in hindsight. 

Oh well. Beggars can’t be choosers.

I cut two panels of the tulle for a gathered skirt. Each panel was the entire width of the fabric and the length of a midi skirt. 

I sewed up each side, leaving an opening of 20cm on one side then 2 rows of gathering stitches went into the upper edge of the skirt. 

For a waistband I used a simple rectangle that I stitched to the gathered panels leaving a little bit of excess on one side to create an overlapping tab. The waistband got folded and hand stitched down to create a neat finish on the inside. 

The tulle doesn’t need any finishing so I’ve left all the edges raw. That definitely sped up the sewing time!

I’m wearing mine here with some high waisted swim shorts I made a few years back under the skirt. I’m not sure I’m brave enough to wear them out like this though! I think I’ll need a bit more butt coverage!

So I think it kind of worked? Maybe? 

I’m going to try something a bit more out there for my next one I think. This was a very safe option for my first attempt!!