I may have skipped a fashion season of this (I was rather uninspired by the spring/ summer collections) but the Replicating the Runway series is back!

So for anyone new to it, this is where I pick out a look from this season’s runways and make my own version of it. You can check out my previous attempts here and here. This is also my Sew Frosting challenge entry! Click here for details on the community challenge from Closet Case and True Bias.

For this autumn/ winter look, I picked out this beautiful dove grey velvet jumpsuit from Bottega Veneta.

It’s the jumpsuit of dreams! So elegant and perfect for winter parties!

I picked up a smokey grey stretch velvet from The Textile Centre. It’s super soft and very very stretchy which is definitely not what they used in the original (I checked it on Net-A-Porter and they used a viscose silk mix velvet with a silk lining). Whilst it’s not exactly the same colour and type of fabric as the designer version I knew I’d be able to make it work!

My starting point for the pattern was the Nina Lee Portobello trousers. The wide leg and pleated front is a dead ringer for the original. Plus I knew they’d fit since I’d made them before (here and here)!

The top half was a little trickier. Wrap styles in jersey have never been something that’s worked for me. But I had to give it a go!

I drafted it using the Moneta dress bodice as a block and it turned it reasonably well. I widened the bodice to fit the trousers (the bodice has with negative ease and the trousers have positive ease so there was a fair bit of difference between them). For the front bodice created the crossover front and added further detail with a separate band.

I sewed everything together with a zigzag stretch stitch. And since the fabric was so stretchy I managed to make it work without any extra closures.

(Now I know it is ridiculously low cut at the moment. I was trying to keep it in line with the designer version! I’m planning to either put a little snap closure to the front or just wear it with something underneath it!)

You can see the idea is very similar to the original but the way it hangs is different which is totally due to the fact I’ve had to adapt it for a stretch fabric! But I’m not complaining too much – stretch velvet is cheap and easy to get hold of unlike the real stuff!!

I love the final result either way. It’s really soft and slinky to wear – I feel like I’m in pyjamas when I’ve got it on!