Cheerfully Observing Thread

 One of my favorite things to do in sewing? Reuse a pattern! Why? Saves money (remember - Price Per Use principle: cost goes down every time you use it), and more importantly, time. Since the pattern pieces are already cut out, you know how it comes together, which size you want, and what you want to do differently, it is so much faster to make a pattern again than pick a new one and start from scratch.  I used this pattern last winter for this corduroy skirt  , which I really loved, so I figured it would be fun to have one for the warmer seasons. The fabric is from Robert Kaufman’s Essex line, which is a linen and cotton blend. I lined it with a black cotton lawn I had on hand. I lightened the look up with a white cardigan, but by using the darker colors in it, I think I’ll be able to wear it well in to September.  Just for fun, look how well it matches Priti NYC’s “Pewter Moon” nail polish! 

 Not every “basic” item in my wardrobe is a neutral color. This coral tee is one of my go-to basics for spring and summer. I used my trusty Butterick 6848 pattern, and I find myself reaching for this shirt all spring and summer. It's such a cheerful color to "pop" any neutral outfit, and it goes with so many combinations (you can see that it also matches the skirt from this post !).  I will say that I find myself reaching for silver jewelry with it every time, and almost always wear deep red lipstick when I have it on, but otherwise I feel like it's extremely versatile.  Anyone else have a rather unusual "basic" in their wardrobe?  

I decided I needed some new summer pajamas after I found this grey knit fabric at a local fabric store for only $3.97 a yard! It was so soft and cozy feeling, I couldn’t pass it up. It has tiny clusters of metallic rose gold and black hearts on it. I’m not normally a “heart” person, but this was subtle enough I could make an exception. 😉 It felt like it had rayon in it, so I prewashed it, and then paired it with a leftover black rayon I had laying around, and the result? Two pajama sets with four combinations for mix and match. The swing short was an idea I saw on a pair on a website, but they were out of my size, so I decided to try making some. I measured a few inches past the pattern on the outer edge, and then used a dinner plate to evenly round off the hem.  I also found the pink tufted rayon remnant, which made up cute for another set, and the grey and pink set is from a couple cotton knit remnants I found (sometimes it’s really handy to not be super tall…). Now I should be set