I know it’s been a couple of weeks since the Sewcialite Soiree, but I finally managed to get some better pictures of my outfit and some close ups to show you the details!
The inspiration behind my outfit was the gorgeous sea green tulle skirt that Carrie wears on her trip to Paris in the final episode of Sex and the City!
I also had some fabulous shoe boots that I wanted to wear so kind of built my dress around that!
My outfit comprised of three parts: a top, a skirt and a sash. I’ll take each one in turn.
The top
I used the Tilly and the Buttons Agnes top as the basis for my bodice. I’ve done a previous post showing how I hacked the pattern into my go to vest top. I knew that the ruching on the neckline would give a hint of ballerina to go with the tulle skirt! I used some of our Glass Velour Mink as I love the colour and the glorious sheen that it has. I used my coverstitch machine to finish off the neckline, armholes and hem so it was a really quick make.
The skirt
I had wanted to make a tulle skirt for a while and this party seemed like as good a reason as any! I decided to use the By Hand London Charlotte pencil skirt as a base to add the layers of tulle to. I modified it by shortening it to mid thigh and adding button plackets down the back so I could get in an out more easily than having to deal with tulle and zips!
I used a beautiful pink micro satin for the skirt base and then two colours of tulle for the over layers – a baby pink and a hot pink.
Along with fellow tulle wrangler Jenny from Give Us A Toile, we spent a day measuring out, cutting, gathering and attaching about 40 layers of tulle to the skirt. It definitely helps to have another pair of hands to keep things straight.
I decided to sew most of the layers closed at the back (leaving a couple of buttons free so I could get in and out) but I left the top layers free, apart from a couple of catch stitches so that the skirt would have more movement.
In hindsight, I should have added the waistband last so that I could cover up that last line of tulle more neatly.
Jenny patiently hemmed the finished skirt for me, as I think it would be a really difficult task on your own. We trimmed it to a midi length and I think it works really well. I love it with the shoe boots and definitely felt like I was channeling my inner SJP!
The sash
To bring the whole outfit together, I decided to make a really long sash that would cover the join between the top and skirt and also hide any bit of tulle at the back that were still open.
I just made a really long narrow belt with angled ends from the same pink micro satin. I left a small gap to turn it through and then hand stitched that closed with a ladder stitch.
Overall outfit
I was so pleased with how the outfit came together. Yes, I was still sewing it on the day of the party, but that all adds to the fun! I would definitely wear it again to another party. The skirt was incredibly heavy, so I may remove a few layers of tulle as I don’t think they are all necessary. I will also be able to wear the top more casually on nights out.
But I think we can all agree that this outfit qualifies as part of the #SewFrosting challenge, given that I essentially look like a cupcake!
