14 March 2009

More Zesty Duds

Recently, I professed my love for orange and I was quite pleased to hear that I'm not the only one that adores this fab colour. Lately, I can't seem to get enough of this juicy colour - anything from rust to coral to pumpkin catches my eye and renders me speechless. Viva l'orange!

In that vein, I have another tangy outfit for your viewing pleasure. With the brown and orange herringbone RPL fabric that remained after making my skirt, I whipped up a pair of Loes Hinse Hepburn Pants (I used view B). I love this pattern! The fit is much more flattering on me than I expected. I figured the wide legs would overwhelm me (I am only a paltry 5"3" on a good day), but they are actually quite appealing. I used size S (small) for the entire pant and this proved to be exactly what I needed for a good fit. The only tweak I made was to use a sorter length of elastic in the waist to cinch it in a bit more.

The top I made to go with the pants is from a really cool knit fabric that has a mottled orange and brown design, as well as a random raised pattern knitted in. I purchased the fabric from RB Fabrics (a lovely little independent store that I would love to shop more, but it is a 45 minute drive for me). This fabric is heavy and drapey and gorgeous - I wish I had bought more. The pattern used is the Loes Hinse Bianca Top. I combined the long sleeves of view A with the body of view B. I love this pattern too! This top was a perfect fit with very little tweaking - I used XXS for the shoulder, bust and waist, then graded out to an XS for the hip. This top now fits exceptionally well and I know I will be making countless more versions of it.

When I wore this outfit to work the first time, it got rave reviews. It's amazing that the simplest patterns can be made up into eye catching garments, mainly through the use of unique fabric. I have really been embracing this mind set (subtle pattern - super fabric) as of late. It is a philosophy that I learned from Loes Hinse (see the Casual Elegance site for the Gallery pictures and the S Magazine articles for some inspiration) and it really has made my work wardrobe better. Over the next while, I will be posting more of my Loes Hinse garments, as I have been on a real LH pattern kick for the past several weeks. So stay tuned.

8 comments:

sallymandy said...

Hi! Nice blog! I found it from...hmm where was it? I think Fashion for Nerds.

It makes sense that you love orange because of your red hair. I love the fabric of your top here, too. It's gorgeous. Orange is not for me, but I appreciate it on other people.

Tany said...

I agree: the simplest patterns can be made up into eye catching garments, mainly through the use of unique fabric but also because the garments are beautiful, fit perfectly and are very well made, which is the case with all the garments you make!

Unknown said...

I would love modeled shots. Can't you teach Simon to take photos of your knees?

those garments are incredible. I might have to revise the LH Patterns. g

Carolyn (Diary of a Sewing Fanatic) said...

Well you know that you are singing my song...great fabric + TNT patterns = amazingly wonderful outfits! BTW, I love the fabric for the new top!!

Summerset said...

Oh, that textured knit is so cool! Great new pieces.

Pam Erny said...

A lovely, lovely outfit.....terrific fabric and style choices!

patsijean said...

My red hair isn't red any longer--full of "natures highlights"-- but I still love orange too. I am wearing a bright orange sweatshirt as I type.

Frank Sinatra also loved orange, calling it "the happiest of colors".

Carol said...

I haven't checked your blog in a while and I'm so glad to see so many posts to read! I have been making orange everything this summer and am now moving on to a Chocolate Orange theme for autumn and winter. I live in the subtropics, so it never gets that cold and orange is a good colour for all year round. I love orange so much, my living room is orange, one of our cars is orange, our motorcycle is orange - even the dog is orange!