After making my two sets of the Comfy Cozy pajamas, I knew I wanted to try more from Laela Jeyne patterns. Then she started giving hints on instagram of a new collection including a cool looking swim suit. Can you guess what’s next? Oh, yes. I’m hopping on a blog tour to show off the new Summer Collection from Laela Jeyne.
I’m not ready to take on sewing a swim suit yet; but, inspired by Mallory of the Self Sewn Wardrobe I decided to take a big step out of my comfort zone and chose to make the cropped Dahlia tank top and Rose circle skirt*. Did you see me say cropped?
The axiom with cropped tops is balance your coverage: If you show a little abdomen, then have more coverage elsewhere like with a higher neckline or sleeves on your top. Full coverage on your bottom half; like a maxi skirt or pants is a good counter balance too. I’ll be honest, I had a big fear about showing too much skin and I was pretty anxious that a cropped tank top and a knee-length skirt was not going to give me enough balance between reveal and coverage.
Well, sometimes you just don’t know until you try. I made up the tank first and was elated at the fit and coverage. Yes-coverage in a cropped tank. First off, the Dahlia tank comes with cup sizes A-E, so you’re saved an FBA to avoid a tight fit across the bust, the front and back hem line scoops very nicely for a more subtle cropped look, and a good neckline and sleeve width give good coverage up top.
With the tank complete, I moved onto the Rose circle skirt. The skirt partners perfectly with the cropped tank since you choose your skirt size by measuring where you want it to sit on you. Wear it low on your hips if you like or wear it high for more coverage. I made my Rose to sit right at my natural waist. I’m showing less skin this way and most of my mommy tummy is hidden.
The Rose comes in quarter, half, and full circle options; as well as multiple length options ranging from mini to maxi. I went with the quarter circle and the 20in length and it’s just the look I like. I’m so glad to have this versatile pattern at the ready. A circle skirt pattern is a wardrobe basic that I’ve been missing.
I love how the outfit turned out and my fears about being too revealing where resolved by the design of the Dahlia tank and the fit options of the Rose skirt. I can’t believe how fast these patterns sew up and how little fabric I used. I think I spent about an hour on each of them and about 1 yd x 30in for each pattern.
So are cropped tops for you? I didn’t think they were for me, so maybe you should give it a try. If you don’t like it for streetwear, a cropped tank would be great for summer sleepwear.
Please, would you take a minute to look at what the other bloggers in the tour have made up from the Summer Collection? I’m sure they’d love you to stop by and share your thoughts.
Monday Anna’s Heirloom Boutique – Swimming in a Sea of Estrogen – Olive Ashby
Tuesday MahlicaDesigns – Pear Berry Lane – Sewing with Sarah
Wednesday Sewn at Seams – Nini and Ash – The Crafting Fiend – Sew a Piece of Joy
Thursday I am Mami de Sofiona – Sew and Tell Project – My Heart Will Sew On
Friday LoveThings! – Idle Sunshine – Lovely for Life – Neva Couture
As always, thanks for reading today.
You can follow me on instagram, Bloglovin, or by entering your email in the right side bar.
*Laela Jeyne provided the Dahlia and Rose patterns to use for my post. These are my straight up opinions.
mahlicadesigns 