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Thursday, August 22, 2013

Menswear Suiting for Fall

This month's garment is a combination of menswear suiting and wool crepe.



A dress (yes another dress!) that works with my style aesthetic and the corporate dress code that governs my days...oh and most importantly I'm sewing fall now.  Yes, I know that there are still lovely summer breezes blowing and days full of heat and humidity...but every fashion magazine is telling me it's fall...and quite frankly this year I actually want to sew fall early.

So with two things in mind (designer interpretation and fall fashions) I went to the Mens' Suiting Department on the Third Floor of the Mood NYC store.  I love this area.  It's been set apart and set up like you're walking into a men's haberdashery.  The fabric is very appealingly placed and I've been looking for a reason to sew something from this area of the store.  Moodfabrics.com has a plethora of suiting in wool solids and plaids, if you're looking for a suiting to sew your first fall garment.

I picked a subtle lightweight wool plaid suiting and a vivid lightweight blue wool crepe.  The blue of the wool crepe highlights the blue in the suiting.


...and I used my TNT dress pattern which is my basic work dress silhouette.  Construction details can be found in this post...cause you have to take care when sewing plaids to insure that they match...even when you only match a side and back seam.


...a side view to show the blue side of the dress and sleeve.


I added some striped piping to the dress' neckline and sleeve hems, to add a dash of interesting to my basic dress...



I made the short sleeves reflect the front fabric...gray sleeve cut on the bias for the suiting side and blue wool crepe for the blue side...


...especially since the back is the solid plaid fabric...


I love looking down the front of the dress to see the two fabrics working together...


There are two things that are important about this dress.
1.  It's my first fall dress
2.  This dress is all about the fabric

I can't wait for the first cool fall day to wear this dress.  It's not flashy, just a little fashion forward, a perfect dress for my conservative and very corporate work place.  So while I know that these are the last balmy days of summer...I'm definitely sewing fall now!

...as always more later!



41 comments:

  1. Another great interpretation! Did you line it?

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  2. I love the way the blue fabric pulls the blue out in the plaid. Menswear is wasted on men!

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  3. What a great dress, corporate but feminine too. Fabulous as always!

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  4. I really like this one. The effect from the colourblocking is especially flattering.

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  5. It looks great! The color combo is awesome.

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  6. This dress looks lovely - very corporate and very feminine. Love your use of the suiting- I've always loved mens suiting fabrics and I love how the blue crepe gives it a real edge.

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  7. I love grey plaid wools and flannels too, your dress is the perfect way to feminise the look. What will you wear with the dress on cooler days? A cardigan or jacket to match the grey or blue?

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  8. I really love your interpretation of the inspiration dress. So much more elegant. The grey plaid and the blue crepe complement each other beautifully. Another winner.

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  9. Gorgeous -- and so designer-y! I especially love the striped piping you added.

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  10. Love your dress of course :) BTW...still obsessing over the barbie outfit and still looking for fabric to replicate that outfit ....lol :)

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  11. Home run. The combination is beautiful!

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  12. This is a nice new fall dress! The fabric combo works well and love the piping!

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  13. Wonderful! You are so creative while staying within the confines of a formal corporate dress code. Love it!

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  14. This dress is a great beginning to your Fall sewing. The fabric combination does make the dress.

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  15. Great colour blocking on this one . Love it!

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  16. Carolyn, the dress is beautiful!! I was initially skeptic of how both the fabrics will Work together, but I am really impressed with the final outcome. You look dashIng and very professional. The piping you used also plays a big role in bringing the dress together.

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  17. Very nice use of color blocking and I love that bias detail at the neckline and sleeve hems!

    I just love that gorgeous background in your pics!

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  18. Pretty dress and love the marriage of menswear fabric & cobalt blue.

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  19. I love this color combo! My favorite detail is the little slit you left at the bottom where the colors join.

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  20. When you posted about the fabrics you had picked for this project, I was a bit "meh" about them (sorry!), but I was wrong! I love how the blue pulls out the colour of the plaid but in a subtle way, i love the little walking slit between the two colours. Its a really flattering dress, a great interpretation that will work in your workwear wardrobe!

    (I cant sew for Fall yet, Im in denial that its nearly the end of summer!)

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  21. AWESOMENESS dress & colors ;D

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  22. Love this dress!!! Great color combo...

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  23. Nice! Soo love the front split. Cute dress, as always.

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  24. Look great, Carolyn. Well done.

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  25. Wow that is a surprisingly great combo,again another fab dress.

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  26. Another winner. I particularly love the wool suiting. I once had a suit that was made from a plaid like that but in silk. Wish I could find that again.

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  27. I love how you combined the two fabrics to make an awesome dress.

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  28. Wonderful dress! Love the fabric combination ... and the piping really finishes things off nicely.

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  29. Great color combination. Looks awesome!

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  30. Love your fabric combination and the striped piping adds so much visual interest.

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  31. It looks great!! Are you feeling it more than you were before? I think it's the perfect mix of high fashion meeting functional life.

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  32. Excellent! I noticed the piping right away.

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  33. Well Hello, Ms. Carolyn. It's been too long. I decided to make some time to visit my favorite sewing bloggers today. You are certainly up to your usual encouragement. Lol

    The dress looks great. Two snaps up, Ms. Lady. Looking good!
    C

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  34. Beautiful. Love the piping particularly.

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  35. I don't think to mix fabrics like that... You have given me ideas. I love how your dress looks!

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  36. Nice dress! Looks good on you and the dress fabrics is beautiful.

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