Summer sewing: swimsuit construction, and "granny chic"

Sophia Swimsuit

Just finished one of the most challenging projects that I ever tackled: a vintage look two-piece swimsuit with a supportive top for an extra-large bust. I went through a bunch of patterns before settling on this one: Sophia, from Closet Case Patterns.

Sophia swimsuit, View B, Closet Case Patterns

One modification that I had to make to the top was to significantly widen the halter straps. I might also swap out the 3/8" elastic on the bottom band for something heavier. Otherwise, it worked out well. The top has foam cups and underwires. It approximates a 38DD bra size.

I had to purchased poly laminate foam, underwires, underwire channeling, and nylon tricot for the bra lining from Sew Sassy Fabrics. I purchased swimsuit lycra and lining fabric rom my local fabric store.

I did not use the serger at all, but used my regular Singer Heavy Duty for the whole thing, ball point needles, and zig-zag stitches. I also used Coats Eloflex thread.

Before I even started the swimsuit, I made this robe as a swim coverup: pattern is Almada by Seamwork, in a tribal cotton print.

Seamwork Almada relaxed bathrobe

Granny Chic

I picked up this book - Granny Chic: Crafty Recipes and Inspiration for the Handmade Home, and immediately got inspired. One of the recipes was to recycle old towels into fun dish cloths. I can't have too many dish cloths. It was also an opportunity to use odd scraps of bias binding. 

Old towels -> new dish cloths

I also made a couple of Dottie Angel frocks, as featured in the book, and Simplicity Pattern 1080 Misses' Dress or Tunic.

I liked the look of the cotton calico for making a summer dress, so I followed that idea with these sun dresses - made from 100 Acts of Sewing, Dress No. 1:

Who doesn't love a dress with pockets? One modification that I made was to add some ties at the sides to cinch it in a bit at the waist. This simple pattern is great for beginners, and a great jumping off point for more advanced sewers to experiment with.

Bonus Round

I'm not sure exactly what I was thinking here, but I wanted to use this astrological fabric from Mood for something. I ended up using Simplicity Pattern 1108 Misses' Kimonos in Different Styles, and some lace trim that I had on hand.