A whole new outfit

I feel like this outfit (and the photos) characterize an inner struggle I have between; wanting to dress up in heels and formal clothes and floating round in maxi skirts with daisies in my hair.

I've been crushing on the Mathilde blouse from Tilly and the buttons for ever.  My lovely father bought the pattern for me for Christmas and then it sat in my stash for months and months! The pencil skirt is a pattern from Gertie's New book for better sewing.

Participating in Me-Made-May made me realise that I needed some decent (and neutral) separates. So I decided to make up the Mathilde blouse in a black cotton lawn that I bought at Simply Fabrics in Brixton. I have no recollection why I bought it but it was perfect for this purpose. I made up the pattern straight out of the pack, and cut out a size 4. Although black may not be the most obvious colour choice for summer, the cotton feels lovely and airy to wear (and anyway, there's still a real lack of sun here in London).  The buttons are some vintage black and gold ones that I had in my stash. 

Now ignoring all I just said about neutral pieces, we move on to the skirt!  I love a good pencil skirt and this one is strongly inspired by this one from Reiss. I loved it but was definitely not about to fork out the hefty price so out came the sewing machine. The fabric is this stretch cotton from the fabric godmother. It was more than I would usually spend per metre but I had a gift voucher. I actually bought 2m and managed to get this skirt out of 1 so I still have one left in my stash which is lovely as it was amazing to work with. 

 

My thoughts on the outfit: overall I love it but there are things that I would change about both items.  The blouse is cute and I really like the pintucks, I'll definitely wear it as is but I prefer things to be a bit more fitted at the waist, next time I'll probably grade a size down a size or even 2 at the waist.  I had some fit issues with the skirt, it started out too big overall and I took it in at the back waist darts and took loads off the sides, particularly at the bottom.  I still need to remove a little from round the waist but overall I'm happy with it.

I'm probably late to the party but I've just discovered The Monthly Stitch and their Indie Challenge month and as this is my first ever Tilly and the Buttons pattern or one of Gertie's patterns, I thought I'd join in the fun on their 'New to Me' week. Who else is joining in on the fun?

One last photo where the garden was fighting back!