Hotter Than July In Marigold Tribal Print Twill and Mustard Striped Washed Silk

Summer has finally arrived in Chicago.  Well, at least it feels like summer.  Last weekend temperatures were in the 90's with a lot of humidity.  HOT! This Mood Fabric project was the perfect kick off for my summer wardrobe.

At first sight, I fell in love with this Marigold Tribal-Print Twill by Oscar de La Renta.  This funky tribal medium weight twill has a stiff drape and is great for pencil skirts and shorts.  I decided to pair this with a sassy little Burda skirt featured in the Burda magazine February 2011 issue.  I only glanced at the construction details.  This is a very basic pencil skirt with a high waist, flounce and long darts that meet in the lower center back of the skirt.  The hardest part about it was inserting the flounce.  Of course, I added a few inches to the length.  Burda suggest lining this skirt.  I didn't.  There is no transparency.  The lining is not necessary with the weight of the fabric and the warm/hot time of year.

My inspiration for this outfit came from Stella Jean's Spring/Summer collection of 2013.   I like the bold prints she used in her collection.  Her fabric choices are vivid, but do not take away from the silhouette.

I wanted to try a few new style options to jazz up the wardrobe a bit.  Initially, I thought to avoid a high waist skirt since my torso is short and my legs are a mile long.  But I said what the heck, worst comes to worst, I can trim the waistband if needed.  However, that wasn't necessary.  I like it. 

First, I am wearing my tribal print skirt with a white twist front blouse.   This is the "safe" look. 

Now I'd like to review the blouse.  I used this beautiful mustard striped silk by Marc Jacobs to complete my Stella Jean inspired outfit.  The cotton silk blend has a crisp hand and sews with little effort.   I used Butterick 4659-A.

This pattern has been on my list for a couple years.  It's a typical princess seam blouse with sleeve variations.  It comes in three lengths with a curved hem.  I preferred a straight edge.  So I used  the length of A and straightened the hemline.

The other changes made are:
  - FBA
  - Made five buttonholes instead of four.
 - Made a broad shoulder adjustment (which I didn't really need).  I had to trimmed the excess away.   No sway back adjustment, which I think I needed.  But it does not look too bad.
 - Added an half inch to the center front from the edge of the collar to the hem.
 - Top stitch along the princess seams and where the edge of the sleeve meets the flounce.
 - The side front and back are cut on the bias.

Next, I'm wearing it similar to the inspiration outfit with the blouse on the outside.

Notice I didn't try to match the stripes.  I think it looks just fine.  This blouse can easily double as a light weight jacket to be worn over a tank top.  It is crisp and does not loose it's shape.

I am very pleased with how this outfit turned out.  I plan to use both patterns again.  I recommend both fabrics and patterns.

Finally, I'm wearing the blouse with a white cotton skirt, Butterick 5566.

So, I hope you like the outfit and my fabric choices.  If this is your style or if you want to try something new, both fabrics are still available at the Mood online fabric store.

Happy Sewing!
Cennetta