I've fallen down quite a rabbit hole lately. It started over the summer when I couldn't find a peasant blouse I liked. I've been sewing curtains for our adorable vintage scamp camper slowly (I'm hand making the print on the fabric with linocut blocks and fabric paint so each panel takes about two days of work), and so I had my dad's sewing machine and a bunch of leftover cream linen (see pic 4, I couldn't resist adding some embroidery to it).

It's progressed from there. Recently I made these pants and this shirt (pic 1). There are some major construction issues with them, (see the wrinkling around the waistband of the pants for one, and an adjustment made to the shoulder was done improperly along the back so there is some excess fabric there), but they are also triumphs of fit.

The shirt was adjusted for a larger bust and smaller narrower shoulder line (added darts and width to the front, shortened the shoulder seam) and the pants were adjusted for a fuller low derriere (scooped out the back crotch). Now that I see how these fit issues can be adjusted it's impossible for me to unsee it. This shirt buttons with no gaping and plenty of ease yet fits at the shoulder, and I'm a 34HH. Never in my life have I owned a shirt that fit. I probably thought I did, but I definitely didn't. It's surprisingly comfortable (and I'd just sworn off shirts).

In photo 2 you can see the original backside view of the pants. Photo 3 is the current backside. I even see it on other people now, when pants or shirts don't fit right I think of how I'd adjust the garment to fit. Sadly my actual sewing skills fall FAR short of my understanding of what needs to be done, and I'm not sure I want to afford to pay a seamstress for what would ultimately be very complicated adjustments.

So it's a bit of a pickle.

I originally put on stretch denim and them swapped for these woven pants again because they fit so well they are just very very comfortable. I'm afraid I'll just be wearing the same three poorly constructed but very comfortable garments!

Another ah-ha for me was that, the easier it is to adjust a garment for my specific attributes the more flattering that garment is likely to be. So instead of the body shape analysis and coming up magically with the answer of what is flattering I've begun to think instead purely in terms of fit for my specific body. Which has a longish slightly wide waist, a full very low hip, average width shoulders and a very full wide bust.