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What to make with this fabric? Inspired by Diane G & Jane

Chris987

Veteran

I have been planning to post this for many weeks. Thanks to Diane for giving me a nudge by way of her gorgeous silk coral bomber posting today.

The idea for this came to me many weeks ago when I was reviewing Jane's profile (Jane with the dog profile pic), and noticed that she loves liberty of London prints.

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A long-ago BF brought me this Liberty of London fabric as a gift after a trip to London. I believe it is wool challis, which is a mid-weight drapey woven wool that I don't see much of any more. Not stretchy. The color and print are really beautiful and timeless IMHO and are all colors I love. The pic makes it look a tiny bit brighter than it really is. The yellow pencil is in the pic to give a sense of the scale of the print. I'm a pretty good seamstress but I've never figured out what type of garment I want to make from this. It's 4 yards x 54" so quite a bit of fabric. Also came with ink lining fabric. Maybe a dress...or a bomber jacket & skirt ?

Recommendations? Thanks for all suggestions!

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22 replies

Latest reply was from kaashvicreations

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Oooh! I'm not a seamstress so I can't answer with authority, but I think you could make any one of those with the fabric...a jacket would definitely be fun since you could wear it with denim bottoms (white or blue) but you could also use it as a topper with a plain dress. Patterned jackets can get a lot more play than we imagine.

It should be a nice cross-seasonal piece.

I think you still see wool challis in scarves, no?

Anonymous

Oooh, I love wool challis. It's not easy to get. I cant remember when I last saw some. The colours, print and scale are lovely. I think a jacket is actually a great idea.... but then I am biased If you did as jacket and skirt you can almost make a little capsule around the two items. Pairings with denim would be a no brainer for sure.

Liz

Veteran

I'd do a semi-fitted sheath dress or a bit of a flare to the skirt -- with sleeves. That could be a real workhorse!

My second choice would be a skirt, but then you have to deal with matching tops to it.

crazyone

Veteran

I was going to post the same idea as Diane G: rather than a dress, a bomber jacket+skirt would be more modern and versatile.

Anonymous

This is a tough one. It's gorgeous fabric and the colours are so outstanding - but as a garment, it's a lot of saturated floral. I'd sew something for the home out of it - or fringe two ends and make a long scarf/shawl out of some of it.

Sewingsue

(website)

First thing that came to mind is Simplicity 1318 which is a kimono style topper. I think it would look great with jeans - the colours would pick up the indigo in the denim. The bomber is a good idea too, but the fabric may be too light and will be floppy without underlining it. Too drapey for a pencil skirt. Link to pattern:

http://http//www.simplicity.co.....8;start=43

As you can see, I sew

Anonymous

A skirt or dress, in my opinion. It's probably too heavy for a blouse.

carter

Veteran

SO much fun! I would do a slightly A-line knee-length skirt and a mid-hip, waist-defining blazer. You may never wear it as a suit, but each piece can add a shot of fun an interest to most any outfit. Don't you have the Land's End wrap dress in a couple colors that might work with this? Fun way to take those dresses into Fall.

Anonymous

What about a vest?

Anonymous

A simple sheath dress would be great, I think. Then wear it with a leather jacket to give the pretty floral print a bit of edginess.

Anna

Wow, this brings back memories. Years and years ago when ii was in my early 20s I worked at Joann fabrics. This when they carried less expensive fabric. Once in a while we would get a rogue bolt of something really really nice. We got a bolt of a floral cotton Liberty of London. It was priced accordingly and none of the customers would buy it because it was one of the most expensive things in the store. I did not know what Liberty of London was at the time but I remembered every time I worked I would search for it and stroke that fabric. I watched it get marked down little by little and then one day I came into work and it was on the clearance rack. It was still ridiculously expensive but I bought enough to make a sleeveless shell. I made a muslin and I wore that top to death. Eventually the theme is pulled out but I salvaged much as I possibly could and my sister put it in a quilt. It's a beautiful print and Wool Challis is really nice to wear. It will turn out beautifully I am sure. I hope you show pics after you're done. Sorry for the long story post, I'm feeling nostalgic today.

Anonymous

You're right about rogue bolts of good fabric at Joann. They bought out Cloth World, that used to carry really good fabrics. My mom made all of my clothes thanks to that store. When Joann took over, it went downhill quickly.

cjh

(website)

Veteran

I had a wool challis shirt dress (softened line). It was so classic -

deb

Veteran

I am thinking a bomber jacket (to wear casually or dressy) and a shieth dress.

Chris987

Veteran

Thanks everyone, lots of great suggestions.

Suz yes a topper of some kind is one of my top ideas. Yes wool challis does appear in scarves sometimes, although they are a much lighter weight fabric than this one is.

Dianne G & Crazyone..jacket and skirt is my current favorite idea.

Liz...a dress would be nice too but I'm not sure I'd get as much wear out of it

LisaP...hmm I don't have ANY of these colors in my home décor although I do wear them. It's a bit heavy for a scarf but that's an interesting idea. Also if I made a shawl/scarf for home use I'd end up leaving it on the couch and my darling kitties would "knead" it...

SewingSue thanks for the kimono idea, I will definitely check that out. And good comment about the interlining, will have to consider that.

BC thanks and yes I think you are right that it's too heavy for a blouse...a vest is interesting but not something I've ever been interested in wearing...

Carter...good ideas, and how is it that you remember things in my closet that I have forgotten? I absolutely DO have 2 LE knit dresses in solid colors that would work with this print.

Anna what a lovely story!! ....and it inspired lovely memories from BC, cjh, .

Thanks Deb!

Jane

Veteran

I love this print and wool challis has a great weight to it. I like the idea of a bomber. Di's looked so good. But a kimino top also sounds like a good idea. So lovely to hear your plans for the fabric. I agree the fabric will look great with denim.

barbaraq

I think it would make a cool bomber jacket if you underlined it to give it more body. Cotton flannel might work well. Without underlining, it probably would be too floppy to stand up to the ribbing and zipper.

Absolutely beautiful fabric!

The bomber would probably take about 2 yards unless the fabric is very narrow, so you would have enough to make another garment, too.

Last Fall, I made an Equipment-type blouse of some wool challis that I love, except for some itchiness around the collar/neck, and the fact that it is very warm, even in the winter. Too warm to use as a blouse under a topper. So that could be an issue for you, too.

Vix

Veteran

Hi Chris --

Don't laugh, but I would really like to see a photo of you wrapped in that fabric before making a true suggestion.

Have you draped yourself in its luxurious charms yet? Sometimes what I love on a bolt quickly reveals itself to be overwhelming near my face and I know I jacket or top is probably out.

Also -- and I say this both as someone with a silk jersey print Mr Vix thinks looks like a bedspread and owner of a bedspread not far off from the print! -- I think most of us walk a fine line with big florals. So it may be better to use this one as part of a mixed media item to reduce its impact.

Have you ever thought about using it as a panel on a skirt/dress or as sleeves on a jacket? Or doing a take on tuxedo pants with the floral as the stripe? [Paging Firecracker, who IIRC does a lot of mixed media pieces]

Looking forward to seeing where you end up!

Bijou

Veteran

Screw made some Liberty print schoolboy style blazers which looked great with jeans. I would probably make something like that with this fabric.

Bijou

Veteran

Sorry - spellcheck changed JCrew!

Anonymous

I'm endorsing the kimono jacket idea too Chris. I toyed with that idea too for my silk fabric. They can be used dressy or casually.

kaashvicreations

Member

I will give you a completely different sort of idea. Try for once Indian stlye salwar kameez and kurtis with the same cloth and you will be really mesmerized by its simple and sober appeal.