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Loxton coloublocked Shorts
I doubled-down on my scrapbusting of athletic fabrics to make these most-colourblocked Loxton Leggings shorts, which just so happen to match Fifey’s sweater.
Lean-bodied Greyhounds do need to be protected from the cold, so it’s mostly necessity and not animal cruelty! Maybe the animal cruelty is making him match me. This fluro Lycra from Backstreet Bargains is a bargain price and is so bright that my camera hates it! It is heftier than the other fabrics that I used, but it didn’t cause many issues during construction.
I had a very small amount of lilac Supplex left over from my longer colourblocked leggings– enough just for two fronts of shorts. I didn’t realise until I headed out to take snaps that they were also a good match for Fifey’s muzzle. Let’s pretend I planned that far ahead when planning the colourblocking.
I’ve been wearing this herringbone Lobethal Shirt a lot recently- it’s got massive gusseted pockets (a Patreon bonus) which, when combined with how opaque and hefty the fabric is, makes it easy to wear without a bra or bralette and nobody can tell.
Muna and Broad Patreon Insiders and Makers save 25% on ALL patterns at ALL times
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Lobethal Dress
This dress had been moving between sewing table and bedroom for several months now, waiting for the inspiration for perfect breast pockets and perfect buttons to strike, and last night I decided I was simply going to put buttonholes on the dress without even testing the settings first- just so it was done!
It went surprisingly well.
I love the way the hem hangs on the dress! This dress is a Lobethal Dress add-on to the Muna and Broad Lobethal Shirt. The add-on was the September pattern bonus for M&B Patreon and it uses the same lovely hem finish of the Shoalhaven Shacket– lovely curved facings for a very neat finish.
Insider & Maker level supporters of the Muna and Broad Patreon get access to all the previous monthly pattern bonuses- see them all here.
The Lobethal Shirt has great side-panel pockets which are topstitched to the front of the shirt to create the pockets- these remain in exactly the same spot for the dress view and I love that they don’t flap around inside your dress. Because the pockets are supported by the front of the dress (rather than hanging entirely off the side seam), they also seem to distort the shape of the dress less when you load your pockets up- always a nice bonus.
On our weekly Patreon chat today Leila and I talked about how the Lobethal has become a bit of a surprise winner in our wardrobes and that we both reach for our Lobethal Shirts when we want something that feels a bit fancy and a bit like ‘yes, I made this style choice’. It’s a pretty un-apologetically BIG shirt and the dress is no different. I was initially a bit skeptical about the finished garment, but I was equally skeptical about my Lobethal Shirts, which I now love.
This striped fabric I got from The Fabric Store during their 40% off sale earlier in the year. It’s not-quite-opaque, so I had toyed with the idea of lining it with a light-coloured cotton (like a RTW dress that I like a lot). I didn’t end up adding a lining because I decided that the dress would have such a relaxed fit that there wouldn’t be much opportunity for the colour of my undies to shine through. I did use a stable cream cotton for the facings and pockets to stop the pattern of the fabric shining through the not-quite-opaque striped fabric.
Fabric consumption: I had 3m of this 147cm wide fabric, I cut out self bias tape for the neck finishing but didn’t cut out the facings and pockets. I suspect I would have been able to with some planning.
I cut 1 piece of bias tape for the collar facing and ironed it into a curve, just like how Leila did in the YouTube sewalong of the Lobethal Shirt. Generally I had bias finished necklines but this one looks quite good- that ironed in curve really is the key for me to avoid struggling.
In terms of sewing, the Lobethal Shirt is a speedy sew and the Lobethal Dress is basically the same with slightly longer sideseams, and some extra work around the facings on the hem. This was just an afternoon of work, followed by a month of procrastinating and rushed buttonholes. There’ll be more of these in the future!
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Floral Fifey PJs
The Fifey PJs are the latest pattern release from Leila and me at Muna and Broad. In celebration you can save 15% off any of our loungewear patterns (including this one) with code LOUNGETOWN.
Named after our now-basically-official greyhound mascot, and in honour of his preference for soft long PJs, the Fifey PJs are knit fabric, ribbing, and entirely soft edges and low profile details.
The fabric and ribbing came from this Facebook group which sells deadstock cuts of mostly knit fabrics to folks in NZ. I had previously purchased this fabric and made a tee that I really loved a lot- the fabric has nice stretch and the print has an almost laminated feel which lasts well with washing and wearing.
Due to fabric constraints I added a centre-back seam to the top, which we had omitted during the design process because we thought this would make sewing with stripes easier for folks (but also because less seams is best for sleeping). On this busy print you can’t tell and I’m not super sensitive to the feeling of seams, so it’s no issue.
As always with photos of the sample garments for M&B there were no changes made to the pattern.
So often what we end up wearing to bed is just comfortable daytime clothes that are old and tired- and I really enjoy the sense of put-togetherness that comes with a matching set! If there was a fire in the middle of the night, it wouldn’t be worried about all my fabric AND what I was wearing.
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Xmas Fifey PJs
The Fifey PJs are the latest pattern release from Leila and me at Muna and Broad. In celebration you can save 15% off any of our loungewear patterns (including this one) with code LOUNGETOWN.
Named after my greyhound companion, it only seemed fitting that Fifey and I would have matching PJs when the pattern was named to honour him! He’s a willing model so long as there are treats involved!
The fabric and ribbing came from this Facebook group which sells deadstock cuts of mostly knit fabrics to folks in NZ. The cotton knit is a 2-way stretch with very little vertical stretch, but pairs fine with this pattern which was designed with both 2-way and 4-way stretch in mind.
I’m not sure exactly how much fabric I used because I had several pieces to work from rather than a single length and I cut a matching tee from Fifey from the same fabric!
We tried a few different waistband options but eventually agreed that the most comfortable option was knitted soft waistband elastic, so our custom knitted waistbanding from Nellie Joans was what we ended up using. These have already become my go-to PJs and I’m loving it.
There’s something about this time of the year that makes me want to have a fresh new pair of PJs (or several), and this project is surprisingly speedy so I’ve been filling my drawers!
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Plantain Tee Plus
I whipped up the free Deer and Doe Plantain T-shirt which has relatively-recently been updated to include their extended sizing, up to a 60″ hip.
Meg from Cookin’ and Craftin’ made this back in 2014 before the expanded sizing was a twinkle in Deer and Doe’s eyes, and it seemed high time that I test it out too.
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Brown Loxton Leggings
The Loxton Leggings are the new Muna and Broad pattern (M&B email newsletter subscribers have 15% off this week and Muna and Broad Patreon Insiders and Makers save 25% on ALL patterns at ALL times)!
Yesterday I shared my colourblocked leggings and today it’s non-colourblocked bike shorts! These shorts (and the resultant combo) was inspired by this great set from Dressing Dawn. Is this summer the summer of bike shorts and oversized shirts? It may well be.
The fabric I used here is actually swim fabric from The Fabric Store here in NZ, but it’s no longer listed online. I suppose this means that I could make a matching Banksia Bralette and make these bad boys my beachwear for the year.
I want to point out the yardage for the shorts view of the Loxton Leggings, which is 1m for Sizes A-F or 1.2m for Sizes G-M. There’s not many patterns in fat sewing where you can use a metre of fabric to clothe you (or, the bottom half of you anyway), so I always particularly enjoy when our yardage is especially thrifty!
The fabric isn’t as nice to wear as the supplex from my other leggings. It doesn’t have any of those nice sweat-wicking properties, it’s less thick (so feels closer to undies) and makes me feel a bit sweaty… So, my plan is to hunt down some brown supplex so that I can make these my pool shorts and make a pair that’s more comfie for day-to-day wear.
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Loxton Leggings: Colourblocked
The Loxton Leggings are the latest pattern from Leila and I at Muna and Broad, and they’re delightful beyond my own expectations and accidentally ripe for colourblocking!
Folks had been asking us for leggings for years, and we’d avoided it for a few varied reasons. I wasn’t that excited by the idea of leggings, but when Leila sent me a pattern to test and I put them on the send her a little video of the fit and my thoughts about it, I couldn’t help but laugh during the video. The fit was so good, they were so comfortable and they felt so great on- even though I really wanted to say ‘meh, they’re fine’ (Leila can attest to my usual responses being pretty understated, so this glee was rare). Then, it was clear that we would be releasing leggings, and we were both super excited by the details we added in.
Over on the M&B blog we chat about the design intent of the leggings, which is basically a fancy way to say ‘we skipped the yoga band and a gusset and we want you to know that we think this is the best choice for fat bodies’. We even did a little Insta live today (which you can watch here) because we know our choices are going to sound controversial.
I’ve never been a leggings person…. but these have me rethinking that long-held belief about myself.
I decided to colourblock a pair to show the design-lines of the pattern and although it started as a practical choice so that customers could see what was going on there, I actually really love the colour combo and this is my favourite pair (I’ve made A LOT of leggings in A LOT of different fabrics over the last wee while). The lilac and the light blue above the pocket are Supplex from Nellie Joans (ships worldwide) and the dark blue is a slightly slinkier athletic knit. Both the blues were scraps from someone else’s athletic knit projects, after I put out a call on insta for leftovers. The colours look lovely together even though I may not have chosen the combo if I had only seen the fabrics on a screen.
M&B email newsletter subscribers have 15% off our new patterns during their launch week. Sign up using the link and the discount code will automatically be emailed to you. Join us as a Muna and Broad Patreon Insider and Maker to save 25% on ALL patterns at ALL times!
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Results of check-in
I recently posted my ‘Wardrobe check-in‘ method for auditing my wardrobe based on recent wears (and attempted wears). I posted this a couple of weeks ago and then ruminated on my wears, and here’s the results:
Items I’ve worn multiple times over the past week
- RTW Jeans
- Alistra toile T-shirt
- Pembroke merino T-shirt
- Black Banksia bralette
- Torrens Box Jumper
- Boiled Wool Belmore
- Corduroy Glebe Pants
- RTW denim shacket
Levi Wedgie Jeans (size 24), the Alistra Tee tester and my boiled wool Belmore are a constant in my day-to-day wear.
Hilariously, if I’d made these jeans I would judge the fit and would probably hate them. So interesting that I’m giving Mr Levi a pass and holding my own make to a much different standard. I bought a 2nd pair when I spotted these on sale for ease of rotation. I find the waist fit to be quite good, which perhaps explain why I love them so.
The tee was a test of the scoopy neckline with narrow binding which we first used on the Alistra Dress. It has our classic shaping through the back, so I love the fit back there, the bamboo is a delight to wear, and I love the bit of swing that the front has (pretty sure I added that in myself). It feels casual and comfie, but also a little-bit nice, and I’m VERY SAD when its in the wash so I do really need to make some more. This feels like it has a more relaxed fit than some of my more-fitted tees, which I appreciate.
My boiled wool Belmore Jacket, is my slip-on-to-take-the-dog-out jacket but I’ve also been extra cold this winter and wearing it a lot more inside. Often a merino top simply won’t cut it indoors here in NZ (my apartment is above average for warmth and heat retention, but you still feel the weather inside), so this is only getting so much wear because of my own wardrobe gaps: cosy sweaters.
RTW Levi Shacket
I nabbed this on sale (still on sale here) as research for whether I got as much of a kick from wearing these western details as I hoped. It has also increased the wearing of these corduroy Glebe because I’m not quite ready for double-denim with the RTW jeans from back at the start. I love all the details (pearl snaps!?), the length, the colour… but what I don’t love is how it’s tight through the hips when buttoned. I don’t know that I’ll keep this because of the hip fit, but I would like to use it to inform a replacement that has enough room through the belly and bum (maybe rubbing off a pattern?)!
These corduroy Glebe get reached for a lot when it cools down because most of my linen ones are simply inappropriate at this time of the year. They’ve remained my go-to since April (when I last did a wardrobe check-in).
This t-shirt version of the Cashmerette Pembroke is in a brown colour which I initially didn’t care for, but in hindsight find Very Easy to pair with items in my wardrobe. I wish the fit was looser through the chest and belly- I suspect I wouldn’t be the same size as when I made this (I usually half tuck so it’s not super noticeable that it’s too tight through my belly).
Items that I haven’t reached for or that I’ve changed out of?
Black is such a difficult colour for me. I don’t think it goes with any of my shoes and I struggle to pair black with anything other than black? I can see that if you were into black it would be easiest to just let it take over your wardrobe out of ease. I’d love to find what my version of black is- the colour that feels as neutral as black, but which slots better into my wardrobe.
Gaps in my wardrobe
- Clothes that are warm enough
- Cosy layers that I can pop over things to make other garments appropriate for colder weather
- Go-to slightly fancy outfits that I love to reduce stress when trying to get dressed for nice things.
Conclusion
Marta’s rumination on her own wardrobe got me thinking about my own 3-word-style and how I don’t always manage to apply my style goals and aspirations to my project queue (no idea why). I’ve started a new Pinterest Board, and I’m doing some ‘how does Jess want to present to the world’ thinking which has pushed me to set up @chch_destash for destashing clothes and fabrics which no longer speak to me.
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Wardrobe check-in
Back in April I shared a Me-made wardrobe seasonal check-up post for Muna and Broad Patreons. Basically, the seasons were changing, so it meant that the comfortable spot I had got into with warmer-weather wears was no longer working for me.
Without further faffing about- here’s my process for the check-in. I’ll share my own results and musings in another post!
Make a list of what you’ve worn over the past week (or fortnight)
- If an item turns up multiple times, what’s the occasion/s you wore it for and what made that the most appropriate item?
- Have you been entirely happy with this item getting so much wear? Why/why not?
- Are there things about these items that could be improved?
Of the items getting multiple wears
- Are there common denominators between these items that you’ve been reaching for?
- If there are items that have made you especially happy to wear, can you explain why?
Make a list of things that you haven’t worn
I’ll often change outfits if I’m feeling stressed and I might change multiple times before leaving the house in something that I’m not even all that happy about! Things that might go on this list include recent makes that I might have expected to be reaching for, or garments that I’ve frequently put on AND then changed out of before leaving the house
- Are there garments or outfits that you might have expected to reach for but haven’t and do you have a sense for why?
Make a list of gaps in your wardrobe
Sometimes it can be easy to identify things that you’re missing- I’ve recently been feeling bereft of cosy layers that aren’t outers. I don’t want to sit on my couch in a coat, but I don’t have many warm mid-layer options suitable for indoor winter in a relatively chilly NZ apartment.
- Things I think I would be wearing frequently if I had them
- If I had x or y garment, I wouldn’t be wearing z so often
Conclusion?
You know I’m always
over-analysing my wardrobe, my makes, my preferences (Sewing Wins, but Why? and Sewing Wins, conclusions posts), but I’m really just hoping to ensure that I’m making things that I’ll actually wear and that I’ll enjoy wearing.No conclusions yet- until I write my list and analysis for you.
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Flat Shoe Style: High-top Converse style
As part of my ‘Flat Shoe Style’ blog series here on my blog, I’ve previously covered Sporty sneaker style, white sneaker style, slip-on sandals (Birkenstocks), and after an extensive hunt on my local 2nd-hand marketplace, High-top Converse!
The Muna and Broad Whitlam Skirt with a peach Waikerie Shirt and black Torrens Box Top See more?
I’ve started a Pinterest Board of fat bodies with flat shoes (separated into different styles of shoes), and I’ve been sharing more outfit pics on Instagram using the hashtag #FatFlatShoe and adding ‘Guides’ (which you can find on my profile under the tab next to the Reel tab).
L-R Waikerie Shirt w/ Glebe Pants, Waikerie Shirt with Sculthorpe Pants, Lobethal Shirt with RTW jeans These shoes with pants might feel like a ‘of course that works’ kind of thing, but I was quite skeptical actually! I find that I don’t enjoy ankle-height boots with my pants- somehow it feels weird to skip that flash of skin between pants and shoes (This interesting episode talks about that), so I’m glad that didn’t happen here!
I’ve been loving my big Lobethal Shirts with some RTW jeans that I recently discovered came in my size (read more on the insta post)!
Waikerie Shirt (View A) with Pyrmont Skirt I have actually had these shoes, and these photos, for a while now and they’ve been on my instagram for a month! I held off on posting because I wanted to include these pictures but the Pyrmont Skirt wasn’t released to the public yet. Now it is well-and-truly released and I can tell you that I enjoy how the converse subvert what feels otherwise quite girly (girl pairs edgy shoes with otherwise lovely outfit to prove she’s unique and very interesting.. it’s not exactly groundbreaking, but it’s still true).
These shoes would be getting a whole lot more wear if they weren’t so dang uncomfortable. Give me arch support and room for my toes!
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Broad in the seams 