An Unexpected Easter Outfit

Most of the outfits that I sew aren't exactly "unexpected." Usually I plan them -- it's kind of hard to make a garment without some planning, I suppose! But my Easter outfit was a sort of surprise.

The turquoise fabric is one of my incredible finds at Denver Fabrics (which we visited this past summer). I think it's a tencel blend, but all I know is that it is insanely soft, it was insanely cheap, and somehow there was insanely enough of it to make a skirt and shell (I think it was 1 3/4 yds. of 60" fabric). The skirt is out-of-print Butterick 3262 (a simple A-line pattern), and the shell is my version of McCall's 3571. On Friday I finished up the shell, which is made from a delightful (but expensive, even on sale) embroidered voile from JoAnn's. I had started on it several months ago, planning on a tunic. I used Simplicity 9620 as a base. But it just wasn't working! I brainstormed some ideas and came up with an empire waist blouse. The skirt I had completed about a week ago, and the shell was cut out but not sewn. On Friday afternoon, right after I finished the white blouse, I started thinking how nice it would be to wear it to a play the next evening, and how much nicer it would be to have that shell finished to wear with it... So I ended up with a new outfit for Resurrection Sunday! And three fewer projects in my "to-sew" bin. Aah, the satisfaction!