My First Me-Made Swimsuit

After so many years of "stretchy fabric phobia," it's hard to believe that I've actually made my own swimsuit! My previous swim "outfit" was made up of a leotard, tankini top, and active-wear capris. It was fine, and did its job well. However, lately I've found myself wanting something a little different -- after all, it has been six years! And now that I'm comfortable with knits, I thought it might be time to try swimwear fabric.

Inspiration struck when I saw this post by Jacqueline and her daughter -- which is a tad ironic, since my swim ensemble mentioned above is included as one of their sources of inspiration! 

I went for a browse on Girl Charlee (always dangerous!) and fell in love with their Teal Cherry Blossom swimwear print. It's fun and a bit more exotic than my usual taste -- perfect for a swimwear. Of course, I decided to take it a step further by choosing orange milliskin for the bottom half, to blend with the orange in the cherry print! And this time I opted for combined leggings and skirt for the lower half.

I was able to get away with just one yard of each fabric, since the orange fabric was super wide (72"!). I have absolutely no scraps of the orange fabric left over, and very little of the cherry blossom print. 

One of my favorite details of the top (for which I used my faithful self-drafted cap sleeve tee pattern) is the ruched shoulder seam. I cut narrow strips of the orange fabric and gave me them some hefty tugs to make them "curl," and then fed them through the top-stitched casings and sewed them into the neckline seam.

As you can see, I hemmed the armholes but left the fabric edge raw. No raveling, no problem.

The swim top has no built in "support," but I'm used to providing my own undergarments for that purpose. I also added ruching to the side seams, though that took several tries to get just right -- I had to trim off quite a bit to get it to lay right!

I drafted my skirt and leggings combo by tracing my Running Skirt from Kosher Casual. At the time I bought it, I was not yet sewing with knits -- though quite honestly, it was well worth the $42, as it's very well made and has allowed me to come up with my own pattern for future skirts. Here's a view of the leggings underneath the skirt:

The milliskin is super silky, but is also lightweight -- I'm glad I have two layers!

And here, dear readers, is the closest you will ever come to seeing my unmentionables on the Interwebs. I knew I wanted *something* under those leggings, and cotton undies just sound clammy and unpleasant. So I traced a pair from my closet and came up with this:

They're absolutely perfect! I still have no idea how I managed to eke them out of the tiny scraps of fabric I had leftover. I even designed them with a facing/casing at the leg holes, but it turned out that I didn't need any elastic inserted. There is a casing at the waist with a bit of elastic. I self-lined the crotch, and had some fun with finishing details.

It wasn't long until I got to put my new swim outfit to the test! We put together a little sprinkler apparatus for the kiddos, and took advantage of a particularly steamy day to cool off in the driveway. I found Rosa's rash guard at a local second-hand shop, but I made her leggings-with-attached-circle-skirt using fabric given to me by my mother-in-law.

I had to take the waistband elastic in after that day, as poor Rosa's leggings
kept slipping down over her diaper!

Here's the sprinkler, made with inexpensive PVC parts and one 10' section of PVC pipe from Lowe's:

We drilled four holes in each length of PVC pipe, setting them at odd angles
so they would squirt out in different directions.

And here's my only action shot so far! Excuse my odd expression; those little water streams are... well, wet!

Little Man is very fond of his "prinkler," and asks to use it almost every day.

Final analysis? I haven't actually been swimming yet, but I think this will work very well, indeed. I may shorten the skirt a tad just to facilitate movement, as it tends to bind to the legs a bit when wet, but overall I'm quite pleased. And at less than $20 for a modest and customized swimsuit, it was quite economical!

Now I'm more determined than ever to get out with the littles and enjoy the water this summer. I hope you're all having pleasant summers of your own!

Review: Noble Rose Press Paper Dolls

I have only entered a few giveaways in my life, and when I do I never expect to win. I'm the type who considers how unlikely it is that my name would be picked, so I usually decide that it's not worth the trouble. But this giveaway was worth the trouble. And wouldn't you know it, I won!



Dawn over at My Home Sweet Home hosted a giveaway of the new Daughters of His Story paper dolls from Noble Rose Press.



These have to be the most beautiful paper dolls I've ever seen -- they're realistic, yet beautifully whimsical.



I've had the pleasure of meeting both Breezy and Emily Rose -- they're incredibly sweet, and incredibly talented!



It's so delightful to see their talents combined and used in such a wonderful way! The paper dolls are just the right size, are beautifully designed and presented, and come with historical information. And the dresses that go with them are both modest and lovely! But don't take my word for it -- see what others are saying, or better yet, see them in person!



Five stars, two enthusiastic thumbs up, A+ -- none of the typical signs of "approval" seem to do justice to Breezy and Emily Rose's work! These paper dolls are going to be lovingly kept in my theoretical hope chest, saved for the little girls I hope the Lord gives me one day. And if there are more collections to come in the future -- as I'm hoping there are -- they'll be joining the three I already have!

Making a Splash!

Over the past few years, I have been racking my brains trying to come up with a modest swimwear solution. I've been avoiding swimming because I always felt uncomfortable, even in a conservative one-piece with shorts on over it. While people have widely diverging thoughts on modesty and there is no "one size fits all," I thought I would share my solution -- partly because I'm excited to have found it, and partly because I hope this will be helpful to those who have the same concerns and criteria that I had! First, I wanted something that I wouldn't be ashamed to wear to the grocery store -- not that I would necessarily wear it there! But I didn't want a swimsuit that I would normally consider indecent to wear in public. A few years ago, I bought a lone tankini top on after-summer clearance for about $10 from Beall's (a department store in Florida). The only problem with it was that it was too immodest to be worn alone, and it was several sizes too large! But it was too adorable to pass up, so I kept it for a rainy day. This Spring, I finally figured out what I could do to solve my problem:

I purchased an inexpensive short-sleeved leotard from NY Dancewear -- it would have been much easier to find one if I hadn't already purchased my navy blue tankini top. A rash guard would also work as a swim shirt, making sleeves unneccesary on the leotard. I am now glad that my tankini is a few sizes too big. I wouldn't want it to be skin tight, and the leotard underneath ensures that no skin is showing. For shorts, I was very blessed to find some microfiber athletic shorts at JC Penney (on clearance!). I had been looking at board shorts, but they were hard to find in the right color and length, and they were also very expensive. My shorts are fitted, but not tight -- perfect for swimming.

I have worn my swimsuit a few times already at the beach, and I love it! It's heavier than a normal swimsuit, but hey -- in the 19th century, some swimsuits weighed over twenty pounds! I was able to put my swimsuit together for about $45, which is certainly comparable to what I would pay for a typical swimsuit in a store. And if I find other tankini tops that I like, I'll be able to mix-and-match. I'm sure I get stares from other beach-goers in my "get up," but I've found that I don't really care! I would much rather retain my dignity than my pride. And let me tell you, with how hot it is this summer, I'm very relieved to be able to swim again! Now if only the jellyfish would go away...