Beautiful Campaign: Hemispheres day 5
/We close out our hemisphere week with a look at different layering pieces that make the seasonal transitions easier to manage.
Don't forget about our two giveaways yesterday!!! We have one just for our AU/NZ readers HERE (you can win a month of Sew Box Subscriptions), and we have one for all our readers HERE (the chance to win one of two awesome sewing books). These are super easy entry!!!
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Beauty is really such an odd thing. Everyone’s view of beauty is so different too. Some people like tall, some like short, some like very thin, some like a little something to keep warm. I think the world would be a lot better if we all just realized there really is something beautiful about each one of us and there is someone who finds each of us beautiful (hopefully we can learn to see our own beauty as well)!
I honestly hated the way I looked as a kid…. but then in my 20’s I learned to deal and now in my 30’s… well I am what I am so I might as well have FUN! I want to enjoy my clothing. I want my clothing to be a reflection of who I am. I also want my clothing to suit my shape and look good on me and the body I currently have (thanks kids). I find my own greatest beauty in my creativity, my odd sense of humour, and my eyes. I really do love my eye colour. (of course there are other things I love about myself too, but I’d hate to keep you reading allllllllllll day!)
Being a rectangle I find I like to add a little shape to myself. I like dresses with full skirts to make it look like I have some hip, fitted busts, empires or dresses that hit me at my narrowest part of the waist. I like blazers with a little waist cinching to wear over top. I like my blazers more rounded than square at the bottom too - I just feel it helps my shape flow instead of being cut up into boxes.
For my look I have made the Sisboom Carolina Mae dress and the Winter Wear Champs Elysee Blazer. I love that the dress has different lines for each cup size so you can get a GREAT fit in the top. and triple darts are life altering in terms of fit! The blazer looks cute thrown over a dress and with jeans. I like the crossover back and that the blazer is cute worn open as well as closed.
~Jeanine
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When it comes to outerwear, my usual is just a sweatshirt. Living in my part of California, we rarely need more than that. But occasionally, I need to look a little nicer but still be casual. I opted for the new Winter Wear Designs Giverney Blazer (coming Sunday!). I chose this jacket because it isn’t fully lined, which makes for a lighter jacket. Plus with all the options, I can make several different jackets. This one, I chose a straight jacket with ¾ sleeves.
Over the course of this project, I have learned how beautiful I am along with the beauty of all the ladies that I call my sewing friends. I have learned I don’t have to live in “mom” attire. Even adding a fun little jacket like this can add some omph to an outfit! Dressing myself is now fun, and my confidence is higher and I am a happier person!
Hi, it’s Marnie back again talking today about outerwear in the Southern Hemisphere at the moment. Because Australia has a relatively small population, people often forget about how big Australia actually is. It has a land mass size that is almost the equivalent of The United States, and so across Australia, particularly in winter, there is a massive variance in temperature depending on which part of the country you are living in. I live in Sydney, which is located in one of the South Eastern States of Australia. Sydney has relatively mild winters compared with the more Southern States of Victoria and Tasmania, but we do still get winter here. That said, it doesn’t last that long (even though it seems to go on and on for me), and big coats and heavy jackets get very little wear. Cardigans on the other hand are essential - and so for outerwear here I’m choosing to show the Lark Cardigan by Jamie Christina.
This is a fabulous little option here for winter. It’s long enough to provide that extra bit of warmth, and I love the hooded option. I’ve made mine out of merino wool jersey which is easily my favourite fabric in the whole entire world. Good quality merino wool is incredibly soft, not at all scratchy, and retains all the natural insulating properties of wool. It can provide an awful lot of warmth in a very lightweight layer. Merino wool comes in all sorts of colours and blends and I personally think it is something best bought in person, rather than online, because the blends and weights of the wool jersey change significantly what you need to sew it with. I’ve used a 100% merino wool here with a weight of 220g/sm. It drapes beautifully and is perfect for this long cardigan. I do wish I’d chosen a lighter colour - I feel a little but like I belong on the Addams family with it being this dark, but luckily I have plenty more merino jersey in the cupboard and it’s a very fast and straightforward sew, so I will soon remedy that!
This cardigan/coat is actually perfect for early morning school runs and late afternoon/evening rugby training, which is about as glamorous as my life gets these days. Sydney pretty much reaches a high of 18 degrees Celsius, around 65 degrees Fahrenheit every day in winter, although evening temperatures do get significantly cooler, so it’s great to have something that can layer easily, but fold up to be small and fit in a bag as the day warms up. I've paired this with some jeans that I made using the Real Deal Jeans pattern from Winter Wear Designs, which I really like because the fit is so spot on. I've skinnied the legs down (tutorial here) so that they can fit easily inside boots, and have used a very stretchy denim. They are super comfy.
I’m also wearing the Women’s Raglan from Pattern for Pirates with this outfit - I've made the tunic length, but lengthened it a little to just add some extra warmth and make sure I can wear it with leggings, and used the add on pack for the funnel neck. I've made this again in a lovely merino wool jersey and I am loving it. I have two more cut because I’m going to be living in these in another couple of weeks. This is a great pattern in terms of value for money - lots of options to make it suitable for wherever you are living. I do of course highly recommend that you make a quick muslin out to check the size and fit and recommend this for any women’s sewing pattern.
I find it hard to say this outfit makes me feel beautiful, because like so many other women, it is hard to not see all your faults when you look in the mirror. I became a full time stay at home mum for a number of different reasons about 4 years ago now and I miss so many aspects of working. Even though it’s a silly trivial thing to write, I miss the excuse to get up and wear beautifully tailored clothes and heels, and whilst I know you could totally wear that anyway, it’s just not really functional for a day spent running around after kids and doing housework. I miss the headspace of having time to myself to just think and turn things over in my mind without interruption and as much as I love my family, I really miss the mental stimulation of a working environment. I miss at times the smart, capable woman who could accomplish so many things when I was working. But I love to sew - it really gets me through the monotony of being a stay at home mum, I love being able to sew myself clothes that fit and are comfortable, and I love the online sewing community and the many friendships I’ve formed - they inspire me to keep going and creating, and help remind me that there is more to me than just being the person who cooks and cleans, especially on days when I am finding being a mum tough - and that helps an awful lot in reminding me that I am beautiful. My six year old boy takes all my photos of me for me and he directs me to do all crazy sorts of photos. I was instructed to lean forward and look at the camera for the below one. After he took it he said “mum, you really look beautiful.” So keep sewing ladies and look for the beauty in you, even if you have days where you don’t see it yourself..
