Sew all the things: Joni Jumpsuit

So ... how have things been? It's been almost a year since I wrote anything in this space that wasn't for a newspaper. I'm feeling a bit rusty, and a bit hesitant, but here I go anyway.

In the past year I have sewed jeans and t-shirts and dresses and more dresses and shorts and maybe another dress for Adele and button-up shirts for Sebastian and bras that never really fit right and tank tops, and ... and ... and ...

It's exciting to sew, you know? It's rewarding and therapeutic. So I do it a lot.

Much of my sewing inspiration comes from Instagram because my feed has morphed to be mainly other sewists, so I get to see all that they do and copy. :)

Recently I've been seeing the Joni Jumpsuit from Friday Pattern Company pop up in my feed, namely Meg's from Sew Liberated. I loved it, like Capital 'L' LOVED. I probably didn't need to buy another pattern or more fabric right now, but what can you do when faced with such a thing?

Now. I realize that I am probably not the size or shape of someone who normally wears this sort of jumpsuit, but I gave up worrying about what people thought of my clothes a long time ago. I wear what I like and what makes me feel good. It saves quite a bit of my sanity.

The pattern is actually really simple and quick to sew. And I should know because I've sewed it twice.

Before

I first sewed a XXL bottom, grading to an XL top. I wore it for a day and it was just too big. The straps, which are a gorgeous aspect of the jumpsuit, wouldn't stay in place and I spent the entire day moving and adjusting to try to keep my bra from showing. (I have to wear a bra. Like HAVE TO.)

Before

If I'd sewn the right size to begin with it probably wouldn't have been an issue. I went large to be on the safe side, to not have fabric stuck to my behind and showing every bump. But throughout the day wearing the too-large piece I realized that it didn't matter. I wanted something that fit, not something that was uncomfortably large.

Before

So that night I took off my jumpsuit and got out my seam ripper. I unpicked all the seams to the entire thing, laying out the pieces and re-cutting them to be a size Large. I also did away with the long strap ties and sewed regular straps. It may be a little less design-y, but adds to my comfort level tremendously.

After

Now, I will say that it was kind of an annoying process and probably perfectly executed, which is why I kind of have a perm-mini-wedgy because the new torso is not quite long enough for me. But I'll live.

After

By sizing down I took something that I liked and turned it into something that I freaking love. I'm so happy I took the time to rework it.

Pattern: Joni Jumpsuit from Friday Pattern Company
Fabric: Laguna Cotton Jersey in Onyx from imagine gnats

After

SaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSave