So I made a swimsuit... and I never thought I would. Then why? Because I had the fabric... good enough reason for me. I won two meters of fabric of my choice from funkifabrics. Originally I had the idea to make a sports bra and some leggings. but when the fabric arrived I knew it had to be a bikini and bathing suit.
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| The perfect bikini for actual swimming |
So I did what every good seamstresses does and I googled swimsuit patterns, and was blown away with how many seamstresses/bloggers made a bathing suit! (And how many of them posted pictures of themselves wearing it on their blog.)
I had a difficult time choosing a pattern but eventually I opted for the Soma swimsuit by papercut patterns. The pattern is a bit more expensive then what I usually pay for a pattern but since the fabric was free I thought I would splurge on the pattern. And I'm glad I did. The best thing about the pattern is that it has three different versions, a one-piece, high and low waisted bikini bottoms and two different bikini tops.
I only own bikinis because I have never been able to find a fun one piece in my size. Retailers assume you want to wear a bikini if you are a smaller size or are that athletic that you want a bathing suit that is made for swimming laps in the pool but doesn't necessarily look nice. The reason I want a one piece is because I burn easily and a one-piece means one less area to put sunscreen, yes I'm that lazy. I wanted a fun bating suit that fits well and looks good.
Because I had never sewn a bathing suit I made a trial version, from my good fabric. I learned that using the right elastic is important. And I discovered that using good thread does makes a difference. I started with a small bit of thread from my grandmothers stash. The thread was old and apparently that does make a difference. When I was sewing my machine skipped a lot of stitches and when I used the gutterman that I bought it didn't do that anymore. I never finished the top because the finish was not neat enough for my liking. The bottom part looks fine so I'm keeping that one but with an other top, I still have enough fabric to make a new one.
After the trial version I decided that I liked the other top better so I made that one. I made the top in a size small and the bottom in medium. The top fits well, its a bit snug and that makes it difficult to put it on and of. The bottoms where to big, I was worried that they would fall of in the water so I mad them 3 cm smaller on each side. This suit is lined with an other fabric, a thinner swimsuit fabric that I bought on the market in Maastricht. The trial version was also to big but I didn't make notes and I forgot. I bought it on a whim because I was surprised to find it on a market. I thought it would be super difficult to find.
The fold over elastic was even easier to find I went to my local shop with the hope of finding elastic in maybe white and black. I was already thinking of ways to dye it. But no I ask for fold over elastic and she pulls out about 15 rolls of of brightly colored elastic. I used the technique that they explain on the papercut blog for covering elastic with fabric. I didn't want to buy an other type of elastic and at first I wanted to use the fold-over elastic for the shoulders straps as well. But that type of elastic was not firm enough. For the bikini I measured them myself and only realized they where to long when I had sewn them on. I thought it was to much work to unpick them so I sew them together. And I like it a lot that way... they are very secure and can't fall of my shoulders whilst swimming.
I guess this is the longest (rambling) post I have written and I should start working on them sooner, considering that I started working on the first bikini in spring break.
