Plus Size Patterns – Broad in the seams

January 18, 2021January 18, 2021

Fat ramblings on this most worn Huon Shirt.

Muna and Broad is celebrating the Huon Shirt & Dress pattern until the 24th of January, and you can get 10% off the pattern with the code HUONWEEK until then. I thought that meant it was a good time to take some more pictures of my Atelier Brunette viscose Huon Shirt, which gets a tonne of wear.

There’s something about the Huon Shirt that makes me feel quite ‘elevated’, and although I initially thought I would mostly wear this voluminous top-half with more tapered pants, it most frequently gets paired with these natural linen Glebe Pants. Indeed, this is the exact outfit that I wore for my birthday dinner to a tasty local restaurant!

I know that there are a lot of ‘unwritten’ (and indeed people on the internet and in real life) espousing style rules, like if you’re wearing something wide on the bottom, then you need to wear something more fitted on the top to ‘balance’ your body. Often those style rules come from a place of fatphobia- wearing wide-leg pants and then highlighting your waist with a tight top can be a bit like saying ‘don’t worry, the pants aren’t hiding anything, look how thin I am right here at my waist’.

The more I wear this exact silhouette, the more it feels natural. Like getting used to a new haircut, you need to keep wearing the shape until it no longer looks foreign to you, and only then can you actually judge whether you like it. When I wear this relaxed combination I feel put-together, I feel like I am reflecting who I feel that I am, but I also also feel comfortable (I’m not constantly picking at or adjusting my clothes).

January 13, 2021January 18, 2021

Kapunda Undies, Kapundies

My underwear draw is looking very healthy and stocked with Muna and Broad Kapunda Undies. These high-waisted undies sit perfectly on me, and don’t move around during the day- they’re basically the underwear that I’ve wanted for years but could never buy.

In addition to making the usual scrap-busting undies from past knit projects (bamboo/spandex, cotton/spandex and merino leftovers), I’ve also been experimenting with using some fancier fabrics on the side panels of the pattern!

Shine Trimmings Fabrics in Aus is where I sourced all the fabric that you can see in these 2 pairs here. The blue blue lace I used (below), remains on sale at $9AUD per metre, and the blue fabric above is a lovely bamboo/spandex. The wine coloured cotton/spandex front and back (below) which would probably make great leggings (it’s quite opaque). They have lots of fabric that I really liked the look of, including this flocked geometric emerald fabric, (I used the black version) and this flocked polka dot mesh.

I’m planning on making some matching Banksia Bralettes to pair with these fancy pants. I’m hoping they’ll be fancy but comfortable enough for everyday wear!

I’m also interested in sourcing some hemp/spandex fabric to see how that works out as underwear, since hemp has a lot of the same great natural properties as merino.

January 1, 2021January 2, 2021

Shoalhaven Shacket

This isn’t an especially seasonal release for us down here in the Southern Hemisphere, but we did have a little cold snap here in Christchurch around Christmas, so it wasn’t too sweltering for me to take pictures of my wool Shoalhaven Shacket, the latest release from Muna and Broad!

It actually started raining while I was taking photos, which you can see in the final photo! In these pictures, I’m wearing my Shoalhaven with my Liberty print Waikerie Shirt, some RTW jeans, a McLean & Co scarf and my Sevilla Smith shoes.

The Shoalhaven Shacket is a jacket that’s designed for hefty fabrics like wool coating, but that looks like a shirt. So, it’s a shirt-style jacket, hence ‘shacket’.

Because of the bulk of the fabric, the insides are finished with facings, and the inside of the cuffs and the collar stand use a lining fabric too. This cuts back on the bulk from thicker fabrics like the wool coating I used here. This shacket would actually be the perfect weight for winter in Christchurch- and the addition of the collar means that your neck doesn’t get cold, which is a bonus for me!

Fabric: I got this double-faced wool as a remnant from Drapers Fabrics up in Auckland– I loved both sides, but finally settled on the navy as the outer so that I could avoid stressing about pattern matching and also because I think navy will work with my wardrobe better than the check would.

The wool did have a nap that wasn’t especially visible, but was perhaps a little bit darker in one direction. In the end, I cut the wool out in the opposite direction to how you’re ‘supposed to cut nap’- I get more friction rubbing my hands down the coat than I do rubbing it up.

For the lining, I used a nice cotton shirting from Drapers Fabric (a remnant from one of my first sewing projects)! This was great, and I love the internal contrasts, but I could have saved myself a lot of time thinking about changing my bobbin thread if I’d just picked a lining fabric that was a similar colour to the outer fabric so that my bobbin thread wasn’t so visible on the insides. Crisp cotton (like a lawn) is a great choice here as you don’t want something that’s going to grow or shred easily (just for your own sewing sanity)!

Notions: I ordered a selection of sustainably farmed horn buttons from NZ based Hawes and Freer (you’re after 10x 20mm buttons), and in the end I liked this one the best next to the fabric.
I also used shop bought bias tape from my local ‘The Fabric Store’ (I think it was this colour), which was actually a too small for my purposes. You want 19mm finished/folded width, so next time I might make my own.

The Shoalhaven Shacket is designed for medium-heavyweight fabrics like wool coatings, boiled wool, soft/washed denims, canvas, and corduroy. So, I’ve been thinking about getting some denim that’s got good drape to make myself a long denim outer, which I think would be a versatile piece in my wardrobe which could still be worn during the summer!

December 29, 2020January 2, 2021

Apreon from Muna and Broad

I took some time this afternoon to sew up the cross-body apron that was the Muna and Broad November Patreon Pattern Bonus. The cross-body apron comes in large adult, small adult and child sizes, and Leila and I have been calling it the Apreon!

I love the pocket on here- it’s the perfect size for my phone (which I suppose is exactly the point)! I think because the colour of this apron happened to be such a good colour match for what I was wearing, it got me thinking that perhaps an Apron an everyday clothes is actually quite a good idea!

Fabric: I thought this was the pickle coloured linen from The Fabric Store, but now I think it might actually be the acorn coloured linen. Either way, I like it a lot.

Size: I made the ‘large adult’ size, but made the sit that sits over my chest a little bit less wide than the pattern called for. I could call that a narrow shoulder adjustment, but actually I did it because the linen wasn’t quite wide enough to fit the entire pattern piece.

November 27, 2020November 29, 2020

Retro Waikerie Dress

This fabric from Lady McElroy almost got away from me! I spotted it, loved all the colours and the cool things on it but then it sold out! I used my internet sluething skills and eventually found some in-stock at Sew Me Sunshine in the UK! I decided that I wanted it, held my breath and ordered without working out the currency conversion.

When it arrived I realised that I had enough fabric for a Waikerie Dress, not just the Waikerie Shirt that I was planning!

I’m not sure that the pattern placement ended all that well since I’ve got two very prominent jugs on my own jugs! I was certainly trying to be thrifty with the fabric.

I think the thing I love about this fabric is that it’s basically just my dream home aesthetic! coffee pot, mid-century mustard chairs and indoor plants! This was my first short-sleeve version of the Waikerie Dress and I can see that it will get a lot of wear not that we’re heading in to cooler weather!