I’m very happy to finally be sharing a Bombshell Swimsuit on the blog! I’ve wanted to make a Bombshell since the pattern was released and I’ve even had the pattern pieces cut out for a couple of months – I was going to make it in time for Karen’s Sporty Summer Sewalong but missed the deadline, then I thought I’d make it for the Sewcialist’s Oonapalooza but missed that deadline too… Anyway here it is at last, I finally got around to making it last week due to taking a few days off work.
It took me a little while to find a fabric I liked as I knew I wanted something patterned. I found this in Barry’s Fabric. The fabric had a few large (perfectly cut) holes in it (they threw those bits in free) but there was just enough left on the roll for my purposes. I’ve actually used the wrong-side of the fabric for the body of my swimsuit as I loved the deep purple colour. I used the right-side of the fabric for the straps and the bodice tab.
My bombshell came together really well and it was looking like I’d have it made up in one day before Phil got home from work – then I got to the point of finishing the bodice and came unstuck. I attached my elastic at the bodice but found that the suit was rippling. Assuming that it needed to be tighter I attached a shorter piece of elastic to bring the suit in but just got more extreme rippling. At that point I decided to cheat; I went back to the original elastic length and then just pinched the excess fabric at each side of the bodice and sewed it down when attaching the straps. That is the joy of a ruched swimsuit – it hides a multitude of sins:)
The weather here in the UK has gotten pretty cool but I braved a slightly cool garden to get these photos yesterday. Me and Phil were just back from a weekend in Cambridgeshire. We were there for a family (joint 30th) party and also managed to squeeze in a trip to Cambridge and to Burwash Manor, home of Backstitch. Backstitch has a great selection of patterns if you’re in the vicinity, and I did pretty well in the British Red Cross shop in Cambridge as they currently have loads of vintage notions. I came away with some lovely buttons, but they also had a great selection of belt buckles and needles.
Now I just need to take my Bombshell for a dip to see how it fares. Unfortunately I don’t have any exotic holidays planned so I’m thinking a local pool will need to suffice for this year.
August 25, 2014 at 10:26 am
Ooh what a lovely cozzie! Love the colour and the ruching. Never tried to make a swimming costume before – is it really tricky or was it just lack of time that held it up initially? Either way – crack in job!
http://Www.mancunianvintage.com
August 26, 2014 at 10:12 pm
Thank you:) It isn’t too tricky & it’s pretty quick – definitely worth having a go. I just got held up making a start & then did have a bit of trouble with the top of the bodice, but that was totally my fault!
August 26, 2014 at 11:14 pm
Great swimsuit! I love the way the fabric worked so well from both sides, it looks great. I’m definitely more than a little afraid of sewing with this kind of material!
September 1, 2014 at 8:42 pm
The fabric was actually much easier than I expected – it didn’t damage despite me unpicking it a few times.
August 28, 2014 at 9:40 pm
lovely shade of purple, I can see why you used the reverse
September 1, 2014 at 8:45 pm
Thank you! It took me a while to find a swimsuit fabric I liked. I liked the right side but I liked the wrong side even better!
August 29, 2014 at 10:04 am
Lovely! It looks fab! I would love to try and make some swimwear for next summer.
September 1, 2014 at 8:43 pm
Yeah I was a bit late as usual – no chance to wear it on a beach for a while!
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