Guest Post: Winterizing Your Macaron

I'm delighted to welcome Lee of The Slow Steady!  Lee caught my eye quite a while ago when I saw her beautiful purple corduroy jacket - you all know how I feel about purple!  Then she went and stole my plaid-loving heart with her gorgeous plaid Macaron that was featured on the Coletterie.  Make sure to stop by and see Lee's gorgeous collared blouse she recently sewed for The Sew Weekly - so pretty!.

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Source: coletterie.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Hi! I'm Lee of The Slow Steady. Sarah has asked me to write about winterizing Macaron and specifically how I made my plaid version. While the colors look autumnal, even wintry, the fabric is just a lightweight cotton, so I don't actually wear this dress in winter. With a slip, tights, boots, and a cardigan it's perfect for fall and spring.

Now I'm no expert at perfectly matching plaid. In fact, I cleverly chose to share with the sewing public dress photos that don't show my side seams, which are a little off. The fun of working with plaid cut on the bias is that it highlights mis-matchiness is a cool way.

Michelle's Plaid-tastic Macaron

I cut the yoke, sleeves, and waistband on the bias for this dress. I centered the front yoke and waistband pieces on the same part of the plaid, which makes sense with a large-scale plaid like mine but probably isn't necessary with a small-scale one. Carefully choosing the plaid layout on the yoke is more important that perfectly matching it to the waistband, I think.  I also tried to place the sleeves on the same part of the plaid to make them relatively identical, though I don't think that matters as much as lining up the plaids in the bodice and skirt, which is crucial.

Punk Mik's Macaron with Peter Pan Collar

A half circle skirt, as suggested by Alessa in a previous post, cut on the bias in plaid has potential. Definitely less stress with plaid matching! In that case I would choose a contrasting fabric for the yoke and sleeves. Or maybe not-- the plaid maxi dress I saw on the street that inspired my Macaron was A LOT of plaid, with several different pieces cut on different grains and arranged for high impact. Alessa herself cut the bodice on the bias and the yoke and sleeves in a contrasting knit for her plaid Macaron.

Source: farben-freude.blogspot.ca via Sarah on Pinterest

You could also play with the grain of corduroy, a lovely winter-appropriate fabric, as if it were a plaid for a more subtle effect. Whatever route you go, don't be afraid of plaid! Just make sure you have plenty of fabric to work with.