It is a shame that it took me so long to blog about the Sallie Jumpsuit by closetcasefiles because it is by far one of my favorite things I have ever EVER made! The wearability of this design is the best kind of ridiculous- with options for a dress or a jumpsuit, various bodice styles, long or short, the possibilities give you the maker so much room to make it your own, but none of this awesomeness compares to how COMFORTABLE this garment is to wear. It’s the combination of knit material, an elasticized waist, and a body skimming, not-too-tight fit that makes Sallie feel like pajamas, but it should be illegal to wear something that feels this comfortable while looking this good.
This jumpsuit hits me in all the right places- it makes me feel tall (I am not), it shows off my waist, and it hugs just the right parts of my hips before falling gracefully down my legs to cascade ever so gently on the tops of my shoes (yes, indeed, I am writing a love letter to this jumper). I get compliments from strangers every time I wear this jumpsuit, and I barely took it off last summer because it’s cool and breezy to wear even though it doesn’t show too much skin; my knit fabric is a soft stretch jersey from girlcharlee.
As someone who is slightly obsessed with onesies, I have made quite a few versions over the years, some vintage, some contemporary. The most common design element of all of these pull-up onesies (meaning no zippers or buttons) is that they need to have a loose fitting bodice so that it can go over your hips and butt with ease, and “loose fitting” usually means some version of spaghetti traps coupled with a blouse-y bodice. They may be skinny and tie together over the shoulder or be thick and wide enough that they are sewn onto the bodice at the front and back, but they are always straps, and the bodice is rarely fitted. Straps and flowy bodices are fine, but sometimes I want more coverage, or a slimmer fit, or just a different look than what straps can offer. Heather Lou came up with a genius design feature by creating a bodice that is fairly slim and has a bit of a sleeve to it, and it works because she put ties in the back at the neck that, when undone, allow enough room in the bodice to pull up over your hips. She gave us all of the form and all of the function with one simple solution, and yes, it has allowed me to live my BEST life every time I wear it!
Although my favorite version of this pattern is the long jumpsuit, I have also successfully made the maxi with straps and I have shortened the jumpsuit into a romper based on closetcasefiles’ helpful tutorial on her site. I also made one of my best friends Kelly a Sallie romper for her birthday last year and she looked SO amazing in it- this is one of those patterns that you can be confident will look great on everyone because the sizing and knit fabric is so forgiving- it was a surprise gift for her so I guesstimated her measurements based off of my own and it came out absolutely perfect.
Oh, and how did I forget to mention POCKETS?!?!?!
Construction for this baby was, like all of the closetcasefiles patterns, straight-forward and easy to follow. I used my serger for most of the work except for the neckline and shoulder seams, the ties in the back and the hemming. It was quick to sew like most knits are, and I really like the method of sewing the channel at the waistline for the elastic to run through. I have made this pattern four times so far, but I only have one version like the garment pictured here and it is by far my favorite, so I might be making another one like it soon to get me through this summer. I am terribly afraid of wearing this one out too much and getting the fabric all washed and worn looking so I need something else to help take up the slack, and I have the perfect fabric in mind. I’ve been talking a lot on instagram about using the konmari method to get rid of clutter and reorganize my home, and last week I tackled my craft room which was a LOT of work, but was honestly a revelation once it was all done. There is so much space in there now, visually and physically, and one of the most important things I did was de-stash a lot of my fabric. It all fits into one bureau now instead of in various bins, boxes, and drawers and stacked in piles on my couch, which means I can see exactly what I have all at one time….which means I will buy much less fabric when I have so many pieces waiting to be sewn up into something….right? Well that’s the goal, anyways. And it’s only been a three days but so far I am doing GREAT!
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