Welcome to the kickoff day of the “Sew, What Do I Wear? : Holiday Edition” tour, hosted by Patterns for Pirates and Made for Mermaids!  Isn’t this a burning question for all of us…especially during this time of year?  We’ve got parties, and family portraits, and holiday dinners, etc.  And each of those days almost always requires a new outfit for me.

I KNOW I’m not the only one!  I literally needed something to wear, so we could snap some family portraits this weekend.  So this tour really helped kick my rear in gear.  Here’s my answer to “Sew, what do I wear?”

I have a hard time wearing neutrals.  Ever.  I’m not a neutral person.  Even in family photos, it just doesn’t feel like “me”.  So I try and pick colors that mesh well with what Bennett and Louis will be wearing.  And then move on my merry way.

I also have these requirements:

• It has to be something I would wear in a normal, everyday setting.  I don’t layer well, so I don’t pile on layers for photos either.
• It needs to be comfortable (because if you’re not comfortable, you can tell in photos).
• It has to be clothes that aren’t holiday specific…so if I print it on a canvas and hang it on my walls, it doesn’t feel out of season.
• Stripes and plaids are NEVER out of the question.  They just can’t be matchy-matchy.  If someone is wearing a wide stripe, then the other stripe has to be drastically different.  And plaids are always okay in my book.  Coordinating and NOT matching each other is key.

So what did I make for myself?  I dipped into both pattern pools for our lovely hosts with the Made for Mermaids Mama Mya top, and the Patterns for Pirates SOS Pants.  Half of me is a mermaid, the other half is a pirate.  Not the worst combo ever!

Let’s talk about Mama Mya first.  Hands down, this is the most used non-Pirate pattern I own.  I love the fitted bust, but relaxed a-line body.  It drapes in all the right places and still gives me wiggle room.  I love a good curved hem and the silhouette is lovely.

Mya is also one of the few patterns that I don’t cut a lower neckline on.  Yes, I fully admit that I lower necklines on so many patterns.  I don’t like things up next to my big, round head.  Mya knows to back off a little bit without me having to tell her.  Haha.

For this top, I chose a yummy sweater knit that I’d found on Fabric.com.  Seriously yummy.  The color online was displayed as more of a red, but the color listed was “coral” and I didn’t really care either way.  I am a fan of cheap knits and sweater knits.  So a cheap sweater knit was WAY up my alley.  It’s got a gorgeous drape and is so soft.

I know you’ve been waiting for some butt shots (ha!) so I can’t keep my people waiting.  Oh my god…seriously.  How many butt shots can one person have on a blog?  Pants are always the most awkward thing to share about.  Sheesh.  Here we go!

The SOS Pants still remain my favorite bottoms.  I know the world has gone mad and everyone loves peglegs, and while I do love them for a basic workout style legging, my loyalties will always lie with the SOS pattern.

Why?  Because Momma needs pockets!  I need a place to store my lipstick / lipbalm.  I need a back pocket to throw my phone in at any random moment.  And those back pockets and back yoke turn bottoms into “real pants” for me and I’m okay with my bum showing a little.  These tiny details, and the fact that my SOS pants always fit like a glove, make the pattern worth the extra stitching.  And topstitching.

I cheated a little this time around.  I didn’t sew the faux fly.  Because my tops are always long and no one sees it anyway.  I also omitted the elastic in the waistband and created a tighter fitting, higher waisted version.  I’m basically wearing maternity pants, you guys.  I feel both ashamed and proud of myself.

Don’t you judge me!

I’m so super happy that I finally landed some stretch denim that didn’t require any pattern alterations.  I found this baby at Spandex House and almost geeked out HARD when I saw that it had a 4-way stretch.  I alllllmost made peglegs just because I could.  It easily had 50% stretch both ways.  Which was perfect for my SOS pants and they are sooooooo comfy.  I die.

I am super happy with the results of my entire outfit.  In fact, I wore it the rest of the day after we finished pictures because I loved it so much.

You can see the outfit in action during family photos HERE.  (I figured there were enough pictures on here, that I needed to break up the posts.)

And here are all the links to patterns and fabrics, in one spot in case you missed it above!

Top: Made for Mermaids Mama Mya
Fabric: Sweater Knit from Fabric.com

Bottoms: Patterns for Pirates SOS Pants
Fabric: Stretch Denim from Spandex House

Necklace: Thread & Grain (that’s me!)

And while you’re at it!  Make sure to check out the rest of the lineup for this fabulous tour!