Sleek Top and Pants Ensemble

Simplicity.com

Skill level

The sewing is moderate but time-consuming, with a number of potentially new techniques in the blouse.

Size range and fitting

Sized Misses’ 10 to 18 for busts 32½ inches to 40 inches, waists 25 inches to 32 inches and hips 34½ inches to 42 inches. The Women’s is sized 20W to 38W, for busts 42 inches to 60 inches, waists 35 inches to 54½ inches and hips 44 inches to 62 inches. On size 10 the ease is: bust 3½ inches, waist 1½ inch, and hips 2½ inches.

Fabrics

For the top, choose fabric sturdy enough to support boning. Appropriate for cotton and blends, lightweight linen, poplin, shantung, and dupioni silk. Special-occasion fabrics will make the top memorable. For the pants, try wool and blends, sturdy cottons, midweight linen, stretch wovens, twills, and bottom-weight satins.

Style and sewing details

The corset-style blouse has a collar with a band, an empire seam, center-front separating invisible zipper closure, and two-piece sleeves with in-seam plackets and buttoned cuffs. Its midriff area is supported with boning. The tailored slim pants have front leg seams.

• The upper bodice has gathers in front and pleats in back. The zipper coil extends into the center-front collar band. It is nearly impossible to neatly edgestitch the area containing the enclosed coil. Either remove the coil within the seam allowance or cut the zipper so it ends below the collar band and hand-sew zipper stops, or skip the edgestitching.

• The pants have a shaped waistband with belts loops, fly-front zipper, pockets incorporated into the side-front panel, two back waist darts, and a welt pocket. The welt pocket instructions say to reinforce the area with a row of stitching, but before doing so, fuse a strip of interfacing on the wrong side. This will provide more stability and prevent fraying at the welt corners. After the welt is completed, reinforce the corners with satin stitching.

• Sewing directions and illustrations are well laid out and accurate.

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Pattern tested and sewn by Tomasa Jimenez, Lyndhurst, New Jersey.

Fabrics: blouse, textured woven cotton, EmmaOneSock.com; pants, bamboo-blend gabardine suiting, StyleMakerFabrics.com.

Illustrations: Steven Fleck.

Photos: Jack Deutsch.