The Roberts Collection Jumpsuit

The jumpsuit. Both controversial and awesome in equal measure. I’ve dipped in and out of love with them through the years and while I have owned a few in my time, I’ve never sewn one. ‘Til now. My starting point was 100% inspired by this beautiful Heinui jumpsuit. Be still my beating heart…and when it re-started, the pattern hunt began.

I’ve had my eye on Marilla Walker’s Roberts Collection for a while.It comprises five very practical, simple patterns and – at around AUD13 for the whole collection – is truly excellent value. I got to stalking all these lovely versions over on Instagram. The jumpsuit (view A) was pretty close to my starting inspiration and so the sewing deal was sealed.

Truth be told, this project was cut out and sooo close to complete back in June. I had planned to make and wear it for Soul Craft and #soulcraftalong, but I just wasn’t happy with it. No fault of the pattern – it came together very quickly and the instructions were ace. It was possibly the low crotch and probably the lowered waistline which didn’t work – at all – when belted. I needed to shorten the bodice – ordinarily a relatively quick fix – but look at the beautiful seam lines (flat felled, no less!) in the back of the design.

In the end, and with the fabric sold out, I just chopped off the bodice and shortened it by about two inches so it sat at my true waistline. Unfortunately, this meant creating a seamline across the back, but I was always going to wear it with a belt so it didn’t really matter anyway.

In my original sew, I did substitute the pattern pockets for in-seam side pockets but I ended up removing them because, after belting, they just looked way too bulky. From an aesthetic point of view, no regrets. But it definitely feels like something’s missing.

The fabric I used is pure heaven, but sadly sold out now – Salted Caramel Check – 99% wool, 1% elastane and 1000000% soft. It was just one of those fabrics that had me at hello. It’s lightweight enough to be trans-seasonal and perfect for layering. At the time of buying the wool, I also bought some Little Brown & Navy cotton/spandex jersey to make this Brigitte Top to wear underneath.

Oh, and I’ve since discovered it also layers perfectly over our Monroe Turtleneck too.

Continuing with the inspiration outfit, I quilted the belt with a fusible wadding. I’ve never done this before and I love the additional structure it’s given the lightweight fabric.

So, my first jumpsuit is done and dusted and I love it. I’m now plotting spring possibilities, and there’s more than a few good options out there.