Goodness – that was an unexpected surge in comments! Thank you all for your supportive words on my latest sewing venture “Le Top Victor” :)
It was interesting that FL had made no comment on this garment until I mentioned my surprise at the number of notes I had received from readers. “Really?” he said “That’s odd – it’s not your best. It’s a bit… maternity”. Great. At least he didn’t say “It makes you look like the side of the barn” though perhaps that what he was thinking!
However, having a stubborn streak, I was not going to give up on this top so easily. I love the fabric, the neckline and sleeve length please me, and actually I love the swishy swooshy freedom of such a loose shape: perfect on a hot summer’s day!
Ah. The problem is, we are running out of hot summer days for this year and the North East wind is starting to blow a little chilly-ly. So I hereby wish to thank those intelligent commenters who advised me to wear a cami / vest underneath. Well duh!
I have been muttering about needing a cami / vest-thing ever since I made my Camber top out of semi-transparent voile. But my ethically twisted nature made the thought of purchasing such a garment horribly tortuous.
Perhaps buying Asda jeans made any other purchase look like fairtrade organic nirvana, but I just sucked it up and bought a couple of long-line modal camis (one navy and one black) from “Me and Em“. I had been browsing their sale in a wistful way for days. Of course, these were not reduced…. pah!
I was pleasantly surprised to discover they were made in Portugal. There is a fair chance they were a more ethical choice than the Asda jeans.
It is not that I don’t care about ethics anymore, so much as I am worn out by the self-imposed requirement to wear a halo and feel not-quite-put-together as a result.
I had managed until now without simple black and navy cardigans (Boden), essential camis (Me and Em) and a pair of skinny jeans (Asda)… but the “need” for these garments did not go away in at least two years of searching for the perfect ethical option. And I actually sent perfectly good me-mades to the charity shop because I could not make them work without such basic wardrobe staples to underpin them.
All of which is a long-winded mea culpa: Forgive me readers, for I have sinned.
Never mind, eh? Can I move on now?
What I wore today:
me-made watermelon linen Deer and Doe Chardon skirt
me-made top Victor
Me and Em long-line modal cami in navy
Boden black cardigan (from the sale)
My granny’s “jet” beads
Insanely blue tights from the bargain bin in Asda (50p!)
Two-tone brogues, an English handmade shoe manufacturer’s sample found on ebay in 2011 for £stupid-cheap, recently resoled.