It’s the start of swimsuit season!! I have one problem, I really don’t have a swimming suit. I have some from high school that I squeeze into but they just aren’t cute. And whenever I go shopping for one, I can never find one that fits my full figure. So when I saw this idea to make a swimming suit using ruffle fabric, I decided to try it out!
This is how I made it:
1) I took two old swimming suits. The black one is from high school and just too small and the blue one is maternity and well, hideous!
2) I cut off the bottom of the black suit, this will be the bottoms.
3) I put some cute elastic on it and that’s it. Super easy. I was so glad that I did this first. I figured that I was at least going to get some bottoms out of this, even if the top didn’t work out for me 🙂
3) Next I took the blue swimming suit and cut into two pieces. This is going to be the liner because the ruffle fabric is a little thin.
4) I sewed the swim suit onto the ruffle fabric. I did that to both pieces. The top is bigger than the bottom, you just can’t tell in the picture.
5) Then I sewed the two pieces together, with fronts facing each other. This step took forever for me. I tried it on and it was a little too snug, so I had to pull out all the thread and start over.
6) I then put some bias tape on the top. I used some left over fabric from my long black skirt.
7) Then I sewed on a neck band, to help keep the swimsuit up 🙂
And just like that, I have a new swimming suit that actually fits me! If I were to do it again, I would make sure that my liner is a solid color, the pattern shows though a tiny bit.
It actually looks pretty cute on. It’s nice and long and covers me up. Sorry, I’m not going to be posted pictures of me in it…..
I did wear this swimming suit this past weekend and it did just fine in the water and in the wash. I do think that I am going to make two straps instead of just one though.
Check out these sites!!
laxsupermom
Love that ruffle fabric! I actually have an embarassing number of swimsuits, because I buy a new one each year in March and hang it from my bedroom light fixture. That's my motivation to start really kicking it in my workouts. I love how fearless you are. I've never considered making one. Thanks for sharing.
todayilovemylife
Kaysi, you look just as amazing now as you did in High School. Now you just have a cute swimsuit to go along, too. I wish I could make my own–it is so hard to find modest ones that are flattering!
Lyndee @ A Recovering Craft Hoarder
You are the wardrobe upcycling queen. You have set yourself apart from the rest of the craft blogs and leave me wanting for more. Thank you for all these great ideas. By the way, this swimsuit is so much cuter than anything I've seen in the stores.