There is no question that I love linen. Living in a climate where it is warm and humid almost three seasons. Finding linen in all the colors that you want can be challenging. I tend to be exacting when it comes to the colors and patterns of my fabric. When Fabrics Store reached out about working with more of their bright collection, I was excited. The all-purpose bright cobalt came, and it was beautiful!
Tapioca Trousers in FS Bright Blue Midweight Linen
I have been somehow collecting things in a very similar color way to the bright cobalt. The only thing that was missing from my blue capsule collection was a pair of pants and a vest. When I say vest, I mean like a true vest. I just wrapped up the first vest for the great vest knit along in the similar blue color. I was under a bit of a time crunch, so I started with the bottoms. For me, wide leg pants make a great transitional piece. You can wear layers underneath for colder weather, and they can be light and loose for warm weather. My current go-to pattern for wide leg is the Tapioca Trousers but a close second would be the Protea pants.
I have made the Tapiaco Trousers in mid weight linen before, (and they are a favorite), so, I knew that it would be a no brainer. The linen is great for the loose structure of the pants. I love the way that they look in the bold blue color.
Tapioca Trousers in FS Bright Blue Midweight Linen
Sometimes it can be a guessing game as to how the fabric will hold its color after the pre-wash (in my opinion, prewash is very important when sewing with linen because you don’t want to deal with shrinkage after you have made your garment.
I was originally hoping to have enough material to make a short sleeve version of the Noa Shirt pattern that I have made before. However, as I finished cutting out the trouser pattern, I realized that I wouldn’t have enough fabric for that. I do love a good vest though, knitted or otherwise. So, I wanted to try out the Veronica vest.
Tapioca Trousers in FS Bright Blue Midweight Linen
I just ran out of time. Do you ever just hit this wall where you realized that your time management wasn’t exactly the best and you don’t know how you weren’t able to finish all you wanted to? That was the way that I felt with this project. I was so very excited to be working with this beautiful fabric but the plans kept changing due to the situation I ended up in.
There wasn’t quite enough fabric for what I originally envisioned but I know that in the end, I ended up with great trousers. The vest will be a bonus and you will have to be on the lookout for it on my Instagram feed soon. The bottoms turned out exactly how I wanted them to be. I can envision styling them in the near future with a big sweater and a lovely coat. What would you make with this color?
