Kennedy Oaks Day

This year we were so excited to put together our outfits for Cup Week this year.  After two years of fashion on your front lawn creating the floral Stitch Witch Atlas top and blue tulle Gertie Princess Coat we were excited to be back in person this year.  We headed into our stash first to see what gems we could find and build outfits from there.  Melbourne however in its classic weather fashion threw us a curve ball and rained for most of the week. 

Erin’s Outfit 

This didn’t impact too many of our outfits but if you were in Spotlight South Melbourne on Melbourne Cup Day afternoon you will have spotted the Two Sewing Sisters (still in their Cup Day outfits) on the hunt for fabric for Erin’s Oaks Day outfit.  The original yellow and white lace choice was in production but the prospect of wearing it on a breezy wet day for Oaks Day was ideal.  

So continued the week of jumpsuits. We used the same patterns as the purple jumpsuit earlier this week, hacking together Vogue 9327 and Vogue 1647 – just swapped the peplum for sleeves and patch pockets! A strong and vibrant print came together with an exposed purple zipper.

Erin paired the dress with pointed black patent shoes, a maroon leather headpiece made by Lauren and gold earrings.

Fabric: Spotlight
Pattern:  Vogue 9327 and Vogue 1647
Headpiece: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

Lauren’s Outfit

This traditional yet bold floral print was calling for a pop of red. This wonderful colourful print is quilting weight cotton that joined the stash at some point (we can’t remember where or when) so to lift the surface finish we used satin piping around the collar and a red belt to enhance the colours.

Lauren paired the dress with navy patent tan and lavender headpiece that she made.

Pattern: Vogue 9201
Headpiece: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

Vogue 9327 and Vogue 1647 in purple with white pinstripe

Melbourne Cup Day Outfits

We love putting together our looks for Cup Week and heading out to Flemington Racecourse.  Melbourne Cup is hosted on the first Tuesday in November and is known as the race that stops the nation.  The day is filled with bright vibrant colours and we pick our fabrics to reflect this.  

Erin’s Outfit 

This dress is a classic hackathon from the Two Sewing Sisters. The bodice or Vogue 8494 with the sleeve of New Look 1619 and the skirt from Vogue 1486. All are individually great patterns but had elements that we wanted to bring together for this dress. The fabric was a velvet-textured material that gave a lush finish and was rich in colour. The combination of pink and red is a common mix for Melbourne Cup with similar hues tieing the outfits together.

Erin paired the dress with a tan shoes, a magenta and red headpiece made by Lauren and coordinating earrings.

Fabric: Spotlight
Pattern: Vogue 8494 (bodice), New Look 1619 (sleeves) and Vogue 1486 (skirt)
Headpiece: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

Lauren’s Outfit

This week quickly became a week of jumpsuits with pockets! For this bold colour blocking look, we hacked together Vogue 9327 and Vogue 1647 (also used for Lauren’s Cup Eve outfit – see the blue jumpsuit here) with free-form peplum.

Vogue 9327 has three sleeve options, but sleeveless isn’t one of them! We want to use this pattern because we loved the neckline and darts. In addition to making it sleeveless, we also reshaped the sleeve head to bring it closer to the neck.

The fabric was a deep purple with white pinstripe that had been sitting in our stash for some time.

Lauren paired the dress with tan shoes and a marigold boater that she made.

Pattern: Vogue 9327 and Vogue 1647
Headpiece: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

See Fergus on Melbourne Cup Day.