Peppermint Magazine’s free Jumpsuit pattern review by Sew4Serenity

by Lush Cloth March 27, 2022

I knew immediately that when I was selected to write March’s Blog for Lush Cloth that I was going to create a garment that was free to all. It seemed to coincide perfectly with the sewing challenge #sewfrugal22, which was running in March – where you sew a free pattern with a fabric from your stash.

I headed straight over to Peppermint Magazine’s website, which is an absolutely amazing resource for free patterns, as I have made several of them - including the Paddington and Ruffle top, which are both lovely.

I had a vision of a jumpsuit that was both smart but comfy and would be suitable to layer up, so that it would become the perfect trans-seasonal piece to take me from spring to summer - and on into the colder months. The pattern that I decided on was the Peppermint Jumpsuit by In the Folds.

This jumpsuit has a relaxed loose fit with a lovely V in the front and back, which I thought would be great on its own or with a top underneath. It also includes a belt, which can be used to cinch in the waist.

The next step was to decide on a Fabric – my favourite part of the sewing process! The pattern suggested a fabric that is soft and drapes well. It recommends using light to mid-weight fabrics, such as: linen, linen blends, cotton, gauze or chambray, and for a softer silhouette, consider sateen, silk (crepe de chine) tencel or viscose. After browsing the Lush Cloth website, which is always a great experience as it is full of beautifully curated fabrics, I set my sights on their range of viscose twills. I had never used viscose twill before but had some in my stash - and loved how soft and silky it feels; it has great drape whilst still being a sturdy fabric. I also think the diagonal weave running through it is just so special.

The pattern recommends 2.6m (150cm wide) but as the pattern is drafted for 5” 7 inches and I am only 5” 3 inches I thought that I would be fine with the 2.5m that I was being gifted. This is one of the great things about sewing – that being short is actually an advantage when it comes to fabric!

There were 4 different viscose twills that I spotted on the website, and it was a hard choice, but I decided on the Sweet Pumpkin Spice, which has small irregular shaped pieces in green, white and black against a warm rust coloured background. Having recently identifying what colours suit my skin tone I knew that autumnal colours are perfect for me.

With the fabric chosen I printed the pattern off at home and set about the task of cutting and sticking the A4 sheets together. There are minimal pattern pieces, however, the main pieces are large as the top and leg is all one piece.

Although my waist measurements put me in the size D (B:34, W:29, H:37), my bust measurement put me in a size C, however, I had been following the hashtag on Instagram and noticed that a lot of people had talked about how it comes up very oversized in the leg area. I decided to make a toile first in the straight size C in another viscose twill that I had in my stash to check the fit.

As I had never sewed viscose twill before, I did do some research about tips for sewing with this fabric and the main thing I discovered was you need to be careful that you don’t snag a thread from the weave, as this will leave a white line in the fabric. I tried to prevent this by using a fine needle and very fine silk pins, which I tested on a scrap piece of the fabric before I started sewing.

When I tried on the toile, I could see the fit above the waist was perfect, however, the crotch area, length and the width of the legs had a lot of excess fabric. Based on this I made the following adjustments to the toile and then to the pattern pieces:

I took 1.5cm off each side seam from the bottom up to the waist
I took another 2.5cm off the length
Raised the crotch by 1cm – although when you tie up the belt this does raise the crotch area some anyway.

After making these adjustments I was really happy with the fit. The jumpsuit feels comfortable, not too snug around the top area, so I can wear a top underneath.

With my toile completed and adjustments made to the pattern pieces, I was ready to cut out my fabric. I pre-washed the viscose twill on a 30c cycle and let it dry naturally. I always iron fabric before cutting it out to ensure I don’t have any creases that may distort the fabric when it is being cut out. I used pins to attach the pattern pieces and pattern weights to stop any movement before cutting out. I did struggle to get the waistband on the fabric in one whole continuous length and, in the end, I had to resort to splitting it into 3 pieces, as it just would not fit on the fabric I had remaining. However, it looked fine once I sewed it together.

The instructions were clear and I had no problems at all in the process. The only part that I was apprehensive about was the invisible zip, which I have struggled with in the past. I was recommended to watch the Sew Essential tutorial and I must say this has been a complete game changer – I can’t believe how invisible my zip is!!

The pattern also calls for a facing around the neck and it talks you through the burrito method really well - and I enjoyed this part, as it creates such a lovely finish.

I made a few additional finishing touches on the final version to make it my own. I inserted a “Material Girl” label from Sew Anonymous and decided to add thread-chain belt loops to keep the belt attached. I used the TATB tutorial on how to do this as it is simple and effective.

I’m so happy with the final version and it’s so soft on the skin and comfortable to wear. I teamed it up with the Freya top from Tilly and the Buttons in a turquoise cotton jersey and it works perfectly. I’m looking forward to getting lots of wear in my ‘Lush’ Jumpsuit.

Thanks

Adele @ Sew4Serenity

Take a look at the range of Viscose fabrics that would compliment this pattern click here

Head to my Youtube vlog to see the jumpsuit all sewn up Here