A Bombshell Swimsuit Copycat
Sunday, July 14, 2013
First I just wanna say, HOLY COW I made a swimsuit!!
So last year I was browsing the web for one piece swimsuits. I've always wore two pieces but as I get older and more self conscious I decided I wanted to try a one piece. Trying to find something that is flattering and still covers up the squishy parts is a job in itself. I've always liked the vintage/retro style suits so I fell in love when I found this cherry bomb. However I wasn't so in love that I could justify spending the $75+ as I hardly ever go swimming. I think I went swimming once last summer.
So last year I was browsing the web for one piece swimsuits. I've always wore two pieces but as I get older and more self conscious I decided I wanted to try a one piece. Trying to find something that is flattering and still covers up the squishy parts is a job in itself. I've always liked the vintage/retro style suits so I fell in love when I found this cherry bomb. However I wasn't so in love that I could justify spending the $75+ as I hardly ever go swimming. I think I went swimming once last summer.
 |
| Source |
So you can imagine my excitement when Heather Lou from Closet Case Files released the the Bomshell Swimsuit pattern. I had this pattern bought and printed with in minutes of finding out about it's release. Heather you are a complete genius! This swimsuit is the bomb, from it's sexy, flattering silhouette right down to the construction of the suit.
I bought my fabric at Spandex House. They have a HUGE selection so if your having trouble finding the right fabric give them a look. I bought black lining there AND some solid green suiting for a second bombshell in the future. ;)
I'm gonna say it again, Holy Cow I made a swimsuit! Like most I was scared but really there is nothing to be scared about. If your worried about sizing make a muslin of the lining to start. I never fall within the exact pattern measurements so I was unsure about fit. This pattern has negative ease so I didn't want it to be so tight I couldn't breath but not so loose you get poopie butt once it's wet. Based on my measurements I cut closest to my size a 6 at the bust tapering down to an 8 at the waist and hips. I used some cheap stretch polyester from my stash and whipped up a muslin of the lining within a half hour. It fit like a glove.
I followed the sewalong Heather Lou hosted so I really can't give a review on the paper instructions. I didn't look at them once. But I'm positive they are going to be just as well written and clear as the sewalong instructions and pictures. I'm not going to lie it wasn't smooth sailing for me all along the way. The goof ups were my own. I won't mention them all...my mom can vouch for one of my meltdowns. I had a little confusion when cutting the pattern lining out. The lining has a bust dart. The way it's marked on the lining is with a triangle. I cut the triangle out (luckily I was working with my muslin) thinking the whole time, What the hell is this for and how's this gonna work?..Duh! It's a bust dart ya goof! I know for a fact I'm not the only one who done it so that makes me feel a wee bit better.
I used my serger for a lot of the construction. You do not need a serger to make this suit so don't freak if you don't have one. You can also use the zigzag stitch on your machine. Something I will do different next time involves the gathering process. The instructions have you gather each edge, baste using a zigzag stitch to secure your gathers , serge the edges then serge again when creating the seam. The problem I had here..the basting zigzag cause for a lot of unpicking at the end. I'll try a long basting stitch next time closer to the edge so it will be covered when serged. Also when bringing your serged edges together to create the seam, if you don't match the serged edges up exactly you risk seeing your first set of serged lines on the right side. Well I had this problem anyway...am I the only one? I was able to fix it easily by just serging over it again. Next time I will gather...long baste stitch...then serge only one time when creating the seam. Holy crap I just went back and read all that....Clear as mud!?
One other thing I should mention, if you plan to pad your boobies (which I recommend, no one wants their eyes poked out) be wise about the type of bra pads you choose. Me always wanting a little extra help chose gel padded cups. I pinned them in tried on the suit and asked for my hubs approval. After a side pose he says,"They look like pointy slopes". Upon my own inspection he was totally right. Nice save hubby! I quickly returned them and opted for the soft molded bra cup. Better looking and more comfortable. Weird,pointy sloped boobs be gone!
 | |
| Hey Pixie Pants lets pretend these ugly bushes and mulch are palm trees and sand instead! |
One other thing I should mention, if you plan to pad your boobies (which I recommend, no one wants their eyes poked out) be wise about the type of bra pads you choose. Me always wanting a little extra help chose gel padded cups. I pinned them in tried on the suit and asked for my hubs approval. After a side pose he says,"They look like pointy slopes". Upon my own inspection he was totally right. Nice save hubby! I quickly returned them and opted for the soft molded bra cup. Better looking and more comfortable. Weird,pointy sloped boobs be gone!
I'm entering this Bombshell in Peneloping and I Heart Fabric's Copy Cat Challenge. Click on their image over on the right side of the blog if you'd like to learn more and enter yourself.
I'm so glad I held off on buying the RTW suit. It saved me quite a bit of dough!!
RTW Cherry Print swimsuit: $75 plus tax and shipping = $90
Me Made Cherry Bombshell: Fabric/lining/elastic/bra cups = $30
Total Savings:............................................................................$60!!!!!
Head on over to the flickr group to see all the other amazing Bombshells! I'm headed out to soak up some sun on my lounge chair by the cornfield while my husband cools me off me with the garden hose! Peace out!
43 comments
This is AWESOME! Your bathing suit seriously looks better then the RTW one. And you wear it even better then the model!!!!
ReplyDeleteThat is adorable! Awesome fabric!
ReplyDeleteWow! Love it! It looks great on you! Super cute!!
ReplyDeleteWow Chica! You are looking seriously hot (and I mean that in a totally non-creepy way that is hard to convey in a written comment pertaining to a swimsuit). I love your fabric and your fit is dead-on.
ReplyDeleteSuper impressive!
ReplyDeleteVery nicely done! Looks gorgeous on you.
ReplyDeleteHoly crap, you look amazing and it is so spot on with the original!
ReplyDelete(Of course in my brain logic dictates that you now have $60 to spend on moar sewing stuffs! :] )
Oustanding piece of sewing, well done!
ReplyDeleteI love your swimsuit Shannon!! Gorgeous fabric and the fit is perfection! So many folks have sewn this suit, it seems to work with every single body type! I will definitely hop over to the Copy Cat challenge and give you a vote! And, your kitty is just adorable wondering why you are standing in your swimsuit, nowhere near the beach, lol! I finished sewing my swimsuit and blogged it yesterday. Kitty was also there, but, believe it or not, we both went to the beach and swimming!!
ReplyDeletewow, great job!! You look lovely in your swimsuit. I'm totally gonna get to this pattern sometime this summer. I <3 Pixie--what a doll.
ReplyDeleteThis is so great! I love the cherries. It definitely looks like the inspirations swimsuit.
ReplyDeleteI've said it before, but I'm in awe of anyone who sews their own swimsuit! Yours is amazing, I love the cherries. It fits you perfectly. Maybe I'll add this to my list for next year...
ReplyDeleteWell done! I really need to buy that pattern, I want to make my own swimsuit too!
ReplyDeleteThat's such a great copy of your inspiration suit. It looks amazing in you. I have never made a swim suit and I'm tempted to try. If I do, this is definitely the pattern to go for. I haven't seen a single version I didn't like. Love yours!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing copy! Well done, it looks absolutely stunning on you!
ReplyDeleteyou look gorgeous:) well done on your first swim!
ReplyDeleteSo, so glam. Loving the cherry print! I can totally relate to your swim cup insert dramas too... the ones I bought were also pointy and I didn't fill the smallest size. I tried trimming them down but the pointy was even more prominent then! Good to know that there are rounder shapes and gel padding (although I'm not ambitious about making something out of nothing!).
ReplyDeleteGorgeous!
ReplyDeleteSuch a great print for you swimsuit fabric and it's so flattering!
I'm sure you'll be doing more swimming now!
Wow! Awesome suit, I love the cherry print fabric. This is another example of the copy being better than the original! Congratulations on your first swimsuit!
ReplyDeleteYour suit is amazing! And is it really a breeze as you say? Do you think other swimsuit patterns may not be as easy? I really like all of it and I have to say it looks even better than the "original". It's really very flattering on you and is almost inspiring me to make my own swimsuit even though I already got a nice one. The cherry print matches up fairly well too. One thing that is different is that your print is bigger and more spaced out. I think that is better looking because the other one's small print may have looked too busy. I hope you win the challenge! Good luck!
ReplyDelete---
http://ladylavendersexpressions.blogspot.com/
Well swimsuits have always been scary to me. I just figured I'd have a really hard time with it but surprisingly I did not. I probably won't be too scared to try other patterns out now. I mean it wasn't all a breeze, I had my own minor goofy issues but it wasn't nothing to do with the pattern just user error. As with everything it's a learning experience. I can't wait to try it out and actually swim in it! :)
ReplyDeleteThis is so top-notch it deserves a big blue ribbon! You look FAAAABUUUULOUSSSS and that cherry print is sweeter than candy. Don't beat yourself up about the dart. That was my drafting mistake all the way. Good luck with the challenge!
ReplyDeleteThis is soooooo adorable! I love the cherry print and your finished suit looks amazing! Thanks for the tip, btw, about cutting out the bust dart - thankfully I am starting with View C, but my traced pattern for View A definitely has that triangle cut out! Wheewwwww ... close call there - thanks for the save :)
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing, I love it! And looks so much like (but better than!) the one you wanted - good job! I had a nightmare geting cups to fit as well. And the same problem with the first serged seam showing when I did the second. I did go over one of them again, but on another one I actually just left it - I figured the gathering pretty much hides it.
ReplyDeleteYours came out so nicely! Great fit. Ha ha about the pointy boobs, glad that got caught in time!
ReplyDeleteAwesome swimsuit! The cherries are so cute and it looks great on you!
ReplyDeleteWhen I went back and looked mine over again I still had some spots showing but I just left them. I figured the black hides it pretty well and who's going to be looking at your side seam anyways?!
ReplyDeleteOh I'm glad I was able to help someone else avoid that!!
ReplyDeleteThank you!! And thanks for such an awesome pattern! The whole way through this I was like wow this lady is a genius!! You rock!
ReplyDeleteShanni, I just love this!
ReplyDeleteAnd you know I love a good copycat make!
What a great copycat swimsuit! I looks so cute!
ReplyDeleteI'm incredibly impressed, I've seen so many versions of this suit now and it seems to fit everybody incredibly well!
I love this so much. It's a perfect copy!! Fine work!
ReplyDeleteFabulous Shanni! This is a great suit..I may have to purchase this pattern! You make it look sooooo great, nice work.
ReplyDeleteWow! I have always dreamed of making my own swimsuit... you make it look easy!
ReplyDeleteDamn girl! This looks awesome!!! You look great! Isn't this pattern such a breeze to sew? The gathering thing was kind of slow, though... I kept obsessing over whether or not my gathers were even, but it turned out alright in the end. Now I need to nut up and take some pictures!
ReplyDeleteWell, you're going to have to find more occasions to swim now - looks fantastic, well done!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous! One of the best bombshells I've seen!
ReplyDeleteOMG!! She turned out so awesome! You look amazing in it and what a huge saving. You go girl!!
ReplyDeleteEpic. Simply epic. I have no other words.
ReplyDeleteSeriously stunning. Both you and the suit!! That is just absolutely fantastic in every way possible!
ReplyDeleteHi!! I found your blog via the Copy Cat challenge over at I-Heart-Fabric.
ReplyDeleteYour swimsuit looks AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!
Great fabric and fit!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful swimsuit! That cherry print is awesome, and you look absolutely gorgeous. Fabulous job!
ReplyDelete