Ana from Cocowawa Crafts has hit the style nail on the head once again with her latest release – the Raspberry. Raspberry comes with three different versions – a dress, jumpsuit or playsuit and multiple strap and pocket options.
The shirred bodice is bang on trend this summer and I love the ability to customise it to your taste.
I decided to make the jumpsuit version for my first attempt, as I really enjoy the practicality of them! I made mine from this lovely leopard print cotton poplin. It was super easy to work with and will be nice and cool to wear.
The shirring itself is pretty straightforward – there are lots of online tutorials to help you if you get stuck. You can adjust your bobbin tension if you find the shirring isn’t gathering enough, but I would recommend keeping quite a bit of tension on the elastic as you hand wind it on to the bobbin. I did that and didn’t need to fiddle with the bobbin or settings at all. I sewed my elastic with a 3.5 stitch length.
I added the side seam pockets to the jumpsuit as, you know…pockets!
I opted for the ruffled straps. I do feel as if the ruffles might be a big on the large side so, if I make it again, I would either opt for a smaller one or just plain straps. I made sure that I attached the straps to cover the bra that I would wear with it so no pesky bra straps on show! It was a bit of a faff to do this by myself so next time, I would get a friend to help me!
I took about 7 inches off the hems as I wanted it to come up mid calf.
Overall, I am really pleased with it – it is comfortable and will be perfect to wear for our jungle themed Summer Party in a couple of weeks! I also think it would be great layered over a t-shirt on cooler days.
