*This post was updated August 27, 2019

Hey loves!! Welcome back to blog.Nichelleb.com!

Today I want to share this skirt I made yesterday. Super easy, it took about 2 hours to complete, (majority of it spent on the pockets lol). As you all know I love sewing and recreating RTW pieces.

One trend thats huge this year is the “Transparency trend” and I totally blame @rylissbod (formerly @sewing_and_design_school) on Instagram for getting me obsessed with it! Lol Here are a couple examples below, but @rylissbod Instagram feed has pictures and inspiration if you are feeling the transparent vibe.

Cute right?! I think the “transparency trend” is mysterious and subtly sexy.

So I was browsing the web (or I may have been on Pinterest) but I saw this skirt and loved it but didn’t like the price. lol It retailed for $125. No way! lol Especially not when tulle is 99 cent a yard. So I recreated it and LOVE how it came out. Its just a fun layering piece. I tried my skirt on over a black bathing suit and it gave it an instant upgrade. I don’t want to list the website this skirt was on because I feel kind of shady doing that, but read on to find out how to create this skirt! I tried to explain it as best I could so I apologize in advance if it seems tricky. Its really not. lol

This skirt started with 2 yards of tulle. You may need more depending on your size. Cut the tulle to the length you want your skirt to be. Mines was ankle length. Take your time and cut a really straight line since the tulle will not be hemmed. Don’t cut any of the width off, you will need it to gather the skirt.

The trim & waistband of the skirt is regular black cotton. To create the trim on the openings of the skirt, cut 2 strips of cotton about 3 inches wide and the length of your skirt plus 1 inch. Fold and press the raw edges in on both sides of each strip about 3/8 of an inch, then fold those edges to meet. On one of the short ends fold up 3/8 of an inch to hide the raw edges. That side should go at the bottom of your skirt. Sew these strips to the front opening of the skirt, sandwiching the tulle in between the two layers of cotton.

Once that is complete do 2 rows of basting stitches across the top of your tulle skirt piece and gather until it fits around your waist with a small opening in the front. To create your waistband you may have to sew 2 pieces together if you don’t have one long strip. My waistband piece ended up being 4 inches tall and about 58 inches long. Interface your waistband (with a lightweight interfacing) for a little more stability. Then fold in the raw edges about 3/8 of an inch on both sides of the strip. The same way you attached the trim is how you will attach the waistband.

I suppose this skirt could work without doing hardware and tying it if you make the waistband long enough on both sides. However, if you are adding hardware you should do it before you attach the waistband to the skirt. On one end of your waistband you will need to add two 1 1/2 inch D-rings so your skirt can have an adjustable waist. Sandwich the tulle in-between your waistband and sew it to the skirt.

The pockets are the last step. These pockets are purely decorative so make them in whatever style or shape you wish. I had never made a cargo pocket but it was pretty easy. I started with a 7 x 7 inch square and just drafted the pocket flap myself. I had the hardware and ribbon already in my stash. It is plain black satin ribbon and you will need 4 (1 inch) D rings if you are adding them on the pockets.

If you have any questions feel free to drop a comment here or on IG! How do you feel about this D.I.Y?! Is it your style or nah?

Hey loves! I’m back with another D.I.Y outfit. The pants were inspired by my boo @jmilamila and the top is Vintage Simplicity #1426. I didn’t make this outfit to wear anywhere in particular but it’s giving me a Coachella vibe. lol The pants were drafted by me. I have a pattern pant that fits me well and whenever I make pants I start out with that and just modify from there. These pants are easy to make, they have no pockets or buttons, only an invisible side zipper. The only small challenge about making these pants is getting them to fit like a glove. The ankara fabric really doesn’t have any stretch. Luckily my pant already fits me good but I did have to do a tiny bit of taking in to make sure the pants fit snug but not too tight. If I make these pants again the only thing I would do is lower my waist about an inch. I didn’t realize it was so high until the waistband was on, and at that point I wasn’t going back! LOL! But it worked out in the end.

The top is a pattern I’ve had for ages, never used it until now. This view did have the option for removable straps but I decided to go without them. I cut this top in the smallest size which was a size 4 but I kept having to cut it smaller to fit my B cup. It has 3 buttons in the back and instead of doing buttonholes, I did button loops because the buttons are so small.

All in all I love how this outfit came out!

Hi loves, my black history inspired outfit, done just in time for the Black Panther movie premiere. lol I originally wanted to make something all black and just very literal with the Black Panther inspiration and vibe. However this was fabric I already had from a previous visit to NY and I wanted to use it. This outfit was originally supposed to be a dress without the pants or vest but as I was sewing other things happened and it turned into these 3 pieces. So the shirt is a combination of Simplicity 8416 and Vogue 9027. I used Simplicity 8416 as the base of the shirt & Vogue 9027 to give me some direction in making the shirt flare out at the bottom and have the uneven hem. Now one thing I will say is I planned on having this be a longer dress so when it turned out it had to be a shirt/dress I realized it was kind of short. So in the in the future I would make the front a tad bit longer because I have to wear this with shorts underneath if I want to wear it as a dress.

I used to be afraid of buttons and button holes but this shirt made me realize they are nothing to be afraid of. This shirt had about 12 buttonholes so after about the 3^rd one I was on a roll. In the future I do plan to take more pictures of the sewing process, it’s just so hard because once I get in the sewing mood/zone I don’t think about pictures, time, nothing I’m just so focused on the project it is hard to stop. Once I got done the shirt I felt it was missing something and I had extra fabric left so I made the pants with McCalls 6707 which I’ve used several times before and works great for me. The vest was kind of an afterthought, I really had juuust enough fabric to make it so I did. The vest is McCalls 7481 details and my review of the pattern are in a previous post.

So the very exciting thing about all of this is that I made all of these pieces for $15!!!! You cant beat that. This fabric was $15 for 6 yards of it from a little side shop in NY. So that’s bomb and of course the fact that they are all separates which y’all know I love so I can wear them all the time. I was strategic with my cutting and had a small amount of scraps left. So all in all this was a great project, I’m pleased with how everything came out. On to the next project!!

Hi Everyone! ItsNichelleB, thanks for visiting my blog! Today’s D.I.Y is inspired by Black History Month! Even though “Black History Month” is every month to me, lol I still like to make something in the month of February since it is the “official” Black History Month. Last year I made an outfit out of a dashiki print, this year I wanted to do something a little different. I knew from the beginning I wanted to do a jacket, and I planned on making an outfit to go underneath the jacket, but I couldn’t find the perfect fabrics for my vision!

Even though I couldn’t make something to go underneath this can also be worn as a dress if you want to be sexy… or lazy. lol This is a cotton Ankara fabric and I used Vogue pattern 8930 to create this jacket. It is a oversized wrap jacket but I had to alter the pattern a little bit. I had 6 yards of fabric but to make the jacket without altering it would take almost 7 yards, so I just made the flaps on the front of the coat way smaller. That way it didn’t use as much fabric, I actually ended up having a little bit left over.

This pattern is great because it works with different materials and for all shapes and sizes. You can use a wool blend fabric as I did for my mom, if you want to make the jacket heavy, warm, and more of a coat. To see the coat I made for her using this same pattern click here.

When made out of cotton, this jacket has a lightweight feel and is perfect for transitioning or spring weather!

Happy Black History Month!

Happy Birthday to me! Turning 25 has been very exciting! I recently made a post about my birthday outfit. Last year, a dress made from Vogue pattern 8766. The top to this outfit is from that same pattern. It is Look F, without the bottom. This year I wanted to make something classy, bold, interesting and something other than a dress!

So I kept searching, until I came across the “SKANT” on Pinterest. Which is basically a pant and skirt hybrid. Most of the time it looks like a skirt from the back and pants from the front or as if you are wearing pants with a matching skirt over top of them. This look was popular many years ago, however, it’s coming back around (as with all things fashion).  Someone gave it a new name this time. LOL  Anyway, the skant is slowly popping up and I loooove it!

The original outfit I decided to recreate is by Tokyo based designer Natsumi Zama. It was love at first sight when I saw these pants on Pinterest. I used McCall’s Pattern 6706 to make the pant and then I attached a square of fabric to the back and down the side. Constructing this was a bit of a challenge.  I didn’t have the directions to my pants pattern and I had never  sewn a fly front zipper.  I had to go back several times to connect that square of fabric to my pants properly! However, thanks to Youtube, I think I did pretty well on the zipper and waistband. In the end I’m happy I challenged myself to make this outfit and I loooove the results. Pictures of the skant trend are below, along with my version!