Sewing the Fifi boudoir set? It’s time to talk fabric…
Fifi is a delicate camisole and shorts set, so you'll want to pick a delicate fabric to match. Choose something lightweight that has a bit of drape, so it doesn't look or feel stiff. As you’ll be wearing Fifi to bed, you'll also want to choose something that feels nice against your skin.
Cotton lawn and voile fit the bill. They are easy to sew with, and cool and comfortable to wear on hot summer nights. If you’re feeling confident you could try something more luxurious, such as a lightweight silk satin or habotai (read my tips on sewing with slippery fabric).
Large designs could overwhelm the diminutive size of the pieces, so I’d go for itty bitty prints or solid colours. The camisole is cut on the bias and the shorts on the straight grain (we think they look nicer and hang better that way), so bear in mind that if you use a directional print it will be running diagonally on the camisole and vertically or horizontally on the shorts. So prints that look similar from different angles might work better.
Here are some lovely things I’ve picked out…
Fifi looks really cute with the binding and straps in a contrast fabric – one of our working samples was peach with mint binding, it looked so scrumptious. You’ll need about 0.7m (3/4 yard) of contrast fabric for the binding and straps. (You’ll still need pretty much the same allowance for the main fabric, because of the bias cut layout.)
You could also add a lace or ruffle trim to the neckline. You could stitch elegant piping or a playful pompom trim to the hem of the shorts. If you’re feeling particularly fruity, you could sew the back pieces of the shorts in stretch lace – oh Fifi!
Take a look at the Fifi sewing pattern page for the fabric measurements, supplies list and sizing chart.
I’m absolutely in love with this pattern and cannot wait to see what you sew with it. What fabric and design ideas are you thinking of for your first Fifi set? Do tell!
