On my journey of cultivating a stylish a wardrobe, I feel I am always in need of more and more separates. Not ridiculous wardrobe orphans that stand alone in my closet and will never, ever make friends with the options in there. But amazing basic, fun and stylish pieces that I can mix and match with almost everything I own. And these two pieces are perfect! 

I love beautiful button front shirts, especially ones from the brand Equipment. These types of shirts are not only luxurious, but they're extremely versatile. The go with everything in your closet, from dressy to casual. And that's exactly what I wanted.

I reached into my pattern collection and selected (discontinued) Vogue 1462 - DKNY. The lines of this shirt called out for colorblocking. A solid color would be such a waste! I decided to create mine in black and white silk georgette. I used an Egret Silk Georgette and Theory Stretch Black Georgette, both from Mood Fabrics.com. I cut the size 14 for my shirt. The pattern suggested sew-in interfacing and since I was working with silk, I highly agree! The collar, collar band and cuffs are where interfacing is required. I used Silk Organza as my sew-in.

If you've never sewn with silk georgette before, the best way I can describe it as somewhere between silk chiffon and silk crepe de chine. It's one of those luxurious fabrics you simply have to experience. The egret fabric is pretty sheer, so by nature that makes it a "fiddly" fabric to work with. In the past, I've experiment a few ways on the best way to cut this this fabric. And for me, I find cutting the pattern pieces on a single layer with the silk fabric atop an old sheet keeps it from crawling and the fabric on grain.

This shirt has contrasting shoulder yokes. This is a detail I've never added to a button front shirt and it's so unique to me.

The contrasting front is an applique detail, sewn atop of the main fabric. This is where patience comes in handy when working with silk to make sure that this detail was balanced on each side.

The back has contrasting seam detail. Unlike the front, this is an actual stand alone piece.

The front has a mock fly with concealed buttons.

And the sleeves have a contrasting plackets and cuffs.

I'd originally purchased these lovely Iridescent White Buttons. But when I received them, I thought they were too pretty to be concealed. So I only used them in areas where they would actually show.

I used my good 'ol basic buttons that I keep in my stash for the concealed areas.

I wanted to give my shirt a cool and modern match, so I went with a pair of track pants using (OOP) Simplicity 1428. Back in 2014, I made the skirt of this pattern also. This time, I opted for a black bengaline suiting from Joanns. I wanted a casual fabric that would easily go from washer & dryer to wearing. I cut the size 14 and added 3" to the length. I tapered the ankles in too. And to give them that athletic look, I added a white twill 1" trim down the sides.

I love these pieces so much and they'll be in full rotation throughout my wardrobe!

This is my second pattern from Trend Patterns and it's called "The Cape". Lucy says that it's the only cape you'll ever want to own! And it's indeed fabulous!

There are four versions to this pattern. There's a shorter length and a super-long dramatic length, and each style has either a front or back zipper.  

I chose the shorter length with the front zipper in the size 14.

The style of The Trend Cape is so similar to Marni's Cutout Cape. I really like the casual throw-on-and-go style of it, so I knew I wanted this length.

My fabric is this beautiful Rag & Bone Italian Light Gray Blended Wool Coating from Mood Fabrics.com.

The light gray wool has a slight taupey color. That's why I decided to pair mine with chocolate brown.

The construction of this cape is very simple and it goes together quickly. Trend Patterns is out of the U.K., so they use the Metric System and also industry standard seam allowances, which I love! The cape is unlined and the seams are felled.

And it also has front and back facings.

I used a sports zipper for mine. I think it looks great open or closed.

The drama queen in me wanted to go with the long length. But sometimes I have to reel myself back in and be practical. I know that at this length, I'll want to reach for it often.

Since our ice storm, the weather here has been really mild. It's warm in the daytime (when we're not having torrential downpours) and chilly at night. So this is the perfect thing to reach for to keep the chill at bay. I know have another simple, easy-to-sew piece that packs a seriously stylish punch for my wardrobe!

So in 2017, the cold shoulder trend is still going strong and according to the runways, it's not about to let up anytime soon. That's why I decided to add this fabulous cold shoulder sweater dress to my wardrobe.

My dress is Butterick 6425. I modified mine, slightly.  My fabric is this gorgeous Black/white Abstract Ribbed Knit from Mood Fabrics. It has such an interesting weight to it that I would call it more of a sweater knit. 

As with most garments I sew, I needed to lengthen this dress. I added 4 inches to the length. I wanted my hemline to fall at the knee. 

This pattern was meant to create a loose fitting dress with a self tie. I wanted something more body-con because I felt it would fit the weight of my fabric a lot better. With a knit this beefy, I might as well take advantage with a form-fitting garment.

I cut the top of the dress in a size 12 and graded to a 14 at the waist and through the hips. I tapered in the waist and also the hem. So a belt was unnecessary.

This fabric is a panel print. I ordered 2 panels just to make sure I had enough to lay out the print like I wanted to. It sewed really well, basically like a heavy weight ponte knit. I used a ball point needle and finished it with my serger.

The neckline and the sleeve openings are just a 5/8" hem. I typically like a bound finish in these areas, but this works fine. I feel if you don't over manipulate these areas you can get a lovely, clean and neat finish without it looking stretched out and wonky.

I absolutely love this dress. I think the abstract print plus the knee length hem makes this dress look pretty high-end. I'm going to enjoy wearing this!

Pockets on a dress is always a winning detail. I rarely put anything in them other than my hands. But I love knowing they're there.

I love the additional length I added to create a midi length hemline. It's just perfect for wearing with over-the-knee boots.

Surprisingly, I really enjoyed working with this fabric. It wears well and it didn't wrinkle like I assumed it would. So in the future, I definitely won't rule out this kind of fabric and I'll be on the look out for more prints that work for my taste.