MiniWardrobe Spring 2011 --- Beach Chic

I know you haven't heard from me in a while, but I have been working very hard on a 4-piece collection (mini-wardrobe) that I call Beach Chic.

It includes:
- one pair of linen cotton casual pants for walking down the shopping strip or even going to dinner with a zipper extending the length of the pants and zipper back pockets.
- a pair of linen shorts based on a St John design sold at Neiman Marcus for $250 with a zipper design below the front pockets.
- a nice relax fitting casual top with a beach/city scene on the front
- a very comfortable cotton knit dress that can be for walks on the beach or a swimsuit coverup.

In addition to those pieces, I have included a previously sewn top that I didn't have much to wear with. It is the ivory matte jersey top from a previous post.

This was a load of fun and all pieces will be in my bag when we go on our beach vacation later this summer!

Enjoy the pictures below:

I'll start with the pants. These are Burda Magazine 07-2010-104. These were very difficult to make; took me a whopping 8 hours and the Burda instructions were fairly useless. Please check out my pattern review for more details.



Here is a pictorial of how I did the front pockets :

A pictorial on the back pockets:

and a pictorial on the front zipper:

Next, are the linen shorts. I LOVE these shorts! I first fell in love with them on Neiman Marcus' website.

Here's my version and my review:

Next we the two tops. Both are easy to wear and appropriate for beach and beach side attire. One top is actually a dress that can be worn as a long tunic or can be tucked under as a short tunic. The other top can extend from the beach to the strip. My Review.

My review for this dress.

Lastly a compilation of all the pieces together.