Butterick 6331 and Simplicity 2446: DIY Floral Twill Trouser Suit made using Spoonflower Fabric

Butterick 6331 trouser and Simplicity 2446 blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Worn with white cotton Grainline Archer.

Hi Friends,

No, I am not entering a Chris Evans look-alike contest (British reference there). Today’s post features fabric kindly sent to me by Spoonflower. I am sure many of you have already heard of the eco-friendly custom printing firm. About 1.5 years ago they opened a second factory in Berlin, and to celebrate they asked a few British bloggers to be part of a Blog Tour, and make items using Spoonflower fabric. You can see the list of bloggers here on the Spoonflower Blog. The fabric I have used in this post was sent to me for no charge by Spoonflower, but all opinions are my own.

Butterick 6331 trouser and Simplicity 2446 blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower.

I have never ordered fabric from Spoonflower before. The choice of already uploaded designs on the Spoonflower website is vast (of course the option is also there to upload your own design), and somewhat overwhelming. I searched using key words of prints I have a passion for (like dark florals), and elected to go for Jungle Passion Floral Navy by Joan McLemore, printed on to the lightweight cotton twill (58″ width).

Because of my own indecision, Spoonflower ended up sending me this fabric in two separate lengths but I was not able to detect any differences in the colours between the two lengths. I think the colours are a pretty good match to what was shown on screen when I was making my selection. I also liked the fact that, at least for the design I selected, previews were provided of the fabric made up into a cushion and a dress, so I could guage the scale of the print.

I did run the fabrics through a hot (60 degree) pre-wash before cutting out and did not notice any running, bleeding or fading. This particular fabric was easy to cut, sew and press. It’s a good weight without being too heavy and bulky. Full disclosure: will I ever wear these two pieces together? Probably not, but as separates in my wardrobe I love them and how individual and quirky they are. I already have lots of things which these items will go with.

Butterick 6331 trouser and Simplicity 2446 blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower.

Butterick 6331 trouser and Simplicity 2446 blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower.

Some details:

The trousers were made using Butterick 6331. This is actually my third iteration of these pants (I haven’t shown you version two yet), but you can see my first version here. For this version I took on board what some of you said in the comments and scooped out the back crotch by 0.25 inches and added 0.5 inches to the upper back thigh. I know it’s hard to see in this busy print but overall I think it’s better. Other changes for this version:

• I fully interfaced the waistband.
• I had to let the side seams out a touch from the waist down to the bottom of the pockets.
• I hemmed the bottoms by hand.
• These are trousers but with some jeans details like additional topstitching, jeans button and bar tacks.

Butterick 6331 Floral Twill Trousers – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Topstitching detail.

Butterick 6331 Floral Twill Trousers – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Inside view of waistband and (modified) fly facing.

The blazer was made using Simplicity 2446, which I first made in wool ponte. I do love my first version, and since going back to work, have worn it a few times. But the shoulders are too big (although I did go back and alter them to be smaller). So for this version I made sure to do a small shoulder adjustment.

• I did a 5/8ths inch small shoulder adjustment.
• I shaved 0.25 inches off all the shoulder princess seams above the bust.
• I added a centre back seam for shaping.
• I shortened the pocket bag length by 1.5 inches.
• I added small ready made shoulder pads but omitted sleeve heads and chest reinforcement.
• You can see a picture of the internal interfacing here on Instagram if you want.

My previous two blazers have taken me approx. 3 weeks each to make: I slaved over this blazer to get it done in a week! Gosh it was tough but overall I am pretty happy with the finished result.

Simplicity 2446 Floral Twill Blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower.

Simplicity 2446 Floral Twill Blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Front lapel detail.

Simplicity 2446 Floral Twill Blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Welt pocket with flap detail.

Simplicity 2446 Floral Twill Blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Welt pocket detail.

Simplicity 2446 Floral Twill Blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower. Sleeve vent detail.

Like I say, being honest, I don’t think I would be brave enough to go full on head to toe pattern,  but as individual pieces I think these are going to get worn lots. I am also very proud of how far I have come on with my sewing techniques tackling things like the welt pockets and sleeve vents and even the trouser fitting and sewing.

Happy sewing everyone!

Butterick 6331 trouser and Simplicity 2446 blazer – made using Jungle Passion floral navy lightweight cotton twill from Spoonflower.