Yves Saint Laurent V2180 in Organic Cotton Batiste

Since I first saw the Yves Saint Laurent + Halston Exhibit back in February I’ve been dreaming of sewing up a YSL Creation of my own.   I fell for this elegant tunic, sash and slim pant as soon as I saw the line art on the cover of Yves Saint Laurent’s V2180.   I bought this out of print Vogue Paris Original on Etsy from Chloe’s Closet which has a huge selection of Vintage Patterns.  My vision was to make this out of a light and airy fabric perfect for the heat of our Florida summers.

~Please note this post contains an affiliate link.  I’m a preferred blogger for Organic Cottons Plus and received the fabrics and notions for this project in exchange for a fair and honest review.~

The fabric is a luscious organic cotton batiste.  For this season’s make for Organic Cottons Plus (affiliate link) I wanted to try out a fabric I hadn’t used before.  This Batiste is lightweight and almost sheer which makes it perfect for our climate here in Florida.  I used two layers for the pants (sewn as one) to make them more opaque and left the sheerness for the jacket which has its own interior facing.   I also dyed the pants a soft mauve grey to mimic the inspiration drawing on the pattern.  This fabric was so lovely to work with and pressed beautifully.  Airy but still easy to sew up.  Perfect combo!

YSL Vogue Paris Original V2180

Fabric + Notions:

(provided courtesy of *Organic Cottons Plus for review) *Affiliate Link

• Organic Cotton Batiste: 6 yds of OEKO-TEX standard 100 Certified Eco Friendly and Sustainable. Made in India. Pre-shrunk to 3-5%. Bleached with GOTS-approved hydrogen peroxide.   
• Organic Natural Zipper, 22″ Cut to fit
• Organic Cotton White Thread
• Organic Polished River Shell Buttons, 3

Other Notions:

• 1/2″ Covered Set In Shoulder Pads

Dye:

• I achieved a soft mauve grey  on the pants using Pomegranate, Cutch and Iron (no mordant) leftover from Aquarelle Liquid Dye Kit, Botanical Colors.

I love sewing from Vogue Patterns- I learn a new technique every time I make one of the designer patterns.  This pattern has a beautifully designed interior facing made in two parts as well as lovely mitered vents on the sides. The back also has a center seam with a pleat added on the interior facing for ease of movement.  I cut this in a straight 16 (38-30-40).  I was taking no chances on the sizing.  I find the vintage patterns tend to be more true to actual measurements then some of the newer patterns.

The jacket fit was great as is.  For the pant I compared the pattern first to my sloper and only needed to shave off a tiny sliver from the crotch.  The fit on these pants are amazing!  Especially considering I didn’t make a muslin first.  I wasn’t sure at first about this slim fit and high waist but I think they look fantastic!  The pockets are perfect and the silhouette is so slimming and elegant.  I love the darts for added shaping.

The only issue I had was the length of the zipper on the pattern.  It extends very far down and is really not necessary.  I’ll alter it next time to a much shorter length and redo the placket by hand on this pair.  I went for a more couture finish on these pants with a snap and two hand sewn chain bars and hooks for the waist closure.

The finishing on the jacket features invisible hand sewn hems on the pants and sleeves as well as sewn in shoulder pads.  I thought I’d leave them off at first but the really are needed to square out the shoulder and maintain the silhouette on this pattern.  Once I put them in it fit perfectly.

I love that this outfit will be so versatile.  I’m thinking the jacket will look great with jeans in the fall and the pants will go with so much I’ve already sewn in my wardrobe.  I’m so happy with how the dyeing turned out.  I looked through some of my dye books for ideas on getting the color I wanted when I ran across this post from Folk Fibers and loved the results from using no mordant.  I used what was leftover from my Aquarelle Dye Kit, a batch of pomegranate liquid dye, some cutch and iron. Probably my simplest dye process yet.

I found the most beautiful background in my own backyard.  It’s amazing how different the landscape is from one coast to the other.  It’s so lush here in Plantation.  Shade everywhere! Plus we get the most amazing breezes from the ocean which makes such a difference to the heat of summer.  We were back in Estero last week for the 4th of July visiting our parents and were shocked at how hot it was in comparison.  We’re really loving our new home!