So Jess Sew - Ellie and Mac South Shore Romper

This is the Ellie and Mac South Shore Romper, a super cute and fun pattern. It's really not too difficult, a few things just went awry for me...

So, this was one of those sews where nothing went quite right. Perhaps you have had this sort of thing happen to you too? First of all, I ran out of the blue modal fabric, so I had to do some digging and found a coordinating gray dbp fabric. I cut the band and tie in the same gray color. That worked out okay.

Second,  I lengthened the bodice per the pattern instructions. The pattern is drafted for a 8 inch side waist, and I measured my side waist to be 9.5 inches. So I lengthened the bodice by 1.5 inches. The pattern is drafted for a 5'4" person, and I'm 5'5" so I thought I would just leave the bottom half alone and be golden. I got it all sewn together and the inseam was low, and the shorts were just above my knee. I know I have a short rise, I should have expected this!

So, I tried the shorts on and made a mark where I liked how they fit and looked. After cutting the shorts at the mark I made, I re-attached the elastic (btw, I should have used knit elastic, but I used braided and you'll see in the pics if you look closely that it is a bit stiff and therefore wavy, anyway...) to the top of the shorts, BUT I made a mistake and had to seam rip a bit off at the beginning and accidentally put a hole in the fabric! Agh! I finished attaching the elastic and sewed them into the top and realized you could totally see white thread stitching at the seam. Next time I'll use a narrower stitch on the serger when attaching the elastic. I fixed this by using a zig-zag stitch on the sewing machine just outside the visible stitching and it fixed the issue.

Now, what about that hole I made earlier? It's small and in the back, so after top stitching the elastic, I darned the hole with matching thread on the sewing machine. Voila, done! Or so I thought until I got to my closet to hang it up and realized I just darned the hole to the top of the bodice!

:(

I slept on it and picked the stitches out the next day. I was REALLY careful not to make another hole this time. After re-darning the hole without attaching to any other part of the garment, it was truly finished.

I say this to myself all the time, but I really learn something new with every project. I'm sure that's true for you too. Try not to let your mistakes get you down, and instead treat them as a lesson for next time! I still got a super cute romper out of the deal!

I haven't owned a romper in my adult years. It's so comfortable! It feels like pajamas, but looks really cute. The criss-cross top makes it really easy to get on and off. Here's the back, I had enough of the blue fabric to make the back of the bodice. I really like how the shorts are a bit loose at the bottom, it's super flattering.

This post contains affiliate links.

The pattern does come with an optional tie as well. I like it both ways, with and without the tie. A more drapy fabric would allow the tie to look cute in a bow too.

Here it is with the tie in the back, it does cinch in the waist nicely.

I'll make another, but next time I'll know how much to add and subtract in the length and hopefully not make those same silly mistakes again!

You can see the pattern on the website HERE. Hope you enjoyed reading about my silly mistakes.

Leave me all your comments and questions below!

Happy Sewing