My collection is called “Brown is the New Black2” I work in a very corporate setting and there can be weeks at a time when we are wearing very professional attire. The thing that bothers me about it, is that most of the women will appear in all black for days at a time! All black suits with white shirts or at most a striped shirt with a little color! So since starting this job I have made brown my suit color of choice for those days. So I was thrilled when Elizabeth announced the “no black” rule. Originally I wanted to make a very colorful wardrobe but that is not my reality so “Brown is the new Black” was born. I recently added a 2 to the end of mine when I discovered that Karen Dee and I had picked the exact same names for our collection! Without further ado, my collection: The Jacket is from Butterick Pattern #5194. This pattern was one of several candidates for the jacket but it won because it’s length works well with the pleated skirt portion of the dress. And it was inspired by a suit that I saw at Barrie Pace (www.Barriepace.com) the piping on the inspirational suit really spoke to me. The base fabric is a brown rayon/linen called Treebark and purchased from Fabric Mart. (www.Fabricmartfabrics.com) The dress which is the star of my collection…IMHO is from my TNT dress pattern. This dress has evolved from the original OOP Butterick #5932. I have been working with this pattern for over a decade now and can get pretty much any look I want from it. I used a medium weight linen from Textile Studios for this garment and the brown accents are from the base fabric used in the jacket and pants. I love pleats and showcased them right at the hem of the dress…the scooped u-neck makes the dress look fresh and new and florals are hot, hot, hot for summer. The tank is again a TNT pattern (Sewing Workshop’s Mission Tank) and made from a lightweight silk charmeuse. This tank is a workhorse in my wardrobe and is perfect under the jacket and pants or alone with the pants for a hot summer day or evening event. The pants are again from a TNT pattern. I have traced this pattern so many times that I no longer know it’s origin. But when I need a pair of pants this pattern comes out and just works for me. The pants are made in the base fabric of treebark rayon/linen blend. Why I should win? I entered more for the fun of planning a mini-wardrobe…something that would give me 5 great looks with 4 pieces. Winning isn’t everything…just getting these pieces made and into the closet is the greatest achievement.

This is a fantastic find! I believe it is from the 1970s. There is a tag but I can't read it. It's made of a thick polyester double knit fabric. The whole set has been tie dyed in a great rosy red color. The shirt can be worn closed or open and used like a jacket. The pants have an elastic waist and a stitched crease down the front. Size 10.