I’ve sewn a bunch of garments since returning from my Paris trip–three dresses, a few tops, a skirt, prototype pants for my class–but I just haven’t had a chance to document most of them. So, this bodysuit here isn’t a rare finished project, it’s just one of the few I’ve actually taken photos of! Actually, I tried it on after finishing to make sure the final product looked good and just went ahead and set up my tripod for the pics. Efficiency!
I have a couple of garments that I was having trouble finding tops to go with–a high waisted skirt that I made as a tester for Blank Slate (above) and a few cute wrap skirts (here and here). It occurred to me that a bodysuit would go well with both types of skirts. So I bought one. And while it’s super adorable and awesome, it wasn’t cheap and I had to employ my sewing machine to alter the crotch depth anyhow. I’ve made bathing suits, so it was sheer laziness that caused me to take so long to just buy a pattern and sew a darn bodysuit. (Which is lazy unto itself because I’ve actually drafted a bodysuit pattern in my past and I just didn’t feel like sizing it down.)
Anyhow, laziness aside, I bought the Nettie bodysuit pattern and cut out the size 2, grading down to 0 at the hips. I quickly realized that the back pattern piece would be way too narrow for my broad back and redrafted the back pattern to add width at the armholes and center back (about 2.5 inches at the widest point!). I’m so happy I did because the original version would have been uncomfortably tight.
Actually, the entire bodysuit is a bit tight. It could be my fabric choice, which is stretchy, but not SUPER stretchy. I may try with a different fabric, but sizing up wouldn’t hurt either. It’s absolutely wearable as is, so I’m not too upset about it.
There are a variety of options for the front and back necklines, but the low front was too low and the high too high for me. I drafted my own Goldilocks neckline 🙂 It looks graceful but not too revealing.
I love the low leg holes. They’re the best! My butt is covered! I used three snaps for the crotch, not at all following the instructions (and cutting off about 2″ on the crotch length). The best part about sewing bodysuits (or bathing suits or underwear) is being able to stretch the ribbing or elastic where you want it. I always pull it a little tighter in the part that’s going under my butt and less tight near the hips and crotch.
Overall, I’m pretty thrilled with my bodysuit. I can imagine wearing it a lot this fall, under a wrap sweater like this:
Bea & Lucille 
Tee Hee! Yep…totally cool. I know because I've been doing the same. I've just made three Netties and I can't help myself. I've been prancing around posing like Olga and Nadia. Normal, amirite?
You've chosen a beautiful colour Nicole!
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Great job! Love the fit and colour of your suit – and I prefer this neckline too – who knew “Goldilocks”? I'll have to remember that 🙂
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Looks terrific under that wrap… I love that wrap too. I don't like the feel of low legs at the front (for me). A perfect neckline too.
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Hi, I’m keeping my fingers crossed you spot this even though it’s an old post! I’m having the same issue you had with the bodysuit and the very narrow back pattern piece. I have a broader back too and was wondering how exactly you widened your bodysuit pattern to get the fit right? I know there’s a few methods but I can’t quite figure out how best to do it. It fits well at the waist and hips but far too snug at the back and shoulders. Any advice welcome!
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Hi there! So it’s been a while since I’ve made this body suit, but there are a couple things you can do to widen the back. The best and easiest way to do this is to decrease the depth of the back armhole (so, redraw the back armhole so that it doesn’t cut into the back so much. If you keep the length, you should be fine, but it’s stretch material, so probably not a big deal if it’s a bit shorter.). This would change the back width without changing the bust measurement at all.
If you can’t get enough additional width with this method, perhaps combine that with cutting the pattern horizontally at the waist, then angling the back piece (pivoting at the waist) while laying it along the fold line of the fabric so that the neckline is about 1/2 in in from the fold line when you’re cutting. This will increase your neckline a bit, so remember that when you are cutting your neckline. It will also decrease your side seam length, so you may have to make adjustments there to equalize it with the front side seam.
Not sure this makes sense, but I do this often!
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