What I Wore to Frocktails: Shopping My Handmade Closet

One of the things I love about having a handmade wardrobe is being able to pull together an outfit for a special occasion without sewing something new. That's exactly what I did for the first Western Michigan Frocktails in Grand Rapids!

I'd purchased my ticket months earlier, but between other sewing projects and making a formal gown for my daughter, I suddenly realized I hadn't planned what to wear. Thankfully, I had two garments in my closet that I'd made years ago, and together they became an outfit I absolutely loved.

Today I'm sharing my Frocktails experience, the sewing patterns and fabrics behind my outfit, and how I made a skirt from 2018 work with my current color palette.

Read on or watch here:

What Is Frocktails, and Why Should You Go?

If you've never heard of Frocktails, it's a social event for garment sewists to dress up in something they've made, connect with other sewists, and celebrate our shared love of creating clothes.

I attended the first Western Michigan Frocktails in Grand Rapids during the first weekend of October. I traveled with a couple of friends, and we made a weekend of it! We stayed downtown, enjoyed beautiful fall weather, and even checked out a little of ArtPrize, which was happening at the same time.

The event included dinner, dessert, games, prizes, and a fashion show where everyone had an opportunity to walk the runway. TomKat Stitchery was even one of the sponsors, giving away a couple of our digital sewing classes!

But my favorite part was being surrounded by other garment sewists.

We talked about favorite patterns, fitting adjustments, pattern companies, and all those little details that only another sewist truly appreciates. It was such a joy to spend an evening with people who share that enthusiasm.

If you have an opportunity to attend a Frocktails event, I highly recommend it!

Shopping My Handmade Closet for Frocktails

The theme for the evening was to wear something you love, whether that's a favorite color, sewing pattern, or garment that makes you feel wonderful.

For me, what I loved most was that I didn't have to make anything new!

I started with a full, pleated skirt I'd made in 2018 for my cousin's wedding and paired it with a merino wool knit top I'd originally sewn for a completely different outfit.

Neither garment was new, but together they created something that felt fresh and special.

Simplicity S8743: My Handmade Formal Skirt

Pattern: Simplicity S8743

I made this skirt in 2018 using a beautiful polyester taffeta purchased at a fabric store in Nashville. It has plenty of volume and is exactly the kind of skirt that feels special when you put it on.

Some of my favorite features include:

• Full, pleated skirt with lots of volume
• Side zipper closure
• Pockets
• Beautiful waist tie
• Lining with an attached gathered tulle layer for fullness

Why did I interline my taffeta skirt?

Taffeta tends to develop very sharp creases when pressed. I wanted the pleats to be noticeable without looking overly crisp, so I interlined the entire skirt with an old cotton bedsheet.

It worked beautifully!

The cotton added structure while softening the pleats. It's a great example of how interlining can change the way a fabric behaves in a finished garment.

I also hand-sewed a blind hem all the way around the skirt, which, if I remember correctly, took forever!

The gathered tulle attached to the lining helps support the fullness and gives the skirt its wonderful shape.

When I pulled the skirt out for Frocktails, I noticed the acetate lining had dropped over time and needed rehemming. Fortunately, the outer skirt was still in excellent condition.

Eight years later, I'm still glad I made it!

Liesl + Co Maritime Tee: A Merino Wool Knit Top

Pattern: Liesl + Co Maritime Knit Top

Similar Fabric: ZQ Premium Merino Jersey in Peacock from The Fabric Store

The second piece of my outfit was a Liesl + Co Maritime Tee made several years ago using a beautiful dark peacock-colored merino wool jersey.

I made the three-quarter-length sleeve version, and it's become one of those garments that works with so many things in my wardrobe.

Merino jersey gives it a slightly sweater-like feel while maintaining the comfort of a T-shirt. It's easy to dress up or down, and the dark peacock color works beautifully with my coloring.

For Frocktails, the simpler silhouette balanced the volume of my skirt. And because I'd worn it many times before, I knew I'd be comfortable throughout the evening.

How I Used My Color Palette to Make an Older Outfit Work

Here's something interesting about this skirt: I made it before I had my colors professionally analyzed.

At the time, my mother had convinced me I was a summer. Turns out, I'm definitely not!

I'm a Copper Spring, and warm colors are particularly flattering on me.

I had my colors analyzed through Color Guru*, and now I use my 35-color palette as a guide when choosing fabrics and planning garments.

Use code TOMKATCOLOR for 10% off at Color Guru.*

Having a color palette makes shopping for fabric and building a cohesive handmade wardrobe so much easier.

Can You Wear Handmade Clothes That Aren't in Your Color Palette?

Absolutely!

This skirt isn't necessarily in my ideal color palette, but that doesn't mean I have to stop wearing it.

When I originally made it, I paired it with a beautiful aqua turtleneck. I wore that combination to my cousin's wedding in 2018 and again when I was the emcee for a sewing fashion show in 2019.

I've since passed the aqua top along to my daughter, whose coloring is better suited to those cooler tones.

For Frocktails, I wanted a different combination.

That's where my peacock-colored Maritime Tee came in. Peacock is on my Copper Spring color card, and because it's the color closest to my face, it works beautifully with my complexion.

The peacock isn't a color repeated in the skirt, but I still think the combination works!

You don't have to get rid of every garment that falls outside your color palette. Sometimes changing what you wear near your face is enough to make an older piece work again.

Giving My Handmade Skirt a Second Life

One unexpected benefit of pulling this skirt out was discovering that it would also be perfect for my daughter!

She's involved in ballroom dancing at school and attends two formal dances each year. I've been making her dresses for these events, and one of her biggest requirements is plenty of twirlability.

Well, this skirt certainly checks that box!

She was home for fall break, so I asked her to try it on for her Valentine's dance in February. She loved it!

Interestingly, I needed a waist extender to wear the skirt myself, but without the extender, it fits her perfectly.

I'll need to shorten the skirt by about an inch and fix the lining. Then we'll make a fun top to go with it, perhaps something sparkly in pink or silver, creating a beautiful two-piece formal outfit.

That means this skirt is officially moving from my closet into hers!

I got three wonderful wears out of it over eight years, and now it gets to be part of another special occasion.

Do You Need to Sew Something New for Frocktails?

Not at all, and I hope my outfit is a good reminder of that!

It's easy to feel like a special sewing event calls for a brand-new garment, especially when you'll be surrounded by people who appreciate beautiful handmade clothes.

But there's something equally wonderful about wearing a garment you made years ago and still love.

I felt great in my outfit. Everything fit, I was comfortable, and I knew I was wearing something I'd made with my own two hands.

I even wore pink platform sneakers underneath my skirt because we were walking to the venue. They were perfect!

I didn't spend the weeks leading up to the event rushing to finish something new. I simply enjoyed wearing what I already had.

Celebrating the Clothes We Make

Our handmade wardrobes deserve to be worn and enjoyed!

Sometimes that means making something new for a special occasion. Other times, it means pulling out an older favorite, finding a new way to style it, and remembering why you loved making it.

Frocktails was such a fun opportunity to celebrate garment sewing with people who understand the time, thought, and care that go into our clothes.

And I loved doing that in two pieces that had already been part of my wardrobe for years.

If you've never attended a Frocktails event, I hope you'll consider going to one near you. I'd love to meet more of you at one of these gatherings in the future!

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