Ever since Liz Haywood sent me her book “Zero Waste Sewing” I wanted to make the playsuit as it looked like fun.

I happened to be on an unexpectedly long extended stay at our holiday place with the book about my person and decided I’d give it a go. I mapped it all out on tracing vilene and cast around for some fabric. I began eyeing off our bed linen, which I think is perfect for zero waste but managed to resist and found a nice doona cover in a nearby op shop. One side has a big print, but the other side was this spotted fabric. I thought a wearable toile might be on the cards.

I got so engrossed in the whole drafting process that I didn’t take a single photo of it, but I did manage to snap one of me sewing it outdoors in the glorious spring weather.

When I was drafting the pattern I noticed that I needed to measure my body length and discovered that I am 8cm shorter than average in the body. How nice it would be to have that extra 8cm! I duly deducted this amount from my pattern as instructed in the book, and carried on. However, when I made the playsuit up I noticed that it is considerably longer than it should be. I wonder if I transferred the 8cm to the leg length, as the playsuit is certainly not supposed to be finishing at my knees!

The photos in the bush are really fit photos as I didn’t have any buttons with me. In the one above I notice that the belt is sitting too high at the front so I unpicked and dropped it.

I think I did place the belt and pockets too high and if they were dropped a few centimetres the playsuit could be bloused over the belt and this would also shorten it. However to do this now would mean unpicking the pockets and the belt channel, so I’m chalking it up to experience.

I would have reduced the length but I really love the shape of the hem and didn’t want to unpick the side seams.

back home, buttons and buttonholes done and a rather inelegant pose to show that this does have a bifurcated bottom half and is not a dress as it appears!

I decided on some red buttons about the same size as the spots.

Whilst I was making this, I decided to use some of the tiny scraps to embellish the playsuit. I’ve been untangling a bag of embroidery thread and used some of it to embroider parts of the playsuit. I began by putting a little tab on the back, above the back pleat. I then stitched round the dot and the edge of the tab.

I wanted to channel my friend Jayne from @janyeraven on Instagram who sent me a beautiful handmade button with “we not me” stamped on it. I love the phrase, so I added a pocket made from a couple of scraps and stitched it on.

And then, for the hell of it, I added a little trim to one of the sleeves, also sashiko stitched.

Ever since Liz sent me the book I’ve been wanting to make the playsuit, and I’m so happy to have done it. I think I have accounted for all my mistakes in this toile which means that I can make a real one which should be perfect. However, as this looks like a dress it will be easy to wear in public, so I consider that a win.

I am entering this in the “Make a Garment a Month” #magamsewalong Outstanding October challenge, as I consider this make has been outstanding ever since I received the book. Also, an interesting zero waste pattern is always outstanding to make.