HOW TO SEW A CLAUDIA COMBISHORT?

Hello lemons,

I'd like to start this week by thanking you for all the comments you left me under the previous article, the reactions it provoked touched me enormously you have no idea. Reading your words, e-mails or even chatting with you when I met some of you, it literally made me feel so good. So I've come here to tell you all about the Pince-me, Pince-moi! collection. I think my questioning of Wear Lemonade's place here on this blog has upset me and almost prevented me from writing these lines... 

So to tell you a little about this lobster motif, it had been designed for the Princesse Tam-Tam collection but for some internal political reason inherent in big companies, my lobsters were cancelled. Infinite sadness. So I decided not to let it get me down, and I had absolutely no desire to put off using this motif until next year. And while we were talking at the office, we thought it might be possible to add a little collection for midsummer, because all of us at the office have made the observation that we only wear 10% of our suitcases on vacation and that we always rotate the same clothes. So, after many heated discussions with Laure, we decided we had to come up with the perfect suitcase. Comfortable, easy pieces that flatter us and that we want to wear every day. It was an ambitious gamble, but one we loved to take, and that's how Pince-me et Pince-moi came to the studio. The ideal suitcase, offbeat with lobsters, because I don't know if you've noticed, but the lobster motif is clearly the new pineapple... 

And then, I have to tell you this because I love this story... In life, you don't know it but I have an impressive musical culture of crappy 90s hits, old-fashioned French chanson classics and late-night wedding songs. Guilty pleasures" are my other passion ... I should make playlists for you, because I realize that my knowledge of these titles is mind-boggling. But it's not limited to the lyrics, I have very precise memories of the clothes and settings of all those clips I watched for thousands of hours as a teenager in front of MTV, MCM or M6. For the '80s and '90s, I've got it down. But when it comes to older songs, I hone my skills by watching YouTube videos of old TV shows: Joe Dassin, Dutronc, Eddy Mitchell and more keep me up at night.

I see you coming, I could clearly use these information-absorbing skills to pass my code or learn a new language. But no, I'm able to retain the tiniest detail of the outfit in a Sheila video, but not the end-of-priority sign. It's ugly. I'm telling you this because I've been wanting to make a terrycloth combi-short for a long time, something a bit 70s. I love this pilou material, and luckily one of our great Portuguese manufacturers had a super-quality terry velvet, so all I needed was the perfect shape. The idea of the combi remained in the back of my mind, until I came across a TV performance by Claude François, "Si je vais à Rio". RED ALERT, the Claudettes' satin combishort is divine! A little short if you ask me, but insane. I tell the lemons about it, and they're thrilled! I think at the office we share a taste for improbable songs and some very pointed references in terms of dubious musicals... I digress, but I'll let you watch this Cloclo video and tell me all about it! So we decided to adapt the top of our Dita dress over a pair of not-too-short shorts and add a white trim over a vibrant poppy and navy blue for a retro look to die for. And boom, let me introduce you to Claudia! 

For those of you who missed it, we were lucky enough to collaborate with Modes & Travaux this summer, for 5.95 euros you can get the magazine and the pattern for the Claudia jumpsuit! And we've decided to offer it as a bonus to you, our PDF subscribers too... So it's a bit of a party! You'll find the video above. By the way, we're preparing another big surprise for you with this magazine, but I'll tell you more about it when the time comes, I promise (I've got a thousand things to tell you about it). What you need to know to sew Claudia :  This pattern is designed to be sewn in knitwear. However, if you prefer fabric, cut it on the bias for the legs and cut the waist above your usual size. We really recommend knitwear, but a fabric containing elastane will do.

•  You'll need 2 m of fabric for a width of 1.40 m. 
•  For a perfect finish, you'll need 6 m of pre-folded bias tape in the color of your choice, and a 1.50 m cord/lace/coarse grain. 
•  Download the pattern in your subscription area at Lemonade Pattern CornerYou'll need to assemble around 40 pages, or it's easier to find the pattern in the August issue of Modes et Travaux for 5.95 euros!

I'd like to give you a kiss and share with you the spinning skirt tutorial: Maeva. But I'll let Laure, our pattern queen, tell you all about it! See you soon. Photographs Laurence Revol. Make up Laurence Maestrello.