Jul 21, 2014

Finished Project: Wonder Woman Swimsuit!

I would tell you how to make this Wonder Woman swimsuit I created for my six-year-old, but it's probably copyright infringement. Also, I'm feeling a little protective of this project; a lot of work went into drafting and sewing a wearable Wonder Woman swimsuit — and if the whole world had one....well, it just wouldn't seem as special:
Feeling pretty special

I may be living out my own childhood fantasies a little with this make (I watched a lot of re-runs of the TV show in the '80s), but my kid actually did request it. We watch Youtube clips of Linda Carter as Wonder Woman. My daughter is particularly into the "Bullets and Bracelets" sequence in the origin story

I started with a basic swimsuit pattern and then redrafted to create three pieces: the bottom, the belt and the top:


The fabrics are all from Spandex House in NYC's Garment District. Their minimum purchase is a yard, so I ended up with a lot of each fabric. Thus, I decided to make a matching circle skirt, which my daughter can pull on for apres-beach (or apres-pool) wear:



I machine-appliqued the golden eagle design onto the front before sewing together the suit. It's no easy feat to applique one stretch fabric onto another, so I used several layers of wash-away stabilizer to reduce waviness along the stitch line:



 I have yet to make a matching swimcap, so for swimming lessons this week she wore a blue and white polka dot one. I think it's close enough:


It's the suit I would have wanted as a kid. (And yes, admittedly, I do still kind of covet — though, no I am not going to go there...and if I did, it would be, like, a secret thing just between me and Batman).

Do you have any dream projects inspired by a childhood obsession? What would your six-year-old self ask you to make?

30 comments:

  1. I love it -- especially with all the matching accessories. I think this needs to be part of a mother-daughter ensemble (hint, hint).

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    1. Ha! I am using the remaining fabric for a couple swimsuits for myself. We'll be cor-ordinated...but hopefully we dont look like a crime-fighting duo!

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  2. That is the most fabulous suit ever!

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  3. Best swimsuit ever. I especially love the skirt. Your daughter is adorable!

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    1. Thanks! I used Figgy's Patterns circle skirt tutorial for the skirt. Super easy.

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  4. Awesome! She's a very lucky girl to get such a great suit!

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    1. She IS a lucky girl. And for once she kind of acknowledged that, which is amazing.

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  5. I'll have to make sure my daughter NEVER sees this post.

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    1. Ha! Sorry, lady. Just order one from marvel.com or whatever like a normal person...

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  6. Omg, that is adorable. I agree with Peter -- mommy and me matching is always in style, amirite?

    My 6-year-old self would have wanted a massive floofy crinoline skirt of some variety. At that age, I was very into wearing all of my skirts at one time to try to get a floofy Cinderella skirt. :D

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  7. I usually find mommy-and-me outfits creepy, but count me on the bandwagon in this case! Awesome awesome swimsuit!

    My prize garment from childhood was Batgirl underoos. ;-)

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  8. so awesome! my kids love wonder woman and they would totally love this suit! the matching skirt is a great idea!

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  9. That is adorable!!! She will always remember that suit. So much love!!

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  10. It came out so great! You are one fantastic mom.

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  11. Unreal! Great to see she's into WW rather than wanting a princess swimsuit!

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    1. YES, exactly. Though techinically Wonder Woman WAS a princess!

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  12. This is SO AWESOME! I love it so much I may need to make a version like this for myself!

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  13. That toothless grin says it all! It's wonderful! You, my dear, are a creative genius!

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    1. Yes, two teeth out in a week and no tears — this kid is the real wonderwoman!

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  14. i've had this window open since you posted because ALL OF THE SMILES.

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  15. This is so, so fabulous. It's happiness in a swimsuit!

    My mom did sew for me when I was 6, so I was pretty lucky. It didn't happen very often as I'm the oldest of five kids and there's only so much time in the day with that many people in a house, but I had a few outfits I LOVED. One was a turquoise-pink-purple-black southwestern-inspired print vest that I wore with glee when I rode my pony. My sister and I also have really, really terrible photos in matching pink (my sister) and purple (me) sequined vests that we wore over silk shirts from JC Penney. They are TERRIBLE, but we were so proud of them at the time!

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  16. This is pretty much the best thing I have ever seen. Awesome!!!

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